literary-analysis
47 Stories
7 Characteristics of Epic Heroes: Summary and Analysis
The two ancient Greek poets Hesiod and Homer, created the first guide on ancient Greek religion and customs. In this guide, it was stated that ther...
By Ancient Literature
Beowulf Themes: Powerful Messages of a Warrior and Hero Culture
What Is the Theme of Beowulf? Beowulf has many themes relating to Anglo-Saxon culture; however, the overarching themes could be the heroic code of ...
By Ancient Literature
Beowulf vs Achilles: What are Their Unique Distinctions?
Beowulf vs Achilles, what are their similarities and differences? To begin with, they are both heroes from epic poems, but they greatly differ in h...
By Ancient Literature
Characters in the Odyssey: A Varied List of Significant Ones
Characters in the Odyssey are numerous, but the most significant ones include Odysseus, the Greek hero, around whom the story revolves; Penelope, h...
By Ancient Literature
Choragos in Antigone: Could the Voice of Reason Have Saved Creon?
The Choragos in Antigone represents the advisors of Creon. Ostensibly, they were there to guide the king and give voice to the concerns of the peop...
By Ancient Literature
Chryseis, Helen, and Briseis: Iliad Romances or Victims?
For Briseis, Iliad is a story of murder, kidnapping, and tragedy. For Helen, a story of kidnapping and uncertainty as her captors fight a war to re...
By Ancient Literature
Civil Disobedience in Antigone: How It Was Portrayed
Antigone's civil disobedience can be considered one of the play's central themes, considering the Greek classic revolves around our main heroine's ...
By Ancient Literature
Conflicts in The Odyssey: A Character's Struggle
In Odysseus's journey home, he faces significant conflicts in The Odyssey. The various challenges Odysseus faces are essentially the center of Home...
By Ancient Literature
Fate in Antigone: The Red String That Ties It
Fate in Antigone has been running after our Heroine since the events of Oedipus Rex. Her family's curse goes back to her father and his transgressi...
By Ancient Literature
Fate in the Iliad: Analyzing the Role of Fate in Homer's Epic Poem
What Is Fate in the Iliad? Fate in the Iliad is "how the gods determine the destiny of characters" in the epic poem and how the action of the chara...
By Ancient Literature
Fates In the Odyssey: Odysseus' Destiny
Fate in the Odyssey showed how Odysseus suffered during his long journey back to his home in Ithaca. As fate is described as the development of occ...
By Ancient Literature
Feminism in Antigone: The Power of Women
Feminism in Antigone is a crucial step in the breakthrough of gender roles in modern-day media; Sophocles' play held various influential themes tha...
By Ancient Literature
Haemon: Antigone's Tragic Victim
Haemon in Antigone represents an often forgotten character in classic mythology – the innocent victim. Often the offspring of acting characters, vi...
By Ancient Literature
Hera in the Iliad: The Role of the Queen of the Gods in Homer's Poem
Hera in the Iliad follows all the schemes of the queen of the gods to turn the tide of the war in favor of the Greeks. Some of her attempts were su...
By Ancient Literature
Heroism in the Odyssey: Through the Epic Hero Odysseus
Heroism in the Odyssey is one of the prevalent themes easily recognizable in this timeless piece of literature similar to the case of any other epi...
By Ancient Literature
Hesiod vs Homer: A Cursory Look At the Two Great Greek Writers
Hesiod vs Homer compares the two great Greek epic poets of ancient Greek literature. The idea is to establish the similarities and differences betw...
By Ancient Literature
Honor in the Iliad: The Penultimate Aim of Every Warrior in the Poem
Honor in the Iliad was more valuable than life, therefore, everyone strived to achieve it. Characters such as Achilles, Agamemnon, Odysseus, Patroc...
By Ancient Literature
How are the Suitors Described in The Odyssey: Everything You Need to Know
The Odyssey is an epic Greek poem that tells the story of the return journey of Odysseus to the island of Ithaca. It describes the challenges that ...
By Ancient Literature
How Long Is the Iliad? The Number of Pages and Reading Time
How Long Is the Iliad? The standard accepted version of the Iliad consists of exactly 15,693 lines all grouped into 24 books. The events of the sto...
By Ancient Literature
Iliad vs Odyssey: A Tale of Two Epics
While the Iliad vs Odyssey question is related and even considered sequential by some, there are various subtle and not-so-subtle differences. For ...
By Ancient Literature
Invocation of the Muse Odyssey: The Author's Prayer
Invocation of the muse Odyssey, in Greek mythology, refers to the act of the author, Homer, requesting the muse to give him inspiration and blessin...
By Ancient Literature
Irony in Antigone: Death by Irony
Irony in Antigone is written to build up anticipation and give interest to the characters of the plot. It creates a certain depth and richness to t...
By Ancient Literature
Land Of The Dead Odyssey
In the Odyssey, books 10 and 11 are known as "Land of the Dead." The Odyssey proceeds with Odysseus continuing his quest to return to Ithaca. Havin...
By Ancient Literature
Literary Devices in Antigone: Understanding Text
Literary devices in Antigone vary far and wide and are used to create a deeper understanding of the story's characters and their journey in the pla...
