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Aeneid - Virgil
The Aeneid is an epic poem that scholars split into two sections; one section is similar to The Odyssey and the other being similar to The Iliad. Virgil made the epic in hopes of creating a well known epic that could compete alongside the other two famous epics. Virgil takes themes, plots, and ideas from both epics and twists them into a unique story. In the epic, Aeneas, the main character, goes on many adventures like Odysseus and fights many wars like The Iliad tells of. The difference is, Aeneas strives to fulfil his pietas (duty) that he has to his family. In this famous sculpture, it depicts the scene of Aeneas fleeing Troy carrying his father, a representation of the past, and leading his son, a representation of the future. A major theme of the epic if fulfilling one's duty to their family to bring honor.

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The Canzoniere - Petrarch
Petrarch writes 366 songs, ballads, sonnets, madrigals, and many more which have all been dedicated to Laura, a women Petrarch was in love with. In the first poem of The Canzoniere, Petrarch addresses the audience. He acknowledges his shame of the love he describes in his poems, acknowledging that many have took his poems and perspective on love the wrong way before. In the following poems, Petrarch uses metaphors, similes, and many other types of figurative language to showcase his love for Laura. Each poem follows a type of lyrical pattern or beat to them, making them even more endearing to read aloud. I chose to include a YouTube video of songs composed by Listz, a famous composer of the 1800's who dedicated orchestral pieces to different poems by Petrarch. The music follows in line to the beat of Petrarch's poetry. I think this and Petrarch's poetry come together nicely and make the poems more lively. It also shows how Petrarch may not have been popular in his time, but many others throughout history came to enjoy his work.

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Liszt: 3 Petrarch Sonnets [From Years of Pilgrimage: Italy], S.161 (Tiempo, Chamayou)

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Book of Martyrs - John Foxe
In his letter to Queen Elizabeth regarding Mary Queen of Scots execution, a writer tells of the specific details which played out during the public execution. He describes Mary in great detail from the clothes she was wearing, down to every word she spoke during the execution. Mary was convicted of conspiring an attack against Queen Elizabeth. Elizabeth sent for an in-depth and highly detailed account of Mary's execution to assure that Mary was actually dead. The reason for this I speculate is because Mary Queen of Scots was also royalty and the cousin of Queen Elizabeth. In comparison to common people, people of royalty were expected to be kept in comfortable positions when held hostage, so it is likely Queen Elizabeth suspected her execution could have been fraudulent since she was not there to bear witness herself. In the account, Mary recites many religious sayings and even corrects a priest on his misquoting of the Bible. Mary was a loyal Catholic and refused to deny her religion to the very end. She explains, from what we read in the account, that she would rather die true to her beliefs. During the execution, many were surprised as to how calm she was and even that she was cracking jokes. While this may have scared Elizabeth, Mary was showing her calm nature as a means to say that she was not afraid of dying because it meant going to a better place: heaven. I chose this picture because the United Kingdom's royalty timeline can get confusing. Many people shared the same names, were related in more ways than one, and there were just a lot of them, especially spread across different places. I think a timeline helps to understand the texts, as it is not something many American's will have experience with.

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Plutarch's Lives - Thomas North
A story about the downfall of Cleopatra's reign of Alexandria in Egypt. It tells of Cleopatra's significance in her role, beauty, and power. But, it also tells of how she was still human at most. This TikTok is just a little more insight into the background of the story and characters, and gives reason as to why so many Greco-Roman references may have been incorporated into the story. Major themes and things that take place within this text is that of leadership, the downfall of leadership and society, lust, and suicide. One of the questions we were asked in class of this text was why people of the renaissance may have enjoyed this story. I think I can now answer that the instability of power and leadership may have caught the eye of many people.

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Of Cannibals - Michel de Montaigne
In Cannibals, Montaigne strives to point out the lack of differences between the Native and Indigenous people of the Americas and the people of Europe. During this time, many European colonizers were outraged at the cannibalistic nature and practices of the natives, often calling them savages and using it as a means to eradicate the people. Montaigne writes a commentary on this and explains how the practices of the natives is of neither lower or higher class than that of the Europeans. He notes the multiple instances of disturbing, immoral crimes that Europeans have committed throughout their history up until the 14th century. I chose this YouTube video because it tells of Montaigne's life and his work. Montaigne was a philosopher who pointed out the idiocy of other scholars, striving to prove that humans are liable to mistakes equally among all races. The video also shows how Montaigne is a breath of fresh air compared to other writers throughout history as he pokes fun at others and tries to make his content entertaining rather than completely serious. I think we can see Montaigne's personality bleed through in his text Of Cannibals in these ways.

