This document provides a detailed biography of Cleopatra VII, the last active ruler of Ptolemaic Egypt. It discusses how Cleopatra came to power at a young age and faced opposition from her brother Ptolemy. It describes how she formed political alliances with Julius Caesar and Mark Antony to maintain control of Egypt amid civil wars and threats from Rome. The document outlines Cleopatra's rule, during which she stabilized Egypt's economy, advanced education, and brought periods of peace and prosperity before ultimately committing suicide after her defeat in her final war against Octavian.

1. Cleopatra And The Power of Seduction
The Egyptian pharaoh known as Cleopatra has been one of the
most misunderstood characters throughout history. Many of the
records to this date was written by her enemies who portrayed
her as a conniving seducing manipulator. To fully understand
Cleopatra we must look at her life in great detail and understand
how she used many of her personal relationships to bring peace
and prosperity to the country that she ruled. Many see her as a
vicious enemy while others see her as a one of the greatest and
courageous rulers of Egyptian history, who was the last of the
Ptolemaic empire, which lasted for roughly 300 years.
During the time of Cleopatra Egypt was at an unstable with
several rulers fighting for the throne. At a young age
Cleopatra's father Ptolemy the 12th Auletes, was exiled from
Egypt and her older sister seized power. When Ptolemy returned
from exile with the help of Rome he had the teenaged Cleopatra
appointed as a co ruler. After his death he left Cleopatra to rule
alongside her younger ten year old brother also known as
Ptolemy.
As customary with Egyptian culture at the time women co rulers
were supportive to the male ruler but Cleopatra had plans of her
own. Soon after Cleopatra became ruler she deleted her brother
from Egyptians official records and coinage. However a coup in
48bc drove Cleopatra into exile in Syria. The dispute between
Ptolemy and Cleopatra plunged Egypt into another civil war.

2. During the chaos of the civil war Julius Caesar took the
opportunity to seize Alexandria stating that he would mediate
between the two parties, Cleopatra and her brother Ptolemy.This
action subjecting Egypt to the will of Rome. This action gave
Cleopatra an opportunity since Julius Caesar was a known
womanizer. She decide to take a risky move to regain control of
her throne. Being a beautiful intelligent young girl she arranged
a way to sneak into Caesar’s bedchamber and convince him to
support her claim.
Cleopatra's risky planned worked out and Caesar convinced
Ptolemy to share power with her. The supporters of Ptolemy
were not pleased; his royal army marched to Alexandria to
restore his sole rule to the throne. Unfortunately for Ptolemy he
drowned while his army fought Caesar's army and the royal
army was defeated.
After defeating the army of Ptolemy Caesar restored Cleopatra
to her throne and allowed her to rule once again. Even though
the first two years of her control in power were racked with
many eternal issues she was able to prove herself a capable and
powerful leader. Cleopatra was able to mend the various
political groups across the kingdom.
During her rule Cleopatra was able to calm the tensions Egypt
was having by making various alliances with political factions
in nearby Syria while maintaining her father's pro Roman
policies. The population of Egypt was supportive of Cleopatra
she made great efforts in attempt to gain the public's support,
she was the first Ptolemaic ruler to actually speak Egyptian. Her
royal courts were well renowned with various intellectuals of
the region working under her. Cleopatra was able to advance the
educational system in Egypt by promoting science and arts
within her kingdom. She was credited by many historians for
writing various books on medicines, cosmetics, weights and

3. philosophy.
Once in control of her throne Cleopatra was able to stabilize
Egypts economy, managed the vast burceracy and abolished
corruption within the kingdom. During her reign there was no
more revolts or civil wars until the end of her time in power.
The major changes she was able to make to the kingdom won
the accolades of her peers.
Caesar became intrigued with Egyptian culture and their way of
life, he spent months in Egyptian learning about their ways with
Cleopatra. Eventually during the return of Caesar to Rome
Cleopatra gave birth to his son, Caesarion.During his time
within Egypt Caesar made plans on how to change Rome based
upon culture influences within Egypt.
Upon returning to Rome Caesar brought about many new
changes within the kingdom based upon Egyptian culture and
knowledge. One of the things Caesar did that was influenced by
Egyptian culture was to reform the calendar. He was also able
to commisened a census.
Caesar was intrigued by the Egyptians libraries he planned on
making a new public library in Rome and proposed many new
infrastructures. Many historians believe that many of these
ambitions plans for Rome was one of the reasons that led up to
Caesar's assassination. On march 15th 44 bc Caesar was
assassinated by Roman senators led by Gaius Cassius Longinus,
Decimus Junius Brutus, and Marcus Junius Brutus.
After the death of Caesar Cleopatra sought out protection and
affection under from Mark Antony. Mark Antony requested
Cleopatra to form an alliance in avenging the death of Caesar.
In 42 bc Mark Antony and the allies eventually won the battle
to avenge Caesar. Mark Antony summons Cleopatra to him to
tell her how important her role was during the battle.

