The goals of this project are threefold: to get you more familiar with the Perseus system, to continue thinking about Achilles as a part of Greece's world-view, and to think about the relationship between verbal and visual arts in Greece. Three is a large number of goals for one exercise (and I'm a little nervous about it), but we need to be economical with our time.
The technological goal of this exercise is to become more familiar with the Perseus system. If you follow the instructions on these pages, you should have no trouble getting good results from the Perseus data base. This will be especially true if you take 30 minutes and just look around the Perseus system beforehand, using the advice of the handout "BRIEF INTRODUCTION TO PERSEUS 1.0" I hope that the Perseus system can be useful for you, and some fun too. Don't be intimidated by it. If you run into trouble, ask the attendant on duty, ask a friend from class, or ask me. I will always try to answer your questions. This implies some advanced work though. Don't expect to do a Perseus project the night before it is due. You need to allow some lead time in case you come up with questions about the assignment or problems with Perseus.
The intellectual goal of this exercise is to consider the figure of Achilles in early Greek literature and plastic arts. You have already been thinking about Achilles in the Iliad. Now I want you to look further. You will look at several literary works and some vase paintings. After considering these, I'll ask you to formulate some thoughts on how the Greeks viewed Achilles, who he was, and why he was important.
The paper should by typed or produced on a computer and carefully proofread -- I assume any spelling errors are lack of knowledge, not typos. I will grade papers as much on style and mechanics as I will on content. Don't forget to appropriately present quotations (especially of poetry) and to tell me which editions you use. I would be glad to look at outlines or drafts beforehand. You should write until you are done and then stop (though I suspect that the paper should be 4-6 pages in length). The papers are due at the beginning of class, September 25rd. (Papers handed in after the due date will be reduced one grade per day late.) I encourage you to let me look at a draft beforehand if you would like some feedback. Keep in mind, by the way, that finishing a paper is not a sufficient reason for being unprepared for that day's assignment. Plan so that you can have the paper done and the assignment read.
Take time to think about the topic, reread it, and formulate a plan. Then, and only then, write a clear, concise, and thoughtful essay. You should have a clear sense of your thesis as well as the arguments and the specific evidence that will prove your thesis. It should have an introductory paragraph, development paragraphs, and a conclusion. One sentence should always have a logical connection to the prior sentence and should flow out of it. You should never make a claim for which you do not personally know and provide the supporting evidence. In other words, be specific. If you make a claim, be sure that you defend it from the text or artifact. I do not assume much when I read; you should not assume things as you write. I would be happy to look at an outline or draft of the paper early if you would like. Always keep in mind that you must not present the ideas of others as your own. You should not need sources other than our class texts for these papers. If you choose to investigate secondary material, that is fine AS LONG AS YOU ACKNOWLEDGE ANY IDEAS GOTTEN THERE.
Use the very deliberate steps on the following pages to gather information for your paper. Follow them carefully. Remember that if you ever get stuck or confused on the Perseus system, you can always click the Gateway icon on the Navigator to get you back to a starting place.
PAPER TOPIC:
Consider the Greeks' view of Achilles in the verbal and visual arts. In what ways are the presentations of the two arts parallel? What stories do they share? What is different about them? What stories do you see in visual art that you don't see in verbal, and vice versa? How do they differ in the way they tell the same story? What stories seem most important in what kinds of contexts and why? Can you draw a conclusion about the relationship of verbal and visual arts and how the Greeks think of Achilles? In what way is your perception of the Greeks' view of Achilles different now from the idea you had from the Iliad alone. How commanding is the influence of the Iliad on your other sources?
ACHILLES PROJECT IN PERSEUS
1. Get into the Perseus system according to the Perseus Handout
2. Use the "LINKS" pull down menu at the top of the screen to get
"ENGLISH WORD SEARCH"
3. Click in "LOOK FOR" box, then type "ACHILLES"
4. If you press "ALL WORKS" in "IN" you will see a list of
authors. Choose "SOPHOCLES"
5. Click "DO SEARCH" The program will now list all passages from
Sophocles that mention Achilles.
6. Either: highlight a passage and click "GO THERE" to see the
text. The highlighting in the passage that you see may be odd.
