Author: d.mashkevich

Rumi and Hafez were both Persian mystic poets, separated by roughly a hundred years, whose writing encouraged unity with God. Both poets focus heavily on the belief that God is not only a deity that exists in the heavens, but is also someone whose presence can be felt within communities on Earth. Rumi and Hafez also differed in their personal religious beliefs. Although both were considered Sufi Muslims, they had differing opinions on the traditional customs outlined by Sufism. Hafez focuses much of his work on material pleasures, whereas Rumi opts for a more minimalist approach on life’s necessities. Another notable difference between the two was that Hafez had grew up in a lower class, working family, which influenced the style of his poems relative to Rumi. Hafez began writing poems by improvising his form, and thus, some of his older poems may differ from Rumi in terms of structure.

It was interesting to read about how different Greek writers viewed the idea of love. To Plato, love could take many forms, as shown through several different speakers in the Symposium. Despite these differing perspectives, Plato insists that the love of wisdom is the greatest form that love can take, in a sense because to love wisdom is to strive for self-improvement and knowledge. These virtuous qualities are what give love the utmost value in a man. On the other hand, Sappho views love with a more physical effect. According to Sappho, love can act as a driving force between two subjects, and is the most sought after beauty in any human. Love represents an inner connection between a person and a subject, and is rare to find in true form. Lastly, Catullus takes a view on love that is somewhere in between, as shown through his description of his relationship with Lesbia. Catullus establishes that love has both a physical and sentimental aspect. He briefly mentions that he enjoys kissing Lesbia, to demonstrate the physical love he feels for her. However, he does not move past this physical description, but rather talks about the mutual devotion of time and effort into their emotional connection. Thus, Catullus emphasizes that love is dual in nature, similar to Plato’s sentiment that love can take on many forms. Thus, these three Greek writers had quite varying perceptions of love.

A common definition of a hero is someone who represents a culture or community in some way. However, the most popular heroes usually have one thing in common – they are able to find success on their journey, which leads many observers to overlook pertinent flaws in a hero’s character. Odysseus is able to get away with several dangerous and senseless actions that jeopardized himself and his crew members; one example of this occurs when Odysseus taunts Polyphemus upon his departure from the island. If Odysseus was unsuccessful on his return to Ithaca, then perhaps Homer may have further highlighted Odysseus’ high regard for himself as a tragic flaw that got in the way of his ultimate goal. Nonetheless, the final product that Odysseus puts forth outweighs the convoluted path he took to get home.

Even today, similar situations exist with modern icons, especially given the volatile nature of the mass media. One example I think of occurred during the NFL season two seasons ago. Cam Newton had a breakout year, one that none of the major football writers or analysts could have predicted. Along the way, he made it a habit to give out footballs to young children wearing Panthers gear whenever his team scored. He came to represent an entire city and fan base that bought into him as a leader and a hero. Newton made it to his biggest stage yet, the Super Bowl, and ended up struggling to compete with one of the league’s best defenses. His meteoric rise was then swiftly followed by one of the roughest spans of his career. People began to question his character, and wondered whether his personality ultimately got in the way of his success.

Thus, many of the basic principles that define a hero have remained the same throughout centuries, but today, the influence of mass media places much more scrutiny on a character if he/she begins to falter and encounters failure.