★ Com
✎combat
(v.i.)
(1) To fight: contend; struggle. 格鬥；爭奪；爭鬥。
(v.t.)
(1)To oppose; resist. 反對；抵抗。
➜The residents who lives in the village will combat all invaders.
(n.)
(1)A struggle; fight. 爭鬥；格鬥。
✎compose
(v.t.)
(1) To form by combination. 合成；組成。
➜Air is composed mainly of nitrogen and oxygen.
(2) To make up; often in passive voice. 構成。
➜Bronze is composed of copper and tin.
(3) To calm; make tranquil. 使安詳；鎮定。
➜Compose yourself!
(4) To adjust; arrange in proper order. 整理；安排整齊。
(5) To set (type). 【印】排(字)。
(6) To create (music, literature, etc.) 創作 (音樂、文學等) 。
➜The musician composed an opera.
(v.i.)
(1) To engage in composition, as of musical or literary work. 寫作；創作；作曲。
★ pyre
(n.)
(1) A funeral pile; a pile, as of wood, for burning a dead body. 火葬堆；焚化屍體的木柴堆。
★ pyromania
(n.)
(1) An insane desire to set fire to something. 放火癖；縱火狂。
★ vulnerable
(adj.)
(1) Capable of being wounded or hurt. 可傷害的；脆弱的。
(2) Liable to injury or criticism, as a reputation, record, etc.
易受批評的；易受傷害的；易受非議的(如名譽、記錄等)。
(3) Difficult to defend; open to attack. 難以抗辯的；易受攻擊的。
★ invulnerable
(adj.)
(1) Incapable of being wounded or injured. 不能傷害的。
(2) Incapable of being answered or refuted. 不能答覆的；不能反駁的。
(3) Immune to attack. 無懈可擊的。
★ outrageous
(n.)
(1) Violent; atrocious; excessive; without regard for decency; shocking.
強暴的；兇暴的；過度的；囂張的；令人驚愕的。
➜His conduct was outrageous.
(2) Uncalled-for. 無理的。
★ enchant
(v.t.)
(1) To charm or subdue, as by spells or sorcery. 蠱惑；施魔法於。
➜The sorcerer enchanted the beautiful princess.
(2) To fill with delight. 使迷醉。
➜He was enchanted with her smile.
★ Adv
✎ advantage
(n.)
(1) Superior position. 優勢。
➜You have the advantage over me.
(2) A benefit; any circumstance that aids or assists. 利益；好處；好機會。
➜the advantage of a good education
(v.t.)
(1) To give an advantage to; benefit. 有利於；有益於。
➜Such action will advantage our cause.
✎advance
(v.i.)
(1) To go forward. 前進
➜ The troops advanced to the river.
(2) To rise, increase, as prices or rates. 增加；漲價。
➜ The stock advanced recently.
(3) To progress; develop. 進步；拓展。
(4) To risk in rank or position. 升級
(v.t.)
(1) To cause to go forward. 使前進。
(2) To propose. 提出。
(3) To increase. 增加。
(4) To aid; further, as plans. 協助；促進(計畫)。
(5) To make a payment beforehand. 墊付；預付。
(6) To promote; bring to a higher rank. 提升；晉升。
(7) To make happen sooner. 使提早；提前。
➜The chairman advanced the time of the meeting.
(n.)
(1) A moving forward. 前進。
(2) Improvement. 進步；改良。
(3) Rise in price. 漲價。
(4) An approach, as toward acquaintance. 親近(想要結識)。
(adj.)
(1) Being or occurring before. 在前的；預先的。
★ Achaean
The Achaeans constitute one of the collective names for the Greeks in Homer's Iliad and Odyssey. The other common names are Danaans and Argiveswhile Panhellenes and Hellenes both appear only once; all of the aforementioned terms were used synonymously to denote a common Greek civilizational identity. In the historical period, the Achaeans were the inhabitants of the region of Achaea, a region in the north-central part of the Peloponnese. The city-states of this region later formed a confederation known as the Achaean League, which was influential during the 3rd and 2nd centuries BC.
★ Nestor
Nestor is often claimed to be of Greek origin. In Greek mythology it comes from that of the son of Neleus, the King of Pylos and Chloris. The Greek derivation is from a combination of "go back", and "one who returns from travels".
★ Diomedes
Diomedes or Diomede is a hero in Greek mythology, known for his participation in the Trojan War. He was born to Tydeus and Deipyle and later became King of Argos, succeeding his maternal grandfather, Adrastus. In Homer's Iliad Diomedes is regarded alongside Ajax as one of the best warriors of all the Achaeans (behind only Achilles in prowess). Later, he founded ten or more Italian cities. After his death, Diomedes was worshipped as a divine being under various names in Italy and also in Greece.
