How to Proceed and Assignment Details
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As one of the requirements for Unit 3 you were to read Books 9-12 of Homer’s Odyssey. Review the account of the hero Odysseus’ interaction with the Cyclops Polyphemus, in Odyssey 9.
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Watch the assigned clip from the Coen Brothers’ movie, O Brother, Where Art Thou? You should access the video clip by doing the following: In the main Course menu (near the top of the page), click “Content”, then “Video”, and then (the only choice) “O Brother . . . .”
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Compare the clip to the Cyclops episode in the Odyssey, by considering the following three questions: (a) How is Big Dan like, or unlike, the Cyclops? (b) In what way does the movie pick up on the important themes of the Cyclops episode in the Odyssey? (c) In what way does it change these themes, or add new themes?
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Write a short paper in response to O Brother, Where Art Thou?; your answers to the three questions posed in “3” (just above) should make up the paper’s substance. Your paper should be written in essay format, with a clear introduction and thesis statement, body paragraphs supporting your position (as given in your thesis statement), and a conclusion. The paper should include a title page and bibliography; should be 700-800 words.
Be sure to have a single argument (thesis): You do NOT want to include every point of comparison/contrast you can possibly make; rather, you want to create a thoughtful analysis of the two episodes, focused around a single position.
Your writing should be clear, concise, and focused. You do not need to cite any outside sources for this assignment (cite every source that you use). The focus is very much the primary sources, and you should be citing the epic and the clip copiously throughout your paper. But choose what you wish to quote judiciously: long block quotes do not belong in a short paper such as this.