Classical Literature and Philology Commons^™

Ἔπος: A Musical Concept Album Adaptation Of Homer’S Iliad, Blaike Cheramie

Scripps Senior Theses

This thesis project is a musical concept album adaptation of Homer’s classical epic the Iliad. Inspired by musicals like Hadestown, Les Miserables, and Hamilton as well as movies like O Brother Where Art Thou and musicians like Bob Dylan, this album seeks to enter the genre of Classical Reception Studies. The album consists of seven tracks all referencing moments within the poem, written from the perspective of the characters to inspire empathy within the audience. The content of this thesis includes detailed chord charts and audio demos of each song, as well as analyses of the lyrical, musical, and thematic …

"All That Remains Of Husband", James L. Kleerup

Scripps Senior Theses

Within Book 4 of Virgil’s Aeneid, the question of marriage is repeatedly raised. Specifically, it is debated whether or not Dido and Aeneas are married. This question is hotly debated by both the characters and scholars, as the answer is not definitively given within the text. This paper seeks to provide an answer, as the contemporary Roman reader would likely have interpreted their relationship, and also address why Virgil remained purposefully vague. Within Book 4, three key scenes are examined: the discussion between Juno and Venus where Juno proposes the wedding, the cave scene, and Dido and Aeneas’ argument …

Looking At The Donor Character Through A Formalist Lens, Elena Rodriguez

Dissertations and Theses

No abstract provided.

Signs In Sophocles: Modern Approaches To Ptsd In The Ajax, Charlotte Simon

Honors Theses

This project explores the relationship between ancient Greek tragedy and modern psychology, specifically focusing on instances of PTSD, both through the descriptions of symptoms and the cultural reaction to such trauma responses in both ancient and modern sources. The case study from ancient Greece is Sophocles’ play, Ajax, a dramatic depiction of a post-PTSD soldier who has a mental break and is faced with either living with what he has done or committing suicide. The primary objective of this project is to illustrate what modern psychological theory can reveal about the portrayal of PTSD in Greek tragedy and therefore also …

The Multifront Battle Waged Against Female Autonomy: A Comparative Study Of Ancient Medical And Literary Texts, Leah K. Montello

Honors Theses

Male authors have long waged a multifront campaign against female independence. In this thesis, I focus on two specific fronts: literary and medical texts of the Classical Greek period. This thesis intends to explore the varying strategies in a selection of works, employed to reinforce prescribed gender norms. I approach this with a feminist lens to critique attempts made by elite educated Greek men to define what a woman ought to be like. I do not, however, explore every single tactic a medical and literary writer has applied to uphold patriarchal norms. My two body chapters revolve respectively around two …

Speech And Enchantment In Early Greek Thought From The Archaic To The Hellenistic Period, R. J. Barnes

Bryn Mawr College Dissertations and Theses

When describing complex aesthetic or cognitive experiences, speakers often reach for idiomatic language. For ancient Greeks, one major cache of idiomatic terms comes from the language of enchantment. This dissertation accounts for how and why ancient Greeks used words related to θέλγω, κηλέω, γοητεία, μαγεία, μαγγανεία, ἐπῳδή, and ψυχαγωγία as a way of describing the effects of speech and song. Examination is given to writers from the Archaic to the Hellenistic period. Most important are Gorgias of Leontini, Plato, and Philodemus, who each remark in detail about the experience of enchantment. The study reveals that Greek writers use the language …

Douglas Young, Hellenist, Ward Briggs

Studies in Scottish Literature

A reassessment of the Scottish writer Douglas Young's career as classicist, poet, translator, and teacher, tracing the centrality to his achievement of his commitment to Greek literature and classical scholarship.

