You will write a three-page paper (approximately 1,000 words) based the readings we have covered thus far from Homer (The Iliad) and/or Plato (The Republic). Choose a topic that focuses on one or the other or the interaction of both. The list below provides a few possible suggestions. Be sure you have a clear thesis based on your main idea and use the paper to support your thesis.

Possible Topics

• Discuss one of Socrates’s arguments about imitative poetry in depth (this may require a little extra reading):
  • Imitation as doing more than one job
  • Poetry as an imitation of an imitation
  • The “greatest accusation” against the poet (that it can “ruin good men”)
• Video games as imitative poetry
• Social media as imitative poetry (creating a fictional version of yourself)
• A dialogue between Socrates and Homer about the merits of the Iliad
• How does the Iliad influence our modern entertainment modes such as movies and television?
• How do family values reflected in the Iliad differ from our contemporary family values and which way makes more sense and why?
• What issues does Socrates have with the gods as they are depicted in the Iliad?
• Explore the themes of war versus peace or honor and pride versus mercy and forgiveness in the Iliad