Odysseus – an epic hero

In a story, has there ever been a character who stands out from the rest? A character who is bold, strong, brave, intelligent, and overall better than most characters in the story. This would be known as an epic hero. An epic hero is a character who has superhuman qualities and faces many challenges throughout … Read more

Giovanni’s Room

Giovanni’s Room is a classic tale of the life of a man, David, who is constantly running away from what he cannot run away from; himself.  The characters in Giovanni’s Room expressed emptiness in themselves, because they were afraid to accept who they really are. This novel is an allusion collectively directed on people in … Read more

Is Machiavelli’s Prince Really That Evil?

There is obvious controversy over whether Niccolo Machiavelli was a credible and reasonable political theorist or a teacher of evil. When observing the writings of Machiavelli in The Prince, it becomes immediately clear that his views on politics and government are fairly straightforward but fail to take into consideration issues of ethics and morality. This … Read more

Somali poetry and Somali history

Somali poetry and Somali history have been closely linked as it not only reflects the contemporary events and processes of the era in which it is composed but also reflects the social and cultural setting of Somali society. This allows historians to gain wider insight and a better understanding of the cultural and political discourse … Read more

The sea was an integral part of ancient Greek life

The classical world centred itself firmly on the Mediterranean Sea, the nexus of ‘Western’ civilization for millennia, surrounded the great empires of each era: Hittite, Egyptian, Persian, Hellenistic, Carthaginian and eventually Roman. It is for this reason that by tracking the history of the Mediterranean one can follow the course of Classical and pre-Classical civilization. … Read more

Why Agamemnon is not a great leader in Homer’s The Iliad

“Leaders become great, not because of their power, but because of their ability to empower others.” – John Maxwell. This famous quote spoken by John Maxwell is an accurate description of why Agamemnon is not a great leader in Homer’s The Iliad. Agamemnon is selfish, arrogant, and a coward. These characteristics do not make him … Read more

Chinua Achebe’s Things Fall Apart

G.D. Killam wrote: So much has been written about the anthropological and Sociological significance of Things Fall Apart and Arrow of God – Their evocation of traditional nineteenth- and earlier twentieth – century Ibo village life-… that the overall excellence of these books as pieces of fiction, as works of art, has been obscured.42 Very … Read more

Biography of John F. Kennedy – Robert Dallek

Throughout this biography of John F. Kennedy, Dallek tells us about the life story and difficulties of being a member of the growing Kennedy dynasty. This biography takes us through Kennedy’s life from adolescence until his death and does not spare the darker secrets of his life while also highlighting his strengths and moments of … Read more