Post 28: Final

 My favorite blogger this semester was Jnan. This is because his posts had some interesting points, and made me think in different ways. He is a well written person, and a great storyteller. Out of everyone i probably responded to his posts the most. Great job this semester Jnan. Here is a trophy for all your hard work.

Post 27: What I'd read again.

If i could read anything again this semester I would read Dante's inferno again. Why? Because the descriptions of the circles of hell were very fascinating. I thought that it was very creative, but also somewhat realistic. I'm not sure if it is, but if that was a movie I think it would be a very fascinating one. If someone knows whether it is or not please let me know. I also saw that it was a video game if anyone is interested

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Post 26: Hamlet again.

I believe hamlet is a modern hero because he doesn't have any extraordinary powers. In ancient greek mythology the hero is usually able to fly, use lightning, or what have you. Hamlet on the other hand is a mortal man who is faced with the same struggles as us today. Besides seeing ghosts of course. Also Hamlet died at the end of his story without it being a huge deal. in Greek mythology however, If some one like Zeus died it would have been a big deal.

Post 25: Hamlet

Hamlet is somewhat like Oedipus. Both of their fathers are dead, though Hamlet didn't kill his.
And they both are overwhelmed with the fact that they did/have to kill someone of importance. The both also go mad by knowing the truth. Hamlet questions his truth whether the ghost of his father is true or not. While Oedipus rips his eyes out once he learns the truth about his actions.

Post 24: Utopia

I think the US is a lot like Utopia but also has some major differences. Such as we have people that cook and some that farm, but the difference is we trade in a monetary form rather than for other goods. Also one of the major differences is that we have cops. In Utopia you were just expected to be good, Which now a days that doesn't really work out. But the Us is still a pretty awesome place to live. I'd say its my Utopia.

Post 23:Trump

By the advice of Machiavelli Trump is a good leader. Machiavelli said its good to be cruel, and trump has done that my bombing Syria, and refusing people of Muslim faith to enter the US. He said it food to have wise advisers. And Trump made sure that only like minded people are in office. Finally Machiavelli said its better to be feared than loved. And Trump has been trying to assert his dominance in any way possible.

Post 22: Poetry about Beauty

In this poem below it talks a lot about love. To me it seems like its a progression of love. I though of it to be as a young couple  who just got together. and they are growing old together. Let me know what you think.

A Thing Of Beauty (Endymion) - Poem by John Keats

Autoplay next poem

A thing of beauty is a joy for ever:
Its lovliness increases; it will never
Pass into nothingness; but still will keep
A bower quiet for us, and a sleep
Full of sweet dreams, and health, and quiet breathing.
Therefore, on every morrow, are we wreathing
A flowery band to bind us to the earth,
Spite of despondence, of the inhuman dearth
Of noble natures, of the gloomy days,
Of all the unhealthy and o'er-darkn'd ways
Made for our searching: yes, in spite of all,
Some shape of beauty moves away the pall
From our dark spirits. Such the sun, the moon,
Trees old and young, sprouting a shady boon
For simple sheep; and such are daffodils
With the green world they live in; and clear rills
That for themselves a cooling covert make
'Gainst the hot season; the mid-forest brake,
Rich with a sprinkling of fair musk-rose blooms:
And such too is the grandeur of the dooms
We have imagined for the mighty dead;
An endless fountain of immortal drink,
Pouring unto us from the heaven's brink.

Post 21: Poem

Where is the beauty in my life?
Why its in the love from my father and his wife.
With out them what would i do?
Why, my life would be so dark and blue.

Post 20: Socartes

Would Socrates be in Hell? When I first read this I thought, "why would he be in Hell? All he does is argue. We all do that." But then I thought a little longer, and know I believe he would definitely be in Hell. Why? Because Socrates is skilled in the art of debate. He would have debated the all through out a sermon. Socrates, in my opinion, seemed more of a man of logic and explanation, than a man of faith. And I also don't think Socrates would have accepted "well it's just God" for an educated answer.

Post 19: The Concept of Hell

I think that Hell has been over glorified. In movies and TV today Hell is as scary as how the Bible describes it. I think this makes of very numb when we hear about Hell. If you grew up in a private school like i did you may be able to understand where I'm coming from. But i think that growing up in my school hearing about hell every single day it just became easier to hear about. Its like if you have a fear of heights, but you work as a pilot, eventually you'll get over that fear. And i believe that's whats going on in today's society when Hell is brought up. As for Dante i don't think he would have been so numb having to experience it first hand. And being apart from Beatrice for eternity would have torn him apart if that was the path he chose.

