I have an assignment for AP Literature where I have to use the quote:

"Myth proclaims the continuity of existence and declares that a life lived only in the present is a life betrayed"

And then I have to used support from the iliad to support or refute the statement.

The problem is that I do not understand what continuity of existence is.
Does anyone know what that means, and if so how I can either support or refute it?
Does anyone have any ideas on which events in the iliad could help me here as well
Thank you.

Hi, arturdo968!

There are some links to sites that can be found via clicking on the following search that have to do with the Continuity of Existence as it relates to the Iliad. Perhaps some of the information that you find will be helpful to you.

I hope that they are.

If you would like to post a draft of your paper here, I'm sure that there will be people who will come along to advise and discuss with you as to how you might make it better.

We can't actually do your homework for you here, but we can help you with it!

Thanks!

"Continuity of Existence" Iliad - Google Search

Thanks Clough!
I'm sorry if you got the wrong impression lol.
I wasn't asking for you guys to do my homework, but to define continuity of existence as it applies to the iliad because I was completely lost. I do have examples for the second part of the quote, it's just that part.
Thank you though, I'm sure the site will help@

Hi, arturdo968!

I'm not sure how the continuity of existence does relate to the Iliad. It's been ages since I have read that stuff. Plus continuity of existence can mean a number of things depending on the circumstances.

Concerning how it relates to the Iliad, it is discussed or described on a number of sites as you will note by clicking on the search.

My offer still stands though as I posted in my original post. We will help you here!

I'm always willing to help in some way, especially if everything is the way that it should be according to how this site is supposed to work.

Thanks!

OK guys, so here's my rough, rough, rough copy of my essay. It's only the body paragraphs because that's what I needhelp with. Any help would be greatly appreciated, right now, feel free to say it sucks because it does lol. Here's the prompt:

Myth proclaims continuity of existence and that a life lived only in the present is a life betrayed. Use the iliad to refute or agree with this statement.

In my essay I'm also supposed to answer why we still read the iliad today... :







Honor and heroism are qualities that an epic hero must posses. Epic heroes live for honor and long to remembered even after their life has been erased. The Iliad constantly pits characters in situations where they must fight for their honor. At one point in the poem, Odysseus is surrounded by Trojan soldiers and has to choose between becoming a hero and his desire to live. He convinces himself that only cowards “would quit the fighting now/ but the man who wants to make his mark in war/ must stand his ground and brace for all he's worth.”(11.484-85). Many men died not only for honor, but for a legacy as well. Helen tried to persuade Hector to remain behind with her and live long lives so that even after they died, they would “live in song”(6.426). However, a hero cannot be remembered when he does nothing to merit that honor. Thus, The Iliad is a poem that preserves the names of heroic figures in the war. Their names have become immortalized and will be remembered for as long as the story continues to be told.

The Iliad demonstrates how life goes on even after a tragic event has occurred. Achilles discovered that holding a grudge wastes time and comes with consequences. Because he would not fight in the war, Patroclus died while trying to impersonate him to bring hope to the Acheans. (Quote with Achilles grieving Patroclus). He focused solely on his emotions at present time and failed to look beyond the day to see how his emotions would affect him in the future. Hector knew if he did not fight, his family would be in danger in the future. Andromache begs him to stay (quote between andromache and hector). Hector put his duties before his family. He was fighting, but he was not thinking about the outcome of the day's battle. Instead, he was concerned about the outcome of the war because it held his people's fate. Heroes cannot dwell only on the day they are living, but they must look to the future overall. The outcome of the battle is important but what matters most is the outcome of the war.

Many myths, including The Iliad, are read today because they teach morals or lessons that are fundamental to human nature. These lessons have endured time and have reached readers of the poem today. The lesson most clearly taught in The Iliad is to remain loyal to own beliefs and do what is right and honorable even when it might be hard to do. This moral is evident when Menelaeus was fighting for possession of Patroclus's body. He wanted to (Quote). A similar dilemma occurs when Hector was the sole warrior of the Trojan side. All his men had retreated but he (Quote). The Iliad helps to characterize people by their actions, words and their interactions with others. After taking a close look, it is evident each character symbolizes people that are alive today. People read stories like The Iliad for a better understanding of the behavior of people.

Continuity of existence- life after death

Yeah but don't live forever, so it's not used so much in a literal sense as in more like, they live after death by being remembered

By being written about in history.
Have you seen the movie Troy? Achilles said as much.

You wrote a whole bunch of words, but your essay does not in any way satisfy the assignment, "myth proclaims continuity of existence and that a life lived only in the present is a life betrayed. use the iliad to refute or agree with this statement."

The first thing you need to do is understand the assignment.

Honor and heroism-> ways to live forever not physically, but in name (continuity)

Tragedy and death-> actions now have greater consequences in the future. Think ahead (present life betrayal thing)

Human flaw and error-> connection to whywe still read the iliad

It sounds like you have it all figured out :)
I preferred the Odyssey myself...

Quote:

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Originally Posted by arturdo968

honor and heroism-> ways to live forever not physically, but in name (continuity)

Tragedy and death-> actions now have greater consequences in the future. think ahead (present life betrayal thing)

human flaw and error-> connection to whywe still read the iliad

---

I haven't changed my mind. You need a first paragraph that begins with a topic sentence and then discusses in general the ways one can experience continuity of existence. In the paragraphs that follow, discuss each way, one per paragraph.

