A brief description of myself would start with my love of fish. I am intensely obsessed with increasing the efficiency of vehicles. I enjoy sports and I am very athletic. I am very diligent about my work but I do not enjoy subjects that use subjective evaluations as vehicles for interpreting knowledge. I have a desire for knowledge and I dislike procrastination. I enjoy country music. I think the best part of movies is the end because they reveal the entire stowed purpose. The second best part is the secret ending after the credits in Pirates of the Caribbean movies. I prefer Directv over Dish Network because the customer service for Directv is better.
The significantly decreased importance of mythology in the present era is due to deviations from a subjective mindset among the general populous to a more realist embrace of the status quo. This alters the general perception of middle class and even poor individuals in the modern era but generally leaves the non-working classes with a significantly strong embrace of the myth. First, the drift away from a significant embrace of mythology is true for most cultures because of an unavoidable increase in time from the origin of creation. This is particularly because future cultures will naturally be less interested as people become less diligent about telling the stories orally and as individuals with knowledge become old or die of natural causes. Second, the industrial revolution and the Renaissance produced a similar effect on the perspective of the self-conscious actions of individuals. This made them more conscious of their social situation and allowed them to conceive the fact that they could directly control their social outcome. This moved society from being focused on community gains to a more individualistic, materially focused populous that is fundamentally driven by profits and self-gain. Myths are generally associated with interpreting the future or present situation of community instead of individuals, which presents individualists with an antithesis to subconscious, fundamental agreements that they have accepted and openly pursue. This conscious and subconscious conflict influences the individualist to refrain from adopting the principles that are in direct refutation with individualism. However, there is a recognizable continuity in the principles of myths that are used as a means to increase enjoyment among the higher educated and wealthy. These individuals, in the case of the wealthy, are significantly more individualistic by using Myths as vehicle for their personal enjoyment through sheer pleasure in reading. Among academia and the academic community, however, we see that there is always a drive towards increasing the understanding of history, whether through myths or through actual observable facts this continuity is recognizable. Humanists were significant contributors to this cause through evaluation of Latin works and support of analysis of Ancient Greek and Roman works. This allowed for a brief extension of Greek and Roman works through the expanse of humanism, which added its own particular style to humanist works. The extension of Greek and Roman works was done mainly by scholarly individuals and is the primary reason for its presence today and its status as classical works of art.
An Archetype is the re-emergence of preconscious psychic dispositions projected onto the works and literature of our own creations. Archetypes have a myriad of categories that differentiate the emergence of such dispositions by certain projections, such as, fear, harmony, and self-consciousness. Most commonly projected archetypes include revelations such as, The Shadow, The Self, Anima or Animus, The Divine Couple, and The Child.
The shadow archetype present in The Dark Night is created after Bruce Wayne falls into the hidden well and is terrified by the sudden flight of bats from the well. This is derived throughout the movie in Bruce’s recollection of that moment and his fear of bats which originates throughout the movie in his dreams, hallucinations, and during his subjection to neurotoxins. This represents our seclusion of fearful emotions through the endowment of Bruce with chiroptophobia that originates somewhere between our social construct and the construct of the movie. It further represents the Shadow archetype because of the continuity of his fear throughout the movie, which is coincidentally continued through his dreams and his encounter with Scarecrow’s neurotoxins.
The creation of this archetype is imperative to the overall story because it subjects Bruce to the archetype of the Self and is the major driving force for other archetypal constructs that coincide with his revelations and identity. The self is dependent on the shadow, as long as it constructs a connection from the conscious actions of the character’s self to his unconscious actions. This requires a revelation somewhere in the plot where the individual finds his self and creates his identity; in this case Bruce finds his identity when he becomes Batman.
