Ancient Greek Literature Essays Examples For College & High School Students in PDF

2035 total results

The Common Element in Homer’s Poem “Odyssey” and Steinbeck’s Novel “The Pearl” (440 words, 2 pages)

The Odyssey and The Pearl Loyalty Loyalty to another person or to a cause may be an admirable trait, but itcan lead to either positive or negative consequences. In Homer's epic TheOdyssey and John Steinbeck's novel The Pearl there are characters that showgreat examples of this trait. Penelope in The ... Read More

An Argument Against Odysseus Being a Hero in “The Odyssey” by Homer (784 words, 4 pages)

Odysseus Is Not A Hero A hero is "a man noted for his special achievements" according to thedictionary, but if you ask most people what a hero is, you will get the samegeneral response. They will probably say "someone who does something for otherpeople out of the goodness of his ... Read More

The Development of Desire as Portrayed in the Character Odysseus in The Odyssey (3605 words, 14 pages)

The Development of Desire The development of the male warrior, throughout literature, has a directrelationship with the development of western civilization. The attributes awarrior holds, fall respectively with the attributes that each society held asvaluable. These characteristics, started by societies ideals, become thewarrior's only reasons for continuing their heroics. The ... Read More

The Description of Civil Disobedience in the Short Play, Antigone (286 words, 2 pages)

Antigone Civil Disobedience The short play, Antigone, was written in 441 B.C. by the Greek playwrightSophocles. It deals with some of the most basic problems that affect a society.One of them is Civil Disobedience. Civil Disobedience both a right andresponsibility of a person to fight an unjust law.Government is given ... Read More

The Importance of Conflict as a Necessary Element in Any Literary Work (831 words, 4 pages)

Conflict is a necessary element in any literary work. Conflict is broughtabout when two opposing forces come to grips with each other. In SophiclesAntigone, both external and internal conflicts arise when the will of anindividual opposes the will of the majority. Throughout the Greek tragedy,either side of the conflict is ... Read More

A Literary Analysis of Fate in the Story of King Oedipus by Sophocles (1167 words, 5 pages)

Dealing With Fate The Story of King OedipusThebes is struck by a plague the citizens are dying, and no one knows how toput an end to it. The people look to their great king, Oedipus to save the city.Oedipus, being a great king takes responsibility for saving the people and ... Read More

A Summary of Homer’s Poem Odyssey (881 words, 4 pages)

The Odyssey EssayOdysseus was a virtuous but flawed heroic leader. He was a man of bravery andwisdom. The bravery that Odysseus possessed wasnt always a good virtue tohave. Odysseus virtues were tested in many adventures that showed hisweaknesses and strengths. One of his flaws is that Odysseus has a tendency ... Read More

A Discussion of the Qualities of Homer’s Hero (1438 words, 5 pages)

The Iliad Outline explain the qualities of a Homeric Hero. Who best fits the bill? Why?The Homeric hero strives to be the best among his peers. His goal is to achieve the greatest glory in order to earn the highest honor from his peers, his commander, and finally from his ... Read More

A Comparison of Themes Between John Denver’s Song Calypso and the Odyssey by Homer (629 words, 1 pages)

Many forms of popular culture today are inspired by themes, characters, and other references in various types of classical literature. John Denvers song Calypso parallels with a number of the themes in Homers the Odyssey. The Odysseys themes involving Odysseus journey back home and the aid of gods and goddesses ... Read More

A Comparison of Concepts Between the Odyssey and the Epic of Gilgamesh (847 words, 2 pages)

The Odyssey and The Epic of Gilgamesh (Similarities and Differences)Both The Odyssey and the Epic of Gilgamesh are two incredible stories written long ago everyone knows this but what a lot of people dont is that these two epics share many of the same concepts. Such as the nostro (the ... Read More

A Literary Analysis of the Death of Hectory in Iliad by Homer (387 words, 3 pages)

The Death of Hector is actually just one part of alarger work. The Iliad was written during the DarkAges of Greece by a blind poet named Homer. Itwas mainly entertainment, but today has turned intoa significant, though unrealistic History of the Darkages of Greece.The Iliad was written and performed for ... Read More

The Symbolism of the Cave in Odyssey by Homer (1708 words, 8 pages)

The use of caves in mythology to depict darkness and abandonment has branded it as a symbol of chaos. From this perception other associations are made which connect the cave to prejudices, malevolent spirits, burial sites, sadness, resurrection and intimacy. It is a world to which only few venture, and ... Read More

The Heroic Nature of Odysseus in Odyssey by Homer (1215 words, 2 pages)

Odysseus is a hero of all times thanks to Homer who wrote his story in The Odyssey. Odysseus is a hero in his on time because of all his adventures and characteristics. Homer wrote about the Trojan War, in which Odysseus took part in, in the Iliad, and about Odysseus ... Read More

The Life and Comedy Poems of Aristophanes (1218 words, 6 pages)

Aristophanes was a "craft" comedy poet in the fourth century B.C.during the time of the Peloponnesian War. Aristophanes' usual style wasto be too satirical, and suggesting the outlandish. He shows littlemercy when mocking Socrates and his "new-fangled ideas" which were mostlikely designed to destroy the cohesiveness of society and lead ... Read More

An Overview of The Iliad by Homer and a Comparison to the Asian Culture (549 words, 1 pages)

In the excerpts we read from The Iliad, the characters continuously performed tasks that were considered to be courageous for the sake of honor. With the motive of the task being courage, the tasks were automatically regarded as noble, but there are underlining suggestions that the majority of the "honorable" ... Read More

