Concentration Camps--noone can be prepared

On July 9, 2010 we all stood before the gates of Dachau Concentration Camp. This was the very first camp that served as a model for all others. None of us had been in a concentration camp before this moment, so as we stood at the gates Dr. Souder, Professor VanWinkle, and Thomas—our tour guide—did their best to prepare us. We all expected to feel intense emotions ranging from shock and amazement to overwhelming confusion. We quickly learned that no one could prepare us to stand on the ground where tens of thousands of innocent people had been unjustly executed not that long ago.

Standing at the gates of Auschwitz we all expected to be hit with emotions potentially more severe then those we faced in Dachau; for Auswitch was the most brutal of all concentration and execution camps. It was here where the most victims of the Holocaust lost their lives. We all expected to see shoes, hair, and gas chambers. What we did not expect was to see such a magnitude of each. We did not expect to walk into a 20 ft corridor and see piles of shoes and hair stacked taller than we stood along the entire length of that corridor. We did not expect to walk through a gas chamber where thousands of people took their last breath each day between 1933 and 1945.

Holocaust Study Abroad Reflection

Ashes, Ashes They All Fell Down:
Expressing Through Pictures What Can Not Be Expressed In Words

We have all heard it a thousand times to justify dull, monotonous history classes: “If you do not know your history then you are bound to repeat it.” Study Abroad has shown that one can never truly appreciate why the mistakes of history should not be repeated until he or she has stood on the ground on which history occurred. The pictures displayed aim to communicate the significance and importance of The Holocaust victims and what they endured before they were murdered on the ground where the 2010 Study Abroad group stood on not long ago.

Experiencing the history of The Holocaust so forcefully has sparked a heightened awareness and interest in preserving the memory of The Holocaust in all of us. Many of us purchased souvenirs in the various cities we visited, but many of us also purchased literature specific to The Holocaust at the most significant sights. Still Alive: A Holocaust Girl Remembered is one book I purchased which tells a firsthand account of Ruth Kluger, a woman who survived Theresienstadt, Auschwitz-Birkenau, and Christianstadt concentration camps. In the forward, written by Lore Segal, Segal expresses Kluger’s worry that the “act of literature betrays what was experienced in The Holocaust: don’t words make ‘speakable’ what is not?” Thus the theme of this essay emerges. Words cannot express the severity of The Holocaust. Kluger, a survivor of the largest extermination camp—Birkenau, can only describe the fear she felt as “the psychological equivalent of epileptic fits.” Survivors can tell us their stories with the most potent language imaginable, but we can only make associations between things we know and things we can never imagine, in order to respond with shocks of muffled recognition.

All of us attempt to express to our own audiences what we saw and felt on this trip. We are well aware that this is impossible. For nothing we say, combined with any multitude of displayed pictures or souvenirs will ever translate our experience to an outside party. We have all gained knowledge of The Holocaust affairs that can only be gained from raw emotions evoked from first had exposure to the physical locations and remaining structures where the most brutal crime against humanity took place. How are we to express to family, friends, and colleagues what we felt as we walked in and out of concentration gates where not long ago the only route of escape for inmates was through the chimneys of gas chambers? We cannot. Kluger’s book asks what one is to do with knowledge that is “like a bullet lodged in the soul where no surgery can reach it.” This experience has given us this type of knowledge. Each returning study abroad student feels a personal responsibility to never settle, or allow our audience to settle, in whatever watered down attitude towards The Holocaust that we have created for ourselves. Today I challenge our audience to be discomforted—to revisit and rethink their understanding of The Holocaust—in order to help fulfill the responsibility we each have to knowing the history of The Holocaust, so these mistakes will never be repeated.

