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More handpicked essays just for you.
Similarities between ancient civilizations and modern
Violence in literature
Violence in literature
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Back in My Day…
“Back in my day, people just didn’t do stuff like that.'; In addition to hearing about how bread used to cost a nickel, that quote is what you hear it from the elders of most generations when talking about violence, especially on television in the present time; they say that the violence seen just did not seem to exist back then. However, when one thinks about it, violence that extreme has existed throughout the ages, whether it was as early as the Iliad and the Odyssey during the Greek era, the Aeneid in the Roman era, or even in Christian stories in the Bible.
The first example of historic extreme violence is back in the time of the Iliad and the Odyssey during the Greek era, which happened during the eighth or ninth centuries BCE. These two epics, which are considered by many scholars to be very fine works of art, are filled with gratuitous acts of violence and other such acts of immoral behavior. In the Iliad, especially in Book 5, where Homer tells of Diomedes’ aristea, a detailed account of how a man battles and injures both man and gods is given. In lines 72-75, for example, Homer gives us a terrifyingly graphic description of the battle scene:
“Now the son of Phyleus, the spear-famed, closing upon him struck him with the sharp spear behind the head at the tendon, and straight on through the teeth and under the tongue cut the bronze blade, and he dropped in the dust gripping in his teeth the cold bronze.';
Examples of aggression and viciousness are also given in the Odyssey. In this, most say that Odysseus was justified in doing what he did, but it is still brutal fighting. The best example of viciousness is given when Odysseus finally returns home and has to defeat the suitors:
“Odysseus’ arrow hit him [Antinoos] under the chin and punched up to the feathers through the throat. Backward and down he went, letting the winecup fall from his shocked hand. Like pipes his nostrils jetted crimson runnels, a river of mortal red, and one last kick upset his table knocking the bread and meat to soak in dusty blood.';
These two examples might not be the same as a gang war or a drive-by in the middle of the streets in New York, but they are still brutal and gory nonetheless.
He begins his article with a counterclaim, which discusses how the death penalty is actually a better alternative than life in prison without parole. He uses an example of David Zink, a recently executed murderer, who says prisoners should “embrace” the death penalty because it is better than spending “23 hours a day locked inside a cell” (Holloway 3). A personal story from an actual inmate lends much credibility to his counterclaim. Acknowledging the death penalty can be beneficial strengthens Holloway’s overall argument. Holloway’s most effective claim is the high cost of litigation to the taxpayers. He uses good statistics when he says, in Colorado, the James Holmes case has cost the state “$3.5 million” dollars (3). This is strong data to back up his argument. Not seeking the death penalty only costs “an average of $150,000, again providing valid statistics to further his argument (3). When given a choice, taxpayers will want to save money when it affects their bottom line. These numbers are only for one case, so readers will wonder what the death penalty is really costing their state. His next argument states innocent people are sitting on death row. Holloway appeals to the reader’s emotions when he states, “there have been 154 verified cases of death row exonerations since 1973” (4). Readers will be mad or sad that this many people are locked in jail for crimes they did not commit. He
Even though throughout all of the history wars and other violent actions have occurred, great literature never recorded these, but today's literature is full of it. The use of these vicious scenarios was not very common throughout history due to conflicts that arose. It may be that the world is in much more harmony than it once was, but the use of graphic novels has increased over time. This is a result of a new world, with a new era, with new technology evolving. These scenes were not often used due to the graphic circumstances these moments created. The book, 19 Minutes By: Jodi Picoult, involves such a scenario with a school shooting
One of Odysseus’ traits is bravery. One example of Odysseus’ bravery is when he injures a Cyclops that is 5 times his size, “I drew it from the coals and my four fellows/ gave me a hand, lugging it near the Cyclops/ as more than natural force nerved them, straight forward they sprinted, lifted it, and rammed it/ deep in his crater eye. 329-332” This quote shows how brave Odysseus and his men are to face the Cyclops. Odysseus was intelligent to think about this idea, but he was brave for actually following through and doing it. Odysseus was also brave for fighting Penelope’s suitors even when he was outnumbered, “Now shrugging off his rags the wiliest fighter of the islands/ leapt and stood on the broad doorsill, his own bow in his hand/ he poured out at his feet a rain of arrows from the quiver/ and spoke to the c...
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Homer’s The Odyssey is not just a tale of a man’s struggle on his journey home from the Trojan War, but of his struggle from the consequences of revenge. The Odyssey weaves in different characters’ tales of revenge from the gods and what impact revenge actually had on those characters. Revenge is an important underlying theme in The Odyssey because, in essence, it explains why Odysseus’ journey was so prolonged and treacherous. A few examples of revenge in the poem include Orestes’ revenge on Aegisthus, Zeus’ revenge on Odysseus and his men, and Poseidon’s revenge on Odysseus. These different examples of revenge in The Odyssey show the importance of the gods’ revenge in the epic journey of Odysseus.
Odysseus struggles with self discipline many times during the odyssey. One example of this is when fleeing cyclops island after barley escaping from right underneath the cyclops. " O Cyclops! Would you feast on my companions? Puny, am I, in a Caveman's hands? How do you like the beating that we gave you, you damned cannibal? Eater of guests under your roof! Zeus and the gods have paid you!"(Lines 383-389). This is
Originally aired on CBS in 1974 as a spinoff of the sitcom Maude, Good Times was a Black situation comedy based on the everyday lives of a Black Chicago family during the height of the civil rights movement (Deane, 2004). The cast starred Esther Rolles as the mother Florida Evans who first appeared as the maid in the television show Maude, John Amos as the father James Evans who starred in the hit miniseries Roots, comedian Jimmie Walker who played the oldest son James Evans Jr. (JJ), Ja'net DuBois as neighbor and friend of the Evans family Willona Woods, Ralph Carter who played the youngest son Michael Evans, and Anderson Bern Nadette Stanis as daughter Thelma Evans (Deane, 2004).
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