ipl-logo

The Golden Ass: An Analysis

899 Words4 Pages

The theme of witchcraft and secret cults are overwhelmingly evident throughout The Golden Ass, often overshadowing the underlying theme of human feebleness. The theme of human feebleness is best represented through the following characters: Lucius, Psyche, and the female criminal. Lucius exemplifies two core features: extreme curiosity and lustfulness (both of which served as his downfall). Towards the beginning of the book, Lucius is very much intrigued with the arts of magic and witchcraft. Rather than taking heed to the words of caution from Aristomenes and Byrrhena, Lucius lets his curiosity got the best of him. Stories passed on by words of mouth are a very common method of communication both in the book and in the world of the ancient Mediterranean. Every cult has an unspoken rule that …show more content…

It is then plausible to consider the idea that the Colosseum in ancient Rome was not exclusive used for public entertainments but also encompassed public humiliation and torture as forms of punishment (*). In addition, the patriarchal structure of Roman society is also reflected through the harsh treatment towards unfaithful or vindictive females, but not towards unfaithful males (the Baker). The epitome of human weakness is manifested through the story of Lucius, Psyche, and the female criminal as the underlying theme of The Golden Ass. Humans, as shown by the three characters above, are depicted in the book to be rather foolish, thoughtless, and vindictive beings. People are constantly blinded by love, hatred, and jealousy causing them to engage in all sorts of atrocities. Society, in our expectations, is suppose to be the witness of justice or at least more righteous compared to individuals. Roman society is rather rigid in its judicial system as shown in the book by its mean of reciprocating abominable actions with abominable

Show More
Related

Athens Vs Rome Dbq Essay

772 Words | 4 Pages

” Once the government’s disrespect for these people was shown, they lost a lot of respect for themselves, contributing to people’s anger and makes them distraught. Rome was a little different, though. They would accept almost anyone as a citizen (except for slaves or freed slaves.) Rome would allow children of freed slaves, and even women, and though they could not hold public office or vote, they could own their own property. This proves that they had some level of respect for women at least, very much unlike many other ancient civilizations including the Athenian.

Read More

PTSD In Shakespeare's Titus Andronicus

2140 Words | 9 Pages

The United States Department of Veterans Affairs estimates that anywhere from eleven to thirty percent of combat veterans, depending on era of service, develop post-traumatic stress disorder, commonly abbreviated as PTSD (“How Common is PTSD”). This likelihood increases if the trauma experienced was long-lasting or severe, if the person in question was directly exposed to the trauma, or if the person in question feared for their life or the life of a loved one (ibid). In Shakespeare’s Titus Andronicus, the eponymous Titus is said to have served Rome in war for forty years, ten years in his most recent tour, and to have lost twenty-one sons in the process. The events and writing of this play both take place centuries before the advent of modern

Read More

Plessy Vs. Ferguson: Racial Injustice In The 14th Amendment

1194 Words | 5 Pages

THE 14TH AMENDMENT In this paper, I will be talking about the equal protection of laws clause in 14th amendment interpreted in the case of Plessy v. Ferguson. This paper will focus on the concern over racial injustice in the judgment of Plessy v. Ferguson. Racial injustice is being looked in several aspects i.e. the argument of absolute equality, the objection to inferiority argument, the personal liberty argument and the good faith argument. In the end, I will conclude that the decision of Plessy v. Ferguson is a pernicious decision.

Read More

Female Archetypes In The Golden Ass

1513 Words | 7 Pages

But Psyche, whether to compare her similarities with Lucius or perhaps to express the view that women should do as they are told, serves as a stark contrast to women like Photis and the wealthy woman who are allowed to demonstrate sexual and monetary agency. Overall, Apuleius shows a neutral, if maybe slightly negative, attitude towards women, but with a few positive female characters that highlight what a woman could and should be in order to gain respect and

Read More

Livy's The History Of Rome: Book Analysis

1258 Words | 6 Pages

The experience that you get from reading this is similar to being told a bed time story because of how you are able to imagine and visualize what is happening. Personally, as a take away I now know the origin of how Rome was built and some of the myths behind it like Romulus and Remus for example. I was surprised that Livy would describe both tales of a story too because in my experience ancient scholars would only write what they believed and that was that. Then in the book when Romulus was King, how he tricked his neighbors to go into Rome, so he and his people could take women to marry and how it ended with the women saying it was all their fault sets the standards of how women were perceived back then. Which was trouble, even though the women didn’t do anything (not including the part of the book where Tullia convinced her husband to kill her father), but that’s how it all worked back

Read More

Ethos And Logos In Julius Caesar

807 Words | 4 Pages

In the play Julius Caesar, by William Shakespeare Rome is struck with utter disorder after certain characters use ethos, pathos and logos to manipulate the people of Rome. One character who uses ethos, pathos and logos is Cassius to manipulate Brutus into joining the conspirators. Brutus also uses ethos, pathos and logo to justify his killing of Caesar. Last, Mark Antony uses ethos, pathos and logo to manipulate the Plebeians against Brutus and the conspirators. Thus, Cassius, Brutus and Mark Antony all use ethos, pathos and logos to manipulate one another and bring the people of Rome to their sides, resulting in total chaos.

