How are Medea and Dido similar and how are they different (their characters and their circumstances)? What about Jason and Aeneas?
Paper 2
Choose ONE of the of the following topic/questions and develop an essay response of approximately 750 words (about 2.5 to 4 double-spaced pages,). LABEL YOUR ANSWER CLEARLY. Take your time so that you can produce a polished final product, but don’t wait until the last minute to prepare and submit your essay. Provide a title and a well-organized introductory paragraph. An effective tactic is to re-word the actual topic in that introductory paragraph so that it becomes your thesis statement. As you then go on make a case defending your position, be sure to use supporting evidence from the text(s) for each point that you wish to make. A summarizing conclusion should round things out. You will have until Friday night (March 16, 11:55 PM) to submit your work
1. In your opinion, who is a greater villain and why: Creon in Antigone or Medea in Medea? Is there a way to see one or both of them as not being a villain? (You don’t have to answer both questions)?
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2. How are Medea and Dido similar and how are they different (their characters and their circumstances)? What about Jason and Aeneas?
3. How does Ovid portray the ancient gods and how is that treatment different from Virgil’s portrayal of them? If you see a difference, how would you account for it?
4. Although their works have very little in common, both Ovid and Augustine are writing about "metamorphosis." Briefly explain the basic difference in how each author uses this concept — what causes it, who it happens to, etc. Then you can choose one of them — Ovid or Augustine — and explore his use of the concept in detail.
5. How does Virgil’s conception of the underworld and its inhabitants as described in The Aeneid differ from Dante’s vision of Hell in The Inferno?
6. The gods of Virgil and Ovid often interfere with and even control their characters’ lives. Is this the same kind of relationship that Dante and/or Augustine describe between people and their god? How do the two concepts differ?
7. Choose at least three of the following characters or historical figures and describe where they might be placed in Dante’s version of Hell and why. Be sure to explain your reasoning. — Creon (from Antigone), Antigone, Medea, Jason, Aeneas, Dido, Ovid, and Augustine’s beggar.
8. Dante obviously considers some sins worse than others. Describe any disagreements you have with his rankings and explain your reasoning (don’t choose this question if you agree with everything). If you were designing his hell, how might you change the layout?
9. What do you think Augustine would think of Dante’s portrayal of Hell and the way people end up there and what happens to them?
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By the way, there are no restrictions on what you can talk about in the discussion forum as long as it is related to this class and the works we are reading. That means you can discuss the papers you are working on, post your drafts, ask for each other’s help, or anything else you want to do except copy each other’s work or the work of someone else. You still need to produce your own paper with your own ideas. Remember, as always, that plagiarism warrants automatic failure. Thank you and good luck.