Post 18: Qu'ran Jesus

In the Qu'ran Jesus is a character that appears very prominently. He is seen somewhat the same as to the Jesus in the Bible, being that he also was born from Mary. But the difference are very major. In the Qu'ran Jesus spoke on his second day of infancy, which was one of the many miracles he preformed. He also was made by a god figure, but in the Qu'ran that god is Muhammad. In the Qu'ran he is a prophet,but is not under any circumstances allowed to be worshiped. As we can see the New Testament Jesus has a lot of the same features. The only major difference is his where place of importance is.

Post 17: Quran vs New Testament

Both the Qu'ran and the New Testament have similar meanings. They both basically tell us how to live our live in order to obtain salvation. The difference is who they are getting salvation from. The Qu'ran says we get it from Muhammad, but the New Testament says we get it from Jesus. Also in both texts Jesus appears. Obviously the New Testament Jesus is the main character, but in the Qu'ran Jesus is a lower prophet made by Muhammad.

Post 16: High government

I believe that high government officials should lead by example nor high ideals. Why? Well how i see it is if they lead by example of be nice no matter what. They will get pushed over by others. And if the lead by their own set of ideals they will be pushed onto others. And people don't want to accept religion or view of point by force. Even though we don't like it they some times need to be nasty attitude people, and they shouldn't be considered a role model for that either. They are some what of a barrier between us and other countries who want to fight.

Post 15: Presidents vs Socrates.

When it comes to US presidents i think they can all, some more than others, be compared to Socrates. This is because all politicians need to be able to argue why they are correct, and the better candidate. To be elected most people want a well spoken person. They don't go for some one who is going to have a week argument. Now the candidate might dodge the questions and run there thoughts in circles, but they still do it in a very intelligent manor.

Post 14: Ancient and modern gods.

 Ancient gods and modern gods have a lot of similarities. For one they both can get angry and destroy the world to start a new. Some of which both used floods as their tool of choice. They both have worshipers, and in some texts require sacrifices. But most importantly the both have the duty of taking care of the balance of the universe.v When they see a problem most times the are there to fix it.

Now a days it seems that the more older a religion the more respect it will get. But if it was come up with last week it'll be considered a joke. Why?

Post 13: War

Just like the Krishna we also try to justify war as Americans. Krishna spoke about how they were tools, for the almighty god to use. We also do that because a lot of say that we fight in order to accomplish some grand scheme, whether it be freedom or gaining territory. I believe that war should be avoided, but is obviously inevitable. On the other hand Krishna believe that war was necessary in order to get what the people needed.

Post 12:Tragic news

Now it's pretty dated but the assassination of JFK was a national tragedy that put the United States into panic. We lost our leader. At that time we didn't know who was going to guide our country. This can be equated to classical literature. Such as in Julius Caesar, when Brutus stabs him repeatedly. They lost their ruler, by assassination,  who was to guide them. These two people were quite like each other. They had a position of power, they had a great amount of followers, and after their untimely deaths there was a long period of mourning. Its as if writers are either predicting the inevitable future or they are writing from experience.

http://www.nytimes.com/learning/general/onthisday/big/1122.html

Post 11: Tragic narrative

When i think of the most tragic experience that i have went through in my life it was the death of my best friend Taylor. I met Taylor in ninth grade and lost her in our second or third week of college, August 19, 2016.

 The morning of which started of as any other normal day i previously had. I woke up laid around the house until i got a call from my friend Abby. She told be that Taylor had been helicoptered to  a hospital in Atlanta because she threw up in the middle of the night and was unconscious. I didn't think much of it at the time because it didn't seem as drastic as it was. Once we hung up i started to worry, but didn't expect much to happen. My thought was maybe an IV and some pills and she'll be good to go. But i still was worried for her. About thirty mins went by and i got an update. Taylor was now in a coma. I was told that she had a machine breathing for her and they were waiting on results. At this point i understood the situation was worse then i thought, but was still oblivious to the fact that she could actually die in this situation. At this point i decided i wanted to be there for her. So once my mother and i got to the room she was staying with there was a bunch of her family a couple of mutual friends and my former teacher. Still at this point the idea of her actually dying didn't cross my mind until i spoke with my old teacher. She said, "You're going to need to say your goodbyes to her." At this point my world fell apart, and i whaled out tears saying, "I don't wanna say goodbye", repetitively. I can remember the sound of her mother crying by hear bedside, the sound of the machine breathing for her, even the pale look on Taylor's face.

