Antigone Essay Topics

Reason, Passion, Madness, Revenge and Justice

Fall 2012 Liberal Arts Cluster
Dr. Van Slyck

Essay #3: Antigone

You will write a 600-800 word essay on Antigone, double spaced, 12pt font, using MLA documentation.

The essay should include specific support from the play (at least 3-4 quotations) and supporting evidence from at least one other source.  Depending on the topic you choose, your secondary source may be one of the following: Aristotle’s definition of tragedy, Bradley’s definition of tragedy; 2-3 Greek definitions (hubris, hamartia, ate, perepetia (reversal) anagnorisis (recognition); Ortner’s essay on women’s relationship to nature, culture; Segal’s essay on Antigone’s relationship to family and earth and womb; ideas about loyalty to the clan or loyalty to the city (polis) in classical Greece.  Some of this material is in coursepak; some you will have to research a little more!

Here are the possible topics.  Choose ONE.

1.        Both Antigone and Creon are passionate about their beliefs.  Examine the nature of the passion that guides each of them.  Do you feel that each is acting rationally?  Are there times when each seems guided by emotion rather than reason?  How does this affect their arguments? Compare and contrast their arguments.  Then explain which of the two has the stronger argument(s) in your opinion and why.  Be sure to use quotations from Antigone and information about Greek ideas about family loyalty and loyalty to the state.

2.       By standing up to Creon, Antigone defies many of the gender roles of her time.  On the other hand, her loyalty to family and to burial rites is proper to her domain as a Greek woman.  In your essay, argue that Antigone is or is not a proto-feminist hero (that is, someone who battles against gender inequality).  Please include material from the play but also ideas about women’s roles that she transcends, overcomes, challenges or embraces.  (Hint: Ortner)

3.       Make the argument that Creon, not Antigone, is the tragic hero of the play.  Use ideas we have discussed in class (dramatic arc) and from Aristotle on the nature of the tragic hero.  You need to explain, for example, where you see him undergoing a reversal of his initial position.  Also, does he have a moment of recognition?

4.       Make the argument that Antigone is the tragic hero in her commitment to her values, the greatness of her nature, and willingness to die.  Show how the play exemplifies Bradley’s definition of tragic waste (coursepak page 77).

5.       The French psychoanalyst, Jacques Lacan, argues that Antigone chooses death and that this choice defines her courage and her “splendor.”  Why do you admire Antigone for her decisions, in particular her decision to die.  Discuss her ethical choices, the reasons she chooses to die, and why you find her position courageous.  Do you think Sophocles admires Antigone?

Greetings Everyone--

Today is a Thursday schedule, not a Tuesday, so we will be meeting in our regular classroom, E145.  See you there.  In LIB hour we will be discussing how to write a paper that works for both philosophy and English on subject of Laramie--bring your ideas and be ready to discuss your research posts!

LaGuardia's Declaration of Pluralism

Hi Everyone--I thought in relation to The Laramie Project, you might like to read LaGuardia's Declaration of Pluralism which I am pasting in here.  I would be curious to know if you have seen it before and/or if anyone called your attention to it as a new student.

Declaration of Pluralism (from the College Catalogue)
We are a diverse community at LaGuardia Community College. We strive to become a pluralistic community. We respect diversity as reflected in such areas as race, culture, ethnicity, gender, religion, age, sexual orientation, disability and social class.
As a pluralistic community we will:

• Celebrate: individual and group diversity.
  
• Honor: the rights of people to speak and be heard on behalf of pluralism.
  
• Promote: inter-group cooperation, understanding and communication.
  
• Acknowledge: each other’s contributions to the community.
  
• Share: beliefs, customs and experiences which enlighten us about members of our
  community.
  
• Affirm: each other’s dignity.
  
• Seek: further ways to learn about and appreciate one another.
  
• Confront: the expression of dehumanizing stereotypes, incidents where
  individuals or groups are excluded because of difference, the intolerance of diversity and the forces of racism, sexism, heterosexism, homophobia, disability discrimination, ageism, classism, and ethnocentrism that fragment the community into antagonistic individuals and groups.
  We believe by carrying out these actions we, as students, faculty and staff can achieve social change and the development of a society in which each individual can achieve her or his maximum potential. 
  

Over the weekend your task is to find one research item related to our discussion of Laramie.  You should post the research (or a link to it) in the blog and write a paragraph describing, explaining to your classmates the content of the piece and how, why you found it relevant, important, earth shattering etc.

The famous African American writer, Zora Neale Hurston, said this about research:  "Research is formalized curiosity.  It is poking and prying with a purpose."

Think about why we want to know more about the events surrounding Matthew Shepard's murder, about those who beat him and tied him to a fence, leaving him to die, about his family, about why it took the United States 12 years to pass federal Hate Crimes legislation. . . how is this knowledge useful, important?  What is Obama's position on gay rights?  Romney's?

Here is Charles Blow--New York Times Commentary on Big Bird and Romney--follow-up to students' comments last week:  (feel free to add more election commentary on this blog):

Don’t Mess With Big Bird

By CHARLES M. BLOW

Mitt Romney’s Big Bird swipe during Wednesday’s debate raised some hackles: PBS’s, many on social media and mine.

Romney told the debate moderator, Jim Lehrer:

“I’m sorry, Jim. I’m going to stop the subsidy to PBS. I’m going to stop other things. I like PBS. I love Big Bird. I actually like you, too. But I’m not going to — I’m not going to keep on spending money on things to borrow money from China to pay for it.”

Those are fighting words.

Social media, and others, exploded in Big Bird’s defense.

