CLAS 1020 Unit 4 English Expressions

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throw the apple of discord

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1

throw the apple of discord

to cause trouble//comes from when Eris (the goddess of Discord) wasn't invited to the wedding of Peleus and Thetis, so she causes a quarrel between Hera, Athena, and Aphrodite by throwing a golden apple that says "For the Fairest"

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2

fight (or work) like a Trojan

to work extremely hard//comes from when the Trojans fought hard during the Trojan War

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3

Achilles' heel

a person's particular weakness//comes from when Achilles was dipped in the River Styx (to make him invincible) by his mother holding him from his heel

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4

Achilles' tendon

part of the body that connects the calf muscle to the heel//comes from Achilles

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5

Myrmidon

a follower who blindly carries out order without question//comes form soldiers who were under Achilles' command

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6

kudos

praise and honor received for an achievement//comes from the Heroic code

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7

pander

to act as a pimp; to exploit the moral weaknesses of other//comes from the Trojan warrior Pandarus who breaks a truce by shooting Menelaus with an arrow and was a typical example of Trojan treachery

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8

sulk like Achilles in his tent

to withdraw from action to go sulk and refuse to do anything//comes from when Agamemnon takes Achilles' girl Briseis away from him

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9

Trojan horse

subversive group or devise planted in enemy rank//comes from when the Greek snuck into Troy by hiding inside the horse the Greeks gifted the Trojans

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10

Cassandra

someone who warns of impending disaster, but is ignored//comes from when Cassandra tries to warn the Trojans against the horse but is ignored

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11

Clytemnestra

a cruel, ruthless women//comes from when Clytemnestra plots to murder Agamemnon when he returns from Troy

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12

Electra Complex

tendency of a daughter to bond with her father and feel hostility toward her mother as a rival//comes from when Electra was close to her father Agamemnon and hates her mother Clytemnestra for killing him

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13

Odyssey

a long adventurous trip or an intellectual journey or spiritual quest//comes from Odysseus' long homecoming back to Ithaca

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14

patience of Penelope

incredible, long-lasting patience//comes from when Penelope waited many long years for her husband Odysseus to come home

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15

mentor

a teacher or trusted advisor//comes from when Athena was disguised as Mentor when Telemachus sets out to seek news about his father

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16

nepenthe

a (fictional) drug that eases sorrow or grief//comes from when Helen gives it to Menelaus when he becomes sad thinking over past troubles

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17

protean

tending or able to change frequently or easily//comes from the sea god Proteus who (like all water gods) was able to change his shape

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18

lotus-eater

someone who spends his time indulging in pleasure and luxury rather than dealing with practical concerns//comes from when Odysseus's men ate the lotuses and didn't want to leave

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19

circean

pleasing but noxious; dangerously attractive//comes from when Circe seduces Odysseus' crew to stay on her island home of Aea

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20

caught between Scylla and Charybdis

forced to choose between equally unattractive alternatives//comes from when Odysseus sails between Scylla and Charybdis and choses to let six of his men get eaten by Scylla than losing the whole crew to Charybdis

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21

siren; siren-song

an appeal that is hard to resist but, if heeded, will lead to a bad result//comes from when sirens sing to lure in sailors to their death

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