Marcus' HUM251 Blog

What's commonly associated with murder, deceit, and regicide? If you guessed Game of Thrones then you were not far off as Game of Thrones, along with many other books and television shows, find their roots in Shakespeare and his plays. Richard III in particular has peaked my interest for the captivating characters as they continuously conspire and betray anyone for the sake of power. The main plot is focussed around Richard, the charismatic and manipulative son of King Edward IV of York, and his mercilus ascension to power through wit and blood become the King of England. To secure his royal adequacy he marries a noble woman and murders his older brother to ensure he succeeded the throne. Richard eventually ascends to power once his father dies and rules with fear and blood, killing anyone that opposes him until he is eventually killed by a French royal named Richmond to become king of England. This captivating yet grievous tale defines the history of the Wars of the Roses in Engla...

After reading through a few poems by John Donne I was drawn to one of his poems titled “The Indifferent”. Simply going off the title I assumed it would be about people nonchalantly sinning, however the topic within this poem takes on a different meaning. As the first stanza delves into how John Donne can love almost any kind of woman as the first verse is “I can love both fair and brown”. Each verse after that further accentuates how he can love any woman, but the last verse within the first stanza implies the overall topic of the poem, “I can love any, so she be not true”. I believe that John Donne would love almost any woman as long as they aren’t true to him or faithful. I would assume that the relationship John Donne is talking about would be akin to a prostitute or a one night stand, also meaning he could make someone unfaithful. In the beginning of the second stanza he asks “Will no other vice content you?”, almost as is he is having a conversation with one of his one night stand...

Niccolo Machiavelli generates many interesting points to how one should properly rule a state in his book, The Prince. However, major politics today are different from the Renaissance as most monarchies have been replaced by democracy and republics. This does not mean that the nature of politics has been completely altered, however there are different tactics to achieving certain goals in politics today. During the Renaissance, monarchies typically gained political power through warfare, controlling land, and controlling people; as the more land and money someone had, the more power they possessed. In many countries today power is divided equally among representatives to form a system of government called democracy. Political figures within this form of government would generally benefit from appealing to the common folk rather than appearing fearful. Although, many aspects of politics and businesses are reflected through The Prince, as politicians frequently throw others under the bus...