Compare and contrast two heroes from two of the epics we have read: Gilgamesh, the Iliad, the Odyssey, and Ramayana.
ENGL 201 MID-TERM EXAM (This exam is open textbook and open notes.) GUIDELINES: Answer BOTH questions. Do not retell the story. Do not use the framework of the story as your topic sentences. For example, if you begin a paragraph (topic sentence) by stating, “After Agamemnon orders Achilles to ….” you are using the story as the framework of your essay. To avoid the problem expressed in #1 above, use a clear thesis statement, make all your topic sentences refer back to the thesis statement, and use the quotations you selected from the literature to prove your thesis and topic sentences. For example, if your thesis statement is to prove that Agamemnon was arrogant, your topic sentence might state: “Another example of Agamemnon’s arrogance is ….” For QUESTION #1, use a minimum of ten quotations from the literature to prove your point, and follow each quotation with a page reference inside parentheses: (Sophocles 378).
For QUESTIONS #2 and #3, use a minimum of five quotations from the literature to prove your point, and follow each quotation with a page reference inside parentheses: (Sophocles 378). Explain each quotation to demonstrate how this quotation proves your thesis and topic sentence. In explaining quotations, it is often wise to incorporate a key phrase or word from the quotation so that the reader knows exactly what you are referring to. 5. Write in essay form; do not make a list. QUESTION I (50 points)—Use a minimum of 10 quotations and explain their significance fully. Compare and contrast two heroes from two of the epics we have read: Gilgamesh, the Iliad, the Odyssey, and Ramayana. Organize your essay according to Joseph Campbell’s definition of a hero: the hero as a very powerful human being who goes on a quest and overcomes many obstacles in the process of his quest. The purpose of his quest can be to win a war, to slay a giant, to gain some mystical object such as the Holy Grail, to gain immortality, or to gain an understanding that is beyond his reach. He often returns to his homeland with greater wisdom and self-knowledge. Be sure to discuss the hero’s flaw or harmatia or lack of flaw and how this is reflected in the epic. In addition, please take into account the cultural differences evident in each of the epics you select. QUESTION II (50 points: 25 points each)– Use a minimum of 5 quotations for each question and explain their significance fully. Select TWO of the following questions: Using Aristotle’s definition of a tragic hero—#3 on page 2 of this exam—analyze why Oedipus is/is not a tragic hero. Using Aristotle’s definition of a tragic hero—#3 on page 2 of this exam—analyze why Antigone is/is not a tragic hero. Using Aristotle’s definition of a tragic hero—#3 on page 2 of this exam—analyze why Kreon is/is not a tragic hero. Using Aristotle’s definition of a tragic hero—#3 on page 2 of this exam—analyze why Medea is/is not a tragic hero. Explain why Medea in Euripides’ Medea was or was not justified in her actions. Explain the character and role of Teiresias, the blind prophet or soothdayer, in Sophocles’ Oedipus the King and Antigone. Discuss the role of the chorus throughout each of the three Greek tragedies we have read: Oedipus the King, Antigone, and Medea. What is the Chorus’ view of the main character at the beginning of the play, in the middle of the play, and at the end of each tragic drama. 4. Compare and contrast two women from the literature that we have read. Select two of the following women: Chryseis, Penelope, Jocasta, Antigone, Ismene, Medea, Sita, or Draupadi Compare and contrast two men from the literature that we have read. Select two of the following men: Gilgamesh, Enkidu, Achilles, Agamemnon, Hector, Odysseus, Telemachus, Oedipus, Tiresias, Kreon, Jason, Rama, and Laksmana. Do not use any characters you discussed in question #1. Discuss the role the gods played in any two works of literature that we have read; for example, the role of Athena and Zeus in the Iliad and the Odyssey; the role of Ishtar and Shamash in the Epic of Gilgamesh; the role of Apollo in Oedipus the King; the role of Zeus, Aphrodite, and Hades in Antigone; and the role of Hecate, Themis, and Artemis in Medea. There are many other gods you can select. Essay Evaluation: Your two essays will be evaluated by 1) how well you select your evidence to prove your point (in most cases you will need quotations from the text) 2) how well you analyze the evidence and explain how it proves your thesis, and 3) how well written the answer is in terms of standard college writing. IMPORTANT DEFINITIONS HERO—DEFINED Joseph Campbell, who has written many books on the subject of heroes, describes the hero as a very powerful human being who goes on a quest and overcomes many obstacles in the process of his quest. The purpose of his quest can be to win a war, to slay a giant, to gain some mystical object such as the Holy Grail, to gain immortality, or to gain an understanding that is beyond his reach. He often returns to his homeland with greater wisdom and self-knowledge. FLAW OR HARMATIA OF THE EPIC HERO: Often the harmatia of a hero is overweening pride or arrogance; the Greeks referred to this as hubris. Neither Gilgamesh, Achilles, Agamemnon, nor Odysseus, is a perfect human being. Critics argue over whether Rama is perfect or not. DEFINITION OF TRAGIC HERO—APPLIES ONLY TO GREEK TRAGEDY—DRAMA This definition does NOT apply to the EPIC. The protagonist, the hero or chief character of a tragedy, is a person of high estate (usually a king, queen, or member of the royal family), who is neither superlatively good and just nor wholly vicious and depraved, but who is “brought low by some error of judgment or shortcoming (harmatia).”fkt Aristotle’s Poetics, Chapter VI
