Greek Mythology

Crusades
The first Crusade was ordered by Pope Urban II, whose primary goal was to respond to the appeal made by Byzantine EmprorAlexios I Komnenos. The latter had requested an aid from the western volunteers in repelling Seljuq Turkswho were invading from Australia (Asbridge 34).
The main practical reasons for the first crusade were to achieve the Christian reconquest of Jerusalem, the sacred city; and to free the Eastern Christians from the rule of Muslims. Practically, this crusade was meant to open up trade pathways in the Westand to gain political control by the Roman Empire.
The first crusade witnessed an account of human cannibalism between the Muslims and the soldiers of Christ. The Archbishop of Tyre quoted that it was impossible to stare at the vast number of slain warriors without horror. Eckehard, a Christian chronicler stated that even the following summer, the air was still full of stench from decomposing bodies(Asbridge61-67).
The Pope promised fighters that when they died while fighting for Jerusalem, then they would go straight to heaven after their death. The battle would be a foundation for remission of sins(Asbridge71). The soldiers believed it because they thought taking part in such a holy war would be seen as a form of penance.
The Christians believed that Muslims had been enemies of Christ, thus must be fought, or converted to Christianity. This was their purpose. On the other hand the Muslims acted in response to protect the city which they had dominated for the past over 400 years.
The soldiers, both from the Christian and Muslim circles, behaved arrogantly and depicted nothing close to the faiths they professed. Civilians were treated as soldiers, and were equally slain.
In the end, about 70, 000 Muslims were killed, though the city remained unconquered, since the crusaders lacked adequate materials to construct siege machines(Asbridge82).
The Inferno
Dante chooses Virgil, a Roman poet, to be his guide to hell. This happens after he fails to find a direct way to his destination, and Virgil happens on his way, claiming to have been sent by Beatrice(Blainey92).
The poet uses the ‘river of tears that falls from the fissure’ as the metaphor to describe his descent into hell. The tears descend deep down up to the bottom of the pit – hell, which is Cocytus. This imagery works since it describes something beyond human imagination.
These are people who neither did right nor wrong, but have been cast in hell, suffering from all sorts of anguish. They are Poe Celestine V and Pontius Pilate.
The leopard represents sins of incontinence – lack of ability to restraint self; the she-wolf represents fraud and malice; and the lion represents violence.
The phrase is directed towards those who are cast in limbo, whom are described as having merit, never sinned, but never worshipped God in the right way.
The Charon, which is the demon, has fiery eyes and acts as a gateway to the inner circles of hell. The author faints the rest of the way in Charon’s boat.
The third circle comprises of gluttons, and particularly, a Florentine identified as Ciacco. The cold, icy rain symbolizes the selfish, cold and empty sensuality of the gluttons’ lives.
Examples of fraud include pandering/seduction – punished by whipping by demons; flattering – offenders are steeped in human excrement; and stealing, which is punished by snake and lizard bites.
Murderers are immersed in the ice up to their faces – the point which Dante says shame can show itself.
Jason, a seducer, is driven and whipped by demons, to march in the view of everyone.
The three figures at the bottom of hell are Brutus, Cassius and Judas Iscariot, who are depicted as those who committed a personal act of treachery against God. Satan remains silent, being so ashamed to say anything to Dante.
Satan is punished by being immersed in ice, tied in chains, and banished forever out of heaven. His punishment is the ultimate of God’s wrath towards rebellious people(Blainey 93-107).
The Canterbury Tales(Carter 329-345)
Chaucer describes the knight as an embodiment of chivalry, while the song of Roland praises the bravest knights for their worthy and unrelenting fights.
Chaucer criticizes the Catholic Church for its corruption, which is depicted in Prioress’s flirtatious manner. Similarly, the monk reveals the greed and selfishness on the church.
The Oxford student is portrayed as a peasant-born student who has more riches in knowledge than money. Is portrayed as one who is immersed deeply in seeking knowledge from books, leaving him impoverished.His pursuit of intellect leaves him unemployable.
