I visited the northwestern corner of Kefalonia on the way to joining the Classical Greece for Students and Alumni tour, led by Gregory Nagy. I first learned of this place when I came across the book Odysseus Unbound by Robert Bittlestone, an amateur classicist. Bittlestone took on the ancient question of where the Odyssean Ithaca might have been located. How exact were the geographical descriptions in Odyssey? The geography and… Read more
Gregory Nagy, Douglas Frame, and Leonard Muellner read, translate, and discuss Odyssey 1.125–135 in the original Greek in the most accessible way. Topics include: what Telemachus does with Athena's spear, different types of seats and seating arrangements, a comparison of this scene with the Phaeacians, and more! Read more
Gregory Nagy, Leonard Muellner, and Douglas Frame read, translate, and discuss Odyssey 1.118–124 in the original Greek in the most accessible way. Topics include: strangers and guests, the correct procedure and sequence of events when receiving a guest, how Telemachus acts as host here and as guest in Sparta, and more! Read more
Gregory Nagy, Leonard Muellner, and Douglas Frame read, translate, and discuss Odyssey 1.99–112 in the original Greek in the most accessible way. Topics include: dēmos in Homeric diction and dāmos in Linear B, the significance of Athena’s spear, the Taphians, the threshold of the house, our first impression of the suitors, how particles can help us visualize the scene, and more! Read more
Gregory Nagy, Leonard Muellner, and Douglas Frame read, translate, and discuss Odyssey 1.93–98 in the original Greek in the most accessible way. Topics include: a Cretan variant in the scholia, nostos as a song about homecoming, a journey as initiation, the range of meanings of some Greek words, Athena’s and Nestor’s roles, and more! Read more