-Meagan Clark

Jenna Six Article in Formal Prose

The following letter was written in response to the Jenna Six case that occurred in 2007. It is written and addressed to the residing judge of the case and is therefore written accordingly in a very formal and professional manner:

Honorable Pete. V. Domenici:

This letter is being written concerning the "Jena Six" case in Jena, Louisiana. Many Americans feel that segregation and civil rights protests among African Americans and Whites is a thing of the past; unfortunately, this is not so. In Jena, Louisiana after asking their high school principal permission, two African American students sat under the "white" tree in the center of campus. White students then responded by hanging nooses from the tree, which can clearly be consider as a hate crime: any intimidation action to a group/class of people. For this blatant display of racism the White students underwent minor punishment of one month alternative school supervision and two weeks in school suspension for an action that was clearly illegal and morally corrupt. Why was no legal action taken against these students? When the African American students protested the lack of substantial punishment the District Attorney Reed Walters threatened the students with the remark [he could] "take their lives away with the stroke of a pen." There is undoubtedly an unreasonable amount of racial tension in Jena, racial tension that should not be tolerated in a "free" country.

Subsequent to the District Attorneys statement, a white student voiced his support of the nooses, taunting several African American students by calling them "niggers." The African American students that were relentlessly tormented fought back, beating those students displaying violent racial remarks. These six African American students, ranging from ages 14 to 18 were charged with second degree attempted murder and conspiracy. Mychal Bell, the first convinced faces up to 22 years in prison for a school fight.

The truly troubling events in this case were obviously the questionable proceedings of the trial. For example, the boys were convicted by an entirely white jury. Jena six is a racial/civil rights case, an all white jury is in no way diverse enough to make a fair ruling. To amplify this already unethical and quite malodorous situation, light has been shed on the fact that one of the jurors was in fact a close friend of the "victims" father. This is a distinct conflict of interest. Finally, the boys Mychale Bell 16, Robery Bailey Jr. 17, Carwin Jones 18, Bryant Purois 17, and Theo Shaw 17 were all charged as adults. Jesse Ray Beard, 14 at the time, was the only one charged as a minor. All Americans have the right to a fair trial. It is noticeably apparent that these boys did not receive one.

Segregation in American has been settled long ago with the blood of many Americans. Americana's freedom came at a great price ans should therefore be enforced across the land. It is essential that not one city, state, or region be overlooked or pardoned from the laws of equal opportunity and freedom. With out our nation working as one, answering to constitution based laws in their entirety, the land of the free may crumble. We must ensure this war within our borders is well settled before we can attempt to fix societies across oceans.

Thousands of American protesters, myself included, object to the proceedings of this trial and feel justice was not served. We plead with you to hear and consider our cause by supporting a close review of events by the Civil Rights Division of the United States Justice Department.

Memory as the Most Important Cannon

Exordium/Introduction:

In every Rhetoric class the Five Cannons--Invention, Arrangement, Style, Memory, Delivery--make up a essential part of the curriculum. While each cannon is interrelated and dependant on one another Memory holds a important place in our society that the other cannons do not. Due to technological advances the issue of memory is considered in a entirely new light in modern society compared to that of ancient Greece where the cannons were born.

Narrative:

In ancient Greece, memory was a essential skill utilized by society on a daily basis to a extent that modern society can barley imagine. The lack a printing press and even general means of record (paper and pen) were not common utensils of the time. Scholars expanded their knowledge base and practiced their rhetoric through progymnasmatas, most of which were practiced souly through repetition and memorization. For example, a progymnasmata that requires the student to persuade an audience, that student must not only remember his previous encounters with both the subject and the audience but remember in coherent detail his prepared method of delivery.

In modern times, with the invention of limitless resources and ever evolving technology any given person may only remember one telephone number, their social security number, and their address. Technology has created a society that relies almost entirely on artificial memory. In fact, we trust a great deal of our lives to this technology. We do not need to remember phone numbers, contact details, or even details of a presentation. All of these things are at our finger tips ready to be displayed at our beck and call in precise detail. It is the development of technology that has caused our society to replace the ancient concept of memory with that of a artificial one.

Partition:

The development of computers that aid in scheduling out lives is one of the best examples of this modern artificial memory. College students, for example, have a class schedule, work schedule, athletic schedule, and homework due dates to adhear to on a daily basis. To help the common college student remain punctual to every task required of them they have several instruments of technology to keep them on track through out the day.