4. Once Mark Antony set his eyes on Cleopatra when she came to
him dressed in her elegant clothing he was dazzled by her and
tells her he will reinstate her queenship within Egypt. Mark
Antony leaves his wife Octavia and their children to go to Egypt
and be with Cleopatra. In 34bc Mark Antony claims Cleopatra's
son Caesarion as the rightful era of Caesar’s throne and awards
land to Cleopatra and all of their children that they had
together.
Octavian was furious with the decisions of Mark Antony and
proclaimed that he was nothing but a puppet of Cleopatra and
would eventually forget about Rome and only care about Egypt.
In 32 bc Octavian declared war on Cleopatra . Octavian
eventually was able to defeat the forces of Cleopatra. During
the battle Cleopatra and Mark Antony fled Egypt and were
separated.
During 30 bc Mark Antony heard rumors about how Cleopatra
had commited suicide after the war was lost. Right before the
rumors were eventually found to be false Mark Antony
committed suicide by stabbing himself to death out of grief.
Eleven days later Cleopatra found out about Mark Antony's
death. In a dramatic turn of events Cleopatra locked herself in a
chamber with two serpents and eventually also commits suicide.
Histories are still not certain to this day the method she used to
committed suicide but speculators believe that it was when she
put a poisonous snake to her wrist to have it bite her.
Cleopatra's power of seduction and charisma was able to bring
empires to their knees. She was able to rejuvenate her kingdom
and reclaim her throne from her enemies. There will always be
two sides to a coin each different perspective to look at but
there is no doubt that Cleopatra's seductive power was a force
to be reckoned with.

5. Works Cited
Delaney , Angelica E. “Reading Cleopatra VII: The Crafting of
a Political Persona .” Https://Digitalcommons.kennesaw.edu/,
digitalcommons.kennesaw.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1024
&context=kjur.
“The Great Seducer : Cleopatra, Queen and Sex Symbol.”
Seduction and Power : Antiquity in the Visual and Performing
Arts, doi:10.5040/9781472555748.ch-014.
Gwyn, Griffiths J. “The Death of Cleopatra VII.” The Death of
Cleopatra VII,
journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/030751336104700113?jo
urnalCode=egaa.
Moore, Chamara. A Queen ’s Reputation: A Feminist Analysis
of The Cultural Appropriations of Cleopatra,
aquila.usm.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1308&context=hono
rs_theses.
Roller, Duane W. “Obo.” Cleopatra - Classics - Oxford
Bibliographies, 15 Feb. 2018,
www.oxfordbibliographies.com/view/document/obo-
9780195389661/obo-9780195389661-0130.xml.
Watterson, Barbara. Women in Ancient Egypt. Amberley, 2013.
ENGL 102
Poetry Essay Instructions
You must complete the required textbook readings in
preparation for the Poetry Essay. This will equip you to
objectively respond to the readings by compiling information
from a variety of sources in order to compose a persuasive
analysis of a literary work. You will also learn to follow
standard usage in English grammar and sentence structure;
identify the theme and structure of each literary selection and
the significant characteristics or elements of each genre studied;
and evaluate the literary merit of a work (Syllabus MLOs: A, B,

6. C, D, F, G and Module/Week 5 LOs: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7).
In Module/Week 5, you will write a 750-word (approximately 3
pages) essay that analyzes 1 poem from the Poetry Unit. Before
you begin writing the essay, carefully read the below guidelines
for developing your paper topic and review the Poetry Essay
Grading Rubric to see how your submission will be graded.
Gather all of your information, plan the direction of your essay,
and organize your ideas by developing a 1-page thesis statement
and outline for your essay as you did for your Fiction Essay.
Format the thesis statement and the outline in a single Microsoft
Word document using current MLA, APA, or Turabian style,
whichever corresponds to your degree program; check your
Perrine’s Literature textbook, the Harbrace Essentials
Handbook, and/or the link contained in the Assignment
Instructions Folder, to ensure the correct citation format is
used.
The final essay must include, a title page (see the General
Writing Requirements), a thesis/outline page, and the essay
itself followed by a works cited/references/bibliography page of
any primary and/or secondary texts cited in the essay.
You must submit the thesis and outline by 11:59 p.m. (ET) on
Monday of Module/Week 4 for instructor feedback.
You must submit the Poetry Essay by 11:59 p.m. (ET) on
Monday of Module/Week 5.
Guidelines for Developing Your Paper Topic
The “Writing about Literature” section of your Perrine’s
Literature textbook (pp. 1–54) and the “Writing” section of
Harbrace Essentials (pp. 1–12, 18–21, 22–28) provide pointers
which will be helpful for academic writing in general, and more
specifically for your literary essay. Be sure that you read this
section before doing any further work for this assignment. Take
particular notice of the examples of poetry essays on pp. 43–48
of Perrine’s Literature.

