Discussion 5 (Chapter 11): The Battle of Granicus

Discussion 5 (Chapter 11): The Battle of Granicus

Arrian’s Anabasis Alexandri (“The Journey of Alexander) was written during the Roman Empire (around 450 years after Alexander’s death), and is often seen as the best early military and political history of Alexander’s reign. Arrian begins with the death of Alexander’s father Philip and Alexander’s acquisition of the leadership of the League of Corinth (an “alliance” of all the city states on the pretext of a battle of revenge against Persia), then moves quickly towards his crossing of the Hellespont and conquest of Asia.

This week’s assignment is to draw the Battle of Granicus as described by Arrian (Arrian 1.12-1.16) (ATTACHED BELOW)

Actions. Feel free to use whatever medium you want that can be uploaded as an image: for example, a hand-drawing, a computer graphic, a model with toy soldiers…whatever you wish. Whatever can be presented as an image or a series of images on the discussion board is acceptable. Have fun with it!

You can use the map on p. 36 of the attached PDF as a general guide, but you should go for as much detail as possible, for example, using the names of various of Alexander’s generals, the different types of forces, with plenty of time and movement markers (e.g. arrows, but you may find more creative options).  

Discussion 6 (Chapter 12): Homer’s Odyssey 9 and Theocritus’s Cyclops

After Alexander’s conquest of Greece and the Persian Empire, the Greek city states were no longer centers of power, but were replaced by the great Hellenistic kingdoms founded by Alexander and his successors, whose capitals were Alexandria in Egypt and Antioch in Syria. These cities and others like Pergamon and Ephesus in Asia Minor were huge, cosmopolitan urban centers. One consequence of this was the rise of “escapist” literature that idealized country life, typified by the poet Theocritus. This literature was therefore very different from Homer’s epic and Athenian tragedy, which focused on mythological characters and weighty moral themes, and Athenian comedy and rhetoric, which focused on political life.

In 300-500 words, analyze what the differing images of the Cyclops in Homer’s Odyssey Book 9

Actions and Theocritus’s IdyllsActions (BOTH ATTACHED BELOW) tell us about each author’s attitude towards this traditional “monster”. How close to human is he? As always, make sure to write out lines from the poems, with page numbers, in order to support your points.

DO NOT USE ADDITIONAL SOURCES FOR THIS OR ANY OTHER DISCUSSION ASSIGNMENT.

[Before you write: a good method here is to first list all the features you can find in common and all the differences between the two Cyclops stories. What is his character? What is his relationship to nature? What is his capacity to love? What does he look like physically?) Then use that information to formulate your thesis on how close to “human” each writer presents him as.] 

You must give a source and page number each time you use the sources, REGARDLESS of whether you are quoting direction or paraphrasing. The only difference is that direct quotes must be put into quotation marks.

Due Monday August 3rd before 11:00 pm

STRICT DEADLINE