Thesmophoriazusae or Women at the Thesmophoria or The Poet and the Women is not as famous as Lysistrat, but it is another gynocentric comedy by Aristophanes. Discussion Prompts: How progressive/subversive/pick your modifier do you think this play is? Why? If you were directing this play, what time period would you set it in? Why? Who is theContinue reading “Greek Comedy X: Aristophanes’s Women at the Thesmophoria, or Let’s Make Fun of Euripides”
Category Archives: The Greeks
Greek Epics XI: Iliad Book 10, or Who’s Up for a Night Raid?
This is one of the shorter books in the Iliad. But it’s rather bloody for its length… Discussion Prompts Was Homer bad at math? Why or why not? Do Dolon’s actions meet the heroic code? Why or why not? How might this book have been different if Athena had taken the night off? What do you thinkContinue reading “Greek Epics XI: Iliad Book 10, or Who’s Up for a Night Raid?”
Greek Tragedy XII: Sophocles’s Women of Trachis, or Revenge is a Dish Best Served Cold
In this episode, we learn how Heracles dies. And how Nessus knew how to play the long game. Discussion Prompts What does this play tell us about loyalty? What do you think about the portrayal of Heracles in this play? Is he what you expect from him? Is it important that the chorus is comprised ofContinue reading “Greek Tragedy XII: Sophocles’s Women of Trachis, or Revenge is a Dish Best Served Cold”
Greek Myth IV: Hesiod’s Shield of Heracles, or You Thought This Was Going to Be About Heracles, Didn’t You?
This interesting little poem isn’t actually by Hesiod. And it isn’t really about Heracles either. Discussion Prompts Do you care to weigh in on whether or not this is by Hesiod? What do you think? Why? Would this poem benefit from being longer? Why or why not? What is the purpose of an item of war depicting bothContinue reading “Greek Myth IV: Hesiod’s Shield of Heracles, or You Thought This Was Going to Be About Heracles, Didn’t You?”
Greek Epics X: Iliad Book 9, or Wait, Achilles is in This?
We finally see Achilles again in Book 9 of the Iliad. What are your thoughts on how well this meeting goes? Discussion Prompts Phoinix seems to go off on a tangent when he starts talking about Meleagros. Why do you think he thinks this story will be useful given the fact that Achilles has already pointedContinue reading “Greek Epics X: Iliad Book 9, or Wait, Achilles is in This?”
Greek Comedy IX: Aristophanes’s Lysistrata, or Let the Women Handle It
Content Warning! It is impossibly to talk about Lysistrata without talking about sex. Consider yourself warned. Discussion Prompts If you were directing this play today, what time period would you set it in? Why? Do you consider this play to be progressive or conservative? Why? How do you think the interpretation of this play is affected byContinue reading “Greek Comedy IX: Aristophanes’s Lysistrata, or Let the Women Handle It”
Greek Epics IX: Iliad Book 8, or the Gods Just Can’t Let It Go
We are officially 1/3 of the way through the Iliad. Is it what you were expecting? Discussion Prompts How would you describe the relationship between fate and the gods as we see it in this book? Whose side is Zeus really on? Why? How many charioteers is Hektor going to go through? If you were toContinue reading “Greek Epics IX: Iliad Book 8, or the Gods Just Can’t Let It Go”
BONUS Episode: Brad Poer’s Antigone: Closure
In a special bonus episode, I talk with Brad Poer about his Antigone: Closure. He graciously shared these production photos so that you can get a better sense of the production we discuss in the episode. If you’re interested in learning more or producing your own version of Antigone: Closure, you can contact Brad viaContinue reading “BONUS Episode: Brad Poer’s Antigone: Closure”
Greek Tragedy XI: Sophocles’s Antigone, or Antigone Doesn’t Care What You Think
This tightly written play leaves us with a lot to think about. I touch on a few points in the episode, but there’s a lot more that we can talk about, even more than in the prompts below. Discussion Prompts Creon states that Polyneices’s goal was spilling blood and selling the people of Thebes intoContinue reading “Greek Tragedy XI: Sophocles’s Antigone, or Antigone Doesn’t Care What You Think”
Greek Myth II & III: Hesiod’s Theogony, or Imagine if Hesiod Had an Ancestry.com Account Part 1 & Part 2
The Theogony was a little too long to do in one episode, so I split it in two. But for discussion purposes, we’ll keep it all together. Discussion Prompts Gaia, the Muses, Memory, Night, the Fates, the Furies… The Theogony is populated by women who have power and are in many ways equal to theirContinue reading “Greek Myth II & III: Hesiod’s Theogony, or Imagine if Hesiod Had an Ancestry.com Account Part 1 & Part 2”
Triumvir Clio's School of Classical Civilization 