Bib/Classical Foundations Class Journal

2005-12-13T08:01:00.000-08:00

I can honestly say that I am sad to see this semester end. Yes, I am definately glad to be rid of the endless burden of homework for three short weeks but I miss going to class and seeing all of you wonderful people already! :-) I know...I'm a loser. Dr. Sexson, thankyou for making class so enjoyable and for creating a sense of togetherness within the class. I definately walked away with some great friends...and some extra knowledge about literature too...! I hope you all have a wonderful Christmas break and enjoy your time with your families. God bless!

2005-12-13T07:55:00.000-08:00

The movie was great! I was so impressed with how true it remained to the book. I hope that they make more...Preferably Prince Caspian or the Silver Chair...my favorites! I think most people who have read the books know that C.S. Lewis intended for the stories to be a biblical allegory and when you watch the movie there is little doubt in your mind what he was trying to portray. The most moving scene, in my opinion, is when Aslan sacricifeces himself on the Stone Table in place of the ridiculously arrogant and selfish...yet repentant Edmund. The girls, Susan and Lucy, follow him and sit sobbing by his body hoping agaist hope that he will return. It was such a beautiful picture of love and faithfulness. They were so dedicated to this lion that they hardly knew. Knowing his character was enough to ensure their allegience. What is so great is that as the story continues, a deep friendship developes between the 4 siblings and Aslan. Like I menioned earlier, I WISH I had more time to reread these books again!

2005-12-09T12:15:00.000-08:00

Everyone's presentations so far have been so great! When Sunny Rae went up there, I'll admit I was a little intimidated... :-) She would make a great teacher someday! Anyhow, I noticed how many people touched on displacement, including myself. So I decided to keep an eye out for displacement in any form of entertainment I noticed over the last two days. It really is everywhere! Tonight I am going to go to "The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe." I am sooo excited for it because I know it is going to be amazing. C.S. Lewis is such a phenominal author and I really hope the movie does justice to the books. I think I have read the entire series twice. To any of you who haven't read them, I would strongly encourage it! They are probably 5th grade reading level so it shouldn't be too time consuming. Lewis wrote these tales intending them to be displacements. I have always heard them described as "allegorical" but I think that labeling them a displacement does them more justice and adds to the meaning behind the story. "The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe" tells the story of a time when it is always winter and never summer. Aslan- the great lion finally steps onto the scene and engages his people in an epic battle for the world inside the wardrobe...their apocolypse of sorts. I am getting excited just thinking about it! Make sure all of you go!