Fire And Brimstone: Analyzing Evangelicalism's Burning Of The Bible In Favor Of Literature, Kylee Phalen

Undergraduate Honors Theses

As a cultural staple, the Christian faith has been a defining characteristic of the United States for generations. Religion has moved from the spiritual and become integral to many parts of this society’s social gatherings, artistic outlets, and even businesses. Often rooting itself in conservative values and interpretations of The Bible, Evangelicalism’s beliefs regarding damnation and hell contradicts its sola scriptura theological view. Yet, with The Bible’s near silence on hellish matters when looked at as a whole, the human need to have these gaps filled allowed for literary portrayals of hell and explanations of damnation to become part of …

Roman New Comedy In The Renaissance: The Influence Of Plautus In Shakespearean Comedy, Nick Minion

Honors Bachelor of Arts

Undoubtedly the most well-known playwright in the English language, Shakespeare’s influence can be felt in most every genre in most every era. Allusions to his work can be found anywhere, from horror novels to sci-fi. Beyond allusions, most strongly felt is his stylistic influence in theatre. Names, plot devices, and images have all been taken from Shakespeare’s greatest works and implemented and transformed in new art forms. However, not all elements of Shakespearean drama originated with the bard himself. Shakespeare drew inspiration from the dramatists that preceded him, especially Roman playwrights. In his earlier works, these similarities are apparent. The …

Assyrian Aesthetics: Recovering The Modern Assyrian Art Of William Daniel (1903-88) And Andre Gvalevich (1911-85), Ryan Nazari

Canterbury Scholars

In response to the lack of scholarly attention to modern Assyrian culture (i.e., mid-20th century to present), this paper creates a conversation between two Assyrian pieces of art––William Daniel’s poem “The Problem” and Andre Gvalevich’s oil painting portrait of William Daniel. In my argument, I show how “The Problem” and the portrait advance themes of loneliness/intimacy based on the aesthetic relationship between the artists and their respective audiences. I first define Peter Balakian’s account of aesthetics in his article “Poetry as Civilization” for my theoretical context. Secondly, I summarize and critique the methodologies of current scholarship that exist on my …

The Unwelcome Guest: Envy And Shame Materialized In A Roman Villa, Andrew Scholtz

Middle Eastern and Ancient Mediterranean Studies (MEAMS) Faculty Scholarship

A third-century C.E. inscribed mosaic from Skala, on the Greek island of Kefallonia, has greatly expanded our knowledge of envy’s evil eye in the Roman Mediterranean. Yet its inscription has not drawn the attention it deserves. Paying heed to the literary, affective, and material dimensions of this and other mosaic texts, I explore how the Skala poem, in tandem with the imagery it accompanies, mediates encounters between guest, host, and house. In so doing, it forms part of a decorative program materializing envy as actor in a drama celebrating a householder’s fortune while exposing the envious to general scorn.

Quod Inane Vocamus: Lucretius’ Void In Seventeenth-Century Italy, Carlo Bottone

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

During the seventeenth century, the revival of atomic theories and the beginning of barometric experiments sparked a philosophical debate on the existence and the nature of void, which in turn generated new attention to the ancient disputes on void and prompted new interpretations of Lucretius’ examination of inane (De Rerum Natura, I.329-397). Commentators began to discuss the passage beyond the ancient philosophical tradition and in relation to modern ideas and recent discoveries, while Vacuists appealed to Lucretian arguments to prove or deny the existence of an absolute void interspersed among corpuscles.

My research contributes to the scholarship on …

Semantics Of Poem In «Divani Lugati-T-Turk», Qosimjon Sodiqov, Govhar Rahmatova

The Light of Islam

Lyric songs show how rich the aesthetic taste of the Turkic peoples is, that they have always had a special love for the art of speech and that they have a literary reserve to compete with the fastest peoples of their time in terms of artistic texture. These songs also reflected the artistic views of the Turks. Lyric songs are distinguished by content, musicality, spiritual closeness. They naturally and sincerely describe the glorification of true love, its appreciation, the value of spiritual and moral purity, fidelity and devotion.

