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the games or what we basically now call the Olympics was a way for men to show off their strength. they would travel from miles around just to be able to show off what they could do everything from “track and field” to “MMA” fighting was done I would assume that it was much more harsh then how we do now considering there were no boxing gloves or shields to protect any part of the body. The victor of each game would be talked about forever as the poets wrote and sang about them. But if caught cheating you were made to have a stute built and put on the road for all to see. Much like what happens now we praise our athletes for their strength but if they are caught cheating we strip them of all their glory, much like when Lance Armstrong was found to be using steroids for decades he was like an American Hero and now you hear absolutely nothing about him. Its almost as if we expect Athletes to be God like and without flaws.

So apparently symposiums were meant for mean to come and engage in the arts, hear music and discuss all things manly. the only women allowed were the Hetaire, now no one really know what these women did while there and thing that is know is that they were very educated and controlled their own money which was unheard of for that time. Basically this place was a boys club in which sex and drinking occurs, we’d probably call this a brothel of sorts now but non the less it was for still carried out in a manner that yelled sophistication.the Basileus for the night would decide how the wine should be mixed, so depeding on how their feeling might make a difference in how wild your night would be, but the wine was always mixed because only barbarians drank unmixed wine.

When we speak of philosophy currently, Socrates usually comes to mind. He basically walked around annoying people all day by pestering them with question about what they did and did not know until they eventually would tell him “ i do not know” to which he would probably responded, “ Or do you?” confusing the hell out of them. so much so that they eventually put him on trial and executed him. Now days we having someone as intelligent as he is would probably do the world a favor with the way current technologies are frying every ones brain and no one a think he’s probably turning in his grave. lucky for him he did not fear death he seemed to look forward to it, i mean hey” the only thing to fear is fear itself” at least according to President Roosevelt, but i assume that’s what Socrates had in mind.

Oedipus Rex, a guy who was so smart he was dumb. he had the vision to rule a kingdom but could see that in his attempt to runaway from a prophecy that he literally ran right into it. And in the process attempted to  slandered the name of his closest friend and mock the oracle for attempting to deceive him.He tells the oracle that he couldn’t possible know anything as he is a blind man, and the oracle basically tells him , yea I may be physically blind but you’re an idiot so whose worse off? he then goes on to tell Oedipus that he’ll meet the same fate as him. And miraculously Oedipus was literally the last to know he was sleeping with his mother and killed his father, like how dense is that?  As far as soap operas go this would for sure win some awards on day time tv now.

Politics is a topic that makes most people squirm, me! I’m most people! it something that has never really peaked my interest, I do keep up with the latest things going on.So learning about how the Greeks conducted their politics was sort of interesting to me how with each ruler they may have acquired a Tyranny, oligarchy, or even a democracy. In this unit we read several stories about how certain rulers cam to be. While reading selections from Herodotus we see how Darius a believer in having a monarchy cheated his way to being ruler. Not that this is was new or still isn’t relevant, but one thing is clear people who yearn to be rulers usually will stop at nothing to obtain the throne.

This week we discussed speeches and rhetoric, majority of speeches are made to persuade people to do something, but depending on the type of speech given  and how you make your audience feel as well as who you are depends on who you are all depends how the audience will respond. In Toy story Woody is usually seen giving a speech to rally the toys together Because woody is viewed as trustworthy by the others they are all willing to do as he says. I must say Woody is very convincing and i’d personally follow him anywhere!

For centuries we have heard men complain about women and how useless we are just as we read in the Semonides. As much as women are supposed to be inferior, the Trojan war started because of a woman majority of the battles were won because a woman helped them out. People love to say that women are sneaky and conniving, or is possible that we actually use the good sense that God, or the gods gave us upon creation. Yes, some use these for bad but were by no means beneath a man, we just happen to be smarter and can think beyond what is happening at the moment, usually a physical moment. Men are physical creatures they see what they want and just go for it even if that means kidnapping women as we see throughout the Iliad. Women on the other hand are intellectual so we plan and make arrangements for what we want and place the plan into action. So sorry guys we’re just smarter !

In week one we talked about heroes and what they are supposed to represent, how the y are supposed to be selfless and devoted to a larger goal. Yet, through each chapter of the Iliad that we read all I’m seeing is little children throwing temper tantrums when they cant get their way. right from the beginning in Book 1 Achilles and Agamemnon act like spoiled brats who cant seem to play together, taking one another’s “toys”, but when Achilles has his “ toy” taken he runs and literally cries to his mommy Thetis. I have watched many superhero movies, and I have never seen grown men act like such children. It is clear that the Greeks valued heroism in battle, and that seems to be where it stayed. because one the physical fighting is over, back to mommies lap to cry over the toy that was stolen from me, that I stole from another. it’s literally like watching my one year old cousins fight over one ball even thought there are two balls in the yard.