Remember the line you are looking for and look to that line for
the passage in question. [If you need more context
than the computer gives you, you can press the
forward or back arrows (=-) on the Navigator to
see more before or after the text shown.] OR: use the passage
references to look in your own Penguin text of
Sophocles to see the passages. [Remember to use
the line numbers at the top of the page when you
go to look in your Penguin, not those in the margins]
7. You may use the symbol = on the Navigator to get back to
the list of passages. If you've looked at more context, you may
need to click this symbol several times (It's as if you were
flipping back through the pages you were looking at; as many
clicks as sections of text you viewed).
8. Gather information, keep notes, and draw conclusions about the
attitude toward Achilles in Sophocles. What kind of statements
can you make, BASED ON THE EVIDENCE YOU HAVE GATHERED?
9. Go back to step 4 and repeat steps 4-8 for Pindar.
10. Now check the appearance of Achilles in Odyssey, Book 11.
Odysseus meets Achilles in the Underworld after Achilles' death.
To read this, go to the links menu and ask for primary texts.
Click Homer, and then Click Odyssey 11 (you'll have to scroll
down to find it). Once you see the beginning of Odyssey 11 on
your screen, you will only need to read lines 465-540. To get
there, click on the line after the "Go to Line" box. Type:
11.465 and click the "Go to Line" box. The passage with line
465 will appear. You'll need to scroll through all the lines
given, and then use the arrows (=-) to move to the next section
of the text until you get to the end at line 540..
11. Draw some conclusions about Achilles in Sophocles, Pindar, and
the Odyssey.
12. Use the "LINKS" menu at the top of the screen to get "OBJECT
KEYWORD SEARCH"
13. Press the "OBJECT TYPE" box and it will show you choices.
Choose "VASES" If the box already says "vases," you can skip
this step.
14. In the "CLASS TYPE" box, choose "LEGENDARY PEOPLE"
15. Click on ACHILLES.
16. You will be given a list of 12 vases. Click on a vase to get
information about that vase
17. Note the shape, date, and topic of the vase. Then click
"DESCRIPTION" to get more information. After you have gotten
any useful information from the description, click on "SUMMARY"
to get back to the summary. [Each vase will have different
connections to Achilles. Some show Achilles, some refer to him,
some merely mention him in the description card when discussing
something else. You must decide which vases are important for
your project, just as you choose which literary passages are
important.]
18. Look at some views of the vase by clicking on any or all listed
views. REMEMBER TO CLOSE AN IMAGE AFTER YOU HAVE LOOKED
AT IT BY CLICKING THE WHITE BOX IN THE UPPER LEFT CORNER OF THE
IMAGE. HINT: IF THERE IS A CLOSE BOX IN THE UPPER LEFT CORNER,
YOU NEED TO MAKE SURE TO CLOSE IT WHEN YOU ARE DONE WITH THAT
CARD OR IMAGE.
19. Remember that you can keep more than one picture up at one time
by moving the windows around. This is handy for comparing
images. But remember to close ALL images after you are done
comparing them.
20. Make notes on what the vase tells you about Achilles
21. Once you have studied this vase (summary, description, views)
as much as you need, use the navigator sign = to get back
to the list of vases.
22. Repeat steps 16-21 for other vases.
23. After compiling information, consider the Greeks' view of
Achilles in the verbal and visual arts. In what ways are the
presentations of the two arts parallel? What stories do they
share? What is different about them? What stories do you see
in visual art that you don't see in verbal, and vice versa? How
do they differ in the way they tell the same story? What
stories seem most important in what kinds of contexts and why?
Can you draw a conclusion about the relationship of verbal and
visual arts and how the Greeks think of Achilles? In what way
is your perception of the Greeks' view of Achilles different now
from the idea you had from the Iliad alone. How commanding is
the influence of the Iliad on your other sources?
24. Draw you conclusions about how the Greeks viewed Achilles from
your study of the literature, vases, and sculpture available.
[You may or may not address all the issues mentioned in #25
above, they are meant to foster thought, not dictate response.
And they certainly don't set the order of treatment; you must
decide how to effectively present the thesis YOU create.]
25. Give some thought to how you will organize your comments on
Achilles. Make an outline, either on paper or in your head, of
your points and your supporting evidence.
26. Then, and only then, write a 4-6 page essay on the Greeks' view
of Achilles in the Archaic and early Classical periods. Make
sure that it is carefully proofread (a computer spell-checker
usually isn't good enough).
See Course outline