Read More

Sir Gawain And The Green Knightly Virtue Analysis

998 Words | 4 Pages

The ideals of Christian morality and knightly qualities are represented by Gawain’s gold, star-shaped pentangle. The five knightly virtues that Sir Gawain expresses are: generosity, chastity, friendship, piety, and courtesy. From the beginning of the poem, Sir Gawain portrays his generosity by agreeing to cut the Green Knight’s head with an axe. He makes this decision after King Arthur fails to do so (Cathell, 2014).

Read More

The Golden Ass: An Analysis

824 Words | 4 Pages

A gun is not always needed in order to be in control. In The Golden Ass, the act of sex gives women power over men in the form of coercion and domination. In the book, women are commonly the one initiating the act. A majority of the time they are even made to be the one taking multiple lovers while their husband remains in the dark. These actions are a way for the women to gain some control in their patriarchal society.

Read More

Sundiata Women Essay

862 Words | 4 Pages

Women are depicted as “trophy” to men and nothing more. Throughout the epic a sense of bravado and machoism is played out, giving off a man’s world feeling which women and little or no real reason to be wanted. To understand the epic and the roles in which women played, one may not have to look further than how the book has been put together. First and foremost, the book is being told through the eyes of a man (good luck ladies).

Read More

Women In Oedipus Rex

1175 Words | 5 Pages

Oedipus Rex by Sophocles, women are not treated as poorly as women are in Candide. Women are still treated like their objects. When Jocasta was offered as a reward to the man who could solve the riddle of the sphinx. Jocasta was beautiful and was put in with the reward for motivation for men to solve the riddle. This portrays women as objects and that they are something to be owned.

Read More

Antigone And Lysistrata Analysis

1113 Words | 5 Pages

The men of Athens will probably degrade their women after seeing this play because during this time women were not treated

Read More

Masculinity In Othello

1010 Words | 5 Pages

For Shakespeare’s plays to contain enduring ideas, it must illustrate concepts that still remain relevant today, in modern society. Shakespeare utilises his tragic play Othello, to make an important social commentary on the common gender stereotypes. During early modern England, Shakespeare had to comply to the strict social expectations where women were viewed as tools, platonic and mellow, and where men were displayed as masculine, powerful, tempered, violent and manipulative. As distinct as this context is to the 21st century, the play exposes how women were victimised by the men who hold primary power in the community in which they compelled women to conform to the ideal world of a perfect wife or confront an appalling destiny for challenging the system. Moreover, Shakespeare utilises the main antagonist, Iago, to portray how men are desperate to achieve what they want and to indirectly fulfil the stereotype of masculinity and power through manipulation.

Read More

Theme Of Ambition In Julius Caesar

700 Words | 3 Pages

Sin’s Perpetrator and Victim Human desire knows no bounds; everyone thirsts for something. Some thirst for power, some for wealth, and others for truth. This thirst is a driving factor for most actions, but it is not always for the best. Nowhere else are the dangers of wanting more prevalent than in Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar. The underlying premise of the play is that one’s own ambition can end up destroying him/her and creating unintended chaos.

Read More

Similarities Between Hamlet And Julius Caesar

933 Words | 4 Pages

William Shakespeare was well versed in the English language, whether it be poetry or playwrights. The Tragedy of Julius Caesar and Hamlet are playwrights that entail odd, but heavy struggles for both characters. Using Brutus’s and Hamlet’s interaction with their female counterparts, their thirst for vengeance, and specific character traits, Shakespeare develops two tragic heroes of different time periods. When comparing and contrasting Brutus and Hamlet it is important to note their interactions with women within the play. Both Hamlet and Brutus have significant female influences throughout each of their stories.

Read More

Deception And Manipulation In Julius Caesar

692 Words | 3 Pages

Deception and Manipulation William Shakespeare’s play “Julius Caesar” illustrates many facts and characteristics of Ancient Rome, such as betrayal and confederacy. However, deception and manipulation are the most significant aspects of the play and played a huge role in the story, which eventually lead to the death of Julius Caesar. Examples of deception and manipulation in this play are the fake letters that sent to Brutus, Decius assured Caesar about Calpurnia’s dream, and Anthony’s speech against Brutus. One of the most significant deceptions in the play is when Cassius sent fake letters to Brutus to convince him to join the conspiracy. Cassius addressed the letters to make it seem that they were coming from the citizens.

Read More

More about The Golden Ass: An Analysis

Related Topics

Open Document