{"id":91931,"date":"2020-07-08T09:14:07","date_gmt":"2020-07-08T13:14:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/?p=91931"},"modified":"2022-09-27T11:45:02","modified_gmt":"2022-09-27T15:45:02","slug":"literary-lessons","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/2020\/07\/08\/literary-lessons\/","title":{"rendered":"Literary lessons"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Rebecca Edwards, associate professor of classics.<\/p><\/div>\n

From Homer\u2019s “The Iliad” to “The Plague” by Camus, classic literature has reflected the impact of epidemics on human thought and behavior. With the spread of the coronavirus pandemic, some of these great works suggest there may be a silver lining \u2014 people becoming more sympathetic of others, increasing their small humanitarian acts, and a greater realization that they have control over their own actions.<\/p>\n

In Albert Camus\u2019 1947 novel “The Plague,” an epidemic ravaging a small quarantined city serves as a metaphor for the human condition. Donovan Miyasaki, associate professor of philosophy at Wright State University, said Camus writes that it is natural for humans to suffer and to cause suffering.<\/p>\n

\u201cFor Camus,\u201d said Miyasaki, \u201cthe idea that suffering and social crises are something that can heroically, finally be defeated only makes them worse since it justifies sacrificing ourselves or others on the altar of an impossible future.\u201d<\/p>\n

Miyasaki said Camus recommends turning our attention within, examining ourselves for ways we have unintentionally assisted the plague by indirectly contributing to or excusing others\u2019 suffering.<\/p>\n

\u201cRather than rid the world of evil, he asks us to be more modest: don\u2019t be a hero, just try to do less harm, always side with victims rather than judges, and continually increase our sympathy, never rationalizing away another\u2019s pain,\u201d Miyasaki said.<\/p>\n

Camus calls this moral program of sympathy-building a path to sainthood.<\/p>\n

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Donovan Miyasaki, associate professor of philosophy.<\/p><\/div>\n

\u201cThe intriguing, controversial conclusion is that the most ethical and effective response to great calamity is not the heroism of great deeds but greater humanity in small ones,\u201d said Miyasaki. \u201cAnd that, I think, has many fascinating critical implications for our present situation.\u201d<\/p>\n

The first literary work in Western Civilization, Homer\u2019s “The Iliad,” begins with a plague. It focuses on the conflict within the Greek army after a plague is unleashed by Apollo, angry at the disrespect shown to his priest and his priest\u2019s daughter by their leader Agamemnon.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe epic ends with the hero Achilles confronting his own impending death and recognizing the need to show reverence to the gods and even his enemies, despite his own personal emotions,\u201d said Rebecca Edwards, associate professor of classics.<\/p>\n

Likewise, Sophocles\u2019 “Oedipus Rex” begins with a plague. The Thebans, afflicted with disease, ask for help from their king, Oedipus. Again, the plague is triggered by human actions.<\/p>\n

\u201cOedipus\u2019 quest to end the plague leads to the realization that his own actions, as well as those of his birth parents, have caused suffering for themselves, their children and their people,\u201d said Edwards.<\/p>\n

She said the works use the concept of plague to examine other types of destruction, whether it be man killing man in “The Iliad” or corruption within the family in “Oedipus Rex.”<\/p>\n

\u201cAncient writers were surrounded by a world which often seemed beyond one\u2019s control, and, as we are currently learning, there are few things more difficult to control than a disease,\u201d said Edwards. \u201cBut these works also teach us that we can control our own actions.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

From Homer\u2019s “The Iliad” to “The Plague” by Camus, classic literature has reflected the impact of epidemics on human thought and behavior. Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":17,"featured_media":91943,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[722,4839,725,4863,747,715],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-91931","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-academics","category-coronavirus","category-home-news-sidebar","category-humanities-and-cultural-studies","category-liberal-arts","category-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/91931","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/17"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=91931"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/91931\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":91963,"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/91931\/revisions\/91963"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/91943"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=91931"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=91931"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=91931"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}