Essay about Homer vs. Ovid - 1417 Words

Homer and Ovid are two of the oldest, most influential poets that have ever lived. Although they are both poets, they have several differences in their writings. Homer, a Greek poet, is most famous for his epic poems Iliad and Odyssey. Ovid, a Roman poet, is most famous for Metamorphoses a 15 book poem containing over 250 myths. To compare and contrast these two poets and their writing styles, I will use Achilles’ battle with Hector in Homer’s Iliad book 22 and compare it with Achilles’ battle with Cycnus in Ovid’s Metamorphoses book 12. The comparison of these battles will give us a better understanding of these poets different views on the Trojan War. This battle also takes place outside the city of Troy, at the beginning of the†¦show more content†¦Upon checking the body after the choking, Achilles’ sees that the armor was empty. This was due to the fact that Neptune had changed his son’s body to that of a swan. Now that I have given a rough setting for book 12 of Metamorphoses, I will give a brief background of the battle with Hector. Achilles’ battle with Hector in book 22 of Iliad begins outside of the walls of the city of Troy at the end of the Trojan War. Hector was the last of the Trojan’s outside of the walls, ignoring his father King Priam’s pleads for him to get back to safety inside of the walls of the city. However, Hector believes he must fight for his honor and believes it is more honorable to die as one fighting to defend his city rather than dying an old man. At this same time moment, Achilles is going on a killing spree, because he believes glory is found in the size of the amount of Trojans he kills. This leads to Achilles chasing who he believes is a Trojan, Agenor, but in reality is the god Apollo distracting Achilles. Apollo is acting as a Trojan in order to divert Achilles from his killing of Trojans to save Trojan lives. Achilles’ anger is heightened due to the trick, and is now even more dangerous to Hector. After realizing that Achilles’ anger meant there was no chance of negotiation, Hector chose to run. After three laps around the walls of the city, Zeus began to pity Hector but was dissuaded by Athena who informed himShow MoreRelatedConflict Within The Mythology Of The Iliad By Homer946 Words   |  4 Pagesthis is explored within The Iliad by Homer. Written within the Bronze Age, it depicts the events that took place during the Trojan War between 1194- 1184 BC. This war is initiated by the Judgement of Paris, which was ultimately won by the .within the Rage of Achilles, detailing the plight that Achilles had faced during the Trojan War caused by the relinquishing of his trophy/wife, Briseis. Another example of conflict can be found within The Metamorphoses by Ovid, which is a collection of mythical shortRead MoreAn Ideal Hero: Greek vs. Roman Essay1527 Words   |  7 Pages . - Priesthood for cent ralized sacred ritual . - Kingship for centralized political and social structure (Paraoh= kings in Egypt) . 2. Geographical areas of early civilizations (Attached) 3. Ages of early Greek mythology to Ovid ( Poet of Metamorphoses) a. Origin of humans: sacred clay (wise and rulers) blood of titans (murderous and criminals), and stones(endurance) b. 4 ages as decline: Golden (peace), Silver (seasons farming), Bronze (war), Iron (mining, deforestationRead MoreNegative Attributes of Old Society Essay1841 Words   |  8 Pages Negative Attributes of Old Societies Starting out, you have to compare the negatives of the Polis from Medea to the negatives of the â€Å"romanitas† from Ovid. There were many negatives that we saw and read about in the book of Medea. The main negative was the state power. Of the state power there was the Bureaucrats, Politicians and the Lawyers. These three groups of people had the entire control over what would happen in their society. Even though Medea was a very loyal woman to her husbandRead MoreHow to Read Lit Like a Prof Notes3608 Words   |  15 Pageseither in plot or theme or both. Examples: i. Hamlet: heroic character, revenge, indecision, melancholy nature ii. Henry IV—a young man who must grow up to become king, take on his responsibilities iii. Othello—jealousy iv. Merchant of Venice—justice vs. mercy v. King Lear—aging parent, greedy children, a wise fool 7. †¦Or the Bible a. Before the mid 20th century, writers could count on people being very familiar with Biblical stories, a common touchstone a writer can tap b. Common Biblical stories