Antigone, Part 3 of the Oedipus Trilogy by Sophocles (III)

First, finish reading and annotating

Antigone

Then read section #7 of the following, 

Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy's article on Aristotle’s Poetics
And watch
Tragedy Lessons from Aristotle: Crash Course Theater #3

While reading the article on Aristotle’s Poetics:

Annotate the reading with comments & questions using Kami(optional) Annotate the video. 

After reading both:

1. Think about Antigone through the lens of Poetics, by including your thoughts on the following question:
1. What is tragedy, according to Socrates?
2. How does Antigone satisfy Socrates’ definition of tragedy? How does it not?
3. Can tragedy be beautiful? If so, how? If not, why?
2. Think carefully & deeply & add to your reflection on Antigone / Label your blog post #fa23worldlit / Share a link to your Blogger post in the #blogger-posts channel
3. Search the posts of your peers on Blogger. Read the posts of your peers and add comments. Respond to comments.

(Already) DUE Antigone post + Antigone annotations (LAST CHANCE)

Then, do some group activities (next class)

Canvas Assignment: Socrates/Tragedy + Antigone.

1. Website URL of your blog post reflecting on (1) Antigone and (2) Antigone as a tragedy through the ideas of Socrates' Poetics [wait to write this AFTER our next class's group activity]
2. Kami annotated article on Aristotle’s Poetics

Your blog post should have at least two (2) paragraphs, one for each type of reflection.

DUE Friday, October 13 Socrates/Tragedy + Antigone add-on post and annotations for Aristotle’s Poetics

Twin Heros (of World Literature)

 

Where to begin with the epic tale of hero twins who defeat death and cause death to die(!). The Popol Vuh is an example of an epic, a narrative concerning the heroic(?) deeds of a major character; in this case, the heroic character is split into two, two twin boys. As sons of a father who is also a twin, it's apparent that twining, doubling, and splitting the responsibilities was an important characteristic of ancient Maya storytelling. Perhaps the idea is related to community and being in community with your fellow community members. Splitting the burdens, defeats, victories, and accomplishments among multiple beings reminds me of how responsibilities (and their consequences) are shared in a community, across communities in time and place, past and present.  

How do I situate it within the kind of world literature that David Damrosch discusses in "What is World Literature? Its presence from ancient times to now, from circa 2000 years ago to 2023, was established through transcription first (from oral to written) and then translation (from K'iche' to Spanish), with interpretations varying from literal to poetic. It's through translation that texts travel around the world. Among the Maya, the Popol Vuh might be considered a classic text (and perhaps sacred), one that withstands the test of time and points to important values that survive to this day. For those outside of the cultural tradition and time period, it is a window into another world, whether mythological or real. 

Antigone, Part 3 of the Oedipus Trilogy by Sophocles (I)

This story contains references to suicide. Please be advised.

First read:

Antigone

Then (optional) watch
Antigone (Sophocles: The Theban Plays) (1986)
Antigone (2019; French with English subtitles)
Antigone/Aντιγόνη - Ειρήνη Παπά, Μάνος Κατράκης (1961; Greek with English subtitles)

While reading:
Annotate the reading with comments & questions using Kami


After reading:

Think carefully & deeply & continue your reflective Blogger post on the reading / Label your blog post #fa23worldlit / Share a link to your Blogger post in the #blogger-posts channel


Search the posts of your peers on Blogger. Read the posts of your peers and add comments. Respond to comments.


DUE either of the next two (2) classes [your choice]


Then, do some group activities (in class)

During our class meeting in week 4, I will assign you to groups and you will collaborate on an in-class assignment. Each group will present their analysis to the class.


Now that you have been introduced to the concept of world literature and its significance, you will use the David Damrosch article as a starting point and provide a brief overview of his main ideas. In your groups, you will discuss the criteria, or standards, that Damrosch proposes for defining a work as world literature. Express your opinions and support your arguments with evidence from the readings.

1. What are the implications of these criteria and what does it mean for a text to be considered world literature?
2. While exploring the historical and cultural significance of the reading, analyze the text in relation to Damrosch's criteria for world literature.
3. How does the text fit into the larger literary conversation and what connections might it establish.
4. How does the reading meet or challenge Damrosch's criteria for world literature?
5. Reflecting on Damrosch’s concept of world literature, how do the readings fit into the category of world literature?

