Mythstory

What is the relationship between myth and history? Has our understanding of this relationship changed because of the work of archaeologists?

Myths are often times just history with religion in them. Take the Epic of Gilgamesh for instance. Gilgamesh was a king of Uruk, but he was not two-thirds divine nor slayed the bull of heaven and humbaba. People poured their religion, which we know today as myth, into the facts to make great stories in which we enjoy today. Another example is The Iliad. In the Iliad, it takes the Trojan war and puts their Greek myths into it. It is quite interesting actually how they make great tales out of regular things such as a war.


I would say yes. If archaeologists had not found things like the Epic of Gilgamesh or The Iliad, then we would not be able to learn about their mixing of myth and history.

Diomedes

Does Diomedes display arete or hubris in Book 5 of the Illiad? Support your answer with evidence from the text.

I'd have to say Diomedes displays hubris, and here is why. Diomedes defies Athena by attacking Apollo when Athena said he could only attack Aphrodite. Athena herself said,"...you must not fight the immortal power head-on, all but one of the deathless gods, this is if Aphrodite daughter of Zeus slips into battle,she's the one to stab with your sharp bronze spear." And so Diomedes does that, but when Apollo comes in, Diomedes attacks him, and therefore defied Athena.

Portraying Characters

How are the characters of Paris, Hector, Menelaus, King Priam and Helen portrayed in Book 3?

Paris) Paris is portrayed quite badly. He is portrayed as a person who can put on a mask for everyone around him, but once he has to show skill, he fails tremendously. Although this may be, Aphrodite seems to be on his side.

Hector) In book 3, Hector, Paris' brother, sees straight through his little bro, and sees what is truly there. He accepts Paris' challenge, and throws him into a one on one battle between him and Menelaus.

Menelaus) Menelaus, Paris' opponent, is literally THE champion of Troy. He is portrayed as a real tough guy who likes war. Although this seems to be true, he settles for defeating one person rather than thousands of needless bloodshed.

King Priam) Sadly, we do not get much description of  King Priam. He is portrayed as a flashy king though. He also seems to appreciate a great person, even if he faces against him in war. We see him actually complementing Agamemnon when Helen tells Priam who Agamemnon is.

Helen) Helen seems to be portrayed as the middle person, but also has a mind of her own. She obviously doesn't like Paris, but isn't really fond of Menelaus. She also seems to be a puppet of Athena's. We see her blaming Athena for everything bad that has happened to her and is happening to her.

Philosophical Idealism

What are the best arguments for or against philosophical idealism?

Pros) Sometimes it is a good way to see things this way, for example, this helps you think about permanent things, and think in concepts rather than being lost in the world. It allows you to think clearer because you can think of a group of things under a certain concept rather than their diversities.

Cons) While this is true, if you go all the way, you cannot see diversities, and are close minded to many things because there is an angle that has no concept. It also blurs what is real and what is simply a man made permanence. You may look at a tree and see its life cycle rather than being able to enjoy the shade in which it gives you.

Minoans and Mycenaeans

Minoans) the Minoens were a sea people in archaic Greece. These people did not have walls on their islands which were around Crete. This was due to their being great at the sea and thinking they could hold their own in the sea without war on their islands. They also were great at art such as architecture and paining. Almost all of these characteristics are opposite for the Myceneans.

Myceneans) the Myceneans were a land people who lived in the archaic Greece era. These people were a land living people around the area  south of the Balkan mountains. They did have great walls and did not have a lot of art. This was because they were at war a lot of the time and were a more serious group rather than taking part of the luxuries they could have like the Minoens.

The Illiad, Book one

Summarize Book one of the Illiad in the context of the Greek terms arete, time, and kleos.

Arete) We see arete hidden throughout the story, but mainly in Agamemnon's argument with Achillies. Agamemnon acceptes Achillies's arete in battle, but basically says he is good at nothing else. Achillies says Agamemnon is excelent at a leadership role, but is no good at all. We also see arete when Achillies talks with his mother. His mother makes a comment to the fact that Achillies has a short life, but an excelent one.

Time) In book one we see a lot of time. It starts with Agamemnon refusing to give the servant of Apollo his daughter back. After that, we hear people talk about Agamemnon throughout the first book as having a lot of stuff, or time. Then, at the council, Agamemnon makes a big deal about needing a replacement for his prize who was the servant of Apollo's daughter. Later Achillies's prize is taken by Agamemnon who needed a replacement, and Achillies asks his mom to ask Zeus to favor the trojans so Agamemnon will need Achilles in battle and give his prize back.

Kleos)  Kleos is a bit harder to see in book one due to the fact that there are no glorious battles, but in Agamemnon's argument with Achillies, there are references to their overall glory. Agamemnon makes reference to Achillies's glory in battle, and Achillies makes a comment to Agamemnon's glory in leadership.

Phoenicia

The Phoenicians lived in Lebanon after descending from Canaan. Phoenicia separated into city-states in 1000BC and fell under Assyria, Persia, and Babylon. Phoenicia contributed to other civilizations greatly through out the years too. They shared metal, timber, purple dye, and other things such as this.