Sarah Hanglow, PD2, 10/8/20, Day A

 Sarah Hanglow

10/8/20

Period 2

Modern Mythology 2021

Write about your thoughts regarding the most current reading.

In the most recent reading I learned all about the first Greek gods, there were multiple things that I thought were noteworthy. The first, and most interesting to me, was that the Greeks believed that the world was not created by the gods. They believed that the earth and the heavens created the titans and then came the gods. This is interesting to me since it is so different from most other cultures' creation stories. Another thing that I thought was intriguing was that a lot of the gods were perceived in completely different ways depending on the story. For example Aphrodite was most times portrayed as being the goddess of beauty, but in some later stories she is seen as being malicious. Finally, I thought that it was interesting that they also used the gods to explain the seasons. Demeter’s daughter, Persephone, was kidnapped by Hades and the land was barren since she was heartbroken. Then Zeus intervened and they agreed that Persephone would spend ⅔ of the year with Demter and ⅓ with Hades. For the portion of the year that she was with Hades, Demeter would be so sad the land would become cold (winter), but when she returned Demeter would be happy and the land would be blooming with new things (spring).

Reflect on any new information you have learned in English class by considering how that learning influences your critical perception.

A new piece of information that I learned in English class was that Chaos originally meant nothing. “First there was Chaos, the vast immeasurable abyss, ​Outrageous as a sea, dark, wasteful, wild.” ~John Milton. This was a quote that we read in the beginning of class before we knew that Chaos had meant nothing. This has greatly affected my critical perception, since it makes me think about how sometimes the most “chaotic” thing is nothingness. A thought that I never before had before learning this. Additionally, it shows that over time words or phrases can be misinterpreted and take on a new meaning. Similar to the game of telephone that we played as children, where a message would become unrecognizably scrambled when it got to the last person. This is a theme that is common throughout all different kinds of literature. The meaning of any given story can change based on who is reading it, and if they relay their thoughts to another idea it continues to spread.

How is what you’re learning applied to any other classes/the world around you?

Something that I learned in this reading that applies to the world around me is the different perceptions of gods between the Romans and the Greeks. This is something that is prevalent in the world, varying viewpoints on different topics, and people. One example is Ares, the god of war. The Greeks see him as invincible whereas the Romans see him as being whiny. Something we learn in History class is that in his farewell address George Washington warned the American people about the creation of political parties. He felt that the division would be something that would cause a great divide between the people, which is what has happened today. All in all, perception is something that shapes the way we see the world around us, and understand those who have differing opinions.