Monthly Archives: October 2018

WEEK 9: THE ODYSSEY ; CHAPTERS 17 TO 24

The ending of The Odyssey was exactly just as expected however, it was still quite entertaining to read. We are subjected to the themes of nostos and kleos even more. Odysseus actually arrives back to Ithaca and meets his son, Telemachus! It was nice to see this encounter between them, being that Telemachus grew up with no father because of Odysseus leaving for the war and having trouble to come back. Kleos is especially prevalent when Penelope conducts the bow and quiver test to pick a suitor she will marry. No one is capable of putting the string to the bow, not even Telemachus, although he is close. Then Odysseus comes and complete’s Penelope’s task, revealing himself to her and the suitors before he kills them all. I believe that in that society, Odysseus did the rightful action of killing Penelope’s suitors because they were a threat to Odysseus, his family, and kleos. My favorite part of the ending was when Penelope still had doubt that Odysseus was Odysseus because who knows? It may just be a god in disguise and trying to woo over Penelope. So Penelope puts him to the test by telling a servant to move the bed and he essentially tells her that it’s unmovable because he made the bed. This act shows how much Penelope cares for Odysseus and how faithful she is to him. I thought it was a really sweet moment to include in the book.

WEEK 8: THE ODYSSEY ; CHAPTERS 1 TO 8

I’ve always really wanted to read The Odyssey, we were supposed to freshman year in high school. However, my English teacher at the time ended up getting fire. So I’m grateful that the opportunity arose to read it for World Humanities. Reading not even half  page, I was hooked on. I really appreciate the plot and began comparing it to the Bible. We see the dos here in a more humanistic light because we are able to see their interactions for one another. We also see how they directly intervene in human’s lives. In the Bible, God only had direct contact with Adam and Eve. What I mean by direct contact is how God would walk in the Garden of Eden with them. After the Disobedience of Man we can see he only speaks to them with his voice, dreams, angels, and Jesus. However, in The Odyssey we can see how Athena, a prime example, disguises herself into Mentes and Mentor. We can see here how much the gods care because they go to great lengths to interfere in human lives. This is especially visible when Athena disguises herself as Telemakhos to get him a ship and crew. Furthermore this shows, that gods help create a situation to help fix problems of man. This reminds me of church, where sometimes there would be prayers made to have God intervene for us in a situation. Through faith some people have gotten their responses, however has it ever been in such a manner presented in The Odyssey? I just like to think about the possibility of having a supreme being among us, working for the betterment of our lives.

WEEK 7: KJB MATTHEW ; CHAPTERS 9 TO 17

During these chapters, we can see Jesus’ journey being a hero of the Bible. He’s literally saving the world because he cures a leper, a paralytic, and a hemorrhaging woman. On top of that, he exorcizes demons and resurrects a dead girl. This adds a supernatural aspect to the Bible making it quite interesting from a literature point of view. Someone who reads literature would applaud it and hower not believe that it happens in reality. In my religious experience, I have not seen someone be brought back to life but I have seen people have demons cast out of them. Having grown up in the church, seeing exorcisms are not scary and almost normal to talk about. However, I wonder about what people, who have no religious context, would think about the exorcisms if they were to see it spontaneously happen before them. Quite frankly, I also want to see what my peers and classmates have to say about the supernatural element within this work of literature. Especially, since we do not have the same experiences they would question what I know and I have seen.

WEEK 6: KJB MATTHEW ; CHAPTERS 1 TO 8

When talking about the Bible, Jesus is the ultimate figure due to the fact he is God’s son and the carnal being of the Holy Trinity. I’m fascinated to see how Jesus is perceived through a literature lens because again all I’ve know the Bible as is a religious scripture that you base your life around. Within chapters 1 to 8 you can apply to the structure of what makes a hero a hero. The call, the journey, and the transformation. Jesus’ calling is when the Angel says to Joseph, “He shall save his people from their sins.” Secondly, his journey is the fact that Herod ordered the slaying of the infants, putting Jesus’ life in peril. Lastly, Jesus’ transformation is when he gets baptized by John the Baptist and also overcomes temptation. Jesus embodies all the heroic requirements which make him a hero in a literature point of view, which can also contribute to the reason people love him and worship him in real life. I know I used to or still do, who knows…

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