Classical Studies
How ancient stories from Greek mythology stay relevant through the ages and connect people from different cultures through literature intrigues me. I have always enjoyed these tales for their riveting themes on human life, adventure, and as the building blocks of Western literature. In Classical Studies, I particularly enjoy analyzing the roles of women as my first two essays demonstrate, and I continued this interest in one of my courses in Ireland as well.
"Timeless Women in the Odyssey"
This was a prompt for Classical Studies 3100: Women in Classical Mythology at Hawaii Pacific University. In this essay, I focus on Calypso, Circe, and Penelope's abilities to stop time.
"Persephone and Sita's Process of Individuation"
In this essay for Classical Studies 3090 at Louisiana State University, I compare the abductions of Persephone in the Hymn to Demeter and Sita from the Ramayana through Marie Von Franz's process of individuation. Through this process, I examined whether or not Persephone and Sita find an identity through their abductions. I chose to compare these stories because both deal with similar themes along with abductions, yet I felt that both women were strong. Therefore, I used Marie Von Franz theory to analyze whether or not these women move past their abductions or use this experience to find their true Self.
Greek Allusions in Milton's Paradise Lost
In British Literature I at Louisiana State University, I examined Milton's use of classical allusions to his characters in the epic. I chose this topic because I loved the references to Greek heroes and goddess I was familiar with, but I felt that in many instances being compared to these heroes and goddesses in a text about a Christian God seemed problematic. So, in this paper I take a closer look at what Milton could mean through these allusions and point out that, while these allusions seem prestigious at first, are actually detrimental to his characters.