S3 – 5. Silvio Bär: Ancient Greek Literature and Heroes without Texts
Update: 2023-03-03
Description
Silvio Bär, Professor of Classics at the University of Oslo, speaks to Karin Kukkonen about Ancient Greek literature and its heroes. Learn how the “epic memory” works, why cognitive dissonance can help us understand ancient texts better, and the major difference between us and the ancient Greeks as an audience for tales about heroes.
Silvio's reading recommendation
Homer's Iliad and The Odyssey (Silvio's favourite translations are by Richmond Lattimore)
Post-production: Bård Ingebrigtsen & Vera Syrovatskaya.
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The guest, Prof. Silvio Bar of the University of Oslo, presents some very interesting ideas about the reception of classical heroes down the ages. However, his claim that there is no mention of the childhood of Achilles and Odysseus in the epics is flat out wrong. In two scenes in the Iliad, the embassy and Patroclus' ghost, Achilles childhood is mentioned. And likewise in the Odyssey, there are two scenes in which the childhood of Odysseus is mentioned.