Identify Athena

Identify Athena. Describe what type of being they are (e.g. god, hero, demigod, nymph, beast, human, etc.), their family and geographic connections, and any important myths associated with them. It is important to describe this figure both generally (e.g. facts about them from earlier in the semester) and in the context of Homer’s Iliad (e.g. what side of the war are they on?).
At this point, the instructions for Exam 3 differ from those of the earlier two exams. There is only one primary source myth for Exam 3 (Homer’s Iliad). So, you must cite (minimum) two different PASSAGES from that long poem that feature this figure and briefly summarize the role they play in those scenes. Discuss/analyze how these stories engage with two (or more) of the key concepts for this unit and/or compare (thematically, structurally, conceptually) to other myths/figures.
Citations: You should cite the passages using book and line numbers (e.g. Book 1, lines 1-11 or 1.1-11). This is the clearest and most accurate way to cite poetry and you should have plenty of examples of this type of citation if you look at the lecture slides. You do *not* need to quote directly, although you may if you like, but quotes longer than 4 or 5 lines are a waste of space/words in such a short essay. If you, for some reason, have trouble with the book and line number citation, you may use a less accurate means of citation, such as just the book number without line numbers or a description of the scene (e.g. “in the aristeia of Diomedes scene”). All methods of citation must be accompanied by discursive and analytical engagement with the text (not just citation without comment) in order to fulfill the requirements of the prompt.
The minimum length of this essay is 200 words. You should aim for about a page double spaced. If it goes much over a page, we will not read/grade the entire thing, but you will not be penalized for going over 300 words.
Remember that exams are open book/notes. You should use your texts in order to engage them accurately and specifically. I highly recommend that you underline or bold the concepts that you engage to make sure that you fulfill the requirements of the prompt and the rubric. For reference, here is the list of concepts, and figures that were on your need-to-know list:
Concepts
Homer
Trojan Cycle
Hero Concepts
Shame
Honor
kalos thanatos
Anthropos vs. Aner vs. Heros
Chieftain (Greek: basileus)
Aristeia
Hybris
Simile / Epic Simile
Paradigm Myth
Supplication
Embassy to Achilles
Shield of Achilles
Funeral Games of Patroclus
Figures
“Greeks” = Achaeans, Danaans
Achilles
Agamemnon
Menelaus
Diomedes
Patroclus
Ajax (Greater, Telemonian)
Nestor
Odysseus
Phoinix
Trojans
Helen (sort of Trojan – originally Spartan)
Paris (a.k.a. Alexandros)
Hector
Glaukos
Priam
Gods
Zeus
Athena (a.k.a. Pallas)
Aphrodite
Apollo
Ares
Hera
Thetis

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