Allow me to offer myself up as an example: at 9:50 am my alarm clock rang to remind me that I had to wake up and get ready. The alarm on my phone went off shortly after telling me that I had tutoring and then a presentation to complete that morning. During the presentation I used a power point with numerous notes to keep myself and my group on track during the discussion. Soon after I received a text telling me to come to practice at the indoor stadium at 3:00 pm. Later this afternoon I checked my email which reminded me that I had this homework due. All of these things on the computer also require log in's and passwords that the computer memorizes for me. If not for the several instruments of technology I used on a basic day, I would have fell short in many areas of my life because my modern world has shaped me not to remember these daily tasks on my own. I know I am not alone in this occurrence. I share the same memory dependence as everyone else in the modern, first world society.

Peroration:

Society is entirely dependant on technology to help us retain mundane information necessary in everyday life. Memory is the most important cannon because it is a live, evolving element of Rhetoric that brings an ancient rhetorical method into the 21st century.

Refutability of the Proximate Witness in Modern Rhetoric

Argumentation based on witness testimony of first hand experience carries a good deal of weight in matters of modern rhetoric. The most obvious and widespread example of this lyes with in out judicial system. Every trial consists of attorneys questioning witnesses they have gathered that have first hand experience or expertise in a matter of the case at hand.

According to Sharon Crowley, author of Ancient Rhetorics for Contemporary Students, the validity of testimony given by a proximate witness must stand several tests. First: " a witness must be in position to over see the events in question." Second: "conditions must be such that a witness can adequately perceive an event." Third: "the witness's state of mind at the time must be conductive to her accurate observation and reporting."

As long as these testimonies by proximate witnesses pass the previously mentioned tests than in modern rhetoric first hand experiences are nearly irrefutable. The only plausible event that could derail the testimony of a proximate witness is one of a community authority that both disagrees with the proximate witness's testimony as a possible event and is a expert in the subject. For example: A proximate witness testifies that he heard his neighbor shoot his wife. Normally, this testimony would secure the prosecution of the husband. However, if a local doctor n testifies that the husband was not physically able to shoot a gun (lets say the husband had arthuritis and could not grasp the gun tight enough to pull the trigger) than the testimony of the proximate authority would be refuted.

Survive or Surrender

My steadfast ideology concerning gun control is this: there should be no gun control. The second amendment guarantees every citizen of the United States of America the right to bear arms. That is, the right to protect yourself and your family from harm. The right to bear arms is a privilege that was paid for with the blood of our founding fathers. It is safe to say that a right which cost the lives of many to secure, was not done so with out reason. It is because of these reasons that the rejection of gun control is one of my unwavering ideologies.



I was raised in a republican family, lived not ten miles from the National Rifle Association, and was taught to shoot at a young age. It is for these reasons that I am not afraid of guns, as many people tend to be, and I feel that owning a gun for recreation and protection--that is, owning a gun as a instrument of survival--is a constitutional right that should not be discarded.



The main arguments I have encountered against my stance are these:

-the person/people are afraid of guns and could never use one for self protection or any other purpose

-the person/people feel that it is dangerous to have a fire arm in the house because of children living on the premises

-the person/people fear a intruder finding a gun in their home and using it against them

-the person/people feel that their is no reason to have self protection methods because if they are meant to die...than it is simply their time.



I have be involved in many rhetorical situations focusing on the topic of gun control both in oral conversation and through prose. After personal experiences and research I have developed several arguments to persuade others to accept, or at least consider, my stance on the issue. Rhetorical strategies involving appeals of ethos and logos tend to work nicely, since their is a multitude of statistics that favor gun control as being unconstitutional and dangerous. For example, if people can not get guns citizens will be left with no means of protection while criminals will revert back to using more base, brutal, and violent means of weaponry. These types of arguments make a person consider you point of view but it is when you bring in the pathos appeal the necessity for self protection becomes real. After all, emotions are one of the strongest influencing factors of persuasion in our society.