2005-12-07T22:21:00.000-08:00

~MY PAPER~
Upon first glance, the Biblical and Classical traditions in literature may both seem like a collection of strange, ancient stories, bearing no relevance to today’s society. Chances are that if a reader opens the pages of the Bible to a book like Judges or Revelation, or stumbles upon “The Orestaia” in one of its many forms, he will discover something equally strange and ancient. However, irrelevant they are not. Both are engaged in a timeless tug of war; each competitor straining to pull the reader onto their side of the divide.
It has often been quoted, “All of life is a displacement of myth”. There is nothing new in life, as the 21st Century knows it that has not been previously captured by one of these polar traditions. Not only has it already happened, but that first occurrence is actively shaping the second and on into eternity. This is why it is so important to know and understand the differences as well as the similarities between the two traditions. One’s life is undoubtedly shaped by what one knows.
Let us assume a young child grows up being told the stories of Persephone and her mother Demeter or engaging in the tale of the city of Troy. How would these ancient myths effect the rest of his life…if at all? Many would argue that they would have no effect saying that these stories are simply stories and have no bearing on real life. If all of life really is a displacement, this is thoroughly impossible. Perhaps as in the story of Persephone descending to the underworld this young boy would view life as a continuous series of fours with out even knowing it. What was read to him as a child imprinted his mind while he was unaware. Perhaps he would unconsciously be ever waiting for the spring of his life where he would somehow rise to the top and the world would be perfect. It is also possible that his life would be molded by the story presented in “The Orestaia.” While the young boy, now a man, swears by his own head that he is adamantly opposed to war and any form of violence, his life and attitude might be characterized by the greed, anger, and arrogance he could not help but admire from his childhood story times. Simply by admiring a character like Agamemnon, Achilles or Hector, the boy’s life could start to imitate theirs. It would not have to be a conscious decision of “I chose to shape my life after….” but an unconscious drive to be like the one held in such esteem. If this boy’s life is a displacement of myth, it seems logical that it would more likely be a representation of the myth that he knew.
On the other hand, it is equally likely if not more so for one’s life to be influenced by the Biblical tradition simply because in American culture it is so readily available. Obviously, almost everyone in the United States knows what the Bible is but certainly not everyone’s life is a displacement of its primary story. This would only happen to the people who know the story like it truly is their own. They have read it and claimed it, shocked at how the writers of old knew of their story all those years ago. The small child that grew up under this tradition is me. From the youngest age I grew up reading about Samson and Delilah, Cain and Able, Mary and Martha. These stories were never presented to me as mere “interesting stories” but as stories that inevitably pointed to my own. The story of Mary and Martha is the one that I hope my life becomes a displacement of. Mary and Martha were sisters and friends of Jesus Christ. One day while Jesus was resting in their home trouble arose. Martha was in a daze, preparing food like the end of the world was just around the bend and if no one ate they would surely all die. She began to grow angry at the lack of help she was receiving from her sister Mary who was selfishly sitting at the feet of Jesus listening intently to every word out of his mouth. What was Jesus’ reply? What Mary did was better. The point of this story was that no amount of work we do for “the Kingdom of Heaven” is more pleasing to God than the gift of time spent with Him. What a glorious displacement this would be! Now let us examine the core story of the Bible: Jesus Christ coming to earth to seek and save the lost. I think in almost every book my A.P. English class read in high school we ran across some sort of Christ figure. Jesus seemed to pop up everywhere! The story of the redeemer is one that no one tires of hearing. Some people take it a step further and allow themselves to become a displacement of The Redeemer. Their lives are no longer their own but live to do the same as Christ did 2000 years ago.
The Biblical and Classical traditions are both so intriguing and both incessantly speak of human nature. Yet, they both deal with human nature in such completely different ways! The Biblical tradition praises God that his condition is not permanent while the Classical tradition embraces its condition and almost glorifies it. Perhaps how man responds to what is true about himself is what effects which displacement he will inevitably embody.

2005-11-28T11:48:00.000-08:00

Northrop Frye was quoted as saying, "Revelation is a book that either finds a man mad or leaves him so." What a revealing statement! This is the first time I have ever whole heartedly agreed with something this crazy mad said! Revelation is a book that most well read Christians have no idea what the cast majority of it is about. I am afraid to say that I am probably one of them. (However, I do have intentions of learning the details eventually.) Every time I have attempted to read the book I end up getting frustrated, not because it angers me but because it is so complex understanding it in its entirity would take years. The glory is found in actually understanding it! From what has been explained to me, this book is the culmination of everything since Genesis has been pointing towards. The long awaited Messiah is finally here to set up his kingdom...."The Kingdom of God" if you will :-) Job suffering under the weight of lost family members and physical burdens, Simon the Cyrene carrying the cross for no reason, Abraham being asked by God to sacrifice his son...all of these suddenly make sense! The answerer has come. Yes, to the Christian there is great joy in this book. On the flip side, to the person who reads the book as nothing more than a crazy man's imagination running wild, it is nearly impossible to not go mad. All the talk about dragons and babies and judgement. Who would want to read that? Actually, I think it was Eric the other day in class who made the comment that he did not like Revelation because it portrayed God as narcicistic. To this all I can do is point you to God's response to Job. He basically says who are you to question me? And really, if God is who He says He is, who are we to accuse him of being narcicistic. He is holy, righteous, and infinately good. Who are we to criticize? Revelation in essence sums up the hope of believers: the idea of someday getting to know this God even better and understanding Him in his complexity.