The Physician focuses on the purity of the girl depicted in the tale, and though always taken as a simplistic tale, it praises the goodness of virtue, and Chaucer uses it to assert that all sinners will be ultimately punished. This argument is valid even today, since no possible reason can justify the taking of someone’s life.
The Wife of Bath argues that women should lead over their husbands; that the strongest feature of marriage for women is ex; and she disregards the common belief that once widowed, a woman should become a nun. I do not agree with her, as these arguments go against the cultural norms in the society.
The pardoner is a pilgrim, claiming to lead people towards the path of righteousness. His greed and zeal for self-riches is perfectly manifested in today’s preachers, who look at the church as a business venture.
The knight raped a maiden, and was sent out to find out what most women desire. During his quest, he ends up marrying an old crone, from who he found the answer required by the court.
The lothly lady, an old woman, provides the answer the knight desires. She says most women would want to be in mastery over their husbands.
The Knight agrees under tight circumstances to marry the old lady, but is unhappy with the low-born, old, and ugly lady. This shows the mastery that men would still want to exercise over women.
The characters are going to Canterbury for religious reasons, wherethere are curative powers.
The Early Modern World
The transition of the human nature, beginning from the Paleolithic period is the genesis of word history. Economically, the Europe’s modernization is also referred to as the mother of world history (Asbridge 102).
Commerce brought about international trade, which became competitive and wanting in new innovations. Inventions and clashes thus began, creating more history. The crusades fought for opening up of international trade, whose significance is unmistakable in world history.
The Renaissance is a term used to refer to cultural movement in Italy and Europe, which brought educational reforms. It also referred to as a period of rebirth of classical form of learning.
Perceptions on individuals brought about a system of governance, where there was a distinct class of people in the economy: the bourgeoisies, and the proletariats. France is a an example of such system.
During the Renaissance, authors like Chapman, Coverdale, Bacon, More, Tyndale, and Sidney among other existed (Asbridge 122). They all contributed to the spread of rapid spread of knowledge and educational rebirth in their respective societies.
Shakespeare
The problem in sonnet 116 is that people often conceive unrealistic notions about love, and that love is bound by time; the resolution is that true love can only exist when there are no constraints. In sonnet 18, the problem is how the persona can make his lover’s beauty last forever, and the resolution is that he will keep her alive through his poetry, which he will always read for her. Sonnet 129 poses a problem related to sexual intimacy, lust, and those difficulties that hinder one’s performance in romantic relationships. The resolution is that it is the world that knows the reason and the apathy of its people. In the last sonnet, 154, the problem is the realization that preservation of happiness in love is difficult, and it finishes in with a resolution that this is proven, and love is so hot as to be cooled by mere difficulties(Blainey62-76).
The poet uses the season of summer to compare his love. This serves to drive his point, though not as perfect as each comparison fails to depict his lover’s beauty.
Examples of comparison: “And every fair from fair sometimes declines” (7), “Sometime too hot the eye of heaven shines” (5).
These words mean that love does not wait or rely on time, and any time romanticism can be practiced between couples.
The poet uses shame and uselessness of lustful acts to describe the bad side of love. He says it is a waste of energy, in which the word ‘spirit’ signifies semen. Lust is despised here because it is a force that is murderous, cruel and bloody. This sonnet is a quintessential representation of what lust actually is.
The Problem Solved, which is the 154^th sonnet of Shakespeare, reveals the lover as the ‘little god of love’. The poet loves the maiden, since he describes her as having been stolen from him, as well as his love. He seeks to quench his love for her because of this matter, but concludes that love cannot be cooled, but adds heat to water.
All the sonnets portray a young man and his lover, the dark lady. They all describe the nature of relationships and the problems experienced by lovers, though the tones change from cool, romantic to a sad, dejected form. The poet loves to finish his writings in a melancholic and sad mood.
Andrew Marvel
‘Carpe diem’ means to seize the day; take what you can, when you can get it. It entails enjoying the present, and not placing one’s hope in the future (Blainey 35).
