Q1. The Shaping of Public Opinion
Lurid newspaper stories helped to fan a conflict between Spain and the United States that ultimately led to war. The Vietnam War, another overseas conflict involving the United States, met with a great deal of opposition, due in part to the continual presentation of the war on television. Marshall McLuhan would have thought this significant. Discuss why this might be. Describe the fundamental differences between newspaper accounts of a war and those presented on television. In which case is it easier to shape public opinion? Give evidence for your arguments.
Q2. How does this scene on vase "Helen of Troy" compare with the seduction scene in Iliad Book III? Think about differences and similarities in details, and also about what you can infer about Helen's attitude here from the character of her representation. Also, what do you think is the association between the duel at the beginning of Book III and the love-episode at the end of it? Think about the differences and analogies between love and war, and about how women figure in each of these enterprises in the Iliad.