7. Choose 1 of the poems from the list below to address in your
essay:
· “The Lamb,” “The Tiger,” and “The Chimney Sweeper” by
William Blake
· “Batter my heart, three-personed God” and “Death Be Not
Proud” by John Donne
· “Journey of the Magi” by T. S. Eliot
· “God’s Grandeur” and “Spring” by Gerard Manley Hopkins
· “Ode to a Nightingale” by John Keats
· “Ozymandias” by Percy Bysshe Shelley
· “My Last Duchess” by Robert Browning
· “Sailing to Byzantium” by William Butler Yeats
· “The Road Not Taken” and “Stopping by Woods on a Snowy
Evening” by Robert Frost
· “It Sifts from Leaden Sieves” and “There’s No Frigate Like a
Book” by Emily Dickinson
· “Ulysses” by Alfred Lord Tennyson
· Psalm 1 or 23
· “Virtue” by George Herbert
· “That Time of Year” (Sonnet 73) by William Shakespeare
Consider answering the following questions about the poem that
you have chosen:
· What is/are the theme(s) of the poem?
· Is there a literal setting or situation in the poem? What lines
from the poem tell the reader this information? What details
does the author include?
· Is the setting symbolic?
· How would you describe the mood of the poem? What
elements contribute to this mood?
· Is the title significant to the poem’s content or meaning?
How?
· What major literary devices and figures of speech does the
poet use to communicate the theme(s)?
· How are rhyme and other metrical devices used in the poem?
Do they support the poem’s overall meaning? Why or why not?
· Is the identity of the poem’s narrator clear? How would you

8. describe this person? What information, if any, does the author
provide about him or her?
· Does the narrator seem to have a certain opinion of or attitude
about the poem’s subject matter? How can you tell?
NOTE: These questions are a means of ordering your thoughts
while you collect information for your essay. You do not need
to include the answers to all of these questions in your essay;
only include those answers that directly support your thesis
statement.
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ENGL 102
Poetry Essay Grading Rubric
Criteria
Levels of Achievement
Points Earned
Excellent/Good
Fair/Competent
Deficient
Development
(CCLO #2)
39 to 45 points
· Major points are stated clearly and are well-supported.
· Content is persuasive and comprehensive.
· Content and purpose of the writing are clear.
· Thesis has a strong claim.
· Audience is clear and appropriate for the topic.
· Supportive information (if required) is strong and addresses
writing focus.
31 to 38 points
· Major points are addressed, but clarity or support is limited.
· Content is somewhat persuasive or comprehensive.
· Content is inconsistent and lacks clear purpose and/or clarity).

9. · Thesis could be stronger.
· Supportive information (if required) needs strengthening or
does not address writing focus.
0 to 30 points
· Major points are unclear and/or insufficiently supported.
· Content is missing essentials.
· Content has unsatisfactory purpose, focus, and clarity.
· Supportive information (if required) is missing.
Organization and Structure
(CCLO #1)
39 to 45 points
· Writing is well-structured, clear, and easy to follow.
· Introduction is compelling and forecasts the topic and thesis.
· Each paragraph is unified and has a clear central idea.
· Transitional wording is present throughout the writing.
· Conclusion is a logical end to the writing.
31 to 38 points
· Writing is adequately organized, but some areas are difficult
to follow.
· Introduction needs to provide a stronger gateway into the
writing.
· Some paragraphs lack unity and coherence.
· Better transitions are needed to provide fluency of ideas.
· Conclusion is trite or barely serves its purpose.
0 to 30 points
· Organization and structure detract from the writer’s message.
· Introduction and/or conclusion is/are incomplete or missing.
· Paragraphs are not unified (e.g. more than 1 topic included,
missing or inadequate controlling and concluding sentences).
· Transitions are missing.
· Conclusion, if present, fails to serve its purpose.
Grammar and Diction
(CCLO #1, #3)
39 to 45 points

10. · The writing reflects correct grammar, punctuation, and
spelling standards.
· Language is accurate, appropriate, and effective.
· The writing’s tone is appropriate and highly effective.
31 to 38 points
· The writing contains some grammar, punctuation, and/or
spelling errors.
· Language is unclear, awkward, or inappropriate in parts.
· The writing’s tone is generally appropriate and moderately
effective.
0 to 30 points
· The writing contains many grammar, punctuation, and/or
spelling errors.
· Language use is largely inaccurate or inappropriate.
· The writing’s tone is ineffective and/or inappropriate.
Format: Current MLA/APA/ Turabian Paper Requirements
(CCLO #6)
11 to 15 points
· Writing correctly follows formatting guidelines.
· Parenthetical and bibliographical source citations are used
correctly and appropriately.
5 to 10 points
· Writing follows most formatting guidelines, but some flaws
are detected.
· Parenthetical and bibliographical source citations are
incorrectly formatted or used.
0 to 4 points
· Writing lacks many elements of correct formatting.
· Parenthetical and bibliographical source citations and/or
references are not provided.
Total
/150
Instructor’s Comments:
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