CLAS 2100/WMST 2100: Women in Ancient Greece
University of Colorado, Fall 1998
First Writing Assignment
The first writing assignment is due in class Friday, October 2, and will not be accepted late except by prior arrangement. Note: This due date differs from the one printed in the course syllabus.
Your writing should be typed or printed from a computer. The required length is 3 pages, double-spaced and with reasonable margins.
Please write a succinct well-organized essay on one of the following topics.
1. Sappho. Possible sub-topics include but are not limited to
a. the claim that a distinctively feminine "voice" can be heard in Sappho's poetry. Be clear as to what you think is covered by such a claim. Cite textual evidence from Sappho and, if appropriate, other authors.
b. the claim that Sappho's outlook on relationships resists attempts to categorize the participants as either active or passive; that, as Sue Blundell writes (p. 87), "each woman is both the subject and the object of thought." Discuss specific examples from Sappho and at least one male poet.
c. the observation that "use of imagery to suggest a woman's appearance is not … common in Sappho's poems," or that images of fruit and flowers predominate over comparisons of women with wild animals (Blundell, p. 87). You may consider these data against the background of poetry composed by men as well as the broader cultural expectations regarding a woman's appearance as you have encountered them in ancient visual arts.
d. the claim that Sappho "refuses to enter into exchange," that is, that she commodifies people only as a momentary gesture leading to a refusal to evaluate them in these terms. Blundell makes this claim explicitly in regard to fragment 132, about Sappho's daughter (Blundell, p. 86), but it should be brought to bear at least on fragment 16 as well, and possibly others.
2. The Homeric Hymn to Demeter. Discuss the claim that the Homeric Hymn to Demeter, and beyond it the practice and associated belief of the Eleusinian mystery cult, privilege female experience in a way that does not occur in any context of comparable cultural importance in the modern West. Relate specific passages of the poem to their Greek context and describe their relevance to women and men.
As discussed in class, your essay may be argumentative or exploratory, but it must be clear and specific, and it must combine ancient sources with your own reasoning and insight. You are free but not required to consult any primary or secondary texts you wish. If you do, be sure to document your use of these sources with accurate page references and quotation marks if appropriate.