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The Spanish Tragedy - Thomas Kyd
This play, similar to Shakespeare's Titus Andronicus, is a tragedy that uses many types of figurative languages such as similes, metaphors, anaphora, and allusions. Many allusions are traded between both Shakespeare and Kyd, but Kyd also alludes heavily to other works such as Dante's Inferno, The Odyssey, The Aeneid, and more. It is a play in which the theme of revenge is at the forefront. Although a tragedy, Kyd also uses comedic relief. Kyd also references political controversies against the Spanish of the time, sort of fueling the fire of the England separation from Catholicism. I chose to include this YouTube video that is a modernized cardboard animation of the play. The video is not entirely accurate to the play and does not touch on the historical, religious, or political aspects of the play. The animation, however, does allow the general content of the play to be understood. I think this video helps to understand the play further with the help of visual and auditory mediums and puts the story in layman's terms for easier understanding.

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I modernized The Spanish Tragedy, with cardboard.

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Titus Andronicus - Shakespeare
One of Shakespeare's first plays, Titus Andronicus follows a very peculiar pattern in comparison to other plays written by the famous playwriter. It is a tragedy where almost no one is spared. It focuses on themes of love, honor, duty, revenge, and death. Although most find it odd, or horrible, I think the play is important to see the evolution of Shakespeare's work and could possibly be a glimpse into what he believed people of the time would like to see performed. I think many people of the time wanted to see the wrongs of humanity corrected. It is interesting to see how it follows similar to stories like the Aeneid and Spanish Tragedy in terms of storylines, excluding the ending. This is a recording of the play in it's entirety from a live action performance. It is amazing to find this, as the story is often excluded due to shame, low popularity, and lack of knowledge of the play's existence. I included this play because it has always been easier for me to be able to visually see how the characters act or their facial expressions, but also hear the cadence of their voices. Often times when we read an author's work, we don't read it the same way they intended it to be read. Our own emotional influences sometimes overshadow the author's, so seeing it performed gives us a different perspective.

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The Discovery of Guiana - Sir Walter Raleigh
In his account to the Queen of England, Raleigh tells of the abundant resources, land, and wealth of the landed known as Guiana. He recounts the abundance of resources such as trees which could be harvested for wood to fuel fires, create ships, or build structures. He also notes how the land is set up, an important factor considering the threat of the indigenous people, pirates, or enemies. Raleigh then mentions the abundance of precious metals like gold within indigenous graves, hinting that they could rob the graves because they are of no use in the ground. All the while, Raleigh is urging the Queen to start sending people due to the prevalence of the Spanish and Portuguese who have already colonized a majority of the surrounding land. Above I have attached a picture of a map that existed of Guiana during this time. In it, you can see how the land was suitable for conquering considering the natural defenses it had such as mountain ranges and rivers. Animals are also depicted which would probably be enticing because of food, furniture, or other materials crafted from animals.

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Meditation 17 - John Donne
In this poem, Donne is lying in his bed with an illness as he hears the toll of a bell from the church, usually indicating a death/funeral. He explains how humans are all one in the same, being made from God. Then, Donne suggests that the bell not only tolls for the deceased, but the living as well. He explains that since everyone is one in the same, who is to say that the bell doesn't ring for them too? The bell serves as a reminder of the limited time all have on the planet and that their fate is constantly approaching. This picture is just a random picture, but one that I think is a close representation of what Donne had in mind while writing his poem.

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Paradise Lost - John Milton
An epic poem that tells the tale of God's omnipotence. Milton raises important ideas that makes readers think about questions of marriage, monarchy, and free will. During the time of this story's publication, Milton was writing Paradise Lost as a way to convince others that the protestant church should be united with the state of England instead of the Anglican church.  Although it seems team Satan at times through extravagant and luxurious verbiage, Milton does this as a way to explain to the common person just how powerful and prideful Satan is, being that he rules over hell. This song takes inspiration from the Adam and Eve story in Paradise Lost. I believe it is a cool song and that it allows me to see another person's understanding or interpretation of the story.