How to make a toga

Couple of students found this website on how to make a toga.  Simple and straightforward. 

Must read!

So, after listening to this interview, I need to read this book.  The trade in ancient art does raise a lot of very tough questions though...  Do art and artifacts need to stay in situ?  Or are they better spread around the world, the better to share the greater cultural heritage?  More to the point, who owns them?  Who can own them?

Anyway, I liked the excerpt on the interview's website and I'm a sucker for a good heist story...  Still, I just got a massive stack of book from the library.  So, I guess when I'm done with The Poison King: the life and legend of Mithradate, Spartacus War, Genghis Khan and the Making of the Modern World and Last Call: the rise and fall of Prohibition, I'll have the time. 

What?  The Romans drank.  ;)

Aeneas

Arms, and the man I sing, who, forc'd by fate,
And haughty Juno's unrelenting hate,
Expell'd and exil'd, left the Trojan shore.
Long labors, both by sea and land, he bore,
And in the doubtful war, before he won
The Latian realm, and built the destin'd town;
His banish'd gods restor'd to rites divine,
And settled sure succession in his line,
From whence the race of Alban fathers come,
And the long glories of majestic Rome.
O Muse! the causes and the crimes relate;
What goddess was provok'd, and whence her hate;
For what offense the Queen of Heav'n began
To persecute so brave, so just a man;
Involv'd his anxious life in endless cares,
Expos'd to wants, and hurried into wars!
Can heav'nly minds such high resentment show,
Or exercise their spite in human woe?
Against the Tiber's mouth, but far away,
An ancient town was seated on the sea;
A Tyrian colony; the people made
Stout for the war, and studious of their trade:
Carthage the name; belov'd by Juno more
Than her own Argos, or the Samian shore.
Here stood her chariot; here, if Heav'n were kind,
The seat of awful empire she design'd.
Yet she had heard an ancient rumor fly,
(Long cited by the people of the sky,)
That times to come should see the Trojan race
Her Carthage ruin, and her tow'rs deface;
Nor thus confin'd, the yoke of sov'reign sway
Should on the necks of all the nations lay.
She ponder'd this, and fear'd it was in fate;
Nor could forget the war she wag'd of late
For conqu'ring Greece against the Trojan state.
Besides, long causes working in her mind,
And secret seeds of envy, lay behind;
Deep graven in her heart the doom remain'd
Of partial Paris, and her form disdain'd;
The grace bestow'd on ravish'd Ganymed,
Electra's glories, and her injur'd bed.
Each was a cause alone; and all combin'd
To kindle vengeance in her haughty mind.
For this, far distant from the Latian coast
She drove the remnants of the Trojan host;
And sev'n long years th' unhappy wand'ring train
Were toss'd by storms, and scatter'd thro' the main.
Such time, such toil, requir'd the Roman name,
Such length of labor for so vast a frame.

·        The Aeneid begins in media res (in the middle of things) with Aeneas and his men adrift

·        Aeneas has been instructed by the penates that he will found a new Troy from which a race will spring “known to all nations”

o   But while all the other gods/goddesses want him to succeed…  Juno does not

§  He is the son of Venus

·        Back to the apple

·        Jupiter’s indescressions

§  He is destined to bring strife to her chosen city of Carthage

§  He is Trojan

·        Ganymede

·        Juno bribes Aeolus (the god of the winds) with a sea nymph to cause a storm

o   While Aeneas’ ships are being reduced from twenty to seven, Neptune gets annoyed and sends the winds home

§  Aeneas and the Trojans limp to land

·        Two scenes transpire simultaneously

o   Aeneas is out hunting and comes across a young woman who is dressed for battle/hunting (Venus in disguise)

§  She tells him that he is in Libya and the nearest city is Carthage

·        Also tells him the tragic story of Dido, the queen of Carthage who is recently widowed

o   Dido and her husband were exiled from Tyre by her brother who tracked them down and killed her husband

o   Dido continued on with her followers to north Africa where they land and ask the locals for some space to rest

