This excerpt makes connections to Rabelais' medical background to his broader worldview, particularly in his commitment to some Renaissance humanist ideals. Through the emphasis of the link between physical & mental health, Rabelais distances himself from older & more rigid scholastic traditions that separated the body from general intellect. It's clear that his focus on education & physical vitality is present, and it reflects the Renaissance belief in human potential & balanced self-development. Rather than just simply relying on theological authority, Rabelais encourages observation, experience, & care of the WHOLE person.

O'Brien, John, editor. The Cambridge Companion to Rabelais. Cambridge University Press, 2010

This passage shows Rabelais' tendency to use informal/confrontational language as means of challenging social norms. The exaggerated insult & demand for a toast show a reversal of typical stereotypes. This style of writing draws attention to the constructed nature of authority and promotes a more grounded, bodily, and communal experience of literature. It reveals how Rabelais inserts humor to question rigid structures of power in a way that invites the reader into the critique.

O'Brien, John. The Cambridge Companion to Rabelais. Cambridge University Press, 2010.

Lysistrata is aware of the power she wields and seizes the political agency by claiming that the condition of Greece is met at the hands of its women. This line doesn't simply just encapsulate the central premise of women being capable of swaying the war but rather uses hyperbolic language to underscore both urgency and radical nature of her proposal. While Aristophanes uses humor and stereotyping of gender norms to critique the patriarchal values of his time, the powerful trade of a sex strike in exchange for peace was readily made. Interestingly enough, sex strikes have been done around the world, and one that caught my attention occurred in Liberia. The Liberian women organized a sex strike to pressure for peace negotiations and end the ongoing violence, which is incredibly akin to the story of Lysistrata--omit of Aristophanes comedic intention. The sex strike did make a considerable impact in the process of negotiating peace.

Barbosa, C. (2024, February 4). How women ended Liberia's civil war: Women of Liberia Mass Action for Peace. The Nonviolence Project – University of Wisconsin–Madison. https://thenonviolenceproject.wisc.edu/2024/02/04/how-women-ended-liberias-civil-war-women-of-liberia-mass-action-for-peace/

This passage emphasizes the core Hindu belief in the indestructibility--the immortal resilience of the soul. It suggests that while nature may take its course and subject the body to change and decay, the soul remains eternal and untouched by any transient force of nature. According to Hare Krishna, reincarnation is not merely just a matter of belief but a logical consequence of understanding that the soul and body are fundamentally different. The Bhagavad Gita shows this by stating "...as a person puts on new garments, giving up the old ones, the soul similarly accepts new material bodies, giving up the old and useless ones;" this showing that the soul is eternal and the body is transient.

Hare Krishna Temple. (n.d.). Bhagavad Gita Chapter 17. Retrieved Jan 31, from https://harekrishnatemple.com/chapter17.html