ASSIGNMENT
Answer ONLY ONE question from the four listed below for your midterm essay exam.
1. Discuss the theme of pride as the fatal flaw in the following three characters: Gilgamesh in The Epic of Gilgamesh, Odysseus in The Odyssey, and Creon in Antigone, bringinga bout their hubris and what they learn from it. Carefully consider their dialogue and actions as evidence to support yourself with passages from the reading.
2. What is the role of women that demonstrates what is respected and expected of them vs. what is devalued culturally in the female characters in at least three of the readings? Refer to specific characters like Ishtar, Ninsun, Siduri, and/or Shamhat in The Epic of Gilgamesh; Penelope, Athena, Circe, and/or Calypso in The Odyssey, Antigone and Ismene in Antigone; and/or even the female characters who must uphold a social protocol and duties of the courtly life in The Pillow Book.
3. How is the theme of duty conveyed through the characters in at least three of the readings when you consider the depiction of gods/God depicted in the ancient literature as divine vs. flawed and the type of devotion or defiance expressed to them by the characters?
4. Consider the theme of a quest/journey in three of the four readings and compare three of the characters for this theme:
o What must Gilgamesh overcome on his quest for immortality, and does he achieve it during his journey in The Epic of Gilgamesh;
What is Arjuna’s spiritual journey and what must be overcome to achieve his quest for enlightenment and the vision of Krishna’s totality in The Bhagavad-Gita;
What are the obstacles that Odysseus must face on his quest/journey to return home, and does he achieve his goal; and/or…
What are the challenges of courtly life, such as obligations, rituals, rules of taste, protocols, and practices, that Sei Shonagon must confront in her quest/journey for love and beauty (aesthetics)?