☃ Diomedes' place among Achaeans
Although he was the youngest of all Achaean kings, he is considered the most experienced leader by some scholars (he had fought more battles than others, including the most important war expedition before the Trojan War – even old Nestor had not participated in such military work). Second only to Achilles, Diomedes is considered to be the mightiest and the most skilled warrior among the Achaeans. He was overwhelming Ajax son of Telamon, in an armed sparring contest when the watching Achaeans bade the men to stop and take equal prizes because they feared for Ajax's life. Ajax gave Diomedes the prize (long sword) because Diomedes drew the first blood. He vanquished (and could have killed) Hector (the greatest Trojan Warrior) on two occasions and Aeneas (the second best Trojan warrior) once.
He and Odysseus were the only Achaean heroes who participated in covert military operations which demanded discipline, bravery, courage, cunning and resourcefulness.
Diomedes received the most direct divine help and protection. He was the favorite warrior of Athena (who even drove his chariot once). He was also the only person who attacked (and even wounded) Olympian Immortals. He was also given divine vision to identify immortals on one occasion. Only Diomedes and Menelaus were offered immortality and became gods in post Homeric mythology.
☃ Diomedes in the Iliad
Diomedes is one of the main characters in the Iliad. This epic narrates a series of events that took place during the final year of the great-war. Diomedes is the key fighter in the first third of the epic. According to some interpretations, Diomedes is represented in the epic as the most valiant soldier of the war, who never commits hubris. He is regarded as the perfect embodiment of traditional heroic values.
★ In medias res
A tale beginning in medias res opens in the midst of action. Often, exposition is bypassed and filled in gradually, either through dialogue, flashbacks or description of past events. For example, Hamlet begins after the death of Hamlet's father. Characters make reference to King Hamlet's death without the plot's first establishment of said fact. Since the play focuses on Hamlet and the revenge itself more so than the motivation, Shakespeare utilizes in medias res to bypass superfluous exposition.
Works that employ in medias res often, though not always, subsequently use flashback and nonlinear narrative for exposition of earlier events in order to fill in the backstory. For example, in Homer's Odyssey, we first learn about Odysseus' journey when he is held captive on Calypso's island. We then find out, in Books IX through XII, that the greater part of Odysseus' journey precedes that moment in the narrative. On the other hand, Homer's Iliad has relatively few flashbacks, although it opens in the thick of the Trojan War.
★ Odysseus
Odysseus was a legendary Greek king of Ithaca and the hero of Homer's epic poem the Odyssey. Odysseus also plays a key role in Homer's Iliad and other works in that same epic cycle.
Odysseus was one of the most influential Greek champions during the Trojan War. Along with Nestor and Idomeneus he was one of the most trusted counsellors and advisors. He always championed the Achaean cause, especially when the king was in question, as in one instance when Thersites spoke against him. When Agamemnon, to test the morale of the Achaeans, announced his intentions to depart Troy, Odysseus restored order to the Greek camp. Later on, after many of the heroes had left the battlefield due to injuries (including Odysseus and Agamemnon), Odysseus once again persuaded Agamemnon not to withdraw. Along with two other envoys, he was chosen in the failed embassy to try to persuade Achilles to return to combat.
When Hector proposed a single combat duel, Odysseus was one of the Danaans who reluctantly volunteered to battle him. Telamonian Ajax, however, was the volunteer who eventually did fight Hector. Odysseus aided Diomedes during the successful night operations in order to kill Rhesus, because it had been foretold that if his horses drank from the Scamander River, Troy could not be taken.
After Patroclus had been slain, it was Odysseus who counselled Achilles to let the Achaean men eat and rest rather than follow his rage-driven desire to go back on the offensive—and kill Trojans—immediately. Eventually (and reluctantly), he consented.
During the funeral games for Patroclus, Odysseus became involved in a wrestling match with Telamonian Ajax, as well as a foot race. With the help of the goddess Athena, who favored him, and despite Apollo's helping another of the competitors, he won the race and managed to draw the wrestling match, to the surprise of all.
★ Epic poetry
An epic is a lengthy narrative poem, ordinarily concerning a serious subject containing details of heroic deeds and events significant to a culture or nation. Milman Parry and Albert Lord have argued that the Homeric epics, the earliest works of Western literature, were fundamentally an oral poetic form. These works form the basis of the epic genre in Western literature. Nearly all Western epic (including Virgil's Aeneid and Dante's Divine Comedy) self-consciously presents itself as a continuation of the tradition begun by these poems. Classical epic employs dactylic hexameter and recounts a journey, either physical (as typified by Odysseus in the Odyssey) or mental (as typified by Achilles in the Iliad) or both. Epics also tend to highlight cultural norms and to define or call into question cultural values, particularly as they pertain to heroism.
Coraline (film)
Coraline Jones is a girl of 11 who is feisty, curious, and adventurous beyond her years. She and her parents have just relocated from Michigan to Oregon. Missing her friends and finding her parents to be distracted by their work, Coraline tries to find some excitement in her new environment. Coraline seriously doubts that her new home can provide anything truly intriguing to her, but it does; she uncovers a secret door in the house. Walking through the door and then venturing through an eerie passageway, she discovers an alternate version of her life and existence.