Story
John is walking through the forest and runs into Bad George. He explains to George that he needs to find his sacred fiancé, because he needs to marry her and destroy the trickster Dr. Gutenberg, who is evil. Dr. Gutenberg lives on a castle on the top of Mt. Everest, and makes John’s journey increasingly hard to fulfill. Before John starts off on his trip, he must find The Cup of Eternal Life so that he can sacrifice himself to the gods at the end of the story and still be able to marry his sacred fiancé. John embarks on his quest to find The Cup of Eternal Life in The Dark Forest, joined by George his trusted assistant. John trips on a magical tree root and finds that he has fallen into a deep mining chasm. This is very bad, because if John cannot stop himself before he hits terminal velocity, then it will be almost impossible for him to slow himself down in time to avoid certain death. However, as John was falling his nifty backpack catches on a protruding tree branch. The branch is strong enough to afford John enough time to take out his handy dandy Dentist Approved Magical Floss, made by Abraham Lincoln Vampire Slayer, and lasso a portal door across from the chasm. He then travels through the door to find a magical flute, which he takes and uses, only to be swept away by a magical tornado that whisks him away to the World Select screen. John then chooses World 7, where he encounters turtle shells and multiple flying fish that will chase John on the continually sinking land. John steps into the water in the World, only to be instantly killed and revived at the main screen. Considering the immense frustration that was endured, John smashes his Gameboy console on the rock next to him, and decides to stop procrastinating and start his journey. John makes his way out his front door and walks down the sidewalk to the boundary of his map. John jumps and tries to get past the boundary, but unfortunately he cannot refute the physics of his reality engine. John continues to jump in a predetermined forward motion, which causes him to suddenly fall backwards onto the ground after hitting his foot on the top of the fence. He curses his reality engine, and lays on the ground for two minutes in agonizing pain over his bruised foot. John is then saved by George, who happens to be carrying a shiny gold cup labeled "The Cup of Eternal Life". George puts the cup on the ground and gives it to John, who crawls over to The Cup and grabs it with both of his bare hands. He proceeds to put The Cup in the magical drinking potion, and fill the cup with the potion. John then drinks from The Cup. He feels an invigorating boost to his Strength, Stamina, and Lung Capacity levels. He also feels that his infinite life cheat has been activated, and that he can no longer access certain achievements in his journey. John decides to confront Dr. Gutenberg in Mortal Kombat at his evil lair in Mt. Everest. As he approaches the lair, he notices that Dr. Gutenberg has left his telescope and control manual for the reality engine outside. He kindly covers them up with the rain tarps and proceeds inside. John then confronts Dr. Gutenberg, who vividly explains to him in detail how he tricked John into stepping into the portal door. John is appalled by such treachery, and proceeds to be emotionally distraught over the issue, until Dr. Gutenberg offers to give John back his true love and fiancé in exchange for "The Cup of Eternal Life". John eagerly agrees, and awaits the arrival of his fiancé, who he intends to marry in the next few days. Dr. Gutenberg upholds his obligation, and gives John his fiancé back in exchange for "The Cup of Eternal Life". John, however, becomes very angry over the matter and poisons the contents of "The Cup of Eternal Life" with cyanide. Dr. Gutenberg then drinks out of the poisoned "Cup of Eternal Life," and proceeds to die a painful death. John decides that Dr. Gutenberg has suffered enough for his treachery and deceit, and he consents to give him a proper burial. John marries his true love and fiancé, and during the ceremony harps were played very loudly in order to stress the harmony and happiness of the situation, and both lived happily for a long time.
Casey Smith
Telemachus
Telemachus was visited by one of Odysseus’s friends, the day after his encounter with the suitors, whom he recognized as Mentor. Mentor asked Telemachus if he was Odysseus’s son and continually reasoned with himself about the validity of such an assertion, he seemed very interested in the happenings of Telemachus. Telemachus responds by casting doubt upon the situation, he lacks certainty on the issue because of the absence of Odysseus for many years following his odyssey to Troy. Mentor councils Telemachus on the certainty he has regarding the extraordinary ability of himself and his father, further consolidating the link between Telemachus and his father, Odysseus. Mentor then ponders the civility of the actions of the Suitors, of which, Telemachus considers this fact and reasons with Mentor on the basis that the sovereign power, Odysseus, is absent on his throne. Telemachus is briefly enraged at this point; he considers the poor behavior of the Suitors and their ability to waste his family’s wealth, at no expense to themselves. Mentor considers the outrage he has caused Telemachus and offers his advice as an alternative to tolerating the behavior of the suitors. He proposes that Telemachus protest before the gods and shows his outrage on the subject. Subsequently, he must also denounce their behavior and regain the organization of his house by ordering the banishment of all suitors following the commencement of his speech. Following such a demand, Telemachus must also ask his mother to make a swift decision on marriage, starting with the consent of her father and his blessings. Mentor continues his advice by having Telemachus request the assembly of a boat and twenty oarsmen to depart on an odyssey to find his father. Mentor instructs Telemachus on this issue by first traveling to Pylos, Sparta, and Menelaos to find Prince Nestor in order to determine his father’s status. After the location of Telemachus’s father has been determined, Mentor instructs him to kill the influence of the Suitors, either by craft or open fight. Mentor then, noticing the time, understood the urgency he must implement to get back to his ship and crew and says goodbye to Telemachus after much advice and contribution. Telemachus requests his presence for dinner to repay Mentor for his help. Mentor kindly refuses and takes flight similar to that of a bird, this further reminds Telemachus of his father, bestowing Telemachus with sufficient courage to execute Mentor’s suggestions.
