IH 51, Second Paper: Topics

Here are three suggested topics for the second paper, which is due in Digital Drop Box by midnight on Thursday, Nov. 6. (There will be no class that day: class will be replaced by individual conferences beginning Friday, Nov. 7.)

These topics are all exercises in using the texts weπve read. You should focus on these, rather than using outside readings.

If you have another topic in mind, please consult me.

Battles and what they teach us. We now have encountered a series of battles or discussions of warfare: in the Iliad, the Hebrew Bible, the Koran Please choose two of these texts and dicuss how war is presented: what are the rules of war (if there are any) and how do men actually behave in warfare. (the Index to the Penguin Koran is very useful).

Women's Roles. Female figures play a variety of important roles in the readings so far. Write an essay discussing two of the following characters: Andromache in the Iliad, Sarah in Genesis, any of the women named Mary in the Gospel according to Matthew, and women in the Koran.

Abrahamic heroes: write an essay on a Biblical character who is important in the Koran. Moses, Abraham, and Jesus are all good candidates.