2005-11-14T12:08:00.000-08:00

I know that Dr. Sexson always talks about how often in the Bible we miss the story for the moral but I respectfully disagree. I do not think that the purpose of the writer of Ecclesiastes goal was to tell a really depressing story in the form of poem just for the sake of a really depressing story. There must be a moral other wise what makes the Bible any different than any other novel? So than I started thinking about why Ecclesiastes was chosen/divined to be in the Bible. What is the reader supposed to gain from the text? Truthfully, I am not sure. My guess is this: the author is fed up with this life. He is tired of work, play, sleep and basically everything in between; simly dissatisfied. This made me think of a quote by C.S. Lewis. Im guessing as to the exact words but it goes something like this, "If I find myself with a longing that nothing on earth seems to fill, than chances are I was made for another world." I would agree with this statement as would the author of Ecclesiastes. I think that the moral of the story, and yes, I do think there is one, is that we should allow our pleasure in this world to trump what we could experience in the next.

2005-11-02T18:07:00.000-08:00

In class today Dr. Sexson mentioned the phrase "master plot" mentioned on pg. 221 of "The Oresteia". Orestes says that this master plot had bound his father and it seems as though he now seems to be under the same curse, if you will. My guess is that this "master plot" is simply revenge. I mean, it does seem to be a recurring theme (as I mentioned at length previously). This just adds fuel to my fire. Revenge is the basis for basically all of the Classical Tradition.

2005-10-26T16:12:00.000-07:00

First of all, reading "The Oresteia" is MUCH more enjoyable than reading anything by Northrop Frye. I think I am actually getting a handle on it for the most part...all of the story seems to be making sense (atleast on a literal level!) One thing that I definately have a question about though is simply, "What is 'The Oresteia'"? It seems to me as though it is telling exactly the same story as the "Illiad" and the "Odyssey" do. Is it just another author's rendition of the same story? If anyone is able to answer this for me I would really appreciate it!

Also, here is one highlight I found from my reading today. (Pg. 18) I had been wondering why these people were so bent on violence and revenge and Fagles answered it beautifully for me. He points out how the Greeks were under the extreme influence of Dionysus. In my mythologies class we have probably studied about 5 different Dionysus type characters. I think that he was such a popular god because people actually enjoyed being under his sphere of influence! I mean, it actually allowed them to act not under any moral code but under the banner of "...but I have to be true to myself...!" In the case of the House of Atreus, the children felt that they had to be true to their family line and in order to do so revenge was more than "an option"; it HAD to be done. In doing so, they would become almost superhuman or something. Anyhow, I just thought that was kind of interesting. Hope you all are enjoying your reading!

2005-10-25T11:25:00.000-07:00

I started reading the "Orestaia' today. I went into it really dragging my feet but I am finding that it actually isn't all that bad...even interesting. The essay at the beginning starts with reminding us all of the lovely beginnings of the fall of the House of Atreus. It truly is "the embodiment of savagery." (pg.15) What I found intriguing was Fagles comment on this families bent towards violence and revenge. Their's is certainly an exaggerated example but I think that it might actually be pointing the finger back at the reader. My point here is not to dig out the "moral" of "The Oresteia" but just to show the author's insight into the human condition. "It is as if crime were contagious", he says to describe this disfunctional family. One horrific act was committed and instead of working through the problems or simply allowing them to go by the wayside the sins of the fathers really are passed down through the generations...what more...by choice. Fagle also points out that the characters seem to thrive on pain. He is hinting that Atreus, Thyestes, Agamemnon, etc. actually want to take this burden upon their own shoulders because....well, maybe they wouldn't know what to do with themselves if there wasn't some holy tirade for them to go on that will inevitably define their lives? Perhaps they are motivated by the fear of non-existance. Someday they will die, and then what? Who will remember their legacy? (It is obvious that the idea of"legacy" is extremely important in the Greek culture.) Seeking out tradgedy seems to be a common thread throughout the Classical Tradition and I am sure that we will all find in "The Oresteia" as well. Also- I got to watch a really sweet ballet of this story the other day in Dance Appreciation. It was pretty cool to get to see it performed.

