Hypatia was born in Alexandria, Egypt in the year 370 A.D. She was the daughter of a mathematician Theon. At the time of Hypatia's birth, he was a professor of mathematics at the University of Alexandria. He then became solely dedicated to producing the perfect human being. He taught Hypatia as much of his own knowledge of mathematics as possible. Theon also strived to have Hypatia be completely well-rounded by keeping her on a strict diet and exercise routine. She would row, swim, ride horses, and rock climb in order to have a healthy body. Hypatia also received training in the arts, literature, science and philosophy. Another important train that Theon stressed upon his daughter was the art of retort or orator which is the ability to impress others with their own presence and influence people with words. Theon also made sure to teach his daughter of world religions, which would come to haunt her in her tragic end. All in all, Theon taught Hypatia independence by telling her, "Reserve your right to think, for even to think wrongly is better than not to think at all." As Hypatia grew older, she had many marriage proposals but only involved herself in short term affairs. It was said that no man ever lived up to her mental abilities. She though said to have remained celibate her entire life. Always confused by what men though was so wonderful about the female body. She once was said to have gathered rags "stained during her period" and gave them to a man saying, "This is what you love, young man, it isn't beautiful!" Hypatia became a wonderful teacher and public speaker because she could take the most complicated topic and explain it so simplistically. She was taught everything she knew in the land of Alexandria, which was the center of learning during this time. Scholars and intellects would travel from all over to exchange thoughts and ideas. Because of this she was very lucky. She became one of the most admired teachers of the time. She became the head of Neo-platonic school in Alexandria about 400 A.D. Though most of her work was lost but what we do know is from letters she wrote to one of her students, Synesius of Cyrene, who was a philosopher and later became a Christian bishop.
Scholar: Under her father's teachings Hypatia was given the opportunity to an education. Hypatia knew that she was fortunate of obtaining an education, even as a woman, when the less fortunate are incapable of obtaining an education as easily. With this factor in her mind Hypatia became a teacher and the head of a philosophical circle in a school that was open to anyone willing to learn.
The views on women in this play are shown through Hermia’s recklessness, Helena’s desperation, and Hippolyta’s hypocritical behavior. The women in this era of when Shakespeare wrote this play were subservient to men and had no will and choice of their own. This included marriages that were usually arranged by a powerful male relative instead of giving the woman the opportunity of choosing a husband that she loved. First, Helena was a woman who chased after men. She contradicts her gender by breaking society’s rules. Helena even says, “We cannot fight for love, as men may do; we should be woo’d and were not made to woo” (Rogers, 1998, Act 2, Scene 1, 241-242). Second, Hermia disobeys her father and cannot decide on marriage. She is disrespectful towards her father’s commands. Hermia goes on to say, “I do entreat your grace to pardon me. I know not by what power I am bold” (Rogers, 1998, Act 1, Scene 1, 58-59). Lastly, we have Hippolyta who pretends to love King Theseus and is a liar. She stands by through the oppression of different women in the play. Although, Hippolyta shows dominance in her words. “Four days will quickly steep themselves in night; four nights will quickly dream away time” (Rogers, 1998, Act 1, Scene 1, 6). We see the King’s impatience at having Hippolyta, but Hippolyta has the control and patience. “Hippolyta, I wooed thee with my sword, And won thy love,
Hypnos was the son of Nyx (goddess of night) and Erebus (god of darkness.) He had many siblings such as his twin brother, Thanatos (god of death). Thanatos and Hypnos had the most desired and dangerous abilities in Greek mythology: sleep, dreams, fear, and death. Some of his other siblings were Nemesis (goddess of retribution), Eris (goddess of chaos), Keres (god of female death-spirits). When Hypnos was older he got married to Pasithea (goddess of relaxation) and had four children named Morpheus (god of dreams), Phoebeter (god of nightmares), Phantasos (god of surreal dreams) and Ikelos (god of creating true dreams).