The most effective pathetic proofs I have employed in the topic of gun control is deploying the power of enargeia. Painting a picture for the audience, in which the audience's loved ones are put in a horrific, life endangering event makes the opposition see the relevance and necessity of preserving their right of protection. People often have opinions on self preservation/protections, but when their loved ones are in jeopardy. . . no sound person would just stand by and watch a loved one die when they have the power to save them. The following is a pathetic appeal in which enargeia is deployed to persuade a audience to abolish the idea of gun control:

*** It is two o'clock in the morning on a snowy February night. Your daughter is sound asleep in her bed having been dreaming pleasant dreams for hours. You are up late browsing the Internet and drinking a glass of wine to wind down from a long day. Through your front window a man has seen a valuable big screen TV. Thinking everyone is asleep, he picks a random window to a room he believes to be vacant. He takes the blunt end of a large army knife and breaks the window, unlocks it and enters the room. The intruder has entered your daughters room. You hear this, knowing what is going on you run towards your daughters room, baseball bat in hand--ready to fight for the protection of your family. You open the door and see that just before your daughter was able to let out a scream the intruder covers her mouth and cuts her throat knowing that you will be unable to harm him from where you stand.***

If the parent had been able to grab a gun instead of a bat, then the intruder may have been the person who died that night.

The Rhetoric Stratigies at Work that Smash the Liberal Dream of Gun Control

The article subjected to this Rhetorical analysis is The Libril Case for Gun Control Doesn't Get Far in the Supreme Court published by Ben Adler on Wednesday, March 3, 2010 in Newsweek.

In his article, The Liberal Case for Gun Control Doesn't Get Far in the Supreme Court, Adler gives a comprehensive rundown on what occurred during the McDonald v. Chicago court case argued in front of the Supreme Court last Tuesday. Throughout the article Adler attempts to be extremely informative presented in the semi formal writing level that any citizen can follow easily. While this article embodied substantial information of the proceedings of this case, Adler's diction caused the article to be overpowered with personal opinion. Whether or not this opinion was that of Adler's or a reflection of Newsweek's political affiliations is unspecified.

The play by play information, including statements from both court justices and testifying officials, gave the article and Adler himself a great amount of ethos. Well presented information is a primary goal of a news publication so any article presenting all necessary information that is layed out in a understandable format warrants a level of credibility. However, the overwhelming amount of opinion incorporated into a article that should purely state the facts destroyed both the article's and author's ethos.

Progymnasmata: Invective: 21 Drinking Age Law

The 21st birthday bar tour. The birthday person blows out the candles, goes to a bar, drinks excessively, vomits, and passes out. Friends remind them the next day what happened. This is the 21st birthday ritual--it is a distinctly American ritual that continues to be one of the most harmful effects of the 21 laws. In the United States, young adults can drive, hunt, marry, divorce, vote, and go to war before alcohol is legally allowed to touch their lips. There is no rationality to this. No rational reason exists to explain why a young adult at the age of 18 should be allowed to decide who the potential leader of the country should be, take a bullet for their country, be tried in court, and not be able to drink at their own wedding. Since an 18 year old adult is capable of making every other decision as an adult and are expected to take responsibility for those decisions, the 21 laws need to be brought into sync with every other right that is awarded once a person comes of age.

The 21 drinking age law, enacted in 1984, is not only unconstitutional but fails to lower alcohol related causalities. In fact, raising the drinking age to 21--rather than keeping it at 18, the age deemed acceptable for all other adult responsibilities--has a negative backlash with proven negative effects reaching all areas of society. Some of these negative effects include binge drinking and underground drinking, among other social problems.

History proves that prohibition laws do not work, they are simply counterproductive. The National Prohibition in the 1920s and the State Prohibition during the 1850s were both repealed because they were unenforceable and because of the backlash of other social problems. We should not continue to commit the same mistakes from our past. Prohibition did not work in the first two attempts, and prohibition for people under the age of 21 is not working now.