PBS itself issued a tersely worded statement on Thursday, saying:

“Governor Romney does not understand the value the American people place on public broadcasting and the outstanding return on investment the system delivers to our nation. We think it is important to set the record straight and let the facts speak for themselves.”

Exactly! What they said!

Big Bird is the man. He’s 8 feet tall. He can sing and roller skate and ride a unicycle and dance. Can you do that, Mr. Romney? I’m not talking about your fox trot away from the facts. I’m talking about real dancing.

Since 1969, Big Bird has been the king of the block on “Sesame Street.” When I was a child, he and his friends taught me the alphabet and the colors and how to do simple math.

Do you know how to do simple math, Mr. Romney? Maybe you and the Countess Von Backward could exchange numbers.

Big Bird and his friends also showed me what it meant to resolve conflicts with kindness and accept people’s differences and look out for the less fortunate. Do you know anything about looking out for the less fortunate, Mr. Romney? Or do you think they’re all grouches scrounging around in trash cans?

I know that you told Fox News this week that you were “completely wrong” for making that now infamous 47 percent comment, but probably only after you realized that it was a drag on your poll numbers. Your initial response was to defend it as “inelegantly stated” but essentially correct. That’s not good, sir. Character matters. Big Bird wouldn’t have played it that way. Do you really believe that Pennsylvania Avenue is that far away from Sesame Street? It shouldn’t be.

Let me make it simple for you, Mr. Romney. I’m down with Big Bird. You pick on him, you answer to me.

And, for me, it’s bigger than Big Bird. It’s almost impossible to overstate how instrumental PBS has been in my development and instruction.

We were poor. My mother couldn’t afford day care, and I didn’t go to preschool. My great-uncle took care of me all day. I could watch one hour of television: PBS.

When I was preparing for college and took the ACT, there were harder reading passages toward the back of the test. Many had scientific themes — themes we hadn’t covered at my tiny high school in my rural town. But I could follow the passages’ meanings because I had watched innumerable nature shows on PBS.

I never went to art or design school. In college, I was an English major before switching to mass communications. Still, I went on to become the design director of The New York Times and the art director of National Geographic magazine.

That was, in part, because I had a natural gift for it (thanks mom and dad and whatever gods there may be), but it’s also because I spent endless hours watching art programs on PBS. (Bob Ross, with his awesome Afro, snow-capped mountains and “magic white,” will live on forever in my memory.)

I don’t really expect Mitt Romney to understand the value of something like PBS to people, like me, who grew up in poor, rural areas and went to small schools. These are places with no museums or preschools or after-school educational programs. There wasn’t money for travel or to pay tutors.

I honestly don’t know where I would be in the world without PBS.

As PBS pointed out:

“Over the course of a year, 91 percent of all U.S. television households tune in to their local PBS station. In fact, our service is watched by 81 percent of all children between the ages of 2-8. Each day, the American public receives an enduring and daily return on investment that is heard, seen, read and experienced in public media broadcasts, apps, podcasts and online — all for the cost of about $1.35 per person per year.”

PBS is a national treasure, and Big Bird is our golden — um, whatever kind of bird he is.

Hands off!

Watch the Debate and Blog About It!!!

PRESIDENTIAL DEBATE:

Wednesday Evening 9pm--post this blog by midnight Wednesday :)

Barak Obama and Mitt Romney

Topic Domestic Policy

The debate will focus on domestic policy and be divided into six time segments of approximately 15 minutes each on topics to be selected by the moderator and announced several weeks before the debate.

Watch the debate, take notes and post a blog by Wednesday midnight--

Discuss one thing that a candidate said that you agreed with, were persuaded by and explain why!

Discuss one thing a candidate said that confused you or that you disagreed with and explain why!

Laramie Project

Laramie Project Blog:  Choose two members of the Laramie community who have different attitudes towards Matthew Shepard's death.  Compare and contrast their attitudes and explain as best you can the basis or reason(s) for their attitudes.  Please quote from each person to show what they are feeling. In the conclusion to the blog please explain whether you think the attitudes expressed by these individuals are "innate" or "culturally produced" and why.  (Think about what we discussed with Prof. Rizzieri last week.)  Please post by midnight Sunday September 30; remember that blogs count for 25% of your overall grade for English 101.  Please put your name in the "Labels" section! (On the right side of your post window). 

Detailed instructions for Animal Farm Essay

Hello Everyone-- So some students are asking question about the essay format so let me put everything in writing here to help you out. 1. Review page 43 of our course pack on the anatomy of an essay--do everything it says! 2. Address your essay to the citizens of Animal Farm. In introduction tell them who is responsible and what examples you are going to discuss. 3. In body of essay (at least two longish paragraphs) discuss in each paragraph one example (eg a character) who violates principles of revolution and YES YOU SHOULD QUOTE FROM THE TEXT AS WE PRACTICED IN CLASS 4. In conclusion tell them what they should have done to make the revolution succeed--give positive suggestions for the future of animalism! 5. Please document your quotations as we discussed in class by putting author's name and page number after quotes. 6. At end of essay put a works cited entry for Orwell as I posted on the board in class! DOUBLE SPACE 600-800 WORDS TITLE HEADING: NAME CLUSTER FALL 2012 ESSAY #2 PROFESSOR VAN SLYCK

Animal Farm Blog--due Sunday midnight

Post a blog here on Orwell by Sunday midnight. Your blog should be in the form of a letter to the citizens of Animal Farm. These are the questions you should address in your letter to them: Who/what is responsible for the failure of the revolution? What part do various animals play in its failure? Choose two; discuss their actions in detail. Then explain to the animals how/what they would have to change for there to be true equality and justice.

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