Uploaded February 2026 | Updated September 2026, 1 week ago
This recording is presented in partnership by Princeton Public Library and Princeton Classics, the Princeton University Department of English, and the Princeton University Humanities Council.
Classicist and translator Emily Wilson is joined in conversation by Sophie Gee and Pasquale Toscano to explore how epic confronts rising populism, nation-building and authoritarian rule.
Why does epic—the most ancient of all genres—seem to be everywhere right now? And why is it especially needed in this moment of rising populism, nation-building, and authoritarian rule? These are the questions Sophie Gee and Pasquale Toscano discuss with Emily Wilson, a classicist and renowned translator of Homer. Please join us to grapple with how this unmodern form helps us confront the challenges of today.
In Conversation:
Emily Wilson is the College for Women Class of