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Arizona’s Most Excelling Schools! Arcadia High School 4703 E. Indian School Road Phoenix, Arizona 85018 Telephone: 480-484-6300 FAX: 480-484-6301 Web site: arcadia.susd.org May 2017 Dear Incoming Honors English 2 Students, Parents, and Guardians: Welcome to the second year of the Honors English program at Arcadia High School. We look forward to meeting you and to sharing a year of challenging reading, writing and thinking. In order to prepare for some of the first assignments you will encounter as a student in Honors English 2 (a class with a curriculum focused on world literature), you will be required to complete outside reading. We recommend that you do some reading before school starts in August. There is one book that you should read: Mythology, by Edith Hamilton Read the following sections and complete the questions provided: Introduction to Classical Mythology The Gods The Two Great Gods of Earth How the World and Mankind were Created The Earliest Heroes Eight Brief Tales of Lovers Four Great Adventures Theseus Hercules Perseus Atalanta The Adventures of Odysseus Brief Myths This book is readily available at public libraries, local and online bookstores, and as a downloadable e-book. You should read each section of Mythology carefully and answer the questions provided on an electronic document (i.e., a Word doc, Google doc, etc.). The answers will be collected electronically through turnitin.com within the first two weeks of school. In addition to answering the questions, we suggest you take notes in order to prepare you for corresponding assignments. Pay special attention to all standard literary elements such as: elements of plot, characterization, setting, symbolism, and theme(s). There will be lessons, assignments, and assessments (including essays and objective tests) early in the first quarter that will assume you are familiar with the above-listed myths and that will require you to write intelligently about them. Any reading and preparation work you do before the school year starts will better prepare you to do well on these assignments and assessments (and will lessen your workload during the first weeks of the school year). We hope you have an enjoyable summer, and we look forward to seeing you in August. Regards, Arcadia English Department Edith Hamilton’s Mythology: Review Reading Questions English II Honors Please type your answers to the following questions. Be detailed and type your answers in complete sentences. Please label each section of reading and follow the numbering system on this sheet. *Be ready to turn in your answers electronically to turnitin.com within the first two weeks of school. Introduction to Classical Mythology 1. What is Greek and Roman mythology supposed to show us? According to this view, little distinction had been made between what two things when the myths were being shaped? 2. But what really lurked in the world of the creators of the first myths? 3. The Greek myths show us that the Greeks had changed in what way by the time we know of them? 4. When were the myths first told in their present shape? 5. Who created the myths as we know them? 6. What is the first written record of Greece, and who wrote it? 7. Why should that be important to us to know what the early Greeks were like? 8. With the Greeks, a new point of view dawned. What was this new point of view? 9. In what image did the Greeks make their gods? And how was this different than gods created by earlier peoples? 10. With the coming of the new idea of gods, how did the universe change? 11. How did the Greeks feel about their gods? Briefly describe how the Greek gods sometimes behaved. 12. According to Hamilton, myths are not religious in nature. Instead, what do myths explain? 13. Some myths explain nothing. What purpose do these tales serve? 14. The myths are early _________________________ as well as early _____________________________. 15. Who was the most prolific storyteller of mythology, and why does Hamilton avoid using him as a source? 16. Hamilton lists 14 storytellers or myth creators. List them, and for each one list and/or describe what they wrote. The Gods 17. Who were the Titans, and who was their leader? 18. What 12 great Olympian gods succeeded the Titans? (You should know both their Greek and Roman names.) 19. Based on the characteristics of their gods, what are some things that the Greek gods suggest about Greek attitudes toward life? 20. How did Zeus become ruler of the gods? 21. Who were some of the lesser gods? Which of them, if any, are you familiar with? 22. Who were the Muses and the Graces? 23. How is the term “muse” used today? (There are at least a couple different uses/definitions.) 24. Who were the Fates? The Two Great Gods of Earth 25. How and why was Persephone taken from her mother? 26. What real-world occurrence is explained by the myth of Persephone? 27. Do you think Demeter was a good mother? Why or why not? 28. What Greek views of male/female relations might be revealed by the story of Persephone? 