For responsible drinking habits to form across the nation alcohol needs to be seen neither as a poison nor a magic potent. The 21 laws continue to be inconsistent, counterproductive, and unconstitutional.

Regretable Common-Place Quotation of the Tennis World-- Australian Open 2010

Disclaimer: The topic of this Rhetoric analysis comes from a statement made by two Chinese women that made it to the Australian Open semi-final this year. It was a remarkable thing to have two women of Chinese origin reach the semi-finals--it had not been done in many years. Neither of the women made it to the finals but after their semi-final matches they were asked a question that envoked a intriguing response.

The question: "In your opinion, why are their so few Chinese men playing professional tennis?" (there are no Chinese men in the top 300)
Response: "They are sleeping...one day they will wake up."

This response opens up a world of backgound implications. From this response I recognize not only a lack of respect for Tennis in China, but also that Tennis holds a stigma of being highly feminine. This stigma also communicates a level of gender discrimination and conflict--some Chinese women quite obviously have discovered the benefit's of professional tennis, while Chinese males continue to hold it in a low regard consequently finding Chinese women professional tennis players in a stigmatized light. -----While this assumptions may be stretching the implications of this quotation, I believe there is some truth to each claim that can be extracted through the right rhetorical methods.

(Prologue) Very specific gender equality laws have been put in place and are enforced in the world of all professional sports--tennis especially. Any ideology that finds tennis as a lower sport because of a delusion that it should be considered purely feminine is discriminatory to all players.

(Contrary): Women's tennis and Men's tennis are very strictly defined and equal. While the style of men's and woman's tennis varies sightly they are in every level equal--which is why mixed doubles exists. At all major tournaments men's and woman's matches alternate throughout the day, as do press conferences and practices. A more recent development produced to further establish equality is the introduction of women's night matches--traditionally women play first leaving men to play into all hours of the night. This is not longer the cast, no precedence is given to players gender in timing or any other aspect of the game. The same should apply across the world--neither gender should have precedence over the other, like no sport should be defined with a gender stigma.

(Exposition): Any individual having this type of prejudice mentality shows no concern for elements of this argument or the opinion of the rest of the world. Their particular ideologies show precedence over equality laws in every genre. They have said to themselves "tennis (or whatever the particular venue may be) is a low corrupting form of entertainment with no productive consequences." This type of thinking is detrimental to the development of civilization and is rooted in ignorant culture biases.

(Comparison): People discriminated against based on class or race is dreadful, but those who classify a entire lifestyle of people in a negative light because of a disregard for recent gender equality ideologies is far worse.

(Intention): Most people who discriminate have obvious reasons or a background to aid in some explanation of their actions. Those who stigmatize a lifestyle, however only do so because they are far to arrogant and "stuck in their ways" to be introduced to a new way of thinking, and fundamentally to be introduced to the way in which the world in moving(hopefully, however slowly)--equality on every level.

(Digression): If a certain gender of one particular country holds a sport/lifestyle/gender in such a low esteem, then perhaps those who know different, and perhaps better, could convince them otherwise. No persons holding this type of prejudice in their life can see the world for what it truly is--they will be forever blinded to many beauties of life.

(Legality): It is a commonly held belief that it is right to treat all of fellow humanity equally despite race, gender, class, etc. so it follows suit that those who do not believe the same should be "shown the light."

(Justice): It is therefore just for those discriminatory individuals to be seen as ignorant to many sides of the world.

(Advantage): For those considered ignorant who change their insights, however slightly, the world/tennis/the evolution of gender equality will befit.

(Possibility): It would be easy to hold those who are ignorant in low esteem, but changes will only manifest when those believing differently will rise up and continue to show and reap the benefits of their lifestyles.

The War on Terror

*Disclosure: I believe I have done this assignment by the book and tried to be objective and not put a bias in either the confirmation or refutation. Not long after 9/11 occurred, I visited New York City. I was at ground zero. This experience changed my life-as it did, in some way, change every American life that lived through this day and its forever lingering aftermath.