The first stanza criticizes men who cheat themselves that having put so little an effort, they have achieved victory, while the true pleasure is found in doing an entire work and putting every effort.
The poet beguiles his lover to remove her clothes and have sex with her by using time to flatter her; that a thousand years should be dedicated to admiring her. He later employs sincere connection to admire her heart. He uses the words ‘it is natural for amorous birds of prey’(Blainey41). I support that she agrees because at the end of the last stanza, he sounds triumphant by referring to both of them in his speech.
The medieval Europe believed in life after death, and the existence of reincarnation. This differs from Marvell’s argument that there is no afterlife. The belief in these words, however, has been overturned by church teachings, and has gotten people to entirely believe in life after death.
The tone of the poem is intimate, passionate and even contemplating. This tone serves to express the deep feelings the man has for his lover, the coy mistress.
The Prince (Machiavelli 5-109)
Once an individual gains power, the people who supported him always want rewards, which the character usually finds hard to fulfill. This is not a valid premise, as people should understand that one cannot reward all those who were close to him, due existence of laws governing equitable distribution of resources.
The support of that population is important since they can provide details of secret plans and strategies of their opponents. When people turn against their ruler, it becomes challenging to organize a combat, since these people become moles.
An invading troop should camp out of the city walls so as to starve the residents of the city. Secondly, if the prince does not need outside help, it would also be proper to maintain outside help.
A prince should be stingy, rather than generous. Stinginess is a vice that enables him to rule better, because if he gives away his resources, he will be despised and hated by people. The invader is thus able to marshal the support of the people, and succeed in his conquest.
A prince should be merciful, but must assert some degree of fear in his subjects. By punishing a few people, disorder can be averted.
A prince must seek for the approval of the people, appear to be good, but master know how to practice evil, and must learn to exhibit virtue. As a prince avoids being despised and hated, he acquires the fortress of the empire.
A ruler can avoid being hated by the people by being stingy, and pull both the nobles and the people close to him.Hated rulers are principle targets of assassination plots.
Fortune controls half of the actions of men. Fortune can bring success where failure could have been eminent. It favors the young, because Machiavelli says it favors the bold; that is like a woman, and the one who uses it must conquer bravely.
John Milton (Milton4-46)
Satan attempted a revolution against God so because he wanted to be exalted above Christ. His rebellion resulted to an unforgivable banishment from heaven into the dungeons of the earth.
Satan knows that he has wits, better than all the angels and mankind. For instance, he outwits the holy angels to rebel against God, and he does beguile to go against the commandment of God.
If Adam and Eve ate of the forbidden fruit, they would surely die, since it was the frit of knowledge of good and evil.
Satan tells Eve that if they eat of the fruit, they would become as wise as God Himself, and be able to do as great works as Him. Eve believes this because she desires to receive such powers, and dares to give it a try.
Milton reveals that the lust for knowledge is the beginning of loss of innocence.
Adam leaves Eve to wander off alone in the garden since he was preoccupied with naming of animals, as well as other works in the paradise. Eve convinces Adam by telling him that she has eaten the fruit, and behold, she is still strong and healthy, and her eyes were sparkling. She also tells him about the wonderful powers and knowledge they would acquire if they ate.
Adam is greatly disappointed in Eve when he realizes she had disobeyed God, and blames himself for allowing her to wander away from his side. He is grasped with self-criticism.
Eve’s act of rebellion brought countless punishment into the world, including illnesses, suffering, separation from God and mortality.
When Satan enters Eden, he assumes the form of serpent. This animal is significant to his fallen statue, since it crawls on its belly and eats dust, sharply clashing with Satan’s previous glory. The serpent serves to exacerbate his condition.
Milton viewswomen as the embodiment of human evil in the antiquity of man, way before their fall. He also views women as having an inferior role to men in the society, through his portrayal of the ease in which Eve is beguiled; and sating that Eve needed to stay beside Adam all the time.
Milton uses these words to mean that Adam and Eve had all the opportunity in the world to do whatever they desired; and it insinuates that they were the only creations in the whole world that had dominion over other creatures.