29. How did Pentheus die? 30. Do you think Dionysus was responsible for Pentheus’ death? Why? 31. How does the view of alcohol promoted by this story compare to views about it held by people today? How the World and Mankind were Created 32. What is the “theogony”? 33. How were heaven and earth formed? 34. Who were the children of Mother Earth and Father Heaven? 35. Why was Prometheus punished? 36. Do you think Prometheus is admirable? Why? 37. The gods are a “family,” of sorts. Describe a family you can think of (either in real life or in literature, movies, etc.) that they resemble. The Earliest Heroes 38. How and why was Io punished? 39. How did Prometheus try to comfort Io? 40. In the story of Europa, why did Zeus change himself into a bull? 41. Why do you suppose Europe was named after this particular woman? 42. If our country could be renamed with a mythderived name, what name would you suggest? Why? 43. Why did Odysseus blind Polyphemus? 44. Do you have any sympathy for Polyphemus? Why? 45. How and why is Echo punished? 46. What might the moral of the Narcissus story be? (Consider: On the one hand, the man was turned into a flower, but on the other hand, it’s a beautiful flower—one we still prize today.) 47. How did the anemone flower supposedly come into being? Eight Brief Tales of Lovers 48. What natural phenomenon does the story of Pyramus and Thisbe explain? 49. The plot of the Pyramus and Thisbe story is strikingly similar to—and indeed is one of the inspirations of—which famous play by William Shakespeare? 50. Which other Shakespearean play, a comedy, incorporates the story of Pyramus and Thisbe? 51. Why did Orpheus fail to bring his wife back from Hades? 52. What are “halcyon days”? 53. What kind of medication is Halcyon? 54. Pygmalion falls in love with a statue rather than a real woman, and then he is rewarded for his devotion to this “perfect” woman when she is brought to life. How do you think this story might have been used by some in the days when it was told? 55. Which play by George Bernard Shaw is titled with a reference to the story of Pygmalion and Galatea? And what is the movie musical adaptation of Shaw’s play called? 56. Would you describe the relationship between Endymion and the Moon as a healthy one? Why? 57. Was Daphne’s transformation into a laurel tree worth it? Explain. 58. Why do you think there might have been so many myths about women who wanted nothing to do with men? Four Great Adventures 59. Why did Zeus kill Phaethon? 60. Who was most to blame for Phaethon’s death— Phaethon, his father, or Zeus? Explain. 61. Who was Bellerophon’s father, and why did the gods kill him? What does this suggest about the gods and their feelings about humans? 62. How did Bellerophon spend the end of his life? And what does this suggest about the gods and their feelings about humans? 63. How was Icarus like Phaethon? 64. Who is more responsible for Icarus’ death— Icarus or his father? Explain. 65. Considering the stories of Phaeton, Bellerophon and Icarus, what might be a theme they all share? And who might have benefitted from the telling of such stories in ancient Greece? Theseus 66. Who was Procrustes, and how did he die? 67. How is the word “Procrustean” used today? 68. Who almost poisoned Theseus, and why? 69. What was the Minotaur, and why would seven young men and women each year be especially concerned about it? 70. Who helped Theseus kill the Minotaur? 71. What did Ariadne and Medea have in common? 72. How did Theseus’ father die? 73. What did the Greek attitude toward taking one’s own life seem to be? Hercules 74. How did Hercules show his “specialness” at an early age? 75. Theseus was the thinking man’s hero. What was Hercules? 76. What did Hercules do that he could almost not bear, and that Theseus had to help him deal with? 77. Why did Hercules have to perform the 12 labors? 78. How did Hercules die? 79. Why do you think that Hercules is one of the most well-known and well-liked of the Greek heroes? 80. Which hero, Theseus or Hercules, do you think would be more likely to be seen as a hero today? Explain. Perseus and Atlanta 81. How and why did Acrisius put his daughter and grandson in danger? 82. How and why did Perseus slay Medusa? 83. Do you have any sympathy for Medusa? Why? 84. Who raised Atalanta? 85. Why did Atalanta race her suitors? 86. Men willingly risked death to marry Atlanta—a woman they knew very little about. What does this detail of the story suggest about how the ancient Greeks viewed women? 87. How did Hippomenes win Atalanta? How do you think she felt about the whole thing? 88. What does Hippomenes’ method of winning Atalanta’s hand suggest about women (from an ancient Greek point of view)? The Adventures of Odysseus 89. Why didn’t Odysseus go right home after the war? Why were the gods angry? What does this show you about the Greek view of the gods? 90. What were some of the dangers and problems faced by Odysseus? 91. Was Odysseus faithful to Penelope while he was away? 92. Why did Penelope do so much weaving? 93. How did Odysseus regain his throne? How long had he been away? Brief Myths Briefly describe: 94. The Amazons 95. Arachne 96. Aurora and Tithonus 97. Callisto 98. The Hyades 99. The Myrmidons 100. Orion 101. The Pleiades 102. Sisyphus