§  The locals say they can have as much land as an ox hide

·        Isoperimetric inequality problem, or “Dido’s problem”

o   “The isoperimetric inequality is a geometric inequality involving the square of the circumference of a closed curve in the plane and the area of a plane region it encloses, as well as its various generalizations. Isoperimetric literally means "having the same perimeter". The isoperimetric inequality problem is to determine a plane figure of the largest possible area whose boundary has a specified length”

§  What she does is slice the hide into thin strips and lays them out

o   In building the city, they find two animal heads

§  A bull—The city will prosper but be subject to others

§  A horse—The city will be potent in war

o   Meanwhile…  Dido gets a vision from Mercury

§  “Be kind to the Trojans”

·        Then, twelve of the thirteen ships Aeneas lost show up

o   Send out scouting parties for Aeneas

·        Just as Venus finishes telling Aeneas about Dido, the scouting party shows up and (poof) Aeneas is made man-pretty

·        Big feast where Aeneas relates their travels to date:

o   On Crete, a harpy named Celaeno curses them that they will not find rest until they “eat their tables”

o   At Buthorum (up the coast from Ithaca), they meet the last surviving son of Priam and Hector’s widow, Andromache

§  They’ve built a new life and mini-Troy

§  Also find out about the fate of Agamemnon, Orestes, etc.

§  Told to seek the Sybil of Cumae

o   Polyphemus?!

·        Dido and Aeneas feast and picnic and hunt and get caught in the rain…  Yea.

·        Eventually, Jupiter sends Mercury to remind Aeneas that he has a city to found

o   Big scene—Aeneas leaves his sword (which Dido gave him)

·        Dido plots, schemes and rages and prays

o   If he must found a city, no rest for him

§  Lie unburied in the sand

o   All Carthaginians to hate his descendants

§  A special avenger to rise from Carthage

o   Climbs onto her own funeral pyre and stabs herself with Aeneas’ sword

·        Aeneas and his men land at Cumae

o   Sibyl leads Aeneas down into underworld

§  Sees the scores of souls on the banks of the Lethe waiting to be reborn as Aeneas’ descendants         

·        Make their way to the mouth of the Tiber

o   King Latinius sends down flatbreads with meat and veggies on it—Pizza!

§  They realized that they’d “eaten their tables” and arrived

·        Vie with Turnus for the hand of Lavinia (daughter of Latinius)

o   Finally comes down to single combat and he has Turnus at his mercy

§  Aeneas wants to grant mercy but then sees that Turnus has taken a war trophy something from Pallas (Aeneas’ son’s best friend)

·        Settles down with Lavinia and have a son named “Silvanus” who is the ancestor of Romulus

o   Son goes off to found a nearby city, Alba Longa, which Silvanus inherits

·        Aeneas drowns in a river three years later—Unburied in the sand

Latin Fest Handout

Since the faculty still has not OK’d our date, assume that we will be having Latin Fest the week before Memorial Day (23-27 May).  You need to be ready to go that Monday!  If we get a couple more days to prepare, great.

Remember, you have two things to prep for Latin Fest:

1.     Your attire—This is a Latin festival, you must dress appropriately!

a.     Seniors=Senators-White toga w/ broad red border

b.     Juniors=Equites-White Toga w/ narrow purple border

c.      Sophomores=Plebeians-White Toga

d.     Freshmen=Freedmen-Tunica

2.     Your group project—Below is a list of groups by class period, I have gotten a lot of questions about this…  Know your group and know who you are working with!

First period

Food--Essence, Bennett, E.J.

Decorations--Jaylin, Breyanna

Rewards--Tommie, Andrew, Jamie

Gladiators--Theo, Will

Info--Connor, Chad

Third

Chariots--Dylan, Abigail, Josh

Drinks--Eden, Jenea,

Oratory (debate, poetry)--Cesare, Emilio, Drake

Plays--Corrine, J.T., Stephanie, Ashlei

Konstantine, Brittany, Nick--Info

Fourth period groups:

Caymon, Thomas—Gambling

 Joanna, Lynnette, Alyssa--Singing

Katie, Michael--Info

Braden, Ashleigh, Sumia--Field games (Javelin, discus, archery)

Kevin--Running (relay, long jump, etc)

Fifth period groups:

