The Ancient Greek Hero in 24 Hours

TheancientGreeks?conceptof?thehero?wasverydifferentfromwhatweunderstandbythetermtoday,GregoryNagyargues?anditisonlythroughanalyzingtheirhistoricalcontextsthatwecantrulyunderstandAchilles,Odysseus,Oedipus,andHerakles.InGreektradition,aherowasahuman,maleorfemale,oftheremotepast,whowasendowedwithsuperhumanabilitiesbyvirtueofbeingdescendedfromanimmortalgod.Despitetheirmortality,heroes,likethegods,wereobjectsofcultworship.Nagyexaminesthisdistinctivelyreligiousnotionoftheheroinitsmanydimensions,intextsspanningtheeighthtofourthcenturiesbce:theHomericIliadandOdyssey;tragediesofAeschylus,Sophocles,andEuripides;songsofSapphoandPindar;anddialoguesofPlato.AllworksarepresentedinEnglishtranslation,withattentiontothesubtletiesoftheoriginalGreek,andareoftenfurtherilluminatedbyillustrationstakenfromAthenianvasepaintings.Thefifth-centurybcehistorianHerodotussaidthattoreadHomeristobeacivilizedperson.Intwenty-fourinstallments,basedontheHarvardUniversitycourseNagyhastaughtandrefinedsincethelate1970s,TheAncientGreekHeroin24Hoursoffersanexplorationofcivilization?srootsintheHomericepicsandotherClassicalliterature,alineagethatcontinuestochallengeandinspireustoday.,AnalyzestheroleoftheGreekherointheclassicalGreekliteratureoftheeighththroughthefourthcenturiesB.C.E.anddiscussesthewaysinwhichtheGreeknotionoftheheroisdifferentfromitsmodernconcept.,