This passage evokes a sense of urgency and transition. It describes a scene where an ancient city or fortress is abandoned, and its youthful inhabitants are mobilizing for war. Some are riding horses, some are boarding ships, and others are marching on foot, all hastening to join and organize the ranks of the army. The imagery emphasizes both the decline of the old and the dynamic, decisive action of the new generation as they prepare for battle. CC BY-NC

Xerxes' realization is starting to settle in and he is able to understand how his own hubris and poor decision making led Persia to being in this situation. It serves as a powerful image of Xerxes being sad and surprised at the same time about their loss and the misfortune that the empire has now. He realizes that fortune and fate is uncontrollable which leads him to being a bit shocked by the fact that his fortunes changed so rapidly. It is similar to the story of some professional athletes and celebrities who used to be at the top and now work normal jobs because their fortunes changed so fast and they made lots of poor decisions along the way. The text teaches how hubris can be very bad for people and it is always important to remain humble even when you are the top because you will never know when you might be back at the bottom. This transition in the mindset of Xerxes would receive more sympathy from audience members as we all know the feeling of being humbled all too well. However, the situation is much more dire for Xerxes and shows how humans have a hard time grappling with the fact that certain uncontrollable events may have happened to them for the worse. Ultimately, the text itself learns more about the nature of success and failure and why people require humility to stay humble and to be able to face unpredictable situations better. CC BY Ajey Sasimugunthan (contact)

In this excerpt, it highlights the ghost of Darius lamenting over the loss and damages being placed upon Persia as the image of seeing Persia being in ruins does not sit right considering it was once such a large and powerful empire. Not to mention, the theme of fragility of power can be highlighted here as the downfall of the Persian empire came very quick and with no problems showing that fortunes can quickly change for the better or worse. It is similar to how people losing their job can completely change their life for the worse especially if they live paycheck to paycheck. In other words, people should expect the unexpected so that they are always ready and can be prepared during the worst times so that they can carry out better lives as a result. Hubris is something that plagued the Persians and led to their ego boost and led to Xerxes making questionable decisions leading to defeat for Persia. Moreover, the image of Persia being in destruction is hard for Darius to sit with as his accomplishments are wasted and show how being too ambitious can lead to negative consequences. In a similar sense, it brings to mind how politicians of today tend to make little to no changes so that they can stay in power and avoid losing the power they have so they can use it to their advantage when the right opportunity strikes. CC BY Ajey Sasimugunthan (contact)

Diction such as "ruthless" to describe the fate of the Persian loss highlights the harshness of the sequence of events leading to the Persians defeat. Not to mention, mentioning "unhappy friends" explains the people that are mourning over the loss of loved ones especially in war that they were expected to win. People are often at a loss for words after a disaster happens and the first thing they think about is how did it happen. This is what the Persian people are going through as they are learning to accept the harsh reality of their defeat and will need to cut their losses in order to bounce back up. Similar to huge upsets in sports game, the teams are usually at a loss for words as they do not understand how they let themselves lose the game especially being in a very favorable situations. All of this goes without saying that it serves as a lesson for readers that you should never count out people when their backs are against the wall because that is when they might perform at their best and surprise you when it is least expected. CC BY Ajey Sasimugunthan (contact)

The loss that the Persian Empire is facing is so huge that it is hard to even comprehend how it happened. In addition, the quote helps put into perspective how immense this tragedy is and how it affects Persia. It makes the loss seem like it is beyond measure and there is no way Persia can bounce back from this. Not only did the Persian Empire lose badly, there is a deep emotional impact on the people as they had to witness such as a huge upset unfold in front of their eyes which is the reason behind their grief and misery. The text in general is written from the loser point of view which is fascinating because most of history is told from the winners side. People often forget to acknowledge the losing side as they suffered a great amount as well and deserve to have their story remembered. In addition, their loss serves as a reminder why people should never feel overconfident about something as there is always a chance that something does not happen the way as intended leading to catastrophic consequences. CC BY Ajey Sasimugunthan (contact)