Chariots--Ian, Devi, Service

Wrestling--Cassie, Tim, Patrick

Divination--Chloe, Dante, Funderburk

Sculpture--Steph, Tanner

Board games/Info--Nickie

Gladiators--Elijah, Xavier

Fifth period groups:

Chariots--Ian, Devi, Service

Wrestling--Cassie, Tim, Patrick

Divination--Chloe, Dante, Funderburk

Sculpture--Steph, Tanner

Board games/Info--Nickie

Gladiators--Elijah, Xavier

Toga criteria

1.      Does the toga or tunica show evidence of work (i.e. not store bought or simply a bed sheet)?

2.     Does the toga or tunica show evidence of research?

3.     Is the toga or tunica appropriate for the class of the student?

4.     Are you in the toga or tunica the whole time?

Trojan War

The reality

• In 1275 BCE a city named ‘Illium’ on the northwest coast of modern Turkey is attacked and destroyed by a group of Greeks
• In 850 BCE, a blind poet from the area named Homer composes the epic poem the Iliad
• We know that Homer knew the area and that ruins were still uncovered in his time because his descriptions in poem match the archeology and topography
• Through the poem and other works, the Trojan War, the heroes in it and their journeys home take on the significance as the end of the golden age of heroes
• By why?
• Two possibilities
• Iron trade through the Hellespont from the Caucasus Mountains
• The Greeks were allies of the Hittite Empire and were given the territory to conquer because Troy and some other cities had broken away

Births and beginnings

• It’s Zeus’ fault (as usual)
• He rapes a woman named Leda…  Who happens to be the queen of Sparta
• Since Zeus was in the form of a swan at the time, she lays three eggs
• Helen
• Clytemnestra
• Castor and Pollex
• Sparta has a dual throne (two kings) so Castor and Pollex are perfect as successors
• Helen is the most beautiful woman in the world and EVERYONE wants to marry her
• All the suitors gather, all the kings and/or princes of Greece and there are threats, etc until Odysseus, king of Ithaca (who doesn’t want to be there anyway) proposes an oath:
• All the suitors must swear to defend Helen’s marriage and abide by her choice
• In exchange, Odysseus gets off the hook to marry Penelope and Helen chooses the one suitor not there, Menelaus—The younger brother of Agamemnon, king of Mycenae
• Menelaus sent Agamemnon as his representative because Agamemnon was going to marry Helen’s sister Clytemnestra
• Menelaus swore to sacrifice 100 oxen to Aphrodite…  He forgets… 

Eris and Paris

• Zeus (again) has discovered the identity of the woman who will bear the son to overthrow him, the sea nymph Thetis
• He arranges a marriage to Peleus, a minor king and all the gods are invited to the wedding
• At the wedding, the goddess Eris (discord) throws an apple into the crowd with “to the fairest” written on it—Aphrodite, Hera and Athena all claim it
• To solve the problem, Zeus sends them to ask a mortal—Paris
• Paris is a prince of Troy who is living in exile (and unaware of his heritage) because of a prophecy he would destroy Troy

·         Helen and Paris run off

o    After the judgment, Paris discovers his heritage after he beats everyone (including another prince of Troy)

o    Paris is sent to Sparta on a diplomatic mission

·         Helen sees him and… 

o    When Menelaus leaves for Crete, Helen and Paris set sail for Troy

o    When he gets home Menelaus immediately travels to Ithaca, picks up Odysseus and the two sail to Troy to try and solve the problem diplomatically…  They fail

·         The treaty Odysseus created then kicks into effect and Menelaus goes to Agamemnon to enforce the oath

o    Agamemnon begins to gather the Greek forces

·         Two holdouts: Odysseus and Achilles

o    Odysseus didn't want to marry Helen in the first place, so he tries to get out of it by pretending to go mad

·         When Agamemnon's men show up to collect him and his soldiers, he starts to plow the fields and sow salt

§  One of Agamemnon's men throws Odysseus’ infant son in front of the plow and Odysseus proves he is sane by stopping

