Some people lust for glory. Some people defy the standards. And, certain people just lose. Everyone has something they want. Getting that? Now that can be tough but, a goal is a goal. I've had my fair share of quarrels, disagreements, basically you name it I've probably argued about it. Stubbornness is just natural to me, just like annoyance. But enough about me! Onto the more interesting part, the actual story. It starts more or less like this: Once upon a time, during the time of 480 B.C.E, in the small but sustained land of Caria an agreement was made. This was not a simple black and white agreement made. It was more or less a you-die-unless-you-support-us kind of agreement. See the Persians basically owned the land I am princess of, Caria. It was after all a Persia Satrapy. Xerxes being his usual arrogant, annoying, and demanding self somehow got me stuck in his conflict with the Greeks. While I can make endless jokes and bash Xerxes, I do admire his war ethics and strategies. The background information for this "battle" was pretty simple, Greeks wanted their land and the Persians wanted the Greeks land. Not a particularly win-win situation if you ask me. Anyway Xerxes forced me into command with himself. It's of great importance to note that Caria most likely didn't originally have any intentions whatsoever with dealing in wars. That probably wasn't true at all. My people were originally mercenaries for the Pharaoh of Egypt, it's just natural for us to have a knack for weaponry and war strategies. We worship war gods so it shouldn't strike anyone as odd that we are very dedicated to our weapon designs, tools, and inventions. Our main god is literally called the Carian Zeus and his speciality is in the army. It doesn't get... ... middle of paper ... ...tire story was really that of me trying to escape reality. I tried to create a safe haven where I could be okay and it was this wonderful fantasy land I had created for myself. But, with the a splash of cold water from reality hit me, that perfect utopia I had built, came crashing down and almost buried me. Days got longer and I grew weaker emotionally. I finally faced it like the brave warrior I am, and to this day I understand now avoiding your problems doesn't make them go away. I gave myself time to heal and confronted reality. It took time but I did it. And you want to know what life is like now? It's beautiful. Very cliché indeed. It's the truth though. I look out my window and I see wonderful people. There's laughter, smiles, children, and most importantly life. Life is fragile. I've got much to work on, but I'm trying my best to appreciate every second of it.
The Role of Themistocles in the Greek Defeat of the Persians in 480 - 479 BC.
The ancient battle of Thermopylae has been retold numerous times and famously depicted on screen as a heroic and tragic Greek battle. The legendary Spartan King, Leonidas and his 300 formidable royal body guards led a coalition of Greek warriors against a much larger opponent, the Persian King Xerxes. Against the odds, the Greeks stood their ground and deterred Xerxes Army for 3 days at the Thermopylae pass, known as the Hot Gates. Xerxes might have won a tactical battle, however, the Spartans proved that superior training, equipment, and intimate familiarity with the terrain were critical force multipliers. The Spartan power, will and perseverance came from an undying sense of patriotism and duty. 300 Spartans and countless Greeks may have lost their lives at the Thermopylae pass but their courage rallied the Greek states to fight and prevail against a tyrant. The in-depth preparation, tactical expertise, the loyalty and courage these warriors displayed are the defining factors that made this battle a strategic win for the Greeks.