Innocent people are impacted heavily by war and parents have a constant fear of whether their children will be able to grow up in normal circumstances where they can be happy. Atossa as a mother demonstrates the sorrow that is felt and how the phrase "strike deep" literally penetrates her heart because of the emotional toll the war has on her knowing loved ones are in danger. It also puts into perspective how vulnerable humans can be and how a life can be taken away at a moment's notice. This explains how people feel as the Persian army is large but the people are worried and suffering as they know that they have family being severely affected by the war. As a reader, it forces us to reflect on the costs of war and how the various perspectives of war can be twisted. While some may be celebrating a victory, others may be sad and suffering as they may have lost a loved one during the war. CC BY Ajey Sasimugunthan (contact)

An interesting component behind this quote and passage are the concept of fate and divine intervention. Something that the text has suggested up to this point is that the wrath of the gods cannot be avoided and that it can be overwhelming to deal with. Not to mention, this might reflect a belief or ideal from Greece which is that human actions can be subject to divine forces from above which cannot be predicted and also not be controlled. In addition, the passage also suggests that people cannot control what the gods and divine being want which makes it a bit tragic for humans as they do not necessarily have control over their destiny. Something that is discussed in the modern day is whether people have control over their fate or not. This text offers an interesting perspective as it explains that we do not have control over fate as divine intervention occurs and can change the outcomes. It also highlights that no matter how powerful a human might be, they will always succumb to the forces of divine intervention and gods. CC BY Ajey Sasimugunthan (contact)

This shows the richness in the world and the lifestyle for this type of people too, which is something i always find very interesting. While they are enjoying, others go to war, even the youbg ones, the a whole life ahead of them.

As I mentioned before, we are not only talking about a cruel and berbaric war, but moslty, and the horrible thing about everything is that young men are going. Kids, even. Countries in those days use to send every single men possible. No matter if they were experienced or not. It was against their will sometimes too. And here, the narrator sighs not only for the pain of the situation but also for the young souls too.

Others go only for the feeling that they are fighting for their country and its here were we can see the manipulation of the higher into the population. To make them think that they will do a glourious thing with no training or further explanation whatsoever.

A town without walls is a town free to be conquered by others.

They are terrified from whats happening but were taught to be brave and show that they are strong.

I like to think that this is a reference of a physical object being those the arrows that were used in battles at the time.

This caught my attention. It talks about the type of people going to fight. The types of men. We are talking about every single kind. When it says "Soft sons of luxury" clearly refers to the young boys of higher society who didn't do a labor work every day like the others, therefore their appareance and even experience was soft not only physical but emotional. "Those that dwell" refers to the ones who are the opposite and might have more experience. But still, he is sorry for everyone. And its amusing to see that they are togheter for the same thing only becuase of that circumstance.

And here we can see the consequence of the action that happened before.

This is a good example and a good morale too. Every thing has a consequence and even if we can redeem it a little bit, we can not escape it. It is up to us if we want them to be good or bad.

Her father genuinly planned everything for her, from the very strt. Which related quite a lot to the traditions.

I like this. Girls reading this type of text are encouraged to do something else in life and that we all have choices and different dreams as well. Draupadi lived just as every other women lives, but she had passions and other activities that she liked, therefore she did them. That should be for everyone too.

The text is clear to the reader from the very introduction. All the reader can come to a conclusion after reading the first pharagraph is "this is an important character and she is very strong" and at the end, with this line, the text makes it clear with its own words.

Draupadi is a very strong and changing character compared to others. Married life is mentiones here but it specifically shows that the thing that shaped her life was her knowlodge. Which at the time, was not common for a female character to be described like that.

It is common to relate the heroines, moslty the females, to fire. This resembles the beauty, grace and delicacy. But when it comes to Draupadi, she is described as earthy. Which is something new but that I personally like very much.