Aeschylus And Lucretius Essay

Sophocles's Oedipus Rex is probably the most famous tragedy ever written. Sophocles's tragedy represents a monumental theatrical and interpretative challenge. Oedipus Rex is the story of a King of Thebes upon whom a hereditary curse is placed and who therefore has to suffer the tragic consequences of fate (tragic flaws or hamartia). In the play, Oedipus is the tragic hero. Even though fate victimizes Oedipus, he is a tragic figure since his own heroic qualities, his loyalty to Thebes, and his fidelity to the truth ruin him.

The circumstance of one’s death determines the stature of the experience. The shared account of Epicurus and Lucretius unravel the merit of death, in the Philosophy and Death. There shared view is contrasted by the piece by Nagel. It is important to note that all three accounts are assuming the soul ceases to exist when the body perishes. Epicurus’ explanation is centered around death being nothing to humans, since the sense experience is deprived through death. This concedes, there is nothing in death and this should encourage one to seek happiness in life—the fear of death is irrational (Epicurus 164). Additionally, Lucretius furthers the point of Epicurus through his theory of the body and soul being one and mortal, therefore, death “is

Within Lucretius’ dialectic and poetic writings in Robert Latham’s translation of Lucretius: On the Nature of the Universe, three major topics are discussed: philosophy, religion, and science. Lucretius was devoted to the works of his teacher and renowned philosopher Epicurus, praising him as a prophetic or god-like figure. His poetic prose uses a host of concrete examples to show validity in his beliefs. Lucretius effectively supports the Epicurean worldview that everything can be explained by material forces. Memmius is the addressee of the poem, and Lucretius enlightens him to the nature of happiness, how religion is based on superstition, and the idea of atoms composing earthly matter. Evaluating reality gives mankind the natural answers to life’s questions without concerning themselves with gods, prophets, or beliefs, and this was Lucretius’ main task in his work.

2. The natures of Agamemnon, Menelaus, Achilles, and Odysseus would not be considered heroes in our culture. In our culture, there are figures similar to Captain America that our culture views as flawless and utterly heroic as a result of their self-sacrificing nature. In that sense, Iphigenia would be the hero of this play, not the aforementioned men. Iphigenia's willingness to die for a perceived greater good is the type of act that is glorified in our culture.

William Shakespeare’s use of Pathos in Mark Antony’s speech is clearly evident. In order to understand the concept and idea of Pathos, and for it to be effective, one must know what it is. The appeal of Pathos uses words or passages to activate emotions, and strike some sort of feeling in the audience’s body. If written effectively, the appeal of Pathos emits an emotional response from the audience. “My heart is in the coffin there with Caesar, And I must pause till it come back to me” (3.2.106-107). Antony elicits both sadness and sympathy from his audience. The death of Julius Caesar, and the use of Pathos is very important in winning over the audience’s appeal. Antony is obviously very angry with what had happened to Julius Caesar, due to the fact that Antony was a good friend with him. “And Brutus Antony, there were an Antony Would

The use of pathos in Antony’s speech appeals to the emotion of the plebians. In the beginning of his speech, Antony uses the words “friends, Romans, countrymen” (III. ii. 83) to connect with their patriotism. This emphasis of emotion helps convince the audience to side with his views, as well as exemplifies the use of pathos. He mentions that “when the poor have cried, Caesar hath wept” (III. ii. 100) inferring that Caesar was caring because he put Romans before himaelf. Futhermore, in the middle of his speech, Antony tells the audience to bear with him because he was crying. Through showing emotion, the audience sympathizes, and is influecned to believe that Caesar’s murder was a crime.

Oedipus did not have a fair start in life. His father, Laius, heard prophecy that Oedipus would one day kill his father and sleep with his mother. In order to prevent this, Laius gave Oedipus to a shepherd to be killed. Fortunately, through a string of events, Oedipus's life was saved, and he even went on to become the honored king of Thebes. Despite this feat, Oedipus still managed to make several decisions that ultimately fulfilled the original prophecy told to Laius, and inevitably sealed Oedipus?s fate.

