Classical Studies Blog
Heroism and Violence in Euripides and Anne Carson
Jillian Carlisle (’26) reads H of H Playbook (2021), Anne Carson’s daring, collage-like remaking of Euripides’ The Mad Heracles, and finds that both poets ask audiences to re-examine their understandings of heroism. Heroism, especially in the mythology of Heracles, is often demonstrated through violence. Many of us grew up hearing as children that “violence is … Continue reading Heroism and Violence in Euripides and Anne Carson
Seeing with the Soul
Cicero did not equate disability with incapability, argues Samantha Ritschel (’26). I have lived life as a disabled person for over a decade. I was not born disabled. My disease, Friedreich’s Ataxia, began affecting me when I was eleven. So many doors that were previously open for me, suddenly shut, and I needed to find … Continue reading Seeing with the Soul
Rings: Loyalty or Lies
Jilliyn Iannace (’26) shows how Ovid’s poem about the ring he has given to his beloved (Amores 2.15, Latin text at PHI; English translations by H.T. Riley 1885, and A.S. Kline 2001) begins by drawing on the ring a symbol of loyalty, but quicky veers off into a playful and risqué fantasy. When you see … Continue reading Rings: Loyalty or Lies
Three Lessons from Plutarch
Maia Lindsay (Dickinson ’28) reads Plutarch’s Lives of Caesar and Cicero and finds that, for all the flaws in the “great man” view of history, stories like those told by Plutarch do have some merit. They show what a single person is capable of, for good or for ill, and remind us that we’ll never … Continue reading Three Lessons from Plutarch
Penelope’s Odyssey
Rachel Pistol (Dickinson ’25) looks at two modern re-tellings of the Odyssey from Penelope’s point of view, Milica Paranosic’s opera Penelope and the Geese (2019) and Margaret Atwood’s Penelopiad (2005) and finds that, despite their differences, both acknowledge the complexities of womanhood more effectively than Homer’s original. In the Odyssey, Penelope is depicted as having … Continue reading Penelope’s Odyssey
Why Did Aeneas Kill Turnus?
Allie Hershey (’25) argues that Vergil subverts our expectations of heroism by not painting Aeneas as a perfectly good Roman. Rather, he portrays him as a realistic role model to Roman citizens. Turnus, on the other hand, while he has many good qualities, represents “force without wisdom.” Vergil, Aeneid 10.491-10.497, 10.500-10.505, translated by Allie Hershey: … Continue reading Why Did Aeneas Kill Turnus?
The Tragic and Powerful Myth of Queen Dido
Lindsay Werner (’25) explores the powerful and passionate language used by Dido as she confronts her faithless lover Aeneas in Book 4 of Vergil’s Aeneid. Vergil, Aeneid 4.365–370, 373-376, 382-387, translated by Lindsay Werner: You do not have a goddess as your parent, nor is Dardanus the founder of your line, treacherous man; but the … Continue reading The Tragic and Powerful Myth of Queen Dido
Unraveling Turnus—The Tragic Hero of Vergil’s Aeneid (7.435-463)
Sarah Tessler (’25) examines the scene in the seventh Book of the Aeneid in which the fury Allecto infects Turnus with war frenzy. Through Turnus’ character arc, she argues, Vergil emphasizes the devastating consequences of conflict, including a loss of individual identity, and the inevitable cycle of violence and suffering. Hic iuvenis vatem inridens sic … Continue reading Unraveling Turnus—The Tragic Hero of Vergil’s Aeneid (7.435-463)
The Sacrifice of Palinurus (Aeneid 5.851-871)
Lucian Kapushoc (’25) discusses the meaning of the Palinurus episode at the end of the the fifth Book of the Aeneid, assesses two recent translations, those of Robert Fagles (2006 and Sarah Ruden (2021), and provides his own translation. talia dicta dabat, clauumque adfixus et haerens nusquam amittebat oculosque sub astra tenebat. ecce deus ramum … Continue reading The Sacrifice of Palinurus (Aeneid 5.851-871)
Translating Rumor (Vergil, Aeneid 4.173-197)
Virginia Hargraves (’27) discusses the Rumor passage in Book 4 of the Aeneid, examining the recent translations of Shadi Bartsch and Sarah Ruden, then offers an adaptation of her own, based on “Rumor Has It” by Adele. Extemplo Libyae magnas it Fama per urbes, Fama, malum qua non aliud uelocius ullum: mobilitate uiget uirisque adquirit … Continue reading Translating Rumor (Vergil, Aeneid 4.173-197)