By Ancient Literature
Menelaus in The Odyssey: King of Sparta Helping Telemachus
Menelaus in The Odyssey is presented as Odysseus' friend and the king that offered Odysseus' son, Telemachus, assistance to find our hero's whereab...
By Ancient Literature
Motifs in The Odyssey: Recounting Literature
Motifs in The Odyssey have been studied and scrutinized by numerous scholars ranging from old to young. The Odyssey comprises various books with di...
By Ancient Literature
Nostos in The Odyssey and The Need to Return to One's Home
Nostos in the Odyssey refers to Odysseus' return home 'from Troy by sea. The word nostalgia is also derived from the words "nostos" and "algos," wh...
By Ancient Literature
Oedipus' Admirable Character Traits: What You Need To Know
Oedipus is the tragically fated lead character of Oedipus the King by the Greek playwright Sophocles. Abandoned as a baby by his parents King Laius...
By Ancient Literature
Oedipus Tiresias: The Role of the Blind Seer in Oedipus the King
Oedipus Tiresias follows the events involving the blind prophet and how those events influence the outcome play, Oedipus Rex. Tiresias is one of th...
By Ancient Literature
Paris of the Iliad – Fated to Destroy?
Alexander of Troy, also known as Paris, was the younger brother of Troy's hero, Hector. Paris, however, did not have the pampered upbringing of his...
By Ancient Literature
Penelope in the Odyssey: Story of the Faithful Wife of Odysseus
Penelope in the Odyssey, the poem by Homer, is the faithful wife of Odysseus (or Ulysses for the Romans). Odysseus is the King of Ithaca, and he is...
By Ancient Literature
Phemius in The Odyssey: The Ithacan Prophet
Singer for both humans and the Divine, Phemius in The Odyssey, is a self-taught player of the lyre specializing in songs of sorrow. He is described...
By Ancient Literature
Sappho 31 – Interpretation of Her Most Famous Fragment
Sappho 31 is an ancient Greek lyrical poem written by a Greek female poet, Sappho of Lesbos. Not only is it one of the most significant pieces of h...
By Ancient Literature
Six Major Iliad Themes That Express Universal Truths
Iliad themes cover a bunch of universal topics from love and friendship to honor and glory as presented in the epic poem. They represent universal ...
By Ancient Literature
Sphinx Oedipus: The Origin of the Sphinx in Oedipus the King
The sphinx Oedipus was originally an Egyptian creation that was adopted by Sophocles in his tragic play, Oedipus Rex. The gods sent the creature to...
By Ancient Literature
Symbols in the Odyssey: What Is Their Significance?
Symbols in the Odyssey can also be seen as allegories in the Odyssey; however, it may seem that the poem is just about the story of a Greek hero an...
By Ancient Literature
The Burial of Hector: How Hector's Funeral Was Organized
The burial of Hector marked a brief period in the Trojan War where the two warring factions ceased hostilities and agreed to allow each side to bur...
By Ancient Literature
The Role of Women in the Iliad: How Homer Portrayed Women in the Poem
The Role of Women in the Iliad with their treatment of female characters in the Iliad and Odyssey can be seen as dehumanizing by today's standards ...
By Ancient Literature
Themes in the Aeneid: Exploring the Ideas in the Latin Epic Poem
The Aeneid's themes are plenty; each gives an idea of what shaped the lives of the ancient Romans. A theme such as fate tells of how the ancient Ro...
By Ancient Literature
Themes in The Odyssey: Creation of a Classic
Themes in The Odyssey are written intricately well to create a dynamic piece that fully comprehends the culture and nature of those living within t...
By Ancient Literature
Themes of Beowulf – What You Need to Know
The poem of Beowulf acts as a code of conduct. It contains moral instructions which were a representation of the Anglo-Saxon culture at that time. ...
By Ancient Literature
Tiresias: Antigone's Champion
In Tiresias, Antigone had a champion, one who, ultimately, failed to save her from the fate her uncle's pride brought on. Tiresias, from his first ...
By Ancient Literature
Violence in the Aeneid: The Instances of Conflicts in the Epic Poem
Violence in the Aeneid explores the subjects of conquest and defeat, glory and infamy, that characterized the establishment of the Roman Empire. Th...
By Ancient Literature
What is an Example of an Epic Simile: Definition and Four Examples
A simile is a figure of speech in which one thing is likened to another in such a way as to clarify and enhance an image. It is an explicit compari...
By Ancient Literature
What Roles Did the Gods in The Iliad Play?
The gods in the Iliad, as in most Greek mythology, heavily influenced events as they unfolded. While Zeus, the king of the gods, remained neutral, ...
By Ancient Literature
Why Did Achilles Not Want To Fight? Pride or Pique
Achilles was a great hero in Greek mythology, the son of the mortal king Peleus and the Nereid Thetis. The Myrmidons, the people of his father well...
By Ancient Literature
Why Does Medea Kill Her Sons Before Fleeing to Athens to Marry Aegeus?
Medea kills her sons because her husband, Jason, betrayed her and broke the marriage vows they made to stay together and have a family. Medea was a...