Purposely difficult and intentionally obsessive, Plato’s Phaedrus is an exceedingly difficult read that defies all conventional logic as a piece of discourse. The text is extremely subjective, open to interpretation and individual creativity as to what or whom the narrative is about. Written by Plato, a close disciple of Socrates, this text is set along the Illissus river where Phaedrus and Socrates meet for a day of speech, debate, rhetoric and okay…flirting. Phaedrus leads of the day and recites a speech by his close friend Lysias, who Phaedrus considers to be a top speechmaker. Socrates then, after chiding by Phaedrus unleashes two speeches of his own that overshadow and refute Lysias claim so boldly that Phaedrus is so taken by the

The Aeneid is based on the fate of Aeneas, who will find the finest city, Rome. But, there seems to be a argument about the high forces that rule the world and the elements that control the lives of men, or whether fate is the will of the gods. In the Aeneid several situations and occasions of the use of fate are presented. The directions and destinations of Aeneass course are inevitable, and his various sorrows and glories in battle, and the sea over the course of the epic merely postpone his unchangeable fate.

Sophocles' play Oedipus the King has endured for over two thousand years. The play's lasting appeal may be attributed to the fact it encompasses all the classical elements of tragedy as put forth by Aristotle in Poetics nearly a century before it was written. According to Aristotle, tragedy needs to be an imitation of life according to the law of probability or necessity. Tragedy is serious, complete, and has magnitude. It must have a beginning, middle, and end and be spoken in language that is fit for noble characters. Furthermore it must be acted, as opposed to epic poetry, which is narrated. Tragedy shows rather than tells. Finally it must result in the purging of pity and fear, or a catharsis. Tragedy is based in the fundamental order of the universe, it creates a cause-and-effect chain that clearly reveals what may happen at any time or place because that is the way the world operates. Tragedy arouses not only pity but also fear, because the audience can envision themselves within this cause-and-effect chain. Tragedy as a whole is composed of six elements: plot, character, language, thought, spectacle and melody. Melody and language are the media by which the effect of imitation of action is carried out, spectacle is the manner or way the tragedy is carried out, and plot, character and thought are the means that initiate the action. Oedipus the King possesses all of these elements.

The role of the gods/fate in human affairs is a central theme in most works of literature. In Greek literature, particularly, the will of the gods is commonly attributed to human experiences. In Oedipus the King, for instance, the oracle’s message that Oedipus will kill his father and marry his own mother suggests that he was a puppet in the hands of the gods, who manipulated the events that led to his fall. However, the character’s fate is not entirely attributable to the work of the gods. In the play, Oedipus meets his fate due to his determination to unravel the mysteries surrounding the king’s death, despite warnings by the prophet Tiresias and his wife/mother, and his quest to prove the oracles wrong in their declaration that he is

Hans Rockwell 8/26/17 Question 1 Question 1.) One of the responses people usually have about Oedipus is if he really deserved the fate that he ended up with. It’s not his fault that Jocasta and Laius tried to outsmart fate and dispose of him. In trying to

The tale of Oedipus and his prophecy has intrigued not only the citizens of Greece in the ancient times, but also people all over the world for several generations. Most notable about the play was its peculiar structure, causing the audience to think analytically about the outcomes of Oedipus’ actions and how it compares with Aristotle’s beliefs. Another way that the people have examined the drama is by looking at the paradoxes (such as the confrontation of Tiresias and Oedipus), symbols (such as the Sphinx), and morals that has affected their perceptions by the end of the play. Nonetheless, the most important aspect is how relevant the story is and how it has influenced modern ideas like that of Freud and other people of today.

• The watchman is one Aeschylus’s small characters, but like the herald he serves an important role as he not only sets the scene but also perhaps portrays the mood of Argos awaiting their king and soldiers return.

Oedipus the King is an excellent example of Aristotle's theory of tragedy. The play has the perfect Aristotelian tragic plot consisting of paripeteia, anagnorisis and catastrophe; it has the perfect tragic character that suffers from happiness to misery due to hamartia (tragic flaw) and the play evokes pity and fear that produces the tragic effect, catharsis (a purging of emotion).