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Critical Essay Annotation Assignment
Halperin, David. “Man’s Fate in the Aeneid.” The Virgin Quarterly Review 53. 1 (1977). Web. March 5, 2015. This article examines the way the Aeneid portrays the powerlessness of human beings in their confrontations with the forces of nature and fate. It suggests that human destiny is preordained, and there is nothing that one can do to change their circumstances or destiny. Thesis The author advances the thesis that the Aeneid captures the condition of human existence, as it portrays human beings to be powerless before higher forces (nature, fate and the gods). It is a moral lesson for individuals to accept their station and obligations in life. The author employs textual evidence to show how the main character (Aeneas) was acting on the orders of a higher power. He tells Dido, his lover, that “it was not my idea” to leave Carthage and set on a mission to found a new city (4.361). This statement emphasizes the idea that human beings are puppets in the hands of the gods/nature, which dictate the circumstances under which they live. This article is useful in understanding the Aeneid as it emphasizes the importance of the make-believe element of literary works. As an epic poem, the Aeneid employs the elements of superstition, which helps to create fantasy in literary works. In this regard, the article helps readers to appreciate literature as a representation of possible realities. This allows the reader to better understand the stylistic devices that authors employ to communicate important ideas/themes.
Landas, Sarah. “Allusions in Dante’s Inferno. Undergraduate Review: a Journal of Undergraduate Student Research 5 (2002): 91-112. Print. This article examines the use of allusion in Dante’s Inferno by exploring the poem’s reference to the social injustices prevalent in society (Italy) at the time, such as fascism and socioeconomic oppression of the common citizens.
Thesis
The author advances the argument that Dante’s Inferno employs allusion to portray the political, social and moral rot prevalent in 3th century Italy. It is a warning against perpetrators of immorality and social injustices; that the evil deeds they commit against fellow human beings will not go unpunished. The author uses textual evidence from the primary text to support this evidence. He quotes the inscription on the gate to hell in Inferno which speaks of punishment for the wicked. Through me the way to the suffering city, Through me the way to eternal pain, … Justice urged on my high artificer (Dante 68). This article is useful in understanding Dante’s Inferno as it challenges the reader to connect the events in the poem to larger social issues. The author states that Dante’s purpose in writing the poem was to capture the overall “political, religious, and moral atmosphere” of his time (Landas 91). Students of literature will find this information useful in understanding the poem’s thematic concerns as a commentary on immorality, social and political injustices in society.
Zoppi, Isabella. “Omeros, Derek Walcott and the Contemporary Epic Poem.” Callaloo 22. 2 (1999): 509-528. Print. This article discusses the element of history and culture in epic poems, as portrayed in Omeros. It shows how literature is in part a study of history and culture as it portrays human beings’ beliefs, past struggles and quest to find meaning in life.
Thesis
Zoppi argues that Omeros examines the journey of African slaves across the Atlantic to the Caribbean islands, and how this experience disconnected them from their cultural roots, and as a consequence, their loss of cultural identity and sense of belonging. Accordingly, the author suggests that societies/human existence is defined by history and culture. The article quotes Omeros to emphasize the characters’ loss of self identity and sense of belonging as a result of losing contact with one’s cultural roots. The fisherman Achille laments that: Island after island passing. Still we ain't home (203) -and it is a melancholy thing to be far from home, despairing of ever finding one's way in a world where one's points of reference must be continually retraced (222). This article is useful as it highlights the historical and cultural context in which Omeros is set, which will help the reader to identify major themes relevant to this time period, such as slavery, colonialism and the rise of European imperialism.