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Similarily to Vincent, this has not been my first time reading the book of Genesis. I too am a Catholic, so I am very familiar with the stories it entails.

I must say that I find it very difficult to analyse or critique this work seeing as for the most part I believe in the stories it dictates. But, I`ll try my best 🙂

Firstly, I noticed similarities between the God of Genesis and the gods of The Odyssey. Primarily, it was the acceptation of sacrifices. Both the God of Genesis and those of Homer`s work rely upon sacrifices given up by the people in order to stay appeased. However, unlike The Odyssey, Genesis`God appears to truly care for his people. Yes, he does wipe out Sodom, and flood the Earth, but he does so in order to cleanse the Earth of the evil that is growing upon it. He also possesses the qualities of justice and mercy, in that he spares the innocent, and even will pardon the most wicked city for the sake of the righteous. In The Odyssey, however, the gods create a perception that they have little to no concern for humanity, except when it adversely affects them, such as Poseidon hunting down Odysseus. Also, the God of Genesis is portrayed in a far more traditional manner; he is far less endowed with human traits, such as jealousy or lust, reflecting a more common view of a deity. This portrays the discrepancies between different cultures regarding religious beliefs and values.

Another aspect that I noticed is the authority that God desires to possess over His people. The Lord only becomes angry with Adam and Eve when they obtain the knowledge that He has. This portrays the dominance that all Lords wish to have. In an attempt to see this from a non-religious perspective, one could say that the only reason the Lord abhors sin and wickedness is because it is contrary to what he dictates as law. As soon as God feels his authority is lost, such as with Sodom, and with the story of Noah and the ark, he must wipe out any opposition to his will.

Finally, it was interesting to note the discrepancy between what is considered justifiable. For example, when Cain commits the first murder of his brother, Abel, the Lord abhors the action, yet when the sons of Jacob kill Shechem, Hamor, and the rest of the city, all for raping Dinah, the Lord pays no heed. Perhaps adultery is considered horrible enough to justify such atrocious actions, but at the moment, I am a tad perplexed as to how one deems actions as acceptable…

All in all, I look forward to some heated literary and religious discussions in class 🙂

While reading Medea, I was rather intrigued by the notion of vengeance. Obviously, revenge is not a revolutionary new concept, but what captured my attention was the lengths to which one will go to attain it. I was not surprised by the bewitching of Helios’ jewelry in order to destroy Creon’s daughter, but what did confuse me was Medea’s desire to slaughter her offspring. It was brilliant to see the conflict raging inside her, with her motherly love and monstrous desire for revenge constantly drawing her back and forth. This demonstrates both the strength of the bond between a mother and child, but also the infectious quality of hatred. It is unimaginable to be in a state where one is so consumed with a raging passion that she disregards all humanly bonds.

Another aspect that I noted was the sexual deviancy pinpointed against women. It was interesting to see the females as being consumed “with the pleasures of the bed,” (54, ll 588), as in our modern society, our culture typically places this on men. This portrays the cultural beliefs of the Greek people, similar to The Odyssey, in which the sirens are seen as the evil seductresses.

There was also a distinct amount of sea imagery. The work describes raging storms, ships dropping anchor, and other nautical terms. In terms of the storm, it indefinitely refers to the state of Medea’s life, turned topsy-turvy. It may also be a representation of Medea’s mental storm; she is so engulfed with rage and hatred that it clouds perception. Her mental storm also occurs in the form of her conflict between her love for her sons and her malicious desire for vengeance.

Finally, it was interesting to see the the fragility of the human word. Medea consistently remarks at Jason’s casual ability to break the oath he made for her on their wedding day.  Marriage vows are meant to be eternal, yet it appears that he is completely nonchalant towards the entire scenario.

In all honesty, I thought that this play was very strange. I appreciate the thematic values of femininity, vengeance, and betrayal, but it still left me perplexed.

Homer’s The Odyssey has been recognized the world over as one of the great literary epics. It’s tale depicts extravagant, fantastic adventures, such as facing the wrath of vengeful gods and the seduction of sirens. However, upon reading the work, I became aware not so much of the adventurous plot, but of the discrepancy between how we view civility and evil. I first became aware of this notion during  Telemachus’ speech to the suitors. The prince discloses the horrific, brutish nature of the men, but, in response, they defend their own behaviour, blaming their beastliness upon the “… queen of cunning.” This represents our own society’s attempts to place our own faults on another. Far be it from us to take the blame if we can merely shift it to another.

It was also interesting to see the emphasis on the wretchedness of women. To begin, a large amount of the terrors faced by Odysseus were women, such as the sirens and Calypso. Also, when remarking at the atrocious actions of King Oedipus, Odysseus only remarks at the fault of his mother, stating it, “… a monstrous thing she did…” (258). Also, Telemachus tells his father to only examine the women, not the men, in their loyalty. These events exemplify the common beliefs of the era that women were sinful beings, luring men to their caves.

The amount of bird imagery was astonishing as well. Many times, eagles were seen snatching up smaller, or more benign, birds, such as geese. Despite the obvious symbolism of the day Odysseus will return, or the abuse of the suitors, they also symbolize the nature of humanity. Birds are typically seen as being free creatures, their wings carrying them to wherever they desire. This represents the free will of man, where each has the capability to destroy or create in accordance with his own desire. This, however, juxtaposes the idea of the gods controlling the actions of man. It is frequently seen that man is the submissive being, only fulfilling his fate. This contrast creates an interesting questions; is it our own free will that creates the monster, or simply a ploy of circumstances?

Finally, the idea of desperation was very prominent. In Book Twelve, The Cattle of the Sun, Odysseus sternly warns the men of the danger of slaughtering the cattle of Helios. Whilst all their needs are met, the men comply willingly. However, as soon as the prospect of starvation approaches, their fears overpower their knowledge of justice, and they utilise the sacred herd for their own mortal needs. Thus, each decent man may be rendered incapable of decency in a given circumstance.

Overall, after reading The Odyssey, I view it not so much as a heroic adventure, but rather as a warning of justice. Despite the apparent benefits given to the malicious suitors, and the hardships of virtuous Odysseus, it is only a matter of time before the wrongful are given their penance. The easy gains of vile behavior will ultimately be thrown down by the hand of good.

Welcome to UBC Blogs. This is your first post. Edit or delete it, then start blogging!

Hey, everyone, and welcome to my ArtsOne blog. My name is Julianna Ivanyi (pronounced ih-vaa-knee), and I’m from White Rock, BC. I took ArtsOne primarily because of my English teacher in high school. She really instigated a love of literature and a passion for learning. I intend to complete my BA with a major in English lit and a minor in French. Afterwards, I plan on moving to teach English in France for a year.

I was originally an intensive ballet student, training 25 hours a week, but due to health complications, I converted to Bikram yoga. This was one of my best decisions, and now I intend to become a certified instructor. I completely believe in the power of yoga to change one’s life. Aside from this, I’m also interested in cooking (vegetarian/ vegan only please), photography, reading, travelling, and tea. I also fell in love with Salzburg, Austria on a recent trip to Europe and aspire to spend my life there. Finally, my guilty pleasures are cake, reality shows, and Harry Potter.

I cannot wait to get to know everyone better and explore the fascinating world of the written word with you all.

Namaste