After the Battle of Artemisium, the Greek fled to the Isle of Salamis. This created problems for the Persians. With the Greeks being so close, their port was limited which meant they could not supply their army that was heading to Isthmus of Corinth. Xerxes calls in his naval commanders and asks for guidance on whether to go to battle at sea to remove the Greeks from the Isle of Salamis. All were in favor of the naval battle besides Artemisia. She advised Xerxes to spare his ships and not go to battle at sea. He has already gained Athens, which was his objective. She suggested to him that he hold his fleets back because if he went to naval battle the outcome would not be in his favor. Those that knew Artemisia thought her advice would agitate Xerxes and those who envied her because of the honor she was showed over the other commanders, were excited thinking Xerxes would have her killed. Xerxes did neither, he took her advice with pleasure and admired her even more. Xerxes thought his absence at the Battle of Artemisium was the reason the Persians fought so horrible. So he ordered the naval battle to take place and made arrangements for himself to be
In J.D. Miller's article “Thermopylae” the entire pre-history as well as post-history can be seen. In 525 B.C. The Persian empire had grown from a small kingdom to an immense empire stretching from Troy to modern day Russia. King Darius was their leader at the time, strangely enough Darius was an imposter to the throne. When the previous king had passed into the next life Darius had pretended to be his brother and they all believed him. By 490 B.C. the new leader was Xerxes the famed god king. Xerxes had just come a victory at marathon and his troops were eager for another, the sight of the narrow pass between two mountains being defended by over seven thousand Greeks and three hundred Spartans. Over the course of two days the Persian army through everything they had at the Greeks defence. Xerxes knew that he needed a swift victory or his army of over two hundred thousand men and fifty thousand cavalry would run out of supplies very quickly. It was not until a Greek traitor went to Xerxes, telling him of a secret goat path that would lead his army behind the Greeks position. On the third day the battle was ended quickly as the Persian army surrounded the three hundred Spartans and four hundred free Greeks that stayed to ensure the retreat of the other Greeks.
Xerxes was a man of power. The Great King of Persia, his empire encompassed the majority of the known world. On his invasion of Greece in the spring of 480BCE, he reportedly commanded a horde of over two million men. Even the Greek oracle at Delphi encouraged prudence in face of such an overwhelming force (7.140). Thus the question arises of why such an army failed to compel Greece into submission. I will explore this with focus on the key battles and the important factors, most notably the timing of the attack, the quality of his expeditionary force and Xerxes’ personal faults.
Conerly (2004), further states two things attribute to the way conflict is managed. One is the importance of meeting your own goals and the other is the importance you attribute to relationships and wanting to get along with others.
I am Alexander the Great, King of Macedonia ruler of Greece. I have been king of Macedonia since my father's assassination five years ago. Since his death I have conquered much of the world. I am ruthless, and should anyone attempt to defeat me in battle, they are sure to die. The year I became ruler of Macedonia I set out to the city of Thessaly to restore Macedonia rule. After Thessaly submitted to me I conquered many states, and many other states freely submitted without battles. Two years after my father's death, my war with the Persians began. Near the city of Troy, I defeated the Persian army. In doing so, all the states of Asia then submitted their arms to me. A year later I would encounter the Persians again; this time the main Persian army would be my opponent. I defeated the Persian army led by King Darious III at the city of Issus, and a year later took the city of Tyre. Furthermore, Egypt surrendered to me. Perhaps they knew they could not defeat me in battle and thought it better not to try. I had now secured control of the entire eastern Mediterranean coastline.
To been seen as acting in Greece’s best interest, Sparta looked to the goal of ‘freeing the Asiatic Greeks’ from Persian control (Lewis 1977: 141). This was perhaps Sparta emulating the direction of Athens during the Peloponnesian war (Thuc 1.89). At first Tissaphernes promised to make the Asiatic Greeks autonomous, but after coming to the conclusion that his forces were sufficient; decided to make war on Sparta instead (Plutarch, Agesilaus 9). After a peace agreement failed to be agreed on (Rhodes 2010: 227), Persia sent gold to strengthen the enemies of Sparta (Rhodes 2010: 227) and with the threat of war in Greece, Agesilaus was forced to return home (Plutarch, Agesilaus 15). The Greeks were once again fighting amongst themselves (Bucker 2003: 77) and furthermore, pressure continued to mount on Sparta as their enemies continued to regained their strength (Plutarch, Agesilaus 23).
There is a great deal of useful information to be found on the Internet but sorting through it can often be a hassle. There are some sites that are useful and give a great deal of helpful information but there are also many sites that just don't meet up to those standards. Since anyone can put information on the web, it is often hard to tell a good site from a bad one. Today, I am going to go through a few sites relating to Geoffrey Chaucer and his book The Canterbury Tales and give examples of good and bad sites relating to them.
