Differences and Similarities in The Odyssey and Inferno...

Differences and Similarities in The Odyssey and Inferno When going through the stories The Odyssey by Homer and Inferno by Dante, you get the feeling of how diverse, yet similar the two stories are. When reading The Odyssey, you find Ulysses trying to get home to his love, Penelope. He has been gone for twenty years, and through those years, he has struggled with good and evil, just like Dante in Inferno. Ulysses finds himself time after time fighting off gods and their children. Dante, struggling with good and evil, works his way through the nine levels of hell. He is struggling to find where his faithfulness lies. He also is trying to find his way to his love, Beatrice. When reading The Odyssey and Inferno, we find many†¦show more content†¦Dante tells us to â€Å"look carefully; you’ll see such things/as would deprive my speech of all belief† (Alighieri, 1992, Canto XIII 13.20-13.21). Dante shows his heroism by testing his own strengths. Ulysses’ characteristics differ from Dante’s because Ulysses has many great accomplishments whereas Dante does not. One other difference in these stories is the portrayal of religion. Religion in The Odyssey is portrayed as polytheism. Polytheism is the belief in many different gods. An example would be during Ulysses’ journey, the goddess Minerva helps him, while Neptune continues to challenge Ulysses constantly; â€Å"Bear in mind, however, that Neptune is still furious with Ulysses for having blinded an eye of Polyphemus king of the Cyclopes† (Stevenson, 2009, Book I, Para. 6). Religion in Inferno portrays a Christianity approach, or the belief in one god. Though they have different characteristics and portrayals of religion, there are some similarities within their stories. One similarity that we find in both The Odyssey and Inferno, is the fact that both Ulysses and Dante travel to hell. Ulysses travels to the underworld, Erebus. Ulysses seeks out his mother for news regarding his love, Penelope: Your wife still remains in your house, but she is in great distress of mind and spends her whole time in tears both night and day. No one as yet has got possession of your fine property, and TelemachusShow MoreRelatedThe Tragedy Of The Odyssey And The Inferno Essay1574 Words   |  7 Pagessuffering is a key part of the story, the different characters of the divine in the Odyssey and Inferno result in a unique take on the role of suffering. We see that people who suffer in the Odyssey sometimes do not deserve their punishment, whereas in the Inferno we see that the people who suffer are suffering justly. Suffering is a very important topic when it comes to writing tragedies or similar genres. It is a topic that authors take very seriously and are meticulous when implementing it in theirRead MoreWhy Is Humanities Important?3163 Words   |  13 Pagesmemorized the punishments in the Inferno than most people would understand. But the basic idea is that by studying humanities we ll communicate and understand each other better. And while memorizing these infernal punishments may seem tedious, if looked at pragmatically it s really not that difficult. The punishments are poetic, and usually make some degree of sense for the crime.. I have a similar issue with Math and Life Science courses. It’s complicated when the cell structures won t affectRead MoreThe Inferno, By Dante2284 Words   |  10 PagesThroughout the Inferno, Dante has often presented characters in a way that reflects his own personality: there is the amorous and suicidal Dido for whom he shows sympathy and gives a le sser punishment, while there is the suicidal Pier delle Vigne to whom he gives a much harsher punishment. This difference in placement should reflect a strict moral code that agrees with a pre-established divine order, and yet Dante demonstrates such obvious favoritism. Why? Dido loved Aeneas too much, as Dante loved

Essay about Culture and the Environment on Easter Island...

In his book Human Natures: Genes, Culture and the Human Prospect , Paul Ehrlich argues that the cultural practices of a given society develop largely as a result of the large-scale environmental factors of the area in which the society lives. He gives the striking example that all religions that developed in deserts are monotheistic, whereas those that began in rainforests are polytheistic (Ehrlich, pp 9 of handout, 2000). Ehrlich argues that the size and geography of a region, its climate, the availability of resources - the macroevolutionary forces - will have an enormous effects on the cultures that develop there. Ehrlich continues by pointing out that cultures do not only develop as simple, predictable reflections of their†¦show more content†¦Clive Ponting (1991) gives the history of Easter Island roughly as follows: In the fifth century CE, the 150 sq. mile island (2) was reached by no more than twenty or thirty Polynesians. The population slowly grew as agriculture developed on the island. Many native Polynesian food sources could not be propagated on the island, but sweet potatoes and chickens were successfully imported. The islanders were also heavily dependent on fishing, which they did in wooden canoes. By the sixteenth century, the population peaked at around 7,000 people. Initially, the agriculture was successful enough so as to only require a relatively small amount of labor, leaving the inhabitants with large amounts of free time that enabled them to develop complex religious ceremonies and rituals. The most striking aspect of the religion on Easter Island was the carving of up to a thousand massive stone busts located throughout the island, some weighing nearly eighty tons. Although their function is not completely understood, these statues are generally believed to have been used in religious ceremonies and also as signs of prestige among the different clans on the island. These statues were transported over the island on enormous systems of wooden tracks. Ponting suggestsShow MoreRelatedCollapse: How Societies Choose to Fail or Succeed by Jared Diamond3203 Words   |  13 Pagesmodern day care and how we govern today’s most successful societies. Surprisingly enough, they were great educators of how societies can rise with control and authority but, even more; on how societies can weaken and crumble when negligent to the environment. In the quotation above by American writer and naturalist Joseph Krutch, we see how his personal perspective on mankind’s desire for developmental power is opposing to the way we manage our societies today. He states, â€Å"†¦if they destroy something

Crash Course Notes free essay sample

Democracy -? the yeoman farmer best exemplifies virtue and independence from the corrupting influences of cities, bankers, financiers, and industrialists; the principle of states rights is proclaimed in the Kentucky and Virginia Resolutions; The Alien and Sedition Acts violated the principle that: freedom of speech and the press are essential rights, since government must be closely watched. 9 The Louisiana Purchase to acquire he port of New Orleans to provide an outlet for Western crops; the failure of the French army to suppress a slave revolt in Haiti played a role in motivating Napoleon to sell the Louisiana Territory; violates Jefferson belief in a strict interpretation of the Constitution. 40 Belief in a Strong Central Government Chief Justice and John Marshall believed that a strong central government best served the nations interests; Marshall opposed states rights. 40 Mammary vs..Madison this case established the principle of judicial review; he ruling gave the Supreme Court the authority to declare acts of Congress unconstitutional. We will write a custom essay sample on Crash Course Notes or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page 40 Opposition to the States Rights -? Under Marshals leadership, the Supreme Court upheld the supremacy of federal legislation over state legislation; in Dartmouth College v. Woodward, the Marshall Court rules that a state cannot encroach on a contract. 40 Economic Nationalism Marshall was an economic nationalist who promotes business enterprise; in McCullough v. Maryland, the court struck down a Maryland law taxing the Baltimore branch of the National Bank. 40 Causes British impressments of American seamen, British interference with the American commerce, British aid to Native Americans on the frontier. 41 Consequences -? Contributing to the demise of the Federalist Party, Intensifying nationalist feelings, promoting industrialization, advancing the career of Andrew Jackson. 177 The Marshall Court -? John Marshall believed that the US would be best served y concentrating power in a strong central government; Under Chief J.Marshall, Supreme Court decisions tended to promote business enterprise; Under J. Marshals leadership, the Supreme Court upheld the supremacy of federal legislation over state legislation. 177 Mammary vs. . Madison established the principle of judicial review; Judicial Review gave the Supreme Court the authority to declare acts of Congress unconstitutional; one of a series of landmark decisions by Chief Justice J. Marshall that strengthened the federal government.