Herodotus Book 9 Summary Mardonios, the general of the invading Persian army, marched toward Athens after the Athenians refused to surrender. The Thebans advised him to bribe the Greek leaders and divide the Greeks but he refused. He led his army to occupy the deserted Athens to impress Xerxes with beacons. Mardonios offered the same… Continue reading Tiger’s Reading for Context Ergon
Classics Movie Screenings
Despite having no knowledge of Latin beyond the ability to say “in via curro” and “psittacus vinum bibit” (two things I learned from the Duolingo Latin course in 2020), I have been attending (and enjoying) the film screenings for Professor Warwick’s Ovid seminar. The first of these was Videodrome, directed by David Cronenberg, which is… Continue reading Classics Movie Screenings
Dr. Foxley Talk Reflections
Dr. Florencia Foxley, Lecturer of Classical Studies at Dartmouth, delivered a cοmpelling lecture about childbirth and the figure of the bride in Euripidean tragedy, Andromache. Her studies focus on the way motherhood and childbirth are regulated and idealogozied in service of patriarchal social structures. Through a study of Euripidean tragedy and late 5th century vase… Continue reading Dr. Foxley Talk Reflections
Lucian’s “A Feast of Lapithae” – Ellie
(Reading for Context) I read a translation of Lucian’s A Feast of Lapithae, his spoof version of the famous Attic Greek text The Symposium by Plato. Lucian must have been well-read in the written Greek tradition, and shows both his knowledge and capacity for critique of such works. He composed this parody of The Symposium… Continue reading Lucian’s “A Feast of Lapithae” – Ellie
Creative Adaptation – Simone
For this ergon, I wanted to draw my interpretation of the scene with the vine women. Specifically, I wanted to draw the part where the men began turning into vines as well mainly because I felt that it challenged my imagination, and I wanted to see what it would look like on paper. Whenever I… Continue reading Creative Adaptation – Simone
Anais Olivier – The Vine Women Creative Project
The moment I read Lucian’s description of the vine women, I knew I had to try and draw them. The way these women are described is confusing and a bit terrifying to imagine. The women are apparently perfectly formed from the thigh up, with a thick base of vines. The images Lucian conjures up is… Continue reading Anais Olivier – The Vine Women Creative Project
Tiger’s “Research, Reflect, Connect” Ergon
Response to Herodotus and the Greco-Persian Wars by Phiroze Vasunia In Herodotus and the Greco-Persian Wars, Vasunia looks into “The Histories” by Herodotus and attempts to extrapolate Herodotus’s view on the cause of the Greco-Persian wars. He argues that Herodotus does not give a definitive cause to explain the conflict between the Greeks and the… Continue reading Tiger’s “Research, Reflect, Connect” Ergon
Reading for Context Celia
Coined the “Father of History,” Herodotus constructed The Histories to catalogue his account of the Persian War, a series of infamous battles fought between the scrawny Greek city-states and the powerful Persian Empire. Throughout his investigation of the Persian Wars, he strays from the topic at hand to share information about other civilizations. In Book… Continue reading Reading for Context Celia
Research, Reflect, Connect – Simone
For my ergon, I read an article titled The True, the False, and the Truly False: Lucian’s Philosophical Science Fiction by Roy Arthur Swanson that dived into Lucian’s potential intentions for writing True History. Swanson emphasizes that Lucian does not try to present the stories as true. Instead, he attempts to emphasize that the stories… Continue reading Research, Reflect, Connect – Simone
Penn Museum Trip Write-up – Ellie
I attended the Penn Museum with the Classics Department, and this is my elaboration on some of the prompts given on a worksheet for students. Greek vase depicting feminine figures: One of the first objects I saw upon entering the Greek Vase room at the Penn Museum was an Attic black-figure amphora with decoration of… Continue reading Penn Museum Trip Write-up – Ellie