Purely lyrical experiences with their novelty, richness of images and unique pathos …

نظرية التلقي وقراءة التراث العربي: تطبيقات على النقد الأدبي في العهد المريني, عبد الجليل شوقي

Dirassat

This article reflects the patterns of critical reception in Maranian critics. It shows that Moroccan literature does not allow for literary criticism due to the abundance of their western thoughts in their works. It also points out that such rejection or disappointment in readings intended to conflict with old critics in the study of monetary issues. This pattern of reception distinguished the reading of a Marinian critic who sought to develop Arab thought in general and the critical sense in particular. Arab thought is constantly evolving and the application of many ideas varies depending on the context. Therefore, the literary …

Dual Immersion Programs: Are They Enough?, Samantha Renae Castillo

Canterbury Scholars

This study asks: How do middle school students attending a Spanish and English dual immersion program develop their biliteracy skills differently based on the extent of their exposure to and practice of both languages in the home environment? Deborah Brandt argues that sponsors invest in literacy tools in order to give other people access to language resources, allowing communication to be fostered through the passing on of information, as done between different generations. This research project examines how literacy sponsorship outside of the classroom impacts an individual’s bilingual development overall. In a pilot version of this study with two participants, …

Political Propaganda On Imperial Coinage In The Age Of Augustus, Juliana Maria Ketting

Honors Theses

This thesis examines and analyzes political propaganda on Augustan-era Roman imperial coinage by comparing the imagery and text used on coins produced at seven mints located across the Mediterranean. These mints were located at Lugdunum, Augusta Emerita, Caesaraugusta, Colonia Patricia, Nemausus, Samos, and Rome. I focus on these mints due to the messages of Augustan propaganda that were found on their coinage, which were often combined with locally- or regionally specific provincial messages, that together promoted Augustus’ administration. These coins share important images such as the Capricorn, gateways built as triumphal arches, laurel branches, eagles, Victory, crocodiles, bulls, altars, and …

Thinking Queerly: Medievalism, Wizardry, And Neurodiversity In Young Adult Texts, Jes Battis

Premodern Transgressive Literatures

Why do we love wizards? Where do these magical figures come from? Thinking Queerly traces the wizard from medieval Arthurian literature to contemporary YA adaptations. By exploring the link between Merlin and Harry Potter, or Morgan la Fey and Sabrina, readers will see how the wizard offers spaces of hope and transformation for young readers. In particular, this book examines how wizards think differently, and how this difference can resonate with both LGBTQ and neurodivergent readers, who’ve been told they don’t fit in.

Language As The Medium: A Literature Review. Harnessing The Prolific Power Of Dramatic Language As A Therapeutic Tool In Drama Therapy, Edward Freeman

Expressive Therapies Capstone Theses

Language in and of the theatre, with its palate of variegated writing styles and playwrights from throughout time, has the potential to be harnessed, focused, and systematized for use as a therapeutic tool within drama therapy – the field’s artistic medium. Drama therapy could benefit from having a specific medium germane to its artform which has the potential to provide practitioners with a common resource and means of communication, assessment, diagnosis, and treatment planning, as well as align the field with other creative arts therapies. Language encompasses all forms of human communication – speaking, writing, signing, gesturing, expressing facially – …

Fan Fiction And The Trojan War: Contemporary Euripidean Perspective On The Treatment Of Enslaved Women In The Silence Of The Girls, A Thousand Ships, And For The Most Beautiful, Richard K. Sheldon

LSU Master's Theses

This study examines three contemporary novels of fan fiction, authored by women, that retell the Trojan War: Emily Hauser’s For the Most Beautiful (2016), Pat Barker’s The Silence of the Girls (2018), and Nathalie Haynes’ A Thousand Ships (2019). This study offers a reading of contemporary Homeric reception by analyzing the conversations that the novels initiate between each other, Homer’s Iliad, and Euripides’ tragedies, Hecuba (424 BCE) and Trojan Women (415 BCE). The study establishes a connection between the three authors and Euripides by treating the novels as works of fan fiction. In so doing, the study identifies …

"Susanoo Annotated", Samuel Bostwick

COD Library Student Research and Award Symposium

For this project, I opted to take a deep dive into a religious culture I was not familiar with, namely, Shinto. To demonstrate my knowledge on the subject, I decided on annotating one of the myths of the religion; I selected the myth of Susanoo slaying the Orochi from the Shinto chronicle known as the Kojiki. The citations are presented in MLA format, obtained largely from the College of DuPage's library databases.

Faculty Sponsor: Beth Kempton