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Essay / Research Paper Abstract
An 8 page research paper that examines the manner in which romance and tragedy intertwine in ancient world literature, concentrating on The Mahabharata, but also discussing the myth of Cupid and Psyche and Oedipus Rex. Bibliography lists 8 sources.
Page Count:
8 pages (~225 words per page)
File: D0_khromtr.rtf
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Unformatted sample text from the term paper:
tragedy, which expresses the concept that all humans are mortal and that life can be, on occasion, dreadful. These two factors are neatly balanced in such works as the
Indian Sanskrit epic, The Mahabharata. By examining this classic work, and comparing it with other narratives, it is possible to see that the relationship between romance and tragedy in
each of these sagas and how each culture relates to the archetypal concepts that are involved. The Mahabharata is an enormous work, quite possibly the longest book in human
history (Piatigorsky 3).. On a philosophical level, the narrative throughout the epic is largely concerned with "dharma," a term which literally means "that which holds" or "that which establishes" (Gelblum
121). In The Mahabharata, "dharma" is presented as an all-encompassing common denominator. It is the "idea of the absolute, unchanging cosmic order" (Piatgorsky 6). It is broader than ethics
or morals, which derive from "dharma" and not the other way around (Piatgorsky 6). Romance is a principal element throughout The Mahabharata.
First of all, in the sense of the word that "romance" connotes love between a man and a woman, there are numerous love stories. There is Gandhari who loved her
blind lord Dhritarashtra so much that she voluntarily bandaged her eyes, as she vowed that she would not enjoy anything that she could not share with her husband (The Mahabharat).
There are other love stories sprinkled throughout the epic, but, the main way that the narrative is "romantic" is to consider the term in a broader sense, in that,
stories of high adventure , usually set in the distant past, evoke a sense of the romantic. In this manner, romance pervades The Mahabharata, in that it relates stories
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