However, Antigone breaks the civil law in order to uphold moral law, divine law, and the law to which the polis is held accountable. Though the drama reflects how an individual relates to the state, it does not as much support the idea of an individual’s independence and rationality as it does the individual’s right to defend the ultimate authority – the will of the gods. The issue within the play evolves when Antigone invokes the power higher than Creon’s decree by arguing that divine law supports her actions. Political decisions in ancient Greece were often based on the will of the gods. Progress in any matter was practically impossible without divine endorsement, or rather, the people’s belief that they were in the gods’ good graces.
This essentially means that without the immortal gods, the Odyssey would not even exist, and the story of Odysseus would be very different to the one told by Homer in the Odyssey. Another key way in which the removal of the gods would weaken the poems integrity is that a crucially exciting, entertaining element of the ancient tale would be missing. This is particularly relevant to modern day readers, as to them, the gods provide an unpredictable fantasy element to the tale making it a more exciting and engaging read. Polyphemus, Poseidon’s son provides arguably one of the Odyssey’s most exciting episodes in Book 9. Upon being trapped in the Cyclops’ cave, Odysseus is forced to create a cunning plan
Each had a very strong sense of individualism, and even when they had bonded for a short period of time, such as during the Persian invasion, they had quickly divided once again. This was because each city-state had their own set of laws and how to be ruled, and they did not find a way to unify with each other. The Ancient Greeks did have other forms of unifications, such as the same religion, language and basic culture, but none of these factors
David Malouf’s Ransom a retelling of Homers famous Illiad explores the theme of identity, choice and fate. In spite of the major roles fate and choice have in shaping a person ultimately it is chance that determines who and what they are. In Greek mythology it is believed that everybody’s lives have been predetermined and some of them know their fate affecting their identity. Early in Ransom the idea of chance is introduced and this allows the characters to take unexpected choices changing both Achilles and Priam. Along with chance choice was introduced allowing characters to take actions out of character and change their identity.
Lindquist 1 Veronica Lindquist Mrs. Harmon English 1 13 February 2012 A Tale of Two Rights? It is easy to choose which character to favor in a story of right versus wrong, but is this the case in a story representing the collision of two rights? Tales such as this cause the reader to question their very own morals upon developing a point of view regarding who or what is right. This is considered to be the case in Antigone, an original work by Greek playwright Sophocles, by many critics and readers. However, there is an imbalance of justification of the actions of Antigone and Creon, the oppositions of the play, being that Antigone believed in divine law, while as Creon believed in human law.
They were the moral values in which the entire Greek society was built and supported. Despite the fact that violating moral pillars back then could result in serious consequences, the characters did not seem to keep that in mind because they committed their acts so willingly. I think Sophocles was trying to get the point across that looks can be deceiving. I say this because society at that time was supposedly so pure, and the fact that all these characters violated the moral values in which their society was founded shows that there may be more than meets the eye. The characters that disobey pillars in this play are Oedipus, Laos, Jocasta, the party goer, and the shepherd.
I believe tyrannical rulers throughout the History of Ancient Greece directly brought about the establishment of early Democracy Plato and Aristotle define a tyrant as, "one who rules without law, looks to his own advantage rather than that of his subjects, and uses extreme and cruel tactics against his own people as well as others"] One of the most notable tyrants whom did not embody the modern designation of what a tyrant would be, was Peisistratos. After several unsuccessful attempts he seized power in Athen in 546 BCE and ruled until his death in 527 BCE, after which he was succeeded by his two sons, Hippias and Hipparchos. The difference in his methods was that unlike other tyrants both before him and a after him, was that even after he overthrew the aristocracy in Athens and all other threats, he was a kind and considerate leader and not what one would view today as a typical tyrant. The negative connotation of the label, tyrant originated in fifth-century Athens, where the democrats more or less created the tyrant as their anti-type to advance the democratic movement, most probably after Peisistratos rule. Therefore, Greek history itself clarifies to some extent that Tyranny was not thought of by Greeks as a bad title, not in the context of certain tyrants, though.
A.) How do the Gods influence human actions in both the Iliad and the Agamemnon? In what way are these influences similar or different in one work compared to the other? In Ancient Greece, many literary and poetic works put huge amounts of emphasis on the divine intervention of Gods, which can easily be seen through the poetics of Homer’s Iliad, and Aeschylus’ Agamemnon. Although both writings use the Gods to thicken the plot and add “immortal” thrill to the story line, the real similarities in both stories can be seen through the use of Gods as a scapegoat for tragedy caused at the hand of mortals.
Achilleus’ temporary resignation alienated him from the Greeks, as they are in great need of him, and it makes him seem like much less of a hero to modern readers today. However, in a time much different from our own, somewhere around 750 and 550 BC, it is very likely that their ancient society may have deemed the absence as justified and perhaps even commendable. The best way to obtain an understand of that society is by using Homer’s text as a guide. This understanding is that the main theme of The Iliad is that the anger of Achilleus, according to Homer’s conveyance of the idea of justice in his text, isn’t justified. In the very beginning of the epic, Homer immediately places the blame for Achilleus’ anger against Agamemnon on Apollo, Zeus’ son who strikes from afar: “What god was it then set them together in bitter collision?
Only with her can Odysseus survive his dangerous adventures. She discusses with Zeus his freedom and safety at other parts of the poem. Ultimately, the gods decide what happens in the mortal world. The next theme in The Odyssey is how Odysseus falls to temptation. Though he is usually a smart, decisive leader Odysseus does make some mistakes.