A. Lee Martinez has written more than a dozen fantasy and science fiction novels, including his first novel Gil's All Fright Diner, which won the Alex Award in 2006 for its equal appeal to adults and young adults (“Booklists”). Helen & Troy’s Epic Road Quest is a madcap adventure that takes the concept of the classic middle ages heroes' quest like the legend of King Arthur and the Holy Grail and thrust it into a twenty-first century world where Orcs, Ogres, and other enchanted or cursed creatures live and work alongside humans and questing is a thing of the past. In the first chapter we’re introduced to Helen a seven-foot tall Minotaur girl with body image issues and Troy a Japanese-American boy who everyone thinks is the perfect hero, but …show more content…
But when the future of Helen and Troy’s relationship comes into play Martinez no longer holds our hands as we dip our toes in the cool water. Now we must sink or swim as Helen lays herself bare to the confines of society’s expectations when she says “We don’t live in a culture where regular guys, even amazing one, have seven-foot tall girlfriends…It’d be different with the genders reversed. Everybody gets beauty and the beast. But this thing between us, it’d be weird to most people” (256). The world we live in does not leave much room for difference and even less room for women. We are plunged into the depths of what it means to not fit in the box that society says is good and right, but like Troy our instincts urge us to deny everything, to assure ourselves that like questing this kind of social conformity is a thing of the past because we’ve moved beyond that right? However with astute timing Martinez knows exactly what we’re thinking, he knows we’re grasping at straws and he has to give us that one last push into the deep end to truly see us reflected back at ourselves when Helen states “…What happens when you want to introduce me to your parents? …Or you start losing friends because they’re not sure how to deal with your girlfriend? Do you …show more content…
We crave connection and the safety of sameness, so pushing back against that is an uphill battle. Helen doesn’t shy away from telling Troy how difficult a relationship between them could be and neither does Martinez because sometimes we have to ask the tough questions first before we can truly move towards change. A. Lee Martinez has done something truly remarkable in Helen & Troy’s Epic Road Quest; he’s created a story that is equal parts humor and adventure while weaving in a social commentary on the complexities of identity and social constructions ranging from gender and body image to race and prejudices. And its Martinez’s unique blend of humor and honesty in his exploration of these issues that we don’t see very often in other science fiction fantasy novels, which seem to seek to be dramatic, patriarchal, and overflowing with beautiful elves in a world far removed from our own
Orson Scott Card has written countless novels during his career, filled with excitement and sci-fi themes. Card has implied many western stereotypes throughout his reign of the sci-fi entertainment business. Arguably his most famous of those being Ender’s Game. Throughout the book Ender must go through training to become a commander in the war against buggers while Earth was going through a worldwide crisis. The book introduced minimal realistic male and female characters, of which followed close traditional stereotypes.
The movie Troy, from Hollywood has been one of the greatest Hollywood movie ever made, it was nominated for more than 10 awards and got into the “Best of Warner Bros- 50 Film Collection”. In addition, it made approximately $497 million worldwide. It was one of the most successful films ever made. However, the content that was in the movie brought some speculation into whether or not the events of the movie were historically accurate. The purpose of this essay is to answer the question of how accurate the Hollywood movie, Troy, really was and whether it portrayed Homer’s tragic, charming side of the story or the predicted historical side.
On the other hand, women are shamed for having the same relationships. These double standards are portrayed in literature as well. In Homer’s The Odyssey, we see these double standards applied to its’ story and characters. It was especially applied to Odysseus, the main Greek hero in this epic.
Often, we see a society’s cultural values reflected in its citizens. For example, the United States values equality, a standard that is shared in all facets including gender. The opposite is true of Gilead, a fictional society in Emily Bronte’s The Handmaid’s Tale. The novel’s main character, Offred, is subjected to degrading treatment simply because she is a woman. It becomes apparent that this repeated degradation has affected the protagonist’s mind.
“The Odyssey,” written by Greek poet Homer is an epic tale depicting the brutally enduring quest home of the Greek hero, Odysseus. Within this heroic story, women play a very large and pivotal role in Odysseus’s trip home from the Trojan War. In his attempt to get back to his wife, Penelope, Odysseus’s progress is constantly hindered by the intervention of women who will do anything in order to either convince the heroic figure to stay with them or have him killed. The intentions of the women in the epic are all very different but one of the most prominent roles lies in the seductresses and the alluring women who will deeply influence Odysseus. Most importantly, Penelope plays a large role in portraying the importance of women’s roles in the story.