Casey Smith
English
Ms. Sweezey
Wednesday September 26, 2012
The major difference in the characterization of modern heroes and Odysseus is capable of being explained through divergence in sociological values of their respective cultures. Heroes are characterized by basing such character models off of desirable and, possibly, unachievable behaviors that are derived from the sociological basis of the time period that such heroes originated in. Therefore, it follows that a significant divergence in sociological values and desires, is a fundamental basis for a difference in the derivative of such sociological experiences. These derivatives are embodied in the representation of heroes in the extended reality of myths. Differences in sociological values, in reality, are further derived from differences in the understanding and interpretation of experiences in reality. Therefore, at the point where myths are interpretations of reality, there exists an indirect link between the explanation of divergence in mythological heroic characteristics, and differences in sociological values in reality. The Odyssey, thereby, extends sociological desires such as intelligence, physical fitness, and loyalty onto the character of Odysseus. Odysseus’s characteristics are also embodied in modern heroes, such as through representation of fitness in Captain America and Thor. Heroes also embrace godlike representations, such as the inclusion of Norse myths in The Avengers, embodied in the representation of Thor. Godlike characteristics are also represented in Odysseus through his supremacy in comparison to mortal men. This is embodied in statements saying that Odysseus is by “far the best of mortal men for counsel and stories” (Homer Book 13). This is complemented by Odysseus’s ability to “match a god in wits and trickery” (Homer Book 13). Odysseus, on a fundamental level, embodies intelligence through tricks and other considerably immoral devices, in the context of today’s sociological views. Conflicting morals in The Odyssey and The Avengers is created upon the consideration of the position of Loki’s moral dilemma by his adoption of deceptive tactics, a traditionally immoral mean, to achieve his ends. Loki, because of his adoption of deceptive methods, is considered a villainous and immoral individual in The Avengers, although is represented as the converse of Odysseus in moral standing, is in fact very similar on an ideological level. This gap in identity politics can only be filled by the acceptance of alternate sociological values to explain sharp divergence in the characterization of heroes over the course of history. Heroes such as Odysseus face seemingly normal happenings and dilemmas, rather than the seemingly otherworldly happenings of movies such as The Avengers. This is embodied within the borderline normality of The Avengers, and the higher level of normality represented within The Odyssey. Odysseus is confronted with dilemmas such as confrontation of the suitors, and the inheritance of an estate by a young family member. This embodies the representation of the classical bildungsroman storyline as far as Telemachus goes. Heroes in movies such as The Avengers are confronted with seemingly impossible tasks requiring skill sets outside the range of normal individuals of today’s society. This exemplifies a considerable move of society towards satisfying the consumer based market theories that emphasize the enjoyment of the individual, over the actual teaching of the story. The extrapolatory characteristics modern stories employ is increasingly popular because of the high level of competition among individuals in the consumer marketplace and among individuals in the educational system, thereby, requiring the adoption of higher order preferential evaluations within the concepts of the modern story, in order to support the happiness of the individual. These higher order preferential evaluations explains deviation from certain values embodied in The Odyssey, because of the lesser degree of community values adopted in standards of hospitality, and the satisfaction accompanied with the embodiment of a desirable, yet false, reality, symbolized in the impossibility of modern hero characteristics to extend to reality.
Works Cited
Homer (1996). The Odyssey. Trans. by Robert Fagles. Introduction by Bernard Knox. United States of America: Penguin Books.
Casey Smith
English
Ms. Sweezey
Wednesday October 3, 2012
Odysseus is portrayed in The Odyssey as an individual in a realistically imaginable, highly appraised state. Odysseus exhibits cognitive and physically stimulated abilities that allow him to solve problems normal individuals could not rationalize in sufficient time to qualify as an adequate response. He possesses a fully developed ability to deceive individuals; this indicates that he is able to manipulate the perception of himself by seemingly unrelated individuals. It follows then that Odysseus is very familiar with the psychology of individuals in his time period, because, in order to rationalize a response that sufficiently characterizes and predicts the cognitive response of individuals, one must have an increased understanding of the extrapolations individuals make unconsciously as a result of action taken by Odysseus. Odysseus, however, also exhibits blatant flaws in his increased egocentric promotion of self-being. It begins to affect his travels after the encounter with Polyphemus, such an encounter reveals excess pride of Odysseus toward himself after he shouts to Polyphemus that “you thought that you had the company of a fool and a weakling to eat. But you have been worsted by me, and your evil deeds have been punished (Homer book 9)” and reveals himself to be “Odysseus, son of Laertes”. This is the origination of the journey of Odysseus, caused by the actions of Poseidon in reaction to Odysseus’s treatment of Poseidon’s son, Polyphemus. In order to determine the existence of desirability of Odysseus, such a determination would have to be indicated through analysis of social factors originating in the period of the writing of The Odyssey. The Odyssey, thereby, extends sociological desires such as intelligence, physical fitness, and loyalty to the characteristics of Odysseus by inherently valuing hospitality and other realistic desires. Homer also endows Odysseus with increasingly non-mortal powers. This is provided through the godlike representation of Odysseus through his supremacy in comparison to mortal men, which, is embodied in statements saying that Odysseus is by “far the best of mortal men for counsel and stories” (Homer Book 13). This is complemented by Odysseus’s ability to “match a god in wits and trickery” (Homer Book 13). Homer indicates that Odysseus embraces a significant amount of deceit and trickery to achieve his goals. This emerges contrary to sociological view today because, in modern times, individuals disapprove of deceit on a fundamental level, undervaluing it as inherently unethical. Difference in sociological views adds offense to the fact that it is increasingly important to support the determination of desirability under a framework of chronological importance. Such an evaluation can be done through the analysis of culture in Homer’s time as being inherently valuable and, therefore, supporting the fact that Odysseus is an ideal character regardless of modern views because of the substantial correlation between the expression of mythological interpretations of reality and the reality of status quo situations arising under the culture of the mythological interpretation.
Works Cited
Homer (1996). The Odyssey. Translated by Robert Fagles. Introduction by Bernard Knox. United States of America: Penguin Books.
Diary of a French Revolutionary Teenager
January 20, 1793, Louis will be
executed tomorrow. We expect a great,
bloody execution; hopefully I will be able to travel there by morning, I had a carriage
prepared to leave by nightfall tonight in order to make it there with sufficient
time to discuss the council’s decision with the various anti-royalists. I consider it a crime against checked
government power to not have this murderous, oppressive, egotistical monarch executed
as a preventative measure. The National
Convention should serve as a model for future action, considering that the just
declaration of high treason and crimes against the state are upheld and further
implemented resulting in Louis’s execution.
In the meantime I have enjoyed the day of prayer in the name of our
lord, considering that today is, again, Sunday.
I have prayed for the revival of our economy and the alleviation of our
suffering. I feel that soon my prayers
will be answered, starting with the reconstruction of our government, I feel
that we can steer ourselves in the appropriate direction and prevent future
generations from bearing this burden. Although
Robespierre is the most qualified individual to accomplish this task, I had a
strange premonition indicating the improper alignment of the heavenly bodies; this
makes me feel uneasy regarding his assimilation, and I feel that he might have
a significantly negative effect on our future generations.
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