FURTHER READING:

Historical Context for the Antigone
Excerpt of Antigone in the original Greek language


FURTHER WATCHING:

• Reading Greek Tragedy Online - Antigone 
• Antigone, Sophocles 
• In Search of Greek Theatre #1: Antigone (2012) at the National Theatre 
• Judith Butler, Antigone's Claim 
• 'Antigone': The Ancient Greek Chorus 
• An Introduction to Greek Theatre 
• An Introduction to Greek Tragedy 
• What Is Theater? Crash Course Theater #1
• Thespis, Athens, and The Origins of Greek Drama: Crash Course Theater #2 Tragedy Lessons from Aristotle: Crash Course Theater #3 

Popol Vuh, the origin story of the K'iche Maya

First, think:

The Popol Vuh is the original Mayan origin story of the K'iche people who hail from current-day central Mexico towards the south and east and then down to Central America. It was written(?), compiled(?) during the 1550s.

Why do we need origin stories? What are origin stories, anyway? For example, the Marvel Universe and the Star Wars Universe are full of origin stories of worlds, characters, superpowers, etc. Why? (Besides the studio franchising, the money-making, and, in more occupational terms, job and career opportunities).



Then read:

Popol Vuh, (begin on p. 56) Chapters 1-10, 14-21, 23-38, 40-42 (table of contents) 

(each chapter heading is bolded and ranges from a single paragraph to a few pages / (optional) introduction, footnotes & other chapters

Then (optional) watch 

• Popol Vuh: Invitation to World Literature
• Creation Story of the Maya
• The Popol Vuh: Mayan Creation Myth Animated Full Version
• The Popol Vuh: The Maya Story of Creation
• Popol Vuh: Epic of the Maya

While reading:

UPDATE: Annotate the reading with comments & questions using Kami instead of Hypothesis
(We will explore this app later when we annotate webpages rather than PDFs.)

To learn more about annotating a text, read the following: 

• How To Annotate An Article Effectively [Tips + Tools]
• "Annotating Texts"

After reading: 

Think carefully & deeply & write a reflective Blogger post on the reading / Label your blog post #fa23worldlit / Share a link to your Blogger post in the #blogger-posts channel
Search the posts of your peers, on Blogger. Read the posts of your peers. and add comments. Respond to comments.

Use ChatGPT. to write a six-word story about yourself. It could be truthful or fictional or a mix of both. Ask ChatGPT,“ Can you please write a story about me?” Share your story in the #who-are-we channel in Slack. Notice how the story is written. Does it sound like you? Does it look like something you would write? How is it different? Can you tell it was written by AI? Could someone you know tell? Now, write a 6-word story about yourself using your own words. Are there differences (besides the obvious word choices) between yours and the story generated by ChatGPT? Share your story along with the other one in the #who-we-are channel in Slack.

DUE Next Class  

BONUS:

"How to Annotate Books for Fun"

Need help finding free images to use? Check out Unsplash. and Pixabay

What is world lit...poetry?

David Damrosch is known for his expertise in world literature: how stories travel through space and time, across the world and the calendar. Damrosch focuses on the question, "What is world literature," but in this article, he talks about an example of poetry that some critics thought was too much of one thing for it to be another. Can poetry, or literature, represent multiple worlds even though some worlds might appear similar? Are some worlds full of too much of the same things to be considered different, original, particular, of a particular time and place?

It's probably a good idea to know a little something about who we are reading.

What is World Literature?

First sign-up

1. Sign up for Blogger (free), create a blog, create a profile, upload a picture (either you or something that represents you), and write an initial post, responding to the Damrosch article. Tag your post with #fa23worldlit. Don’t forget to tag your post since it’s one of the main ways we’ll be able to find each other’s work.
2. Sign up for our Slack channel by going to fa23worldlit.slack.com/signup, say hello in the #open-forum channel, get familiar with our Slack channel, and share a link to your Blogger post in the #blogger-posts channel

Then read:

David Damrosch, “What is world literature?”


While reading:

Annotate the readings with comments & questions. Sign up for Kami. (free) and use it to annotate the reading.

To learn more about annotating a text, read the following:

• How To Annotate An Article Effectively [Tips + Tools]
• "Annotating Texts"

After reading:

Think carefully & deeply & write a reflective Blogger post on the reading / 

Tag your blog post #fa23worldlit

Use your annotations to help guide your reflection but don't really on them for your full post. Add new questions and comments. Tell us if you've changed your mind about a particular section of the reading and why. We will talk about annotation a lot this semester.



DUE next class