The Humanities Index

The epic hero has a double role. He (there are no epical woman heroes as far as I know) is an individual person with an habitual virtue from which his exploits flow, and he is representative of the group to whom the exploit is important. Since the performance of the exploit is important because of [...]

You must crave sunlight soon. —Anticleia to Odysseus Perhaps the darkest moment in Odysseus’ journey home is his visit to the Underworld. Here the dead speak, whether the literal ghosts in the Homeric version of the afterlife, or the metaphorical shades from Odysseus’ past; the hero must meet and learn from their experiences if he [...]

The following questions should help you begin thinking about the major themes, characters, and ideas in the primary text.

The subject of the Iliad is the rage of Achilles and the consequences of that rage for two nations.

Gilgamesh, though over 3000 years old, is contemporary in its thematic concerns as it is alien in many of its cultural practices.