For example, if one were to suddenly be able to see through solid objects, how would you feel? If you suddenly became invisible, what might not happen to you? However, if in the same story solid objects melted randomly, day flipped irregularly with night throughout a twenty-four hour period, whilst other people disappeared without warning. Then this would result in a situation where anything is possible and nothing was out of the ordinary and interesting occurs. Science fiction is meant to maintain an element of the human and real, in order to captivate its readers.
The question is whether it is possible to distinguish between fantasy and true science fiction. I am reminded of the analogy, attributable I believe, to Theodore Sturgeon, of the elf ascending vertically the side of a brick wall. In a science fiction story the knees of the elf would be bent, his center of gravity thrown forward, his stocking cap hanging down his neck, with his feet quite possibly equipped with some form of suction cups. In a fantasy, on the other hand, the elf would simply stride up the wall in a normal walking posture, with his stocking cap standing straight out from his brow. What is the difference between these scenarios? The typical answer is that the science fiction story must play by the implicit rules of the universe; in this instance, gravitation. Fantasy, however, need not "tip its hat" to the Law of Universal Gravitation the story can bend the rules in which gives it the fantasy genre.
The human need for conflict is a constant factor in everyday life and has been demonstrated throughout our readings of the Romans and the Greeks. As seen in Herodotus’ The History, tales of battles and wars are described in epic proportions and are a constant theme throughout his writings. Herodotus plays into the aspect of fighting, as well as the cultural belief of Greece that war was a necessary part of society and should be valued by the citizens. By heightening the actions of soldiers in battle, war is encouraged as a way of life because it is emphasized as a way of being remembered and praised for committing honorable deeds and protecting Greece. Herodotus incorporates numerous acts of valor like those seen in The Battle of Thermopylae in his writings in order to provide the ultimate connection between Greek behavior and warfare as a representation of what it meant to practice good citizenship. Herodotus incorporates the Role of the Gods, male behavior, and describing the Persians in The History in his attempt to portray the historic event of the 300’s last stand against the Persians in a way that Greeks would look up to and hopefully want to follow.
“A Tale Intended to be After the Fact…” is how Stephan Crane introduced his harrowing story, “The Open Boat,” but this statement also shows that history influences American Literature. Throughout history, there has been a connection among literary works from different periods. The connection is that History, current events, and social events have influenced American Literature. Authors, their literary works, and the specific writing styles; are affected and influenced by the world around them. Authors have long used experiences they have lived through and/or taken out of history to help shape and express in their works. Writing styles are also affected by the current trends and opinions of the period they represent. By reading American Literature, we have seen the inhumane treatment of slaves, we have seen the destruction caused by wars, and we have seen the devastation of eras such as The Great Depression.
Conflicts are important parts of all healthy relationships, squabbling about even the smallest of things can be good. The important thing about this is to make sure one is going about it the correct way. Often times when people get into arguments they handle the situation wrongly and shut down all pathways of communication. This is mostly unintentional, drawing from places of learned body language, past associations with certain actions or responses, walls go up around the point one is defending preparing for an attack. Communication is complicated and learning how to have better skills in handling arguments and basic conversations is useful in every aspect of life, as communication is something that will occur in every environment. Sullivan
The most important part of any type of book or story is that it be interesting. This proves to be particularly important in detective fiction as well. What could be more interesting than having a crime committed in front of you, given all (or most) of the details and still not be able to figure it out? This is exactly how detective fiction authors draw people into these stories and books. By weaving an intricate and interesting plot full of fascinating characters, and all types of details about the crime, readers get drawn into the plot and cannot stop reading until they find out the solution to the mystery. Simply put, readers are drawn to detective fiction because it is so easy to become completely engrossed in the stories. The trick of the author is how to create such an environment to keep readers coming back again and again to the genre.