Confirmation:

Assertion to Be Confirmed: President George Bush was right to begin the war against terror after the September 11, 2001 terrorist attack against the United States of America.

Encomium: President George Bush is a noble person who made the informed decision to take action against the terrorism group that had killed thousands of innocent American citizens.

Exposition of the Situation: On September 11, 2001 President George Bush is sitting in a class room reading a book to children when a secret service agent whispers in his ear that planes have been hijacked and have hit the World Trade Centers in NYC. America is under attack. We all know the following events of that tragic day. Soon after the first plane crashes into the north tower, a second plane hits the southern tower, answering any lingering questions on whether this was a horrific accident or America was truly under attack. Later that morning, a third plane crashes into the western side of the Pentagon. Passengers on flight 93 revolt and crash in Pennsylvania before it could reach the White House. The World Trade Centers collapse before they could have a chance of being fully evacuated. New York City is covered in ash. A toxic pollution forever coating every American heart with the memory of events on that tragic day. In his first address after the attacks, Bush states that terrorists can "shake the foundation of our building, but can not touch the foundation of America" as he decides to take action against terrorism.



Certainty: The United States of America was attacked. Thousands of innocent American citizens had been murdered by terrorists. That day the hearts of every American was united-silenced with anger and the want for revenge. Someone had to pay for what had been done. Bush made the only decision there was to make. That decision was to action against the terrorists who committed such a horrific act against America.

Credibility: As President George Bush announced the war on terrorism he was making a informed decision. As the president, Bush was expected to make informed decisions that are in the best interest of the American nation.

Possibility: It is possible that Bush acted rashly, went to war against terrorism before he had enough facts to execute Americas threats quickly.

Consistency: As the head of the country, with every citizen wanting revenge and wanting to see not only answers but actions-Bush acted in the way any president with the mind a true American would.

Propriety: An horrific act against out nation occurred. A would power country can not let a event of this stature occur sitting down.

Convenience: The accomplishments made by the American military against terrorism in the Middle East have saved countless lives across nations that would have been lost otherwise.










Refutation:

False Assertion to Be Refuted: President George Bush was right to began the war against terror after the September 11, 2001 terrorist attack against the United States of America.

Exposition of the Situation: (see above)

Uncertainty: Every terrorist involved in 9/11 can not be obtained with out some unfortunate causalities of war.

Incredibility: The amount of young men and women deployed to Iraq that are loosing their lives is only continuing to spread the negative impact of 9/11.

Impossibility: Because of war, America has become divided. Military death toll is or is not worth the cause anymore.

Lack of Consistency: Invading other countries for defense of America and allowing death tolls skyrocket for years before the culprits are caught is a travesty.

Impropriety: Bush did what he felt was the only option at the time to protect America. His decision is now tainting the memory of his presidency.

Inconvenience: America is divided and in political and economic mayhem because of war. Lives of young men and women have been lost every day since September 11, 2001. Families-husbands, wives, mothers, fathers, children-wonder if they will ever see their family member again, mothers wonder if their child will ever meet their father, the love in marriages are strained as couples are separated for months or years at a time.

Karios of CSU-Pueblo's Today

I have in front of me three copies of CSU-Pueblo's primary student publication... the Today magazine. One issue is summer 2009, the next is fall 2009, and the last is winter 2009-2010. For this bog, I am turning to the contents page of each publication because I believe that the contents page of this publication will be our portal into the world of karios in the Today magazine.

The summer 2009 edition of the Today features a article entitled "Housing for the Future." As the very title suggests, the entire article is centered on the development of our university and the leaps and bounds it is taking as student enrollment spikes require the construction of more modern dorms to enhance the living experience of students and the overall campus design. This article definitely implements karios in a variety of ways. First off, as summer begins to drain into its final weeks the top concern on many students minds (especially freshmen) is where they will be living the next year. This article is designed to answer many questions and promote the overall quality of the new dorms, as well as the university, as the start of a new semester draws closer. Another method in which this article implements the timing factor of karios is how it discusses the U.S Green Building Council programs involvement. "Going green" is defiantly a popular concept on society's mind today and promoting the environmental performances of Crestone Hall fits in to the current concerns of society flawlessly.

