Spring 2025
The Ancient Greek Hero
Gregory Nagy PhD, Francis Jones Professor of Classical Greek Literature and Professor of Comparative Literature, Harvard University - Keith DeStone PhD
What does it mean to be human? This course takes a close look at the human condition as viewed through the lens of classical Greek civilization; the basic organizing principle is an objective study of a model of humanity, the hero. Students learn that there are different definitions of the hero in different historical times and places. In the end, though, the one true hero of this course is the logos or word of logical reasoning, as activated by Socratic dialogue. The logos of dialogue in this course requires careful thinking, realized in close reading and reflective writing. The last word about this logos comes from Plato's memories of words spoken in dialogue by Socrates during the last days of his life, which is read towards the very end of the course. Such a last word, shaped by a deep understanding of the idea of the hero in all its varieties throughout the history of Greek civilization, becomes the latest word for students who earnestly engage in dialogue, by way of writing as well as reading, with heroic expressions of the human condition. This course is driven by a sequence of dialogues that lead to such an engagement, guiding the attentive reader through many of the major works of the ancient Greek classics. In this course, all readings (which are freely available via the course website) are translated into contemporary English and supplemented by selections from the ancient visual arts.