Troubadours, Trobairitz

The poems in the Troubadors and Trobairitz have some similarities and some differences. in the Countess of dia the theme seems to be men are evil. this is interesting seeing as the author of this poem is a woman. Another reason why this is so interesting is because a lot of the other things we read had an opposite theme of women are evil and deceitful. in this poem she ensues that her love has cheated on her with another woman. She also goes on to say that her "heart is not the straying kind". she emphasizes that she is faithful and trustworthy. I think she is saying that women are trustworthy contrary to what people think. the fact that she says this multiple times emphasizes this idea. this poem is not very romantic seems to be more of a vengeful type of poem. which is very different than the Jaufre rudel poem. this poem is very romantic. the theme of this poem seems to be lust, undying love and possibly distance makes the heart grow fonder. the author of this poem is saying that the distance is killing him inside but he rather weep for the one he loves than not love at all. All the pain and suffering is worth the love he feel for this woman who is so far away. He also says he only has love for this one woman and no on else. This is a contrast to the other poem because the author of the Countess of dia says men are not faithful, but this author is saying otherwise. at the end of this poem he says "I must love and not be love". this suggests that the woman is not returning the same feeling. This lends to the theme of love hurts and you can not pick who you love. The tone of these two poems are very different. while the themes are somewhat similar.  

Arabic Poetry

The poem "The Dove's Necklace" themes definitely relate to love. the poems were very descriptive and used a lot of  evidence to support the theme of love. When the poem opened it first started talking about how when you love someone you will believe them even when they are lying, you testify on his behalf for all that may be unjust, and supporting whatever arguement he may adopt. When I read this and I agreed to a certain extent  especially thinking of specific examples happen in real life, I think what the author is getting at is that love can make u do crazy things. this poem definitely has a theme of doing anything for the ones you love. I think the Poem also has a theme of love is blind. we love someone so much we are blind to the faults and mistakes of the one we love unconditionally. our culture makes people think that they are expected to do all of these things when they are in love. when people are married they are perceived doing all they can to protect and please there partner which may look bad for them. The poem has a long paragraph in it about how people change to become what there lover is looking for. Examples of this from the readings include, when the scowler relaxed her frown, the sloucher smartened up and the stinker transformed himself into a elegant dandy. These examples demonstrate how people change the way they act and who they are to become who their lover wants them to be. Love can make people do crazy things and change for the better or for the worse. I think the readings demonstrate how love makes people crazy and can bring out the best in someone. 

islamic art

throughout art history art from different cultures influences each other. I think that this is because artists are always looking for inspiration, new ways to make something and are always trying to learn more about their craft. it is more likely that the cultures get inspiration for their art from neighboring countries and cultures. It seems to me that the islamic art features a lot of jewelry, vases and things are hand painted. also during this time the different cultures were just discovering the craft of artistry, so improving it and looking at how other cultures make something is only part of the evolvement of art during this time. the art in the islamic culture seems very simplistic, there are not many sculptures and there is a lot of painting and primary colors involved. I can see where this culture would get inspiration from other ones. What specific cultures and counties influenced the islamic art?

The myth of Arachne and Tereseus have simliar themes running throughout the story. In both stories arachne and Tereseus are dismissing the gods and acting how ever they want with no regards as to what is right. They both dont pay any attention to warnings that they get from the gods. for example the depiction of the screeching owl that lives above Tereseus's house. This could foreshadow the fact that the gods turn tereseus, Philomena and Procne into birds. in the case of Arachne her warning was the old woman telling her to be humble and ask the gods for forgiveness. Arachne did not take this advice and continued to deny Athena as her teacher. Arachne was determined to be known as maybe being self taught, especially since she was just mortal peasant. The passage says "You could see she was taught by Pallas. Yet she denied it, and took offense at the idea of having such a teacher". clearly Arachne was being arrogant and not humble at all. this angered Athena, so she punished Arachne by turning her into a spider. this was all because she decided to take all of the credit and give none to the gods. Arachne just did want she wanted weaving and not giving credit to the apparent true master of the craft without any regard to how Athena would feel about it. In all these myths, the gods have the last say and decide the punishments and do whatever they want in the end. in both of these stories the gods turn the main characters into animals as punishment because they did not like how they were acting.

in the story of Tereus, Tereus took that to the extreme. He didn’t care what anyone thought, he only thought about what he wanted, and what he wanted was Philomena, that was all he thought about after meeting her. the passage says, “…he burnt with his own vice and his nation’s”. This puts the blame not only on Tereus but on the whole country too, the story is saying that this lust Tereus has is a characteristic of all the men from Thrace. Either way, that puts the blame squarely on the mortal humans, with no care or concern for how they should actually be acting and respecting the gods. Tereus was so sure in his opinion and beliefs and that was all that mattered. Both Arachne and Tereus were more focused on their own talents and desires and not how that could affect other things such as their own wife or how the Gods would feel.

metamorphosis book 1-3

within the story of echo and narcissus echo is only able to repeat the last word of every sentence because jupiter sentenced her to do that. she then saw narcissus in the forrest and immediately fell in love. she stealthily followed his steps. she then hopes that he speaks so she can "form her own words". when he does speak all Echo can do is repeat everything he says. he tells her to come out. she finally came out and embraced narcissus and he rejects her. Narcissus stumbles upon a spring to which he is attracted to the reflection of his own form. he sees his own figure and thinks it to be an actual person. Narcissus could not love Echo because he fell in love with his own reflection. he only had love for himself. and because he was so vain it leads to his death. Every time Narcissus tries to touch "him" he puts his hand in the water and disturbs the image. this might be suggesting the idea of human desire. due tot he fact that people say in order to love someone else you must love yourself first. so maybe narcissus had to love himself before he ever loved echo. This clearly didnt end up happening because this was Narcissus demise as he died and was turned into a flower.

