world literature

Week 4 Instructions

The Ramayana

Starts on page 1122, Volume A

Choose one of the following for your reading response:

1. Delineate the ways in which nature is figured in the work.
2. Study the different ways non-natural elements work in the Ramayana: references to the gods, the supernatural, magic, etc.
3. Find one or two passages in the work that seem to crystallize the overall meaning or value of the work for you; or, that seem especially interesting for the imagery, wisdom, rhetorical power, or other memorable quality. Quote and defend your choice in a few sentences.
4. Browse one or more critical works in the library databases. Quote one passage from the critical work, and in a few sentences tell us why it is helpful in appreciating the primary work.

REMEMBER to write upto 1 page, not including any quotations you use from the primary works or from secondary, critical sources. Also, REMEMBER not to plagiarize, and CITE any sources you happen to use.