Tag Archives: Homer

A Partial Defense of Plato’s Poet Ban

By Robin Bates | Published: April 25, 2021

Perhaps Plato banished poets from his ideal society because he appreciated the destructive potential of stories. He’s relevant in light of today’s conspiracy theories.

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Black Lives Matter Changes the Canon

By Robin Bates | Published: July 1, 2020

Black Lives Matter is getting some professors to rethink works they had previously defended

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Homer, Virgil & Dante Visit the Afterlife

By Robin Bates | Published: April 6, 2020

In my Representative Masterpieces course, I conclude with Dante’s “Inferno,” where we see sinners creating their own hells.

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Homer’s Use of the Agamemnon Story

By Robin Bates | Published: March 8, 2020

The Agamemnon story is alluded to multiple times in “Odyssey,” each time with a different slant dependent on the teller’s needs.

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Penelope Underrated (Like Many Mothers)

By Robin Bates | Published: March 2, 2020

In an inspiring essay, a student draws on a long overdue appreciation of her mother to explore Penelope’s heroism in “The Odyssey.”

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What To Make of a Hero That Lies

By Robin Bates | Published: February 23, 2020

A student wants to know what to make of Homer’s apparent approval of Odysseus’s lying. The question doesn’t admit of an easy answer.

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When We Yield to Inner Darkness

By Robin Bates | Published: February 20, 2020

The Odyssey explores how violence can swallow up those who engage in it. Odysseus is heroic in that he can listen to religious checks when blood lust threatens.

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Overcoming the Siren Call of Domination

By Robin Bates | Published: February 9, 2020

A reader suggests that the island enchantresses in “Odyssey” help the hero in his quest for integration.

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The Dangers of Emotional Identification

By Robin Bates | Published: February 4, 2020

In which I push back against an article warning about emotional identification with literary characters.

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