Odyssey 16-20

Homer continues exploring how the extension of, and reaction to,xenia, or hospitality, reflects various characters’ concerns. Nestor’s insistence that Telemachus stay and feast with him in Pylos before returning to Ithaca confirms that he is an honorable man. Telemachus’s eagerness to avoid this social commitment may seem a breach of social appropriateness. His evasion is justified by his prioritizing of practical considerations the need to return home quicklyover decorum and other formal considerations. Besides, Telemachus’s warm reception of Theoclymenus, in addition to the genuine urgency of the moment, takes some of the edge off of his apparent inconsiderateness.

Homer uses minor characters of low rank to great effect in Books 17and 18. These charcters seem to function as foils—characters whose traits or attitudes contrast with and thereby accentuate those of other characters. Melanthius’s disrespectful treatment of Odysseus stands in stark contrast to Eumaeus’s unflinching loyalty to his master. Similarly, in contrast to the devoted Eurycleia, Melantho proves the embodiment of ingratitude toward Penelope: though Penelope raised her like her own child, Melantho shows no concern for Penelope’s grief. Additionally, Irus’s mingled bravado and cowardice provide a good foil for Odysseus’s prudence and courage. Homer also uses Irus to foreshadow the ultimate downfall of the suitors. Disguised as a beggar, Odysseus cuts down an impudent beggar, leaving little doubt as to what he will do to the impudent nobles when he reassumes his noble form.

Even though Amphinomus shows some kindness toward the seeming beggar, Odysseus pities him. Nothing can save him from the punishment that Athena has planned for him. In fact, Athena doesn’t even take his kindness into consideration. Homer explains that “even then Athena had bound him fast to death / at the hands of Prince Telemachus and his spear” (18.178–179). Athena condemns Amphinomus to the same fate as the most worthless suitors of the bunch.In Book 17 Homer gives us the most critical depiction yet of Antinous, who disgusts even the other suitors with his abuse of the disguised Odysseus. Whereas other suitors at least give the beggar food, Antinous displays nothing but contempt for the man’s apparent low breeding and physically assails him. Penelope thus labels Antinous “the worst of all . . . black death itself” (17.554). Homer portrays Antinous as a dishonorable noble. 

The explanation for the contempt in which the others hold Antinous for mistreating Odysseus lies in the feudal structure of Homeric society, which was bound together by reciprocal obligations and responsibilities among people of different social classes. While it would be a mistake to think that the Greeks considered mistreatment of the poor an automatic sign of evil or moral deficiency, we definitely get the sense that Antinous is abusing his rank when he beats the seemingly helpless beggar. Antinous is guilty not of evil but of arrogance.The insults hurled at him accuse him not of straying from some moral code but of straying from the expectations of his noble birth.

Odyssey 6-10

book 9 is told in a flashback.as Odysseus sits in the palace of the Phaeacians telling the story of his wandering journeys.Providing some of the richest and most celebrated examples of his cunning, they speak much to the resourcefulness of the poet, who uses Odysseus’s voice to render a more complete picture of his hero’s journey, as to that of the hero himself. The apprehension that Odysseus feels as he heads toward the cave, which seems to prompt him to take the wine along, foreshadows his upcoming encounter with Polyphemus and the need for trickery to prevail. The significance of Odysseus’s blinding of the cyclopes becomes clear when Polyphemus lets his sheep out to graze the next morning; similarly, Odysseus’s lie about his name seems silly at first but adds a clever and humorous twist to the necessity of keeping the other Cyclopes from rescuing Polyphemus. Odysseus’s eventual revelation of his identity to Polyphemus ultimately proves foolish, and, because it embodies a lack of foresight, stands in stark contrast to the cunning prudence that Odysseus displays in his plan to escape from the cave. Though his anger at Polyphemus for devouring his shipmates is certainly understandable. By telling Polyphemus his name, Odysseus pits his mortal indignation against Poseidon’s divine vengeance. This act of hubris, or excessive pride, ensures almost automatically that Odysseus will suffer grave consequences. Indeed, his eventual punishment costs him greatly.He wanted to make sure that people know that he was the one who blinded Polyphemus, instructing Polyphemus to make others aware of what he has done. Odysseus believes that the height of glory is by spreading his name through great deeds.


The human tendency to give in to temptation is a main theme throughout Book 10. By boasting about his defeat of the Cyclops, the members of his crew prove unable to resist looking into Aeolus’s bag, which they were not supposed to do. Their greed ends up complicating their voyage. for example Odysseus lets a year waste away in the arms of the goddess Circe. While his crew certainly seems not to mind, even though his wife is waiting for him. Only when his crew “prods” him and calls him on his delays is Odysseus persuaded to leave Circe’s realm. Eurylochus issues an especially harsh reproach of Odysseus for mistakenly leading his crew to its destruction. He describes the death of their comrades at the hands of the cyclopes as evidence of Odysseus’s mistakes: “thanks to [Odysseus’s] rashness they died too!” (10.482). Though Odysseus checks his anger and calms down, his own crew questioning him shows the holes in his authority.