Download cleopatra-woman-of-mystery

Cleopatra; Woman of Mystery.
Nomen _________
Brainstorm what you know about Cleopatra, and fill in the table below.
Who was Cleopatra?
Why is she famous/important?
Use the list of adjectives on the back page to fill in the gaps in the following passages.
Nunc est bibendum!
Now is the time to drink!
Antehac nefas celebrare dum Capitolio regina
dementis ruinas funus et imperio parabat.
Before now it was wrong to celebrate, while an _______
queen was preparing ruinous death for the Capitol and
the empire.
Quae generosius perire quaerens nec
muliebriter expavit ensem nec latentis classe
cita reparauit oras. ausa et iacentem videre
regiam voltu sereno, fortis et asperas tractare
serpentes, ut atrum corpore conbiberet
venenum, deliberata morte ferocior: invidens
deduci superbo, non humilis mulier, triumpho.
She, seeking to die more _______, showed no womanly
fear of the sword, nor fled with her fleet to unknown
shores. But she dared to see her kingdom lying in ruins
with a _______ face, to bravely handle the bitter snakes,
so that she might drink in the black poison with her
body, even more _______ as she contemplated death: no
_______ woman, she did not wish to be led in a proud
triumph.
Horace, Roman Poet (65-8 BC)
Cleopatra, dedecus Aegypti, Italiae feralis
Erinys*, Romano non casta malo. quantum
inpulit Graecos Troianasque domos Spartana
nocenti, ad Romam tulit tantum Cleopatra
furores.
Cleopatra, the shame of Egypt, the ________ Erinys* of
Italy, the _______ bane of Rome. Just as that Spartan
woman [Helen of Troy] forced the Greeks and the
homes of Troy to harm, so Cleopatra brought madness
to Rome.
* Erinys was a Fury; a goddess associated with
revenge.
Lucan, Roman Historian (39-65 AD).
What attitudes do these authors have towards Cleopatra? Which Latin words do they use to describe her?
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Examine the following sources and then answer the following questions.
(a) For her beauty, as we are told, was in itself not
altogether incomparable, nor such as to strike
those who saw her; but to converse with her had
an irresistible charm, and her presence,
combined with the persuasiveness of her
discourse and the character which was somehow
diffused about her behaviour towards others,
had something stimulating about it. There was
sweetness also in the tones of her voice; and her
tongue, like an instrument of many strings, she
could readily turn to whatever language she
pleased.
(b)
Plutarch, Greek Biographer (46-120 AD).
(c)
This papyrus shows Cleopatra (in the middle)
dressed as the Goddess Isis.
(d) For she was a woman of surpassing beauty, and
at that time, when she was in the prime of her
youth, she was most striking; she also possessed
a most charming voice and a knowledge of how
to make herself agreeable to every one. Being
brilliant to look upon and to listen to, with the
power to subjugate every one, even a love-sated
man already past his prime, she thought that it
would be in keeping with her role to meet
Caesar. She asked therefore for admission to his
presence, and on obtaining permission adorned
and beautified herself so as to appear before him
in the most majestic and at the same time pityinspiring guise.
A coin depicting Cleopatra.
(e) Cleopatra was a woman of insatiable sexuality
and insatiable avarice... Through her own
genius, she captivated the two greatest Romans
of her time, and destroyed herself.
Cassius Dio, Roman Historian (150-235 AD).
(f)
Cassius Dio, Roman Historian (150-235 AD).
(g) “Cleopatra, it's not the loss of you that hurts,
because I shall be joining you very soon. What
hurts is that, for all my great stature as a
commander, I have been shown to have less
courage than a woman.”
Marc Antony’s final words to Cleopatra before
committing suicide, according to Plutarch,
Greek Biographer (46-120 AD).
Julius Caesar and Marc Antony; rulers of the
Roman Empire who were seduced by Cleopatra.
1. Compare what Plutarch (a) and Cassius Dio (d) say about Cleopatra’s beauty. How are their accounts
similar? How are they different? Whose account do you think is more reliable and why?
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2. Compare both these accounts to the picture of Cleopatra on the coin in picture (c). What does this coin
show us about her beauty?
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3. Julius Caesar and Marc Antony (picture (f)) were, as Cassius Dio says, “the two greatest men of her
[Cleopatra’s] time”. What qualities do you think enabled Cleopatra to exert such influence over them?
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4. What do Marc Antony’s final words (according to Plutarch, (g)) tell us about Cleopatra, and her
relationship with Antony?
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5. Choose five Latin adjectives from the list below, which you think best describe Cleopatra.
Latin
English
Latin
English
acris
adrogans
avidus
casta
cupida
demens
ferox
fortis
generosa
honesta
humana
impavida
immoderata
inexorabilis
intelligent
arrogant
ambitious
chaste
greedy
insane
fierce
brave
noble
honourable
cultured
fearless
extravagant
ruthless
ingeniosa
insolens
libidinosa
optabilis
opulens
perfida
prudens
pulchra
superba
tragica
turpis
urbana
valida
venusta
clever
haughty
sensual
desirable
wealthy
treacherous
shrewd
beautiful
proud
tragic
disgusting
sophisticated
strong
charming
6. Is Cleopatra a good role model for young women today? Why or why not?
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7. Who is like Cleopatra today? Find a picture of a celebrity who you think is a modern-day equivalent of
Cleopatra, and make a poster describing her (or him) using five of the Latin adjectives above.