It turns out she didn't just throw up and go into a coma. She had a brain aneurysm. And even if she would have been able to come out of the coma, which she was far from doing, she wouldn't be able to live a pleasant live in the least. So her parents and doctors decided to pull the plug. And that's how i lost one of my best friends.

Post 10: How Heroes Are Like Us.

How are heroes like us? Well like the characters in tragedies Aristotle spoke about, Bad things happen to good people. I will once again reference Batman. Batman started off as the young boy named Bruce Wayne, but one fateful night at an opera his parents where shot in the alley. Bruce put
all the blame on himself because if it wasn't for him being scared during the opera they wouldn't have died. So with this guilt he used his fears to be his strengths, and his guilt to be his motivation. This is the same with many classical heroes. Although in stories such as Oedipus his motivation turned into his guilt. Trying to find the killer was his motivation and the truth of it being him became his guilt.

But how are they like us? Well in stories like Batman he resembles mortality. He has no powers, he is just a man. His only thing that would be considered close to a power would be his strength, and that was through training not some radiation beam. So he represents how a normal man can be a hero.

Post 9: Modern Epic Hero

In my eyes, the most obvious modern epic hero is Batman!  In many stories of epic heroes, the hero usually goes thru some type of change. This typically is some type of loss. Bruce Wayne lives a life of seclusion by day and crime fighting at night for his city. But if it wasn't for the loss of his parents Bruce Wayne wouldn't have became Batman.

Also in many tales of epic heroes the hero doesn't want any recognition for his/her deeds. Batman is such a clear example of this. He doesn't want recognition so much that he actually makes himself, as Bruce Wayne, look like a arrogant jerk. He understands that he cant have love, even though he wanted to with Rachel, because it will put them in a dangerous position. So not only is he not asking for gratitude, he isn't even asking for a normal life.

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Post 8: My wikipedia article

For my article i will be researching about the myth of Iris. I think  my article will be an interesting subject to study. For those who do not know she is part of many mythological stories such as Ovid's Metamorphoses. She is a messenger between the gods and the humans, and in different translations she will either fly on a rainbow or with sandals that have wings.

 I'm very excited to research her because i read something about her having a falling out with her sister. Apparently they work for different opposing sides. And i never knew that was a thing in mythology, besides Hades. So i think this will be both interesting for me and the reader, hopefully.

Post 7: India and the Wife of Bath.

In the story of  "The Wife of Bath", the woman enjoyed pleasure immensely. And when i think of a culture that likes sex i think of India. Though we may see India as a uptight country because of there traditions on marriage, they like sex a lot. Yes their culture may believe its for husband and wife, but they sure know how to do it. Now why do i associate India with sex so much. Because of a little book called the "Kama Sutra".

The "Kama Sutra" is a book that talks about how sex is a transcendent and spiritual thing. But it doesn't just say why sex is great, it shows us how we should be doing it for better pleasure. So they aren't as uptight as some may have thought.

 Now i feel as if  the wife of bath was probably very skilled in the realm of sex, but the "Kama Sutra" would have possibly helped her skills slightly.  Though the wife of bath didn't always see sex as a spiritual thing, if my memory is correct, she kept it within her marriages. So even though she had more then one partner she still tried to keep it somewhat romantic.

Post 6: A Modern Song vs The Wife of bath

Now when I think of "The Wife of Bath", I think of the song "Pony", by Ginuwine. If the song is unknown to the reader i will provide the lyrics here, but I suggest listening to it.
http://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/ginuwine/pony.html
This song just exudes the theme of the "The Wife of Bath". In "Pony" it reads, "I'm looking for a partner. Someone who knows how to ride, without even falling off." As we can see both Ginuwine and and the wife of Bath both enjoy sex, and both require to have a partner who knows what they are doing. Unlike Ginuwine, who states he is a bachelor who needs a woman compatible to him, the wife of bath was married five times and didn't care if they got along as long as she was pleasured.

Though the story, "The Wife of Bath", would have been considered overtly sexual back then, now it wouldn't even touch "50 Shades of Grey" In today's society to over sexualize something takes a lot of work. Though Ginuwine sings that he will "Send chills up and down your spine" and "Juices flowing down your thigh" we will still allow our children to sing things like that. Sex has become something more than a pleasure. We don't really see sex as an immoral thing as we once did, but now as an object. To think that the story of this woman would have probably been somewhat considered porn is dumbfounding. Especially because we sing songs that are porn in there own right, and we don't even bat an eye.