2005-10-21T14:33:00.000-07:00

Today we talked in class about Frye's chapter on "The Mountain". This was particulary interesting to me because my group also read this chapter. The concept of time is such a crazy thing, I think. I feel like time will never end when I have to run a long distance.....ok, any distance! I feel like there are literally 1 million other things I could be doing and that it will never end. Not only do I find it boring but it is also exhausting! :-) On the other end of the spectrum, I hope that time will go slowly when I am eating Sunday dinner with my family. There is always so much to talk about and everyone is as comfortable as possible. Then I dread the time when I have to go home. This all got me thinking about the similarities between the two ideas. In both, I am expecting the end to come...or atleast very aware that it is coming. I think that is the difference between time on earth and time in both heaven and hell. On earth, humanity is usually aware of the fact that time has constraints. There is a beginning and an end to almost everything. One day you are born, and you know that one day you will die. In heaven there is eternity. Literally, time ceases to exist. The concept of forever takes over and everyone is happy...Happiness doesn't even do it justice. Everyone is in a perpetual state of joy! Hell has the same concept, only it is horrible. And once again, "horrible" doesn't do it justice. The idea of eternal suffering is excruciating, not just because of the pain itself but because there will NEVER be an end to the pain. Basically, anything solid ceases to exist. You might be able to sollace yourself by thinking that eventually you will be finnished suffering, but the person in hell would probably be very aware that this end will never come. I think its kinda cool that they operate on the same basis and yet evoke such opposing emotions in us.

2005-10-11T17:28:00.000-07:00

I really enjoyed Linda Sexson as a guest lecturer. The thing I appreciated most about her was her appreciation for the Bible from many different view points. I'm not sure that I would agree to the order of emphasis but none the les... The story of the Levite and the concubine was the most interesting to me mainly b/c I don't remember reading it before. I have read it...I don't remember it, that is what I find wierd. It is a pretty memorable story. The role women play in both the old and new Testaments is an interesting one. It is easy to assume that because woman were so easily belittled in the Old Testament that God must have intended it to be that way. Sometimes it really seems that way. BUT, that ideal does not match up with the New Testament. I realize we aren't covering the N.T. but I feel like the best approach to reading the O.T. is through the lense of the N.T. Afterall, the N.T. is the fulfillment of the old. (No, I did not say the better of the two) They belong together. The latter completes the former. I think that the way women were and are treated in many circumstances is a direct result of the curse given in Genesis. In the NIV, the word pain or others like it are perhaps an example of repetitive paralelism. Gen. 3: 16 "Your desire will be for your husband and he will rule over you." Sadly, men's curse could be sumarized by saying that he will fear being a failure. This combonation is a recipe for disaster. I think that the story of the Levite is a great example of this.

2005-09-21T10:33:00.000-07:00

This is in repsonse to the wonderful Ruth Wilgus' :-) journal. I also will never start a book unless if I intend on finnishing it. Hence, I would never CHOOSE to read Frye! ( I think that's the exception to the rule Ruth!) Anyhow, I thought her comment was really interesting. She talked about how humans care more about things that relate directly to our own species. She thought that this was special but at the same time unfair to anything non human. My opinion on this is that humans are the only ones that have souls and that is why tradgedy for humans is a bigger deal than a lot of trees getting cut down or someones dog getting ran over. Don't get confused with soul and emotion. In another of my classes, my professor uses gorillas as an example of being almost on par w/ humans because they show emotion. This does not mean they have souls. A soul is much more complex and beautiful than mere personality. It goes much deeper than we may even be aware of. Anyhow, good thought Ruth!

