Thursday, March 19, 2020

Story of the Trojan War essays

Story of the Trojan War essays Most information that the world has today that deals with the history of ancient Greece are in the literature from the time. Great epics such as the Iliad and the Odyssey, from the unknown poet Homer, make up most of the literature that has ever been found from this era. The problem with getting our history from literary sources is that when Homer first recited his Iliad he was actually trying to entertain, so all of the information might not be accurate, although based on actual events. Also, in the Greek culture, it was common to allow the credit for certain kinds of deeds to go to their gods or goddesses, which today's historians just suppose to be allegorical references. But, if the gods or goddesses do not exist, then how did the Trojan War start in the first place? The story that most people know as to what started the war is a myth involving the goddesses and what archeologists have so far found; no one is exactly sure what started the war. First, the Greek myth that most people have given credit for the history of how the Trojan War started: A sea nymph, Thetis, was getting married to Peleus, a mortal. All of the gods and goddesses were invited to this great wedding, except Eris, a rather unpopular goddess. When Eris discovered that there was a wedding going on that she had not been invited to she decided to get back at all who went. She decided to roll an apple into the reception of the wedding, but she put an inscription on the apple that intended it for the most beautiful goddess at the wedding. When the apple rolled in and the inscription was read Hera, Athena, and Aphrodite all felt that she, respectively, was the most beautiful and should get the apple. All three goddesses begged of the gathered gods to choose, but all of the gods ref used to make an enemy of the other two that he did not choose. So finally, someone suggested that the three goddesses should let a mortal choose; Priam's son, Paris, was designated to cho...

Tuesday, March 3, 2020

3 Cases of Dangling Participles

3 Cases of Dangling Participles 3 Cases of Dangling Participles 3 Cases of Dangling Participles By Mark Nichol Dangling participles are verbs that are intended to refer to a particular noun but that, because of how the main clause of the sentence is crafted, do not support the noun. The main clause, and the subordinate clause (often appearing at the head of the sentence), may in and of themselves be grammatically valid, but they do not match- often with unintentionally humorous results. Here are three sentences that suffer from dangling participles; each is followed by a discussion and a revision. 1. Growing up as an undersized kid, punk music helped him find some sense of belonging. This sentence erroneously identifies punk music as an undersized kid. To correct this error, a subject that the participle applies to must be inserted at the head of the main clause, which must be further revised to convey the intended idea: â€Å"Growing up as an undersized kid, he found some sense of belonging in punk music.† The sentence can also be recast as a simple main clause (â€Å"Punk music helped him find some sense of belonging as he grew up as an undersized kid†), but this version is more prosaic. 2. Formally established on May 23, 1947, a primary role of this part-time military force is to conduct surveillance or sovereignty patrols as required. Here, a primary role, rather than the military force assigned the role, is said to be formally established on a certain date. In this case, the dangling participle can simply be relocated as a parenthetical following the sentence’s subject: â€Å"A primary role of this part-time force, formally established on May 23, 1947, is to conduct surveillance or sovereignty patrols as required.† 3. Seemingly perfectly preserved on the outside, the archaeologists were dismayed to find extensive damage within the chamber. In this sentence, archaeologists are described as being perfectly preserved on the outside. In some cases, the best way to avoid such errors is to thoroughly recast the entire sentence: â€Å"The archaeologists were dismayed to find that despite the chamber’s seemingly perfectly preserved exterior, the chamber itself had suffered extensive damage.† (This revision also places the key information at the end of the sentence, resulting in a greater impact.) Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Grammar category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:100 Whimsical Words34 Writing Tips That Will Make You a Better WriterTreatment of Words That Include â€Å"Self†