It was all a reflection of newly found joy in her tradition. However, as she got older, Joanna started to struggle with some tenets of her religion, like where the Church stood when it came to women's rights and homosexuality. Joanna’s adolescent and early adulthood faith was not challenged by a calculated act of revelation of trickery, but rather by a sudden shift in her awareness and priority coming into clash with an inflexible system. It is her ideal dream school of BYU that Brooks sees punishing her favorite professor, Cecilia Konchar Farr, for the feminist views that had started to open new possibilities for Brooks. When the Church excluded a group of feminists because they spoke out about a church controversy, it brought up emotions in Brooks that made her question her own stance.
Meanwhile, Penelope is in Ithaka busy dealing with the suitors who vie for her hand in marriage, tending to her loom, and directing her serving maids at work. In Homer’s epic poem, women, and goddesses are treated differently than men and gods when it comes to their freedom, expectations, and image. One common occurrence in this epic poem is unequal freedom for women,
In many societies today, individuals are led to believe that the concept of women possessing their own strength or independence is abnormal. As a result, women experience the world in a constrained way in comparison to men, even if they are in higher classes of society. However, these extensive aspects of females are contradicted in some ancient Greek literature. In the epic poem, The Odyssey, Homer portrays women as a vital and powerful force through the characters Penelope and Circe, who counter the normality of misogyny in Homer’s time. Penelope’s character displays how some women are able to exceed society’s standards and show strength and cleverness when it is necessary.
In spite of the fact that Homer’s Odyssey is an epic story of a man’s gallant journey, women play a huge part throughout. Their unique yet controversial personalities, intentions, and relationships are vital to the development of this epic and adventurous journey of Odysseus. The poem by Homer was written at a time when women had an inferior position in society, yet that didn’t stop them from being any less influential. All of the women throughout the Odyssey possess different qualities, but all of them help to define the role of the ideal woman.
In the epic poem, the Iliad written by Homer, several characters taking part in the warfare between the Achaeans and the Trojans are portrayed as embodying the heroic code of courage, physical strength, leadership, arete of value of honour, and the acceptance of fate. The heroic code is illustrated by the actions of the Trojan prince, Hector and the Achaeans strongest warrior, Achilles. Both of these characters display the Greek’s image of a hero, and can also let the reader discern what the society admires, looks up to and aspires to in its heroes. There are also characters who fail to be heroic, such as the Trojan “vivid and beautiful” prince, Paris. These characters in the Iliad illustrate the qualities that Ancient Greek society values.
The woods is apart from society and it is here that women’s stereotypical gender roles start to break. By going into the woods to run off with Lysander, Hermia is committing the ultimate crime, disobeying not only her father’s orders, but also the orders of the duke of Athens. It is here that Hermia makes a decision of her own and where she is finally free of the stereotypical roles of women. It is also here where Helena takes control of her life. Usually, the stereotype is that the man goes after the woman, not the other ways around, and that if a man tells the woman to go away, the woman must go away; however, Helena turns these ‘rules’ upside down.
Literature has maintained a strong influence on society and its perceptions of heroes for centuries. In consequence, the time period in which a literary work is written reveals much about that society’s ideals. For example, the Anglo-Saxon epic, Beowulf, translated by Seamus Heaney, illustrates the deeds of a heroic knight and reflects the values of his community. Throughout the poem, Beowulf displays commendable behavior by saving another kingdom, defeating three villains, and maintaining allegiance to the lord and his people. Even though a millennium has passed since the release of this epic, heroes today display characteristics similar to those of Beowulf.
Culture and Women In “Girl” by Jamaica Kincaid and “ How to date a Brown girl, Black girl, White girl or Halfie “ by Junot Diaz, both authors elaborate on culture and how it shapes outlook on women. In Jamaica Kincaid’s “Girl” a mother enforces her culture’s strong beliefs on her daughter. As the result, she displays her parental authority with a sequence of short commands influenced by her culture. A sense of judgment can be seen in the young girl, after questioning her mothers’ request.
The Odyssey by Homer contains multiple moments where female characters are oppressed or fit into a patriarchy, but there are several moments where these character show signs of rebellion against this oppression. Applying a critical lense of feminism to these characters and relationships create complexities and conflicts within the novel that shine meaning on the world. The character Penelope offers many of these moments. Analyzing the actions, situation, and comparisons with other characters using a the feminist critical lense will show a more enriched version of Penelope and offer a deeper insight of the patriarchy, and how is affects the world.
Known as an epic war poem, The Iliad delves into topics concerning masculinity, heroism, and bravery. Women play a modest but important role that forms the structure of the plot. Helen’s character aids in expanding Menelaus and Paris’ characters. Homer does not delve into the lives of women like he does with the men, speaking to the notion of inferiority between the sexes. Homer displays women as tangible items through male interactions with one another.