It is without saying that Chinese literature is as complex as the country’s evolution. The Classic Poetry, one of the most important recollection of poetry, songs, and ballads, contains the voices of the people from those generations.  It is interesting to see how we can find some similarities on core values, specifically how young women used to behave with their pretender.  In the poem Zhongzi, Please, we can infer the importance of family moral values as well as perceive the image of how adventurous their youth used to be.

“Zhongzi, please don’t cross my village wall, don’t break the willows planted there. It’s not that I care so much for them, but I dread my father and mother; Zhongzi may be in my thoughts, but what my father and mother said- that too may be held in dread.”(Classic of Poetry, pg 1326-7)

This fragment of the poem illustrates a constrained behavior which would have been the result of a rigid conduct her parents would have imposed on her.  Also it is clear that by letting him know her indifference to any material damages of his intrusion act, she steers his attention to what really matters – her parents finding out. It is also implied that she is trying to appease him by reminding him that he is in her thoughts. This poem inspired a sense of mischief, and it revealed that the constant battle between following rules as opposed to disobeying them were a predicament in all societies.

Homoeroticism is defined as eroticism centered on or aroused by persons of one’s own sex. While scale of physical and psychological sexuality may differ and indeed not even involve any kind of sexual activity, the version in this story may referred to as what in modern times we would call a “bromance”. In The Epic of Gilgamesh, a perfect being was created by several deities but was too wild in all his might. A partner is created for him, to temper and balance him so as to bring peace to the city. Their relationship is the most important and nuanced in the story.

Throughout the epic, there is textual evidence of Gilgamesh and Enkidu’s affection for each other, some of which are difficult to interpret as platonic. For example, it is stated that Gilgamesh loves Enkidu “like a bride”, which would perhaps imply romantic love, if we’re to believe that the phrasing isn’t merely a convention of this particular prose.
Enkidu himself is given several feminine qualities such as “lush head hair like a woman” (Tablet I, Line 98) and is given a closeness with nature generally associated with women. Enkidu’s tempering presence gentles Gilgamesh (taming a wild warrior is usually the cliched role of the female love interest, no?). When Gilgamesh first dreams of Enkidu’s creation (Tablet I, lines 238-250) he describes him as a great weight that he could not move or ift forcefully, no matter his great strength. When he has a closer look however, he “fell in love with it”, and caressed it gently. Suddenly, after admitting this to himself and acting upon it, he can lift the great weight (Enkidu) and present it to his mother. There are many more instances of this behavior in Tablet I alone, and it is indicative of Gilgamesh and Enkidu’s soul-deep bond.

This poem really intrigued me. The way that I interpreted it was that the author was expressing their annoyance and distaste for the freeloading rat, but also revealing frustration with him/herself. It almost sounds as if the author is repeating affirmations. For example, in the final stanza, the author reiterates, “I swear that I will leave you/ and go to happy meadows./ Happy meadows, happy meadows/ where none need to wail and cry.” This repetition is very mantra-esque. Like someone using a meditative mechanism trying to find their “happy place”. The narrator needs more convincing than the rat!

The narrator begins with the frustration of the rat paying to attention to him/her, then lack of gratitude, and finally the lack of recognition of labor. It becomes clear at this point that maybe this isn’t a rat we’re talking about, but who could it be? It’s interesting that this was written so long ago, but I could see almost anyone evoke this sort of emotion. A child, a house wife, a politician, a group of people, anyone! Perhaps that’s why this poem is extremely relateable, it embodies disappointment which is a common feeling among people. Heck, the speaker could even be talking about a negative trait eating at themselves. I mean, three years is a long time for someone to allow that sort of negative behavior. What has silenced them, what has let them continue to be mistreated for so long?

While reading Oedipus and watching the play I came across some forms of irony, but the one that appeared the most to me was dramatic irony. According to my understanding, the element dramatic irony occurs when a situation is recognized by the audience but not by the characters. In view of the prophecy, young Oedipus escapes to another city where his birth parents lives, unknowingly kills his own fathers, marries his own mother and has four children with her. The entire play is ironic because Oedipus wants to cure his city from the plague by discovering who Laios’s murderer is, but little does he know incest is a great crime that he unknowingly contributed to and he is truly the cause of the epidemic. The powerful King Oedipus thinks he is cursing the killer of Laios, when in fact he is cursing himself. “I pray god that the unseen killer, whoever he is, and whether he killed alone or had help, be cursed with a life as evil as he is, a life of utter human deprivation.” (Oedipus the King, 296-300).

