You probably won't believe me if you weren't there to see it, but today's class was actually kind of fun. After a little Reading Quiz on Theseus, that is.
First, we decompressed this narcissistic little cartoon from the Feb. 29 issue of The New Yorker:
I must give credit where credit is due. Students understood this reference almost immediately, and a small handful even chuckled at the cheeky modern twist of Narcissus calling himself on a cell phone. Good job, kids.
AND THEN: Theseus!
Enjoy the Greek Subtitles!
This quick visual adaptation of the Myth of Theseus features a Minotaur, a puppet-dog narrative assistant (not even joking here), and the actor who played The Governor in The Walking Dead as our brave, promise-breaking hero Theseus.
Official Disclaimer:
I am not recommending that you watch The Walking Dead. I am not linking it here. And I am not discussing it in class.
It's just a neat piece of coincidental trivia. No more.
HW: Read Hercules. His annotations are his column on the Hero Chart.
Class today actually began with a political cartoon that contained a reference to Greek mythology:
The first guy's shirt says "Apple"
Students were invited to connect the visual representation to the myth of Pandora, which we read last week, as well as to the current event that is unfolding right now with regards to privacy and security. Many students impressed me by sharing familiarity with this news story, and developing opinions as to whether Apple should, or should not, comply with the government's request to unlock the iPhone in question.
But before classes could break out into the peculiar brand of loud, half-baked debate that Freshmen seem to prefer, class pivoted back to Mythology. Specifically, to Heroes.
Students took their quiz today over chapters 1-5 (including Cupid & Psyche). If you weren't here today, come and see me to set up a time to make up the assessment.
HW:
Read "The Quest of the Golden Fleece" over the weekend
Question of the Day: "How they gon' have all that hair, that big ol' beard, an' they ain't have no armpit hair?"
Thanks, 'Leigha in 4th period, for bringing this Greek conspiracy to light.
Today's classes focused squarely on The Two Great Gods of the Earth:
Demeter!
Three Cheers for the healthy harvest!
Bless this grain, and let's bake some bread to break!
Sweet Persephone, I miss you all winter long!
and, erm...
Dionysus...
Sweet vines, man.
I always thought dolphins were cool.
How about some, uh, grape juice?
Alright, alright, I know, it wasn't grape juice that he was the god of, it was wine. It's a perennial headache to try to teach this god to immature Freshmen. So the point of studying him was not to simply praise wine all the live-long day, but to impress upon the students the dictum:
Moderation in all things.
Even the Greeks knew that it's not good to have too much of a good thing.
Also: the HW is for students to read Chapter 2 of Mythology: The Two Great Gods Of The Earth. Aaaaaaannnnddd HERE is the study guide*. Answering the questions will count as Annotations.