The Elaborate Style and Use of Language in the Epics “The Iliad” and the Odyssey” (953 words, 2 pages)

Homer, name traditionally assigned to the author of the Iliad and the Odyssey, the two major epics of Greek antiquity. Nothing is known of Homer as an individual, and in fact it is a matter of controversy whether a single person can be said to have written both the Iliad ... Read More

The Portrayal of Women in Homer’s Odyssey (674 words, 1 pages)

Women Portrayed in Homers The Odyssey Women were very important to the Greeks, and they showed this value in many ways. In The Odyssey Homer shows us the different ways women were looked upon through female characters, such as Penelope, Naussica, and Anticlia. With Penelope, a faithful and loving wife ... Read More

An Analysis of the Character of Antigone in Sophocles’ “Antigone” (622 words, 1 pages)

This paper is an essay on Antigone. The story Antigone is a great Greek tragedy. Sophocles, an ancient Greek playwright, is the author of the story. It is a great story. It is known throughout the world. This essay is going to trace the character of Antigone through the beginning, ... Read More

A Review of Maurice Sagoff’s Humorous Distillation of Antigone (521 words, 3 pages)

A HumorousDistillation of Antigone by Maurice Sagoff This poem isquite successful in getting the plot across to the reader.Unfortunatly, that is all he can get across because of hisbeleif that, "inside every fat book is a skinny book trying toget out." Sargoff cannot have character descriptions, themes,or any real detail ... Read More

An Analysis of Simile in the Iliad by Homer (1902 words, 9 pages)

In the Iliad, Homer finds a great tool in the simile. Justby opening the book in a random place the reader is undoubtedlyfaced with one, or within a few pages. Homer seems to useeveryday activities, at least for the audience, his fellowGreeks, in these similes nearly exclusively. When one isconfronted ... Read More

An Analysis of Sophocles’s Tragic Play Oedipus the King (769 words, 4 pages)

Sophocles' "Oedipus the King" is a tragic play which discusses the tragic discovery of Oedipus that he has killed his father andmarried his mother. The story of Oedipus was well known to the athenian's. Oedipus is the embodiement of the perfect Athenian. He is self-confident, intelligent, and strong willed. Ironically ... Read More

The Theme of Classical Greek Religion in Euripides’s Play Hippolytus (1821 words, 8 pages)

The play Hippolytus by the Greek playwright Euripides is one which explores classical Greek religion. Throughout the play, theinfluence of the gods on the actions of the characters is evident, especially when Aphrodite affects the actions of Phaedra. Also central to the plot is the god-god interactions between Artemis and ... Read More

Sopocles as the Great Tragedy Writer (2431 words, 13 pages)

Theater and drama in Ancient Greece took form in about 5th century BCE, with the Sopocles, the great writer of tragedy. In his plays and those of the same genre, heroes and the ideals of life were depicted and glorified. It was believed that man should live for honor and ... Read More

The Ultimate Morality Test in the Bacchae (808 words, 1 pages)

The Ultimate Morality TestThe Bacchae represents an authentic interpretation that is full of temptation in the natural world. I am going to compare the temptations of society that we as individuals encounter everyday with the allure of nature in the Bacchae, specifically focusing on temptation offered by Dionysos. Humans in ... Read More

Five Elements of a Tragedy According to Aristotle (761 words, 1 pages)

Oedipus Rex is a TragedyMany things can describe a tragedy. However, according to definition of a tragedy by Aristotle, there are only five. The play has to have a tragic hero, preferably of noble stature. Second, the tragic hero must have a tragic flaw. Because of that flaw, the hero ... Read More

The Use of Irony in the Play “Oedipus the King” (788 words, 2 pages)

OedipusIn the play "Oedipus," irony is used frequently as and as eloquently by Sophocles to the reveal theme of seeking knowledge. Not knowing the King of Thebes, Oedipus, gives speeches on finding the murderer of the King of Laias and how wretched the poor soil will be when the truth ... Read More

Sophocles Uses Visual and Emotional Imagery in Oedipus the King (1614 words, 2 pages)

Sophocles uses a mixture of both visual and emotional imagery to create the morally questioning, Greek tragedy Oedipus Tyrannos. He presents the audience with an intense drama, which addresses the reality and importance of the gods that the Greeks fervently believed in. The play also forces the audience to ask ... Read More

An Analysis of Irony in the Play Oedipus Rex by Sophocles (488 words, 1 pages)

Oedipus Rex a Greek tragedy written by Sophocles in the early days of antiquity is based upon an even more ancient story in Greek mythology. Sophocles, however, knowing that his audience is aware of the outcome of the play utilizes that foreknowledge to create various situations in which dramatic and ... Read More

The Distinct Conflicting Values of Creon and Antigone (1149 words, 2 pages)

In the play "Antigone" by Sophocles, Creon and Antigone have distinct conflicting values. Antigone first demonstrates feminist logic when she chooses to challenge a powerful male establishment. This establishment is personified by her uncle Creon, who is newly crowned as the King of Thebes. Creon poses to be a major ... Read More

An Analysis of Ignorance in Antigone by Sophocles (505 words, 1 pages)

IgnoranceIn Sophocle's ancient Greek tragedy, Antigone, there is a woman who chooses to go with the feeling inside her heart and obey law of the Gods, rather than to obey civil law. Antigone's bother Eteoles was given a proper burial after a war in their homeland of Thebes. She wants ... Read More

Ancient Greek Literature Essay Examples