Since I am watching the dilemma from the outside, I can easily see all the irony that consists with King Oedipus. Although Oedipus can physically see at first, he is extremely blind to the truth. It is not until he is literally blind himself, where he finally accepts what the blind man Tiresias saw and told him. Oedipus did not believe a word from Tiresias but instead mocked his knowledge even though he asked Tiresias for the truth, and the whole truth is what he received, yet could not accept. Oedipus once conquered the complicated Sphinx riddle, but has no answer to the mystery of his own reality.

The intended effect of irony in “Oedipus the King” is Fate. The Gods already determined Oedipus and Jokasta’s fate from way before they knew and fate has to be accepted because it is inevitable and cannot be avoided. Overall, Oedipus was incapable of alternating his fate and denying his fate caused him to face the despicable consequence of his actions. Oedipus will never win the battle against himself, and his encounter with the truth is a tragedy.

Homer relies on Epic Similes throughout The Iliad to paint very specific and graphic pictures of scenes evolving and unfolding. In a time where stories relied completely on oration, it was paramount that a skilled orator depicted a scene with as much specificity and creativity as possible in order to keep the listener engaged and well-appraised of what was taking place.

In book XVI, Patroclus kills Sarpedon with an arrow to the chest “Sarpedon fell As a tree falls, oak, or poplar, or spreading pine…Like some tawny, spirited bull a lion has killed…” (The Iliad, Book XVI. 516-524). Homer chose to describe the slaying of Sarpedon in this way because it gives a much more graphic depiction of him dying and even more specifically illustrates the dynamic between him and Patroclus- as a spirited bull and Patroclus as the lion. With such vivid elucidation the listener also understands that Sarpedon was not a weak man- he fell “As a tree falls…When carpenters cut it down…to be the beam of a ship”. Homer makes it a point to specify what kind of tree (oak or poplar) Sarpedon resembles. This passage shows that was not an easy victory for Patroclus and alludes to the ensuing fight over Sarpedon’s body. As a listener, I can visualize Sarpedon’s body falling heavily to the ground and Patroclus standing over him like a lion that has just made a kill.

An epic simile is again used in book XVI, “Like a lion who has been wounded in the chest As he ravages a farmstead, and his own valor Destroys him.”(The Iliad, Book XVI. 786-788). Again relating Patroclus to the likeness of a lion- the use of the simile vividly conveys Patroclus’ characteristics of aggressiveness, vanity and pride; as well as seems to foreshadow his death.  One could imagine an already injured Patroclus still trying to fight, not knowing that it is in vain.

With just these two examples, it can be seen how Homer greatly improves the listener’s experience through the use of epic similes. They serve not only to expand one’s ability to visualize a scene but to color the experience of the characters and predict how the story is going to develop.

Power is given to one that deserves it. For example, if you’re the leader of a country or a president, you must do something beneficial for your citizens to be considered powerful.

Oedipus the King had that kind of power in the City of Thebes. As we can see in the image below, Oedipus is faced by the Sphinx, which is a female creature with a body of a lion and has a human head. The Sphinx had wings of an eagle and the tail of a snake. The monster wouldn’t let anybody in the city of Thebes unless they answer “What walks on four legs in the morning, two legs at noon, and three legs in the evening”? Then the genius Oedipus the king gave the right answer “Man”. As we all know that human beings crawl on all four during our childhood, we walk on two feet during adulthood, and we are all old we use a cane. He was welcomed as a savior into the city after conquering Sphinx.

When asked how Oedipus answered the Sphinx’s question, he said “ I needed no help from the bird; I used my wits to find the answer. I solved it (Oedipus The King, 476-479).

At the beginning of the play, the priest describes Oedipus as the powerful man. We can see an example of it when the priest comes to Oedipus to tell him: “We haven’t come to beg at your hearth because we think you’re the god’s equal. We’ve come because you are the best man at handling trouble or confronting gods”(Oedipus The King, 38-41). Oedipus can be a very nice man when it comes to helping his own people.

It is often said that you get to realize the value of someone after their death. People of the city of Thebes. As the chorus states “ Thebans, that man is the same Oedipus whose great mind solved the famous riddle. He was a most powerful man.” ( Oedipus The King, ( 1733-1735).

1. How does our contemporary concept of “tragedy” differ from Sophocles? What elements are necessary to qualify as “tragedy” then and now?
2. What are the symptoms of the plague in Thebes? How are they appropriate to the crime?
3. Locate examples of dramatic irony in the text? What is the intended effect of irony in Oedipus?
4. Why is so much disclosed through riddles? Is there some relationship between riddle-solving and the exercise of free will?
5. What is the narrative function of the scene between Oedipus and Kreon beginning at line 617? What do we learn about each from the scene?
6. Do you think Jokasta bears any blame for Oedipus’s fate? What errors does she make?
7. How many different kinds of blindness are depicted in the tragedy? How does blindness function on both a literal and figurative level?