Back in the day, we outlined before we wrote the essay.

I.
A.
B.
C.
D.
II.
A.
1.
2.
B.
1.
2.
3.
C.
And so on...

Oh. Those were only my three body paragraphs lol. Here's my entire essay. I just finished. The intro (thesis) and conclusion need a little work but yeah:




War and death mark each page of The Iliad. Ultimately, The Iliad exemplifies that no one is immortal and that humans make mistakes. Stephen Bertman's statement that"myth proclaims the continuity of existence and declares that a life lived only in the present is a life betrayed", argues that throughout time, people live forever because they are remembered through valorous deeds and living honorably. Myths like The Iliad use components of war, such as heroism, tragedy, death and human error, to demonstrate that actions and choices based solely on present situations and emotions bring deadly consequences, however, honorable decisions bring immortality in remembrance.

Honor and heroism are qualities that an epic hero must posses. Epic heroes live for
Honor and long to be remembered even after their lives have been erased. The Iliad constantly pits characters in situations where they must fight for their honor. At one point in the poem,
Odysseus is surrounded by Trojan soldiers and has to choose between becoming a hero and his
Desire to live. He convinces himself that only cowards “would quit the fighting now/ but the
Man who wants to make his mark in war/ must stand his ground and brace for all he's
Worth.”(11.484-85). Many men died not only for honor, but for a legacy as well. Helen tried to
Persuade Hector to remain behind with her and live long lives so that even after they died, they
Would “live in song”(6.426). However, a hero cannot be remembered when he does nothing to
Merit that honor. Thus, The Iliad is a poem that preserves the names of heroic figures in the war. Their names have become immortalized and will be remembered for as long as the story
Continues to be told. This fact extends to people in modern times because even in a world where
Prevailing in war does not equal honor, people should still live their lives honorably and
Remaining true to their morals.

The Iliad demonstrates how life goes on even after a tragic event has occurred. Achilles
Discovered that holding a grudge wastes time and comes with consequences. Because he would
Not fight in the war, Patroclus died while trying to impersonate him to bring hope to the
Acheans. When he learned of his death, Achilles realized that he wasted his time sulking and
That he did not “bring one ray of hope to [his] Patroclus, nor to the rest of all [his] steadfast
Comrades”(18. 119-20). His failure to live life by living for the future instead of day by day cost
Him not only Patroclus's life, but also his own. The death of Patroclus caused him to rejoin the
War, fulfilling the prophecy: If he “lay siege to Troy,/[his] journey home is gone, but [his] glory
Never dies.”(9.500-01). Hector knew if he did not fight, his family would soon be in danger.
Andromache urged him to “pity [her], please! Take your stand on the rampart here,/before [he
Orphans his] son and make [his] wife a widow.”(6.511-12). Hector put his duties before his
Family. His desire to win the battle was great, but he was far more concerened with the outcome of the war because it held his people's fate. Heroes cannot dwell only on the day they are living, but they must look to the future overall.

Many myths, including The Iliad, are read today because they teach morals or lessons
That are fundamental to human nature. These lessons have endured time and have reached
Readers of the poem today. The lesson most clearly taught in The Iliad is to remain loyal to
One's own beliefs and do what is right and honorable even when it might be hard to do. This
Moral is evident when Menelaeus was fighting for possession of Patroclus's body. He wanted to
(Quote). A similar dilemma occurs when Hector was the sole warrior of the Trojan side. All his
Men had retreated but he (Quote). The Iliad helps to characterize people by their actions, words,
And their interactions with others. After taking a close look, it is evident each character can
Symbolize people that are alive today. People read stories like The Iliad for a better
Understanding of the behavior of people because the characters enforce the fact that no one is
Perfect. Many similar myths incorporate the true essence of
Human nature and demonstrate that no mere mortal has the divinity of a god. No matter how
Great a person is or becomes, they are destined to fall. This is evident in the many deaths
Suffered from both sides. Hector for example, fought diligently to keep his city safe.
Unfortunately, the poem closes with the “Trojans [burying] Hector, breaker of horses.”(24.944). The Iliad serves as a reminder that this principle still applies to present day humans.

It is impossible to live eternally and without err like the Gods. However, through honorable deeds, names and morals can live on and be remembered forever. Such is the case with the characters from The Iliad. They lived their lives in a righteous and honorable way, and in return their names and ethics have been inscribed in time, not soon to be forgotten. To extend beyond the normal human duties to try and accomplish something for the good of the people is a trait that is desirable among almost everyone, even today. The characters in The Iliad make an effort to do so not only to ensure the safety of their people, but to secure a place in history and be remembered for all time in immortality.

Major proofreading must be done with improvements needed in grammar and punctuation. There isn't much continuity, and it is unnecessarily wordy.

Yep, that's the next step. I'm proofreading it tomorrow and taking out a lot of the redundancy. I need it under 3 pages and it goes a couple lines into the 4th

What do you mean not much continuity and do you think it answers the prompt a little better now?

Quote:

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Originally Posted by arturdo968

what do you mean not much continuity and do you think it answers the prompt a little better now?

---

The sentences are long with big words that don't explain the thesis and don't fit well together; the general impression is gobbledy-gook. The essay has many unnecessary words, like the writer wants to sound smart, but fails miserably. It should be crisp and clean and well-supported. It definitely needs more and better support from The Iliad.