The fall 2009 edition of the Today is littered with articles centered around one topic: clubs! It is the fall semester. The basics of student life-dorms, classes, etc. have been figured out. However, when your in a new city getting a education everyone wants to have the "college experience." Lets face it, the college experience contains much more than what happens in the classroom. It is the people you meet and the new activities you discover a passion for that make up a great deal of the "college experience." This is what students are thinking about after they get the basic routing after the start of a semester. The Today is not obvious to this, which is why the fall 2009 edition took the opportune moment-karios-to publish several articles about clubs and extracurricular activities. After all, universities generally like to deter students from seeing underground drinking and partying as primary forms of entertainment.

Last but not least, the winter 2009-2010 edition of the Today. The most prominent articles in this edition concentrate on how "CSU-Pueblo is the best place to get your degree," housing options to students over the breaks, and advice on how to avoid the flu. Every one of these articles utilize the karotic time of the winter season. The first is an attempt to persuade students to enroll for next semester, as well as gain new students. The next is a definite concern for international or out-of-state students. The last is a concern for every human being during flu season.

By discussing the most prominent concerns of the particular season or semester the Today magazine effectively utilizes karios to promote CSU-Pueblo and keep student readers interested in the publication.

A Chreia to Cupid

In the modern world Cupid is most often associated with both love and Valentine's day festivities/decor. It is fitting that such a symbolic figure has survived through the ages of Roman mythology and into today's Valentine paraphernalia. After doing some very light research on the history of cupid I found that, in Roman mythology, Cupid was considered the god of love. The association between Venus (believed to be Cupids mother and the goddess of love) is quite popular in poetry, literature, and most prominently art. The Roman poet Ovid has composed a vivid description Cupid which will lead us into a discussion of why Cupid-portrayed throughout the years as a winged young boy armed with arrows and a torch-has survived as the symbolic figure of love:

"Cupid's there, quiver reversed, bow broken,


Holding a burnt-out torch.


See how sadly he walks, poor child, wings drooping,


How he beats at his bared breast,


How the tears rain down on his hair, now lying all tangled


Thus he looked, they say, long ago, when he saw his


Brother Aeneas to the grave..."

It is perhaps through art that one can see most clearly why Cupid-the god of love-is depicted as a young boy with wings and arrows. We all know the basic concept...Cupid finds us, shoots us with his arrow through the heart and we fall madly in love. Easy enough right? But why does he have wings? This is the question that puzzled me the most, initially. After some research and deliberation I draw the most logical connection to Mercury (believed to be Cupids father and the messenger god). So Cupid is biologically love's messenger.

Next, why does Cupid shoot his subjects through the heart with an arrow to cause them to fall passionately in love (in pictures showing two sets of arrows the gold-tipped arrows are believed to inspire love while lead-tipped arrows are believed to inspire hatred)? Well, for those of us who have been in love... there is nothing more true in life then the fact that love is both the best most wonderful thing, while at the same time love is the thing that holds the most power to break you. Hence the common cliche statements such as "love is war," which makes the symbolic representation of love somewhat satirical-love is both pleasurable and painful.

All the previously stated trivia about Cupid, much of it based in experienced derived logic and much of it based Roman mythology, is argument enough to explain and praise Cupid's survival as the ultimate symbol of love through the ages.

Work Cited

"Mythography, The Roman God Cupid in Myth and Art." Loggia, Exploring the Arts and Humanities! Web. 20. Jan. 2010.

http://www.loggia.com/

Photograph. Scoobyjosh.blogspot.com. Web. 19. Jan. 2010.

http://www.%20toniannemagickals.com/

"Simbols Dictionary - Love Simbols -- Add Love Simbols to a Painting." About.com

Web. 19. Jan. 2010

http://painting.about.com/