Sorry for the delay--I had trouble uploading this video because it was initially too long (I had to shorten it). This is for next week, so be sure to watch it and comment before your class (or no later than the day of your class). NOTE that the question to respond to is in the video itself and not on the blog post. I did this because a few people got confused and I wanted everything to be together. So be sure to respond as a COMMENT below after you watch the video.
Enjoy!
NOTE: Wednesday and Friday classes should do the questions below this one first (Questions, Part I). These questions will be due next week for all classes, depending on what day you come to class. I'll post another lecture video in a few days which will have a separate due date.
Read the following poems: pages 65, 67, 69, 83, 85, 99, 101, 103, 105, 109, 115, 117, 119, 121, 131, 145, 185-187
Answer 2 of the following 4 questions:
Q1: Try to fill in one of the fragment poems: what do you think this poem was really about, and what ideas do you think are missing based on what we have? What's the 'secret' poem, and what clues lead you to think so?
Q2: These poems offer us a unique insight into the lives of women in ancient Greece, who were often little more than slaves, and couldn't write, vote, or own property. What does Sappho seem to express about the life of a woman 2,000 years ago? Discuss at least one poem that shows us this.
Q3: Poem 94 on page 185-187 is a rare almost complete poem. What seems to be the story behind this poem? Clearly something has happened just before this poem was written, and the poem is responding to it. Who are the two characters in this poem, and what kind of relationship do they seem to have? What is happening to them? And what do they fear about the future?
Q4: Legends suggest that Sappho was a teacher of an all-girl's school in Lesbos, the island where she was born. Many of her poems, it is suggested, were sung with her students and express lessons for growing up and becoming a woman in ancient Greece. Is there a specific poem that seems to offer advice or wisdom for teenage girls emerging into a world of men and adulthood? Does any of this advice sound familiar to us even today?
NOTE: Check your syllabus to see what day these questions are due for your class. Remember that you can do them earlier if you want, but they do have a deadline. In general, the questions are due by your next in-class day. So if you have class on Monday, they're due in-class on Monday (or via e-mail by Monday's class--but not any time on Monday!).
READ THE FOLLOWING POEMS FIRST in the book If Not, Winter: Fragments of Sappho (on the left page is the original ancient Greek, which obviously you don't have to read):
* pp.3-5
* p.7
* p.9
* p.11
* p.13
* p.25
* p.27
* p.29
* p.45
* p.51
* p.53
* p.61
* p.63
THEN answer 2 of the following 4 questions in a short response (at least a few sentences). Don't just give me a "yes or no" answer, and please don't restate the question. Try to think out loud and even reason through the questions, because each one has multiple answers and ways you could approach it. You can then bring the answers with you to class OR e-mail them to me, but either way, we'll discuss these questions and readings in class.
Q1: Most of these poems are fragments, like the headless and armless statues in the video. Because of this, we really don't know what the missing pieces would have said and how they would change the poems. Which poem did you find the most difficult to understand based on the missing pieces and why? Discuss what you think the poem might be about based on what we do have--and be specific.
Q2: The most complete poem is the first one, on pages 3-5. As far as we know, th is is exactly what Sappho intended to write. Read this poem carefully and explain what you think the poet is asking Aphrodite (the goddess of love) for. What does she want most of all? Also, why might this poem be a little humorous? Any clues?
Q3: The poem on page 63 is also fairly complete, even though it breaks off at the end. What makes this poem such a modern poem about love? What is the poet worried about? What do they want the reader to understand about the nature of love, and what it feels like to be in love?
Q4: If some of these poems were modern-day songs, what style of music would they be? Choose a specific poem and explain why it 'sounds' like this kind of music.
NOTE: This video is your first assignment for the class. If you haven't been to class yet (Wednesday and Friday classes), don't worry about it yet. I'll explain this in class then. However, for Monday classes, go ahead and watch this video and respond by Wednesday to the question below as a COMMENT. This will allow you to see how other people in class respond to the question, and replicate the kinds of discussions we would normally have in class (and will hopefully have in class once a week).
MONDAY CLASSES should respond to this video by Wednesday @
WEDNESDAY CLASSES should respond to this video by Friday @
FRIDAY CLASSES should respond to this video by Monday @
[Your class schedule should explain which day you come to
class, and which days are on-line days. If you have questions, please e-mail
me!]