2005-09-15T13:24:00.000-07:00

Here are 3 examples of synonomous parallelism in the Bible...
1. Psalm 118: 2-4~ " Let Israel say: 'His love endures forever.' Let the House of Aaron say: 'His love endures forever. Let those who fear the Lord say:'His love endures forever.' "

2. Isaiah 34:1~ "Come near, you nations, and listen; pay attention you peoples! Let the earth hear, and all that is in it, the world, and all that comes out of it.

3. Exodus 34: 6~ "And he passed in front of Moses, proclaiming, ' The Lord, the Lord, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, maintaining love to thousands, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion and sin. Yet He does not leave the guilty unpunnished; he punishes the children and their children for the sin of the fathers to the third and fourth generation.

--> This last passage is full of repetition with in itself, I think for the purpose of highlighting its importance. What is cooler is that this phrase is repeated throughout the Bible. It is obviously pretty important to the message of the Gospel...even here in the Hebrew scriptures.
ex. Psalm 103 (my favorite!), Numbers 14: 18, Nehemiah 9: 16-19, etc. It is all over!

2005-09-14T11:52:00.000-07:00

I am going back through ch. 2 and trying to decide which highlighted section I would like to focus on and am having a little bit of difficulty chosing... The first thing that got my attention was his discussion on the "bicameral mind" of the post Homeric "humans", pg.51. (Dare we even call them that.) Honestly, Im not sure why I am chosing this b/c I honestly think this is the most bazar thing Ive heard in a while and I am frustrated reading it let alone writing about it...Here goes...First of all, I get the impression he is saying that people before the culture of the Illiad and the Odyssey did not have the same level of consciousness that we do, if any at all. Since this book is about the powerful words in the Bible, I guess it wouldn't hurt to apply this theory to characters from Hebrew scripture. Is Frye suggesting that Abraham, Isaac, Jacob....heck, even Adam, did not have the mental capacity to know their surroundings for what they actually were? Ok, ok...its his theory. I realize he isn't stating it as fact. It just really frustrates me that someone w/ his intellect would chose to deny the step of faith it takes to believe that 6 thousand years ago, humans were surprisingly similar to us in intellect and instead take the MUCH largers step of faith and think that somehow.....our brains "recognized" (for lack of a better term) their weaknesses and evolved! Just like that! People are still halucinating today and we usually will call that an illness...not a lapse in evolution. Did some people's brains miss a step in the evolutionary process? I don't mean to sound condescending...honestly. I just think it is much easier to believe that we are how God created us to be. We are intelligent, as opposed to animals, because we are made in the image of an intelligent designer. I know that probably a vast majority of the class dissagrees w/ me and that is ok. Im not asking for a lengthy explanation of how our minds evolved...I wouldnt understand it anyhow. This is just the step of faith I am chosing to adhere to.

2005-09-07T14:07:00.000-07:00

"I have many times remarked on the illogicalities of the word literal, and on the absurdity of assuming that in the Bible, for example, the literal (descriptive) meaning must be fundamental, because the Bible could not be true without it."

We talked a little bit in class today about how Frye, Vico, and I assume many others do not believe that the Bible is anything other than the creation of humans. While many will say that believing the Bible to be the ultimate truth is ludicris and pointless, I find it to be an even greater step of faith to say that it is not ever to be taken literally! Obviously, when Jacob describes his son Joseph as "a vine", he is not literally saying his son is a plant...but who is to say that when God says He will bring judgement upon the world in the last days that He is not speaking in a literal sense? I think that Isaiah 53 is a great example of a time when God, speaking through Isaiah the prophet, used a metaphor to relay a very literal message. This chapter speaks of the coming Messiah being lead like a lamb to the slaugher. It also says, "By His stripes we are healed." Gasp! Does this literally mean we are healed by Jesus' wounds? I think it does. Historical fact points to Jesus being crucified. Putting all of that aside, historical fact points to His existense period! How could the Bible not be literal when this prophesy was literally fulfilled? I am amazed and saddened that Frye could miss the main point of the message of the Gospel after all of his years of studying it.