Pygmalion was a man who only dated women that lived shameful and deviant lives. Ovid writes: “Pygmalion had seen them spending their lives in wickedness, and offended by the failings that nature gave the female heart.” … (Book X, 243-297). He decides to build a sculpture of a woman. Pygmalion treated this sculpture like a human. This sculpture was so life-like that it would bruise when he would touch it. Pygmalion attended the holiday that honored Venus. He prayed to the goddess to bring him a woman that looked like the sculpture he built. Pygmalion’s prayer came true, and he married the woman. They had a daughter named Paphos, and she had a son named Cinyra. The politics of forbidden love comes into place when Cinyra got married and had a daughter name Myrrha. Myrrha had a crush on her father. She was very ashamed her of her feelings. Her nurse caught her trying to commit suicide one night and made Myrrha tell her what was going on. “Cinyra’s daughter wakeful, stirring the embers, reawakens her ungovernable desires, one moment despairing, at another willing to try, ashamed and eager, not yet discovering what to do” (Book 10, 356-430). When Myrrha’s mother went to pray at night, the nurse would go to Cinyra’s room and get him drunk so the daughter could go in there with him. Cinyra eventually wanted to know who this person was, and when he found out he wanted to kill his own
She has been written about by a variety of Greek and Roman scholars from the time, which are some of the most informative and reliable sources known. From these writings she is described as beautiful, as well as, intellectual and persuasive. Her life was written by Plutarch and was later dramatized by William Shakespeare, not to mention, a variety of other artworks, poetry, plays and movies. Some of these retellings of her life portray her as an immoral seductress who seduced moral Roman leaders and others portray her as a master politician who was undyingly loyal to her country and did what was required to secure her country’s safety. It is almost impossible to choose, which portrayal is true, but it remains a topic of many
Hypatia’s trip to Rome and Greece helped her gained so much reputation that when she returned to Alexandria there was many people interested in getting classes from her. She began to lecture and tutor people from Alexandria until she met Orestes the governor of Alexandria who hired her as one of his advisors. Hypatia also helped
In Ancient Greece, the great heights that were reached in education, technology, and government led them to their Golden Age. Included in the vast education of Greece were philosophy and literature. Socrates was one of the most famous philosophers of that time. He was a very powerful thinker and developed a question and answer method of teaching known as the "Socratic Method" (Watson 63). Socrates was accused of corrupting the youth of Athens and neglecting the city's gods. For this he was put on trial and the jury sentenced him to death. He chose to die slowly by drinking the poison hemlock. Another noted philosopher was Plato. He had studied with Socrates. Plato opened a school known as "The Academy", which lasted for about 900 years (Watson 63). One of Plato's students was the famous Aristotle, who followed in Plato's footsteps and opened a school of his own, called "The Lyceum" (Watson 63). In the field of literature, Homer was known for composing his epic adventures. These were the "Iliad" and the "Odyssey"(Clapham 53). His epics were narrative poems that celebrated heroic deeds (Clapham 53). Greece's technological advances consist of architecture and sculpture. One of the most important pieces of architecture was the Parthenon. The Parthenon was built to h...
Humanity has been allured by extraordinary beauty for centuries. Aphrodite, the Greek goddess of love and beauty, is a perfect example. This enchanting mythical figure wore a girdle with magical powers: forcing anyone to be in her presence to immediately fall in love with her. Though married to the blacksmith god Hephaestus, Aphrodite was known to have many affairs with both other gods and humans. Like Aphrodite, Marilyn Monroe seemed to enchant people wherever she went. The stunning blonde never settled down, and had affairs with multiple men. Sam Shaw, iconic Hollywood photographer, described her as, “’...always joyful, witty, fun loving and serious about acting—with a terrific desire to learn, to know about the arts, the theater, her craft, to read good books, to read poetry and to try to reach the ecstasy of poetic thoughts’” (French). Amazingly, both Aphrodite and Marilyn Monroe are major sex symbols, were quite unsure of their biological fathers, and had love relations with a pair of brothers.
She received a rigorous education from countless tutors and she took full advantage of this opportunity. “Her father could read Egyptian symbols, and this may have sparked Cleopatra’s desire to master the Egyptian language, which had not been accomplished by any previous pharaohs in the Ptolemaic dynasty.” (Harold, 28). The earlier rulers were all Greek so they felt that there was no need to learn the tongue of their subjects. While Cleopatra was also of Greek background, she felt her subjects were of great importance and that it was a unique connection to share with
Theodora became a character in a popular Greek legend for possessing qualities of a hero. Heros were characterized as defenders and protectors, Theodora’s personality was similar to a hero’s. She was wise and very beautiful with qualities connected to classical hero’s. (Ancient History encyclopedia)
In every journey the hero also has a mentor. In this story Athena, the gray-eyed goddess of wisdom, has taken on this role for both Odysseus and Telemachus. Athena was by Odysseus’ side as a guide for much of the beginning of his Journey. Athena also is a guide to Odysseus when he’s not even aware o...
Pythagoras was born in 570 B.C. in Samos, Ionia. His mother was named Pythais and his father was a merchant name Mnesarchus. Throughout his early life he and his father traveled to Tyre and Italy. When Pythagoras was young he liked to recite poems by Homer. Thales of Miletus was a mathematician and astronomer who influenced him to go to Egypt so that he could learn about astronomy and mathematics. In 535 B.C., he left Samos to go to Egypt because Polycrates, the tyrant of Samos, took over. While he was in Egypt he went to lectures given by Anaximander, this led to Pythagoras’ great interest in cosmology and geometry.
Alexander III the Great, the king of Macedonia and the conqueror of the Persian Empire is one of the most known personalities from the ancient civilization. According to the primary source “The Parallel Lives” the Greek writer Plutarch 46-119 A.D., "Alexander was born early in the month Hecatombaeon, the Macedonian name for which is Loüs, on the sixth day of the month, and on this day the temple of Ephesian Artemis was burnt"(Plutarch, “The Parallel Lives” ~ 100 A.D). He was the son of the Macedonian king Fillip the second and his wife Olympia the princess of Epirus. He spent his childhood watching his father turning Macedonia into a great military nation. He attended most of the political meetings with his father, “he entertained the ambassadors from the king of Persia, in the absence of his father, and entering much into conversation with them, gained so much upon them by his affability, and the questions he asked them, which were far from being childish or trifling...“ (Plutarch, “The Parallel Lives” ~ 100 A.D). When Alexander was 13 years his father hired the great Greece philosopher Aristotle to be his tutor. Alexander said to him, “At my parents I own my life; at my teacher i own my wellfare" (Plutarch, “The Parallel Lives” ~ 100 A.D). Aristotle taught him rhetoric, literature, science and medicine which was very important to his future life.
Women served two separate and distinct purposes, neither condoned in the same woman. One purpose was matrimony and procreation, the other was sexual pleasure for pleasure’s sake (Freeman, 228-229). The Greeks had several beliefs