World Literature Before 1660
This is a discussion of Week 2 (Ancient Lyrics). Choose A & B or C & D for your first post of at least a full, well-thought-out paragraph (3-4 sentences). Then, respond to at least two of your classmates’ posts with at least a strong 2-3 sentence response. A) The ancient Hebrews believed in a God they called Yahweh (Jehovah) with whom they had a relationship of faith and trust that He would come through from them in their troubles. What sort of troubles do these two psalms (prayer songs) indicate and why would they need God to “deliver” them from their circumstances? How would you feel if you were ever in either of these circumstances, and if you prayed to God: 1) you felt that your prayers were heard and answered, or 2) you felt that your prayers were not heard nor answered? How would you explain either of these to others? B) In these two Egyptian love lyrics, one is from the viewpoint of a young man who is in love with a young princess who is way out of his league, and the other is from the viewpoint of a young lady who is madly in love with a young man whose mother seems to be overprotective of him. Describe the story of their angst in at least two sentences for each lyric poem and how you feel their dilemmas were resolved. C) Sappho was a strong-minded widow or divorcee whom most scholars believe was a lesbian. In “Poem 1,” the speaker loved another woman but felt extremely rebuffed and without the love of her life. In “Poem 16,” she equates love to be more beautiful than armies of horsemen or infantry or battleships. Why do you believe that the speaker in these poems is most passionate; inconsolable because of her unrequited love; and tortured deep in her soul? Give textual evidence of this in at least two sentences for each lyric poem. D) Choose two of the three lyric poems by Catullus and describe each of them by using modern lyrics; that is, by finding songs that speak to the themes of these poems and that really get his ancient angst in the words of our modern-day lyricists (songwriters).
