Dr. Diane Thompson, NVCC, ELI

READING:

• Homer's Odyssey
• A Greek Play of your choosing
• Virgil's Aeneid (selections) and either The Bhagavad-Gita (a brief selection) or The Ramayana (selections from Book 2)
• Optional www links for Unit 2

SUMMARY OF TASKS FOR UNIT 2:

OBJECTIVES:

This Unit will introduce you to material ranging from amazing adventures to philosophical questioning of good and evil, divinity and destiny. You will learn about the different ways that mythic, "epic" material can be handled in different civilizations.

You will have a choice in this Unit: either you may do one Activity for each of the three reading groups, or you may do two Activities for one reading group and one for another, skipping the third. It's up to you. If you decide to do two Activities for one reading, be sure to label each one as a separate Activity. For example, you would do an Activity 3 for the Odyssey and then an Activity 4 for the Odyssey. This would give you a chance to spend more time on one of the readings, if you wished to do so.

You will read the Odyssey--a Greek masterpiece that focuses on the dangers of returning from the Trojan War to a hostile home. The clever survivor is Odysseus, who is protected by the goddess Athena. The tragic character who serves as a warning for all returning military adventurers is King Agamemnon, murdered in his bath by his wife, Clytemnestra.

You will then select a Greek play from the textbook to read and respond to.

Finally, you will read short selections from two first century BCE epics, Roman Virgil's Aeneid and selections from one of two Indian epics: The Bhagavad-Gita or The Ramayana. These epics deals with important religious and ethical questions about love, war, destiny, the nature of divinity and the nature of the universe.

TASK 1.Read the Homer Study Guide, which will give you background information on the Troy Cycle and Homer's epics, the Iliad and the Odyssey.

TASK 2. Read the Odyssey (Volume A, 225-530). This is, by far, the longest reading assignment you will have for this course, but it is a delightful story. Just allow yourself plenty of time. If you find it unbearably long, you may select an activity below and then focus your reading on the section of the Odyssey that deals with that question.

TASK 3. Read through all the Homer's Odyssey Activities. Then, select one of these questions to answer for Activity 3, and post it to the Blackboard Activity 3: Odyssey Forum. Worth up to 50 points.

TASK 4. Read through the Greek Drama Study Guide. This will guide you as you select and read a Greek Drama.

TASK 5. Select and read a Greek Drama from the textbook. The choices are: Agamemnon  (Volume A, 537), Oedipus the King (Volume A, 617 ), Antigone (Volume A, 658), Medea (Volume A, 695) or Lysistrata (Volume A, 727).

TASK 6. Read through all the Greek Drama Activities. Then, select one of these questions to answer for Activity 4 and post it to the Blackboard Activity 4: Greek Drama Forum. Worth up to 50 points. 

TASK 7. Read through the Virgil's Aeneid Study Guide. This will give you background information on Virgil's Roman civilization and his epic poetry.

TASK 8. Read the selections from the Aeneid (Volume A, 1052-1134) and the selections from the Bhagavad-Gita (Volume A, 1010-1028) , or the Ramayana (Volume A, 890-953).

TASK 9. Read through either the Virgil Activities or the Virgil's Aeneid/Indian Epic Activities. Then select one of these questions to answer for Activity 5, and post it to the the Blackboard Activity 5: Aeneid/Gita Forum. Worth up to 50 points.

After completing Task 9, go on to Unit 3.

If you have not submitted (and had accepted)  all of Units 1 and 2, including  Exam 1-- by your Last Withdrawal date, I will drop you from the course. Keep in mind that I only accept one piece of work at a time and I do not accept work that I consider "not college level" (see Course Guide).

(c) Diane Thompson:11/14/1998; updated: 01/04/2008