Monday, December 2nd, 2013

Dear Mythology Kids,
Welcome Back! I hope you had a wonderful holiday!

If you missed class today, we completed the following:

1. Journal #6 "The Right and Wrong to Disney's Hercules"
Students were asked to identify errors in the Disney film. Student divided their paper in half vertically. On the left they wrote "Mythology in general" and on the right they wrote "Hercules." Students were then asked to identify errors in the myth, and the mythology within the film. We watched the first 15 minutes in order to review our discussion from Monday's class period. You will need to do this on your own if you missed class today. I won't have time to show you the film during Flex.

2. While working in the groups,we then completed "Labors 11, 12 and Hercules's death."

3. We then discussed Heracles as paradoxical character.  This was useful, as one of the quiz questions you will answer for Wednesday relates to this idea.

4. We then reviewed the irony associated with the Heracles myth.

HOMEWORK:
1. Please read "Heracles" in your book pgs. 166-180 (I think...if I am wrong look up "Heracles" in your table of contents).
2. Review the questions for your quiz on Wednesday. I have included them for you below. Remember that you will randomly pull two of the questions from the following list.

Don't forget that you will have a QUIZ covering Heracles as a paradox, and the irony found within the myth of "Heracles," and how those aspects add to the pathos experienced by our hero. This will be a take-home assessment. You will need to support your points will textual evidence. You may use your annotated article regarding Hercules and/or your textbook. The internet is not an available option.

"How do I prepare for the quiz, Crampton?"

"Make sure you have read the myth of Heracles found on page 166 in your textbook. In addition, review the storyboard that we worked on in class on today!

"Will there be extra credit for this quiz?"

"Absolutely! I have listed the questions below. Respond to each one as if you were taking the actual quiz. Originally, I was going to have you complete one of the six questions, but I have changed my mind. You will answer two of the six listed. If you review this way, you will clearly be successful, as you will have two of the six included below, you just don't know which two. You are to discuss the irony found in each excerpt from the myth of “Heracles,” and how the irony adds to the pathos experienced by Heracles. Please be thorough in your response; assume that your audience has no schema on the character of Heracles. Cut and paste the questions into a Word document, and then respond to them on your computer.

 

DRAMATIC....the audience knows what the characters do not!

SITUATIONAL.....action occurs that the audience was not anticipating

VERBAL....words possess an opposite meaning to what is said 

1.) Heracles represents a paradoxical character, in that he represents the extremes to human behavior.  He is a good guy and a terrible villain. He is extremely intelligent; yet, at the same time he is daft. Discuss a minimum of two paradoxical features regarding his story, and why these traits add to his already significant pathos.

2.) "The goddess drove Heracles temporally mad, and he killed his children, Megara as well—thinking they were either wild beasts or enemies of Thebes. When his sanity returned, Heracles exiled himself from Thebes for his crime. He traveled to Delphi to ask the oracle how best to atone for his crime. The priestess of the oracle instructed Heracles to go to Tiryns and perform any 10 labors devised for him by King Eurystheus."

 

3.)" Eurystheus directed Heracles to kill the Lernaean Hydra (water snake) as his second labor. Heracles slew the beast by chopping off its immortal head and burying the still-hissing head under a rock. Before returning to Tiryns, Heracles dipped his arrows in the poisonous blood of the Hydra. Thereafter, anyone wounded with one of these arrows would die."

 

4.) "The goddess sent two poisonous serpents with flaming eyes to destroy both Heracles and his half-brother Iphicles. Yet the mighty infant seized one in each hand and easily strangled the serpents, thinking they were toys he found great glee in his kill of the snakes."

 

5.) "The perfect host, Admetus entertained his guest while hiding the fact that he was mourning for his wife, Alcestis. When Heracles discovered his host’s secret, he rushed to Alcestis tomb. Upon bringing her back to Admetus, the host promptly died." 

 

       6) "He sent his servant home to Deianeira in order to obtain the special ceremonial shirt he wore on        these religious occasions. When the servant mentioned to Deianeira that Iole was to accompany Heracles, Deianeira feared that her husband loved the beautiful princess.”