Essays on Damrosch

[Assignment]

There has been a major push in the past few decades towards diversity in the literary canon, which was for a long while dominated by similar voices with similar origins. This push toward diversity has taken many forms: the integration of more female voices; the inclusion of more writers of color, regardless of their origin; and the inclusion of works of literature from non-Western cultures that have for too long been ignored. This last point has become known by the name multiculturalism, and though there is agreement throughout the academic community that this addition of previously un-acknowledged voices ...

1. What is Cheah's response to the idea that "literature seems to have little pertinence in our era of economic globalization"? Why does he think that it does (26)? Cheah argues that cosmopolitanism is defined as an activity wherein the reader must participate, and use his imagination to construct meaning. Cheah states, “World literature is an important aspect of cosmopolitanism because it is a type of world-making activity that enables us to imagine a world” (26). Thus, in spite of economic globalization, literature, to Cheah, retains its significance because it transcends national boundaries. 2. What reasons does ...

[Assignment]

For those accustomed to reading modern dramas, Kalidasa’s Sankuntala and the Ring of Recollection is both familiar and strange. In terms of format, the general arrangement of dialogue interspersed with stage directions is the same in plays from the modern era; the nature of the stage directions, which use miming actions instead of utilizing set pieces and props, seems strange to modern sensibilities, as does the prologue, which breaks the fourth wall and has the director addressing the audience directly as an introduction to the play. In the content of Sankuntala, even more is unfamiliar. This is ...

The Epic of Gilgamesh is regarded as one of the earliest extant written works and is in many ways the foundation for every story that would come after it, from the Biblical story of Noah and the flood to today’s action-adventure superheroes. The Epic of Gilgamesh tells a tale of gods and monsters, and of two heroes—King Gilgamesh and his companion, Enkidu—whose impossible feats of strength, bravery, and cunning would fit easily alongside those of figures like Perseus and Hercules. Like the myths of other well-known heroes, Gilgamesh and Enkidu undertake quests, first killing the Humbaba, ...

Epic heroes refer to brave main characters in mythical stories and they usually seem to possess extraordinary strength. The following essay is a comparison paper that compares the heroes from Gilgamesh, Rama and Odysseus texts. The main characters in the texts, Gilgamesh, Rama and Odysseys, have several similar abilities and characteristics that explain their relevance as epic heroes. Epic heroes are usually called to complete an adventure that becomes a learning experience for them and other people around them, and once the adventure gets accomplished, it eventually becomes beneficial to their people. In the three stories, the main characters namely ...