Reed College
Reed College

Humanities 110

Introduction to the Humanities

Paper Topics | Fall 2016 | Paper 3

Paper Due: Saturday, November 12, at 5:00 PM in your conference leader's Eliot Hall mailbox
Length: 6-8 pages (1500-2000 words)

The topics for Paper #3 ask you to think about modes of representation, presentation, and/or argumentation and to further develop the skills practiced in the first and second papers. Once again, advance a definite thesis on the basis of close reading and specific points of comparison.

  1. In Works and Days Hesiod complains, "Would that I were not among the men of the fifth generation." How does viewing Hesiod himself as the product of the fifth generation affect the reading of the text as a whole and especially his views about justice? Support your position through close textual analysis.

  2. How does Xenophanes conceive of the divine? Was Xenophanes a monotheist? Argue for your position based on a close reading of the text. After presenting you own argument, offer a single, rigorous objection to it, and formulate a reply to the objection.

  3. Select a single presocratic philosopher and either Homer, Hesiod, or one of the lyric poets. Argue for a position on how the philosopher's approach differs (or not) from the poet's. To what extent do the authors share objectives and methods? Support your position through close textual analysis.

  4. Look at the following statues:

    A. Two archaic kouroi known as "Kleobis and Biton" (http://rdc.reed.edu/workspace/7513/lightbox) ; and

    B. The early Classical sculpture known as the "Kritios Boy" (http://rdc.reed.edu/workspace/7515/lightbox)

    According to traditional narratives of artistic progress, the classical "Kritios Boy" is the more realistic and therefore better, while the archaic "Kleobis and Biton" are early, primitive attempts at rendering the human form that fall short. The implication is that "Kleobis and Biton" look the way they do because the artist was unable to achieve the level of "realism" in the "Kritios Boy."

    Rejecting this notion of progress, compare "Kleobis and Biton" and "Kritios Boy" from the perspective that the stylistic choices were intentional and not the result of a lack/presence of artistic skill. What are the major stylistic differences between these works? What might each artisan have been trying to achieve? What aspects of the body are emphasized in each? Are there broader social implications of these stylistic choices? Begin your analysis with a detailed description of each work.

  5. The Iliad is filled with detailed descriptions of war and combat, with named individuals and a coherent narrative. In contrast to Homer and to many vases that depict a specific narrative scene, the top register of the "Chigi Vase" (http://rdc.reed.edu/workspace/7514/lightbox) depicts a nameless battle which bears no relationship to a known narrative and must be read without reference to a textual source. How does this purely visual depiction of warfare compare to Homer's in Book 5? What does each mode of representation do, and how does each mode of representation relate to the context in which the viewer/listener would encounter it? Make sure to also consider how the battle scene works with the other registers of the "Chigi Vase."

  6. Consider Achilles' treatment of Patroclus at the beginning of Book 16. Especially given the juxtaposition of this scene to Patroclus' final battlethat soon follows, how does the construction of masculinity/femininity here compare with other gendered scenes in the Iliad? Look in particular at the interactions between Hector, Helen, and Paris in Book 3, and consider how each defines masculinity/femininity.