RESPONSE QUESTION: Think of your favorite song or your
favorite movie: would the song still be as good if we lost the music? Are the
words good enough to read as poetry? OR, would your favorite movie be as
amazing if you just had the screenplay (the dialogue), and not the movie
itself? What wouldn't we be able to understand about the film? Would you have
fallen in love with the song and the movie without the music and the images?
(remember, respond as a COMMENT...or e-mail it to me if you have problems doing
so).
Hum 2123: General Humanities 1, “The Poetry of Time and
Space”
Section 1: Meeting on Monday (W/F on the blog)
Fall 2020 / Dr. Joshua Grasso
Hours: M
Office: Horace Mann 348
Office Hours: After class or by appointment
E-mail: jgrasso@ecok.edu (Phone:
X430)
Course Blog: Be sure to bookmark our class blog, “ecuhum1.blogspot.com”
for future reference. I’ll post all your daily readings, questions, and
assignments (we don’t use Blackboard).
Course Description: This course is designed to explore five important works of poetry that have profoundly shaped the modern world—not just in terms of literature, but in our thoughts, ideas, expressions, and ideals. Though you might not be familiar with all (or any) of these works, they exist inside your cultural DNA, providing many of the characters and situations that we continue to find meaningful and ‘new.’ As we read each work, we’ll try to understand who wrote it and where the poet came from, and why ancient cultures responded so strongly to these works. Are they for the same reasons we find them compelling today? Or can we see new things in them that eluded their ancient audiences? Likewise, what do we miss in our own cultural blindness that only the skeleton key of literature can unlock? Hopefully, too, these works can offer you a little comfort and consolation from the outside world, as many of these poets were writing against plagues and catastrophes themselves (COVID would be very familiar to Shakespeare and his audiences).
Hum 2123: General Humanities 1, “The Poetry of Time and
Space”
Section 1: Meeting on Wednesday (M/F on the blog)
Fall 2020 / Dr. Joshua Grasso
Hours: W
Office: Horace Mann 348
Office Hours: After class or by appointment
E-mail: jgrasso@ecok.edu (Phone:
X430)
Course Blog: Be sure to bookmark our class blog, “ecuhum1.blogspot.com” for future reference. I’ll post all your daily readings, questions, and assignments here (we don’t use Blackboard).
Course Description: This course is designed to explore five important works of poetry that have profoundly shaped the modern world—not just in terms of literature, but in our thoughts, ideas, expressions, and ideals. Though you might not be familiar with all (or any) of these works, they exist inside your cultural DNA, providing many of the characters and situations that we continue to find meaningful and ‘new.’ As we read each work, we’ll try to understand who wrote it and where the poet came from, and why ancient cultures responded so strongly to these works. Are they for the same reasons we find them compelling today? Or can we see new things in them that eluded their ancient audiences? Likewise, what do we miss in our own cultural blindness that only the skeleton key of literature can unlock? Hopefully, too, these works can offer you a little comfort and consolation from the outside world, as many of these poets were writing against plagues and catastrophes themselves (COVID would be very familiar to Shakespeare and his audiences).
Hum 2123: General Humanities 1, “The Poetry of Time and
Space”
Section 1: Meeting on Friday (M/W on the blog)
Fall 2020 / Dr. Joshua Grasso
Hours: F
Office: Horace Mann 348
Office Hours: After class or by appointment
E-mail: jgrasso@ecok.edu (Phone:
X430)
Course Blog: Be sure to bookmark our class blog, “ecuhum1.blogspot.com” for future reference. I’ll post all your daily readings, questions, and assignments here (we don’t use Blackboard).
Course Description: This course is designed to explore five important works of poetry that have profoundly shaped the modern world—not just in terms of literature, but in our thoughts, ideas, expressions, and ideals. Though you might not be familiar with all (or any) of these works, they exist inside your cultural DNA, providing many of the characters and situations that we continue to find meaningful and ‘new.’ As we read each work, we’ll try to understand who wrote it and where the poet came from, and why ancient cultures responded so strongly to these works. Are they for the same reasons we find them compelling today? Or can we see new things in them that eluded their ancient audiences? Likewise, what do we miss in our own cultural blindness that only the skeleton key of literature can unlock? Hopefully, too, these works can offer you a little comfort and consolation from the outside world, as many of these poets were writing against plagues and catastrophes themselves (COVID would be very familiar to Shakespeare and his audiences).
