In the gloss provided by Gregory Nagy in H24H[1] and the associated Sourcebook[1], mēnis is summarized as “superhuman anger, cosmic sanction”. Following the Kosmos Society Book Club discussion about Leonard Muellner’s The Anger of Achilles: Mênis in Greek Epic (available online at CHS)[3], we became interested in finding out how the word was used in other texts, so it seems appropriate to choose this for the next Core Vocab discussion. Muellner… Read more
Hold it right there. Tell me this, Ion—respond to what I ask without concealment. When you say well the epic verses and induce a feeling of bedazzlement [ekplēxis] for the spectators [theōmenoi] —as you sing of Odysseus leaping onto the threshold and revealing himself to the suitors and pouring out the arrows at his feet, or of Achilles rushing at Hector, or something connected to the pitiful things about Andromache… Read more
We were pleased to welcome Natasha Bershadsky, Fellow in Ancient Greek History at the Center for Hellenic Studies, for an Open House discussion on the Lelantine War, which she describes as “an ancient conflict between Chalcis and Eretria, two neighboring cities on the island of Euboea, over the Lelantine plain, situated between them.” The event was streamed live on Thursday, October 4, at 11 a.m. EDT, and was recorded. Before… Read more
When the news of the Greek victory at Marathon (490 BCE) came to the Persian king Darius the Great, he first sent heralds to Hellas to demand earth and water—the usual token of submission—which he received from many cities of Greece. [1] He instructed Ionia and the islands to build ships and to enroll their best men for service against Hellas. King Darius died, and the royal power descended to… Read more
When we investigate how the law and the courts of Classical Greece worked, the law of ancient Athens provides most of our source material. This overview will therefore focus on Athenian law in the fifth and fourth centuries, BCE.[1] Before that time, disputes were adjudicated by officials called archons. The archons may have heard testimony from parties and witnesses, may have questioned them, and perhaps the parties were allowed to… Read more