Post 5: The Wife of Bath's Sexuality.

In "The Wife of Bath" the way the woman thinks of sexuality and romantic love is very modern to today's thinking. This woman is like a what we would think of as a tough biker chick who wont be messed with by anyone. The woman from this story wants to feel pleasure whether there is love or not. If we compare that to our media it's pretty similar. The media tells that one night stands are fun and exciting. The media says who needs love when sex works perfectly fine!

She does care about the old fashion ways. She believes, if it feels good then don't worry about it. If this was told to an old fashioned woman now like my grandmother, I'd probably give her a heart attack. To be considered old fashion first she wouldn't publicly let people know that she enjoys sex. Second she wouldn't have many a men. Which she does both. So it's as if she is supposed to be one of the first sexually liberating revolutionaries of the 14th century.

Post 4: How Metamorphoses relates to us.

Though It may seem that Ovid's writings seem far-fetched and unnatural there is some truth behind what he writes. In the story of Jupiter his anger is fueled by the people around him which invokes him to cause a flood. We also do this as humans, although not to this magnitude. Going through high school i knew a bunch of kids who enjoyed talking up situations to enrage a kid to the point where it would start a fight. This was Ovid's way of saying if we let others control us while we are angry we will give in.

The story of Apollo and Daphne can also be related to modern day. Apollo wanted to be with Daphne so bad that even when she became a tree he still wanted to be with her. That represents how we teach people that looks don't matter, and its what's on the inside that counts. Since Apollo could feel Daphne's heart beat, he could tell that she was still the same girl just in a different body.

So as we can see Ovid's writings aren't that strange after all. He just said things that we believe, in a different way. It seem to me that this was kind of a social experiment where Ovid want to see if we believe the things we preach.

Post 3: Archetypes in my Life

In my community it can be seen the archetype of the cross. The cross plays a big part in my family's life because of our religion. They can also be found all over our house. The cross to my family resembles the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. It can also resemble thinks such as Christianity or salvation.

In my opinion my father resembles the rags to riches archetype. He was born in New York and raised in Haiti with his 7 brothers and sisters. He was the baby of eight in a low income house where his father didn't play a great role model. But once he was out of high school he went off to the military, and now he has a great job on the base working with computers. 

I believe I resemble the archetype of comedy/tragedy mask. This is because on my best days I am super happy and can conquer anything. On the other hand when I hit a low point it hits me pretty hard, but I don't necessarily show that mask. I can either keep that happy mask on and many would never know, but only those who truly know me can see that is just a mask. So its more like its the comedy mask sitting on top of a tragedy.

Post 2: How Creation Shapes Us.

Creation stories are very important to our up bringing. They stay with us for our entire life, whether it's about how the world was created, how our family were created, or even how we where created. The knowledge of what happened in the past help us plan for what is to come later on. It also teaches us life lessons. Many examples can be seen in Genesis. We see what happens to a family when a son is murdered, or how a man puts in years of work to build an ark and how his hard work pays off.

Also creation stories can change how we view others. In the 1800's the Europeans believed that the blacks in Africa bared the mark of Cain so they were created to serve them. Creation for a long time created a social hierarchy in our country. Creation stories can and have caused a lot of racism and sexism. This is because certain views of creation said that there is a superior race, and sex. Now the only things we must do is really do is realize that we are all equal and let the past be the past and learn from it.

Post 1: Creation

How  did we get here? It has been a question passed down from generation to generation. Some say it has always been. Others believe in different scientific theories. But i believe that there is a higher power that created it.

Many think that the idea of a higher power is absurd, but I believe its the only possible way. Growing up I was raised in the church, and taught that our creater, God, was the one to make the entire universe. Now many might think as they read this that I just believe it because I have been conditioned to, but these are the thoughts of my own and not the ones I relay from a cult leader. I believe that in six days God created everything that is on earth, and on the seventh he rested.

Now there are people who will argue with me, and state that we had to evolve due to natural selection. And I believe in natural selection to a certain extent. Though I don't believe we started as bacteria or fish, I do believe that God gave us the ability to adapt to our environments, and over time there were slight changes. I can't argue that over generations a bird can change it's beak, but I don't agree that the bird will change into a different species.

Now feel free to disagree with me because that's the beauty of this world. Not one person truly knows why we are on this earth. Therefore not one person can be completely correct when they say how the earth and humanity came to be. For all we know we are in the Matrix! Thanks for reading!