• Achilles
• Agamemnon sends Achilles’ old tutor to get him but Achilles’ mother hides him by dressing him up as a woman
• Discovered and chooses to go
• He’s 15!!!
• Everyone makes for Aulis, a port city
• Buuut everyone is delayed in getting there…  By eight years!  Winds keep pushing them back
• Artimis was mad at Agamemnon for some reason and said that the only way he would leave for Troy was if he sacrificed his daughter
• His wife tells him no, but he then takes his daughter in the middle of the night, sacrifices her on the beach at dawn before his wife is awake and sets off
• According to Homer, the Greek forces consist of some 70-130k men in some 1200 ships
• The Trojans have been preparing—Hector, the oldest son, has been gathering an equal number of allies
• Finally, the Greeks reach Tenedos, an island off the Trojen coast
• Try again to get Helen back diplomatically—Fail again

Ten years of war

• Most of the war is unwritten
• The Iliad only details the last year of the war
• What we do know is that it was not just a siege of Troy
• The Greeks, under their various commanders, ranged around Asia Minor, etc, wreaking havoc on the Trojan’s allies (and others)
• When the Greeks first land, the Trojans are waiting for them
• Achilles kills one of the Trojan commanders, Cycnus, who just happens to be a son of Poseidon… 
• We also get the first mention of a new and later important player
• A young soldier named Aeneas kills one of the Greek commanders
• Ajax—King of Salamis and good friend of Achilles
• At one point he and Achilles are playing a board game, petteia, and are so absorbed in their game that they do not notice that the Trojans have attacked and there is a battle around them!
• Right before the events chronicled in the Iliad, there is a mutiny among the Greeks
• The men have gotten tired of nine years of wandering around, fighting various peoples, etc.
• Achilles makes them all stay
• The Iliad
• Starts with Agamemnon taking the daughter of the chief priest of Apollo as a slave
• Apollo sends a plague on the Greeks and Agamemnon sends Odysseus to return her
• He then takes Achilles’ slave-girl
• Achilles gets mad and goes into his tent, refuses to come out
• There are a lot of battles back and forth, the gods begin to get involved (and wounded!) but without Achilles, Hector begins to drive the Greeks back
• Eventually, morale among the Greeks is so bad that Achilles sends his cousin Patroculus out in his armor to boost the troops
• Patroclus gets killed by Hector—Takes the armor and weapons
• Achilles swears revenge and sends to his mother for help
• She arrives with new armor and weapons forged by Hephaestus
• Achilles wades into a huuuge battle which eventually involves all the gods too and drives the Trojans back to the walls of their city
• Hector is tricked into staying outside the walls by Athena and is killed by Achilles
• Achilles ties the body of Hector to his chariot and starts to ride around the walls of Troy
• He refuses to give the Trojans the body to bury
• Eventually, Hermes takes the king of Troy, Priam, to Achilles and Achilles gives Priam Hector’s body in exchange for a truce to bury the dead
• While the truce holds, Priam sends for his stepbrother Memnon who has fresh reinforcements
• Memnon also has armor and weapons made by Hephestus and he fights Achilles
• At this point, Zeus finally chooses a side and tells Apollo to guide Paris’ hand as Paris shoots an arrow into Achilles’ heel
• While Odysseus takes command of the Greeks, Ajax carries the body of his friend away
• Agamemnon awards Achilles’ armor to Odysseus
• Ajax is driven mad by this and plans to kills his own men but Athena makes him believe that some shepherds he comes across are his target
• In the morning, he realizes what he has done and kills himself
• There is a prophecy that Troy will never fall unless the bow of Hercules is brought—Philoctetes, the friend of Hercules who has it, was injured on the way out from Greece and is recovering on the island of Lemnos
• He is brought and kills Paris with the bow of Hercules
• Odysseus disguises himself as a beggar and sneaks into Troy
• Helen spots him and she reveals she is homesick
• That, and Paris two dumb brothers are fighting over her
• The two plan the horse
• The Trojan Horse
• Horse was the symbol of Posidon, and the Trojans loved Posidon and Apollo
• Cassandra warns against keeping the horse, but, as usual, no one believes her
• The sack of Troy
• The Greeks massacre the Trojans
• Even though some of the gods helped the Greeks, the Greeks commit heinous acts of desecration in or to all the temples in Troy
• Only two, Nestor and Odysseus, refuse and tries to stem the violence 
• Cassandra is taken prisoner by Agamemnon