...Assignment 2: Goddess Essay Hera Adam Smith 24th April 2012 Hera is undoubtedly one of the most complex goddesses portrayed throughout history. Unlike many other goddesses who have kept relatively stable images, Hera has been tossed out and about being perceived on entirely different ends of the spectrum as both the Great Mother Goddess and the nagging and jealous wife of Zeus. She is the perfect example of a matriarchal deity that was taken over and transformed by patriarchal culture. It was in “Old” Ancient Greece that Hera was the primary divinity of a matriarchal culture, until the “New” Ancient Greece was founded by the Indo-European Hellenes from the north. It was the Mediterranean pre-Hellenic Greeks that worshiped Hera, and their culture was based around women (Morgan, 2006). Hera was portrayed in the three stages that women experience: the maiden (youth without children or responsibility), the mother (women with children and families in the prime of their lives), and the crone (past mothers who live for themselves once again). There was actually a competitive festival that happened every four years (like a sort of female Olympics) in which women of all ages were divided into three age groups (representing the three stages of Hera) and participated in 160-yard races, bare-breasted and with their hair unbound. There were three winners (one for each age/life stage category) and each winner had the honour of placing a statuette of herself in Hera’s shrine, received...
Words: 2785 - Pages: 12
...Since early childhood I was very much interested in mythology, particularly in Greek mythology. The images of ancient Greek Gods and Goddesses were not only simply aesthetically pleasant but contained mysterious and exciting myths behind them. When I first began studying Armenian history and visited National Museum of History, I discovered for myself amazing analogies with ancient Greece as well as realized one important matter, that on a large scale, my life today is in many ways determined by ancient Greek culture. In this essay I will try to explain the impact certain historical facts had on my belonging to Armenian culture. First of all, the importance of language in development of any culture cannot be overestimated, because the majority...
Words: 964 - Pages: 4
...Anderson March 27, 2011 Abstract Many ancient cultures existed throughout time but none as popular as ancient Greece and ancient Rome. Although Rome eventually became powerful and ruled over Greece, much of Roman art, architecture, and religion were adopted from the cultures they conquered and were adapted to meet the needs of the Roman Empire. Much of the Roman society mocked that of ancient Greece. | ANCIENT GREEK CULTURE | ANCIENT ROMAN CULTURE | GEOGRAPHY AND GOVERNMENT | Athens was the center of the Greek world in the fifth and fourth centuries BCE. Athens was the capital of Greece and its name was taken from the Greek goddess Athena. Athens was symbolic of art, freedom, and democracy (the prevailing government of ancient Greece introduced around 500 BCE by an aristocrat). Athens was just one of over 800 city states that made up ancient Greece. Several city states (comparable to a modern county) were isolated from each other and the mainland as they were located on islands that made up the fractured geography of ancient Greece. These islands were located in the Aegean Sea and reached around the Mediterranean to peninsula of Italy and to the shores of Asia Minor. Each city state considered itself a cultural center. City states of ancient Greece were very independent however they remained loyal to Greece and considered themselves Greeks.***See Figure 1 | Rome was the result of a combination of two cultures, the Greeks (to the north) and the Etruscans (to the...
Words: 1687 - Pages: 7
...Comparing Nude Women of Art from different eras It is surprising how different female body sculptures from different ancient civilizations are. The diverse forms of human body also embody many different functions and meanings. In art, naked figures reflect a very complex set of formal ideals, philosophical concerns, and cultural traditions. In this essay I would like to compare two sculptures of nude women. The first one is the Venus of Willendorf which was built in Paleolithic Period. Another is called the Venus of Milo carved in ancient Greece. The female body of the Venus of Willendorf depicts enlarged breasts, buttocks and genital, which represents fertility, while the body of Venus of Milo, on the other hand, demonstrates beauty and perfect proportions. Despite the difference characteristics and styles between them, they both represent the different view of the perfect female form. The most widely known female figurine, the Venus of Willendorf, with only 11cm in height, is possibly the smallest female nude sculpture we know. It is one of the most obese representations of the Paleolithic statuary. The Venus of Willendorf can be dated back to approximately the Paleolithic period, around 28,000 to 25,000 BCE. According to some analysis, it was obvious that it had once been “painted with red ochre”, a symbolic substance commonly found in connection with burials and grave goods from the same time period. It was made of Oolitic limestone. Her thighs are also large and pressed...
Words: 1788 - Pages: 8
...Ancient Art History Essay Ancient Greece, Rome, Etruscan Art 8/30/2012 Art 101A, World Art Garrett Stokes Garrett Stokes Art 101A, World Art Abbas Daneshvari 8/30/12 Ancient Art History Art history has been a vital part of the modern human experience. For thousands of years, the first painters and sculptors have given us the first displays that allowed people to see and touch tangible artwork. The artwork has also captured the history and lifestyle of that time. Art History has also expressed its social and political events that happened during that time. This gives the present person a good understand on what events took place during that era. Some of the most prominent artwork of the western civilization is Greek, Etruscan and Roman art. That historical artwork has paved the way for modern art to have a place in art history world. I will compare and contrast the Greek, Etruscan and Roman characteristic and traits of its historical artwork. During the Geometric and Orientalizing art in the 900-600 BCE, the human shape returned to Greek art in the structure of bronze statuettes and simple silhouettes and other motifs on Geometric vases. One art example is the Dipylon krater, Athens, ca 740 BCE. During the Archaic Art, 600-480 BCE the earliest real-life stone statues appeared in Greece. The first Greek kouroi copied the frontal poses of early Egyptian statues, however designed the young men nude the same way that the men competed in the Ancient Olympics. In the...
Words: 1752 - Pages: 8
...Compare and contrast essay: Ancient Egypt and Greece The ancient Egyptian and ancient Greek civilizations are two of the oldest known civilizations in our history. The Egyptian civilization, based in the eastern part of North Africa, is believed to have started around 3150 BC and continued till the end of the Pharaoh rule in 31 BC. The ancient Greek civilization is believed to have been in effect from 1100 BC till about 146 BC. Many similarities and differences existed between these two civilizations, as even though they co-existed during a certain timeframe (1150 BC to 146 BC), they were located in different geographical areas. Because of these differences in geography, both these civilizations were subjected to different kinds of exposure, which included contact with other civilization and cultural inheritance. In the political sphere, we find that the Egyptian civilization had stronger emphasis on central authority, while the Greeks had a more decentralized structure, where powers were distributed over the cities and the states as well. As far as art is concerned, we find that the Egyptians were more involved in creating great monumental and gaudy structures, while the Greeks were more involved in creating smaller, more literary pieces of art. One of the biggest reasons why these two civilizations had these differences is due to their geography. The Egyptians had easy access to large stones that they could bring in to their country and use them to erect such monumental...
Words: 2939 - Pages: 12
...both sides during the Trojan war equally. Helped Hector find war plans of the Greeks and helped Achilles enter a temple. Ithaca This is home to the mythological hero Odysseus and is located in the Ionian sea in Greece Laocoon In Greek and Roman mythology, he was a seer and priest of the god Apollo in the ancient city of Troy. He played a notable role in the last days of the Trojan War; he and his twin sons, Antiphas and Thymbraeus were killed by a giant sea serpent. Menelaus king of Sparta and husband of Helen, the woman who caused the Trojan War. Mycenae In Greek legend, Agamemnon, leader of the combined Greek forces, was king of this place during the Trojan War. Myrmidons They are very brave and skilled warriors commanded by Achilles Nestor He was an Argonaut, helped fight the centaurs, and participated in the hunt for the Calydonian Boar. He and his sons, Antilochus and Thrasymedes, fought on the side of the Achaeans in the Trojan War Odysseus He was one of the most influential Greek champions during the Trojan War. When Agamemnon, to test the morale of the Achaeans, announced his intentions to depart Troy, He restored order to the Greek camp. Palladium An image of Palla Athena that was sacred to Trojans. During the war it was stolen by Odysseus and Diomedes. It was said that Troy would not fall as long as the Palladium stayed within its walls. Aphrodite/Venus Paris chose her over the other two goddesses as the most beautiful, and she gave him the most beautiful woman in the...
Words: 351 - Pages: 2
...Review for Midterm #1—Classical & Medieval Cultures The in-class portion of the exam will consist of 30 objective questions (multiple-choice and matching) and 2 short answer questions (no more than three sentences per answer). The in-class portion of the exam will be worth 100 points. The out-of-class essay will be worth an additional 100 points. See below for the out-of-class essay questions. Ancient Near Eastern & Greek Culture Terms: Trojan War, anthropomorphism, polytheism, monotheism, Archaic Age, Classical Age, Hellenistic Age Art & Artworks: Sculpture: relief sculpture, free-standing sculpture, idealism, naturalism; characteristics of Archaic sculpture, kouros, kore; characteristics of Classical sculpture, Myron, Discus Thrower, Polycleitus, Spear-Bearer, Canon, unknown sculptors, Zeus, Three Goddesses,, Praxiteles, Aphrodite of Knidos; characteristics of Hellenistic sculpture, Laocoon and his Sons, Old Shepherdess ; Architecture, frieze, pediment, entablature, capital, metope, triglyph,; Characteristics of Doric, Ionic, and Corinthian styles, Parthenon, Temple of Athena Nike, Erectheion (with Porch of the Maidens), Propylaia Literature & Drama: epic poetry, Epic of Gilgamesh, Homer, Iliad, Odyssey; Hesiod, Theogony; Theater of Dionysus, tragedy, comedy, Oresteia of Aeschylus, Antigone & Oedipus the King by Sophocles, Medea by Euripides, Lysistrata by Aristophanes, characteristics of tragedy, hubris, hamartia, catharsis Thought: Pre-Socratic...
Words: 794 - Pages: 4
...Kendra Perkins Matt Fox Eng 112 14 December 2011 The Odyssey: Comparison of Genders in Greek Mythology The Odyssey by Homer may be seen by many as a heroic story of a man on his journey home; however, there is an underlying story of the trials in the roles of men and women and the relationships between them. Men and women are portrayed differently in Greece, as in other societies. Men are considered to be the more powerful of the two and are responsible for the protection of their home. Women, on the other hand, are thought to care for the children and are also responsible for the supervision of both the interior and exterior of the home while the men are away. As a man, Odysseus showed great leadership in the war at Troy and was considered the hero at the Trojan War. His wife Penelope, on the other hand, exemplified the role of a woman and leadership in her daily duties of caring for the home and all of their possessions within. In her attempts to do so, she was overcome by suitors and was unable to stop them from partaking of all of their meat and drinks. This essay will explain the underlying roles of men and women in ancient Greece as well as modern day. The beginning of the novel takes place in Ithaka at the home of Odysseus. Suitors have overrun his home in the pursuit of marrying his “widow” Penelope. Telemakhos, son of Odysseus, felt it was a shame that these men would come into their home and eat and drink their house empty. Athena, daughter of Zeus, came to Telemakhos...
Words: 1775 - Pages: 8
...empire was able to manage well enough from the 160s until 235, when the decline became precipitous, and brought with it radical economic, cultural and religious changes. This chapter, therefore, will look at the empire in its relatively golden period, from the first century until the death of Alexander Severus, the last of the Severi, in 235. The classes This was a stratified, hierarchical society in all ways. In civic status the top of the pyramid was the emperor, followed by Roman provincial governors, senators and other officials, then by the local gentry, and next by the rank and file of Roman citizens. Of all the free men in the empire, only about a third ranked as Roman citizens. Right behind the Romans were the Hellenes (in the Greek-speaking eastern provinces the Hellenes were enrolled as such in the municipal census), then came Judaeans, and finally the other barbarians. So in Alexandria an “Egyptian” had fewer privileges than Judaeans and Hellenes, and far fewer than Romans. This hierarchy was illustrated, as we have seen in Chapter Five, by the difficulties Pliny encountered in promoting his Egyptian physician to the “Roman” rank.1 A significant change in the hierarchies occurred in 212, when the emperor Caracalla conferred Roman citizenship on all free men in the...
Words: 14783 - Pages: 60
...Annika Barrett Section 1209 Long Essay #1 09 March 2016 Ambiguous Roles Throughout centuries women have tried to be equal to men, from their position in the workplace to voting rights, women have struggled to obtain the power that men withhold. In the ancient society, many would say that women had no power, but after reading The Epic of Gilgamesh and The Odyssey it revealed that the role of women is actually very diverse. In some readings, women play little to no role at all, but in others, women demonstrate their power and play vital roles. During this era, women endured many difficulties which had ultimately shaped them into a submissive figure. While women were not the most influential gods, nor the strongest or intelligent humans,...
Words: 1249 - Pages: 5
...GREEK MYTHOLOGY Background to Homer’s Odyssey As you read each story, ask yourself: What is most enjoyable, predictable, or bizarre about this story? How would I have responded in this situation? What mysteries or features of the world might this story try to explain? What bit of moral or religious instructions (i.e. don’t disobey the gods) might be contained in this story? How does this story compare with Christian beliefs, or with the values of our culture today? Are there any other stories or fables I’ve heard that follow the same pattern as this story? The Creation Myths Part 1 Before there was anything, there was Chaos, a formless void. This void, this pure nothingness, gave birth to Gaea (the Earth itself), Tartarus (the underworld), Eros (love), Erebus (underground darkness) and Nyx (the darkness of night). The two kinds of darkness joined together and gave birth two kinds of light: the Light of the heavens and the Light of day. Nyx (night) also gave birth to the three Fates, who control the course of the universe and determine the length of each person’s life on their wheel of fortune. Of the fates, Clotho spins the threads of each person’s life, Lachesis measures the length of the thread, and Atropos cuts the thread. The Fates – Francisco Goya (one of the best painters ever!) 1823 – Note the scissors in the hand of Atropos and Lachesis measuring with a magnifying glass. Who’s...
Words: 10610 - Pages: 43
...Unfortunately, it seems that this is one of those arguments that keeps us from moving forward. What frustrates me the most about the whole argument is how unnecessary—and ridiculously riddled with misconceptions and outright insulting fabrications—it is. Homosexuality seems to be too difficult a concept for our society to accept, but it is too real, and too ancient, an issue to deny. My purpose for writing this paper is to address one of the myths about homosexuality, and in doing so make a vital point about the biggest misconception that exists on the subject. In a society where each consecutive generation pushes the boundaries of social norms and acceptable behavior further outside of polite society’s comfort zone, fads and rebellions are commonplace. Often homosexuality gets lumped in with these fleeting trends and is seen as something transitory, something that will go away if denied acceptance long enough. On the contrary, homosexuality is not something new or impermanent. Rather it is a concept, a fact of life, which has been with us since the earliest recorded histories of man. In this essay I will show how ancient societies—the ancestors of everyone in this great country—reacted to the presence of homosexuality. I will explain how all of these diverse peoples, all over the globe, recorded in their histories and their art not only the presence of homosexuality in their societies, but also their acceptance of...
Words: 4291 - Pages: 18
...IB Dipolma Extended Essay “30,000 Years of Big Women, What caused the Modern Mortification of the Female Form?” Sarah Martino Candidate Number: 000193-0076 South Side High School 2013 Word Count: 3,002 Number of Pages: 14 Abstract: The goal of this essay is to address the changes in the female form in art throughout time. This topic is obviously pertains to the subject of visual arts as the main focus of this essay is evaluating the aesthetics of the female form through examples of artwork. Many research questions were considered but the one chosen was: “30,000 Years of Big Women, What Caused the Modern Mortification of the Female Form?” To answer this question, I chose a piece of artwork for numerous time periods that included the female form. First researching background information about the artist and the time period and then relating it to why the piece was constructed in that way. Through much research and meetings with individuals who are familiar in this subject matter, I was able to develop an argument, which demonstrated the changes in female form for various reasons. Table of Contents Page 1- Title Page Page 2- Abstract Page 3- Table of Contents Page 4- Essay Page 14- Bibliography Page 15- Table of Images The Cyclades, are a group of Greek islands, of the Aegean Sea, were home to the Cycladic Civilization, which lasted from about 3200 BC- 1100BC. This time period is broken up by historians into the early Cycladic...
Words: 3396 - Pages: 14
...Terrance Fulton Professor Fleshman Introduction to Philosophy – Autumn Quarter 24 October 2015 Midterm Exam Nietzsche, Genealogy of Morals, Second Essay, Aphorism 12, P. 77 Nietzsche’s Genealogy of Morals sought to locate the origin of human morals and thoughts. However, his text is most effective at criticizing the morals and thoughts of humans. Most important is his criticism towards the human thought of origin and utility. Nietzsche’s work seeks to inform that the utility of an object is a consequence, not a cause, of any origin. What came first, the chicken or the egg? This is a question that is debated by everyone from Harvard scholars to biology experts to children in the school yard. The answer is unclear. Nietzsche asks a question that is quite similar: which came first, the eye or sight? The answer may seem obvious, the eye had to be made before sight could have happened. Nietzsche would agree. However, he would not agree that the eye was made for seeing. Instead he would say that the eye existed and then sight evolved from the already present organ. This statement is the basis of Nietzsche’s argument in the Genealogy: origin is not equal to essence. It Nietzsche’s belief that the origin of something is not related to its purpose/utility or vice-versa. This is the point that he is making in the provided passage. The text states, “…the utility of [anything]…means nothing regarding its origin” (p.77). This statement is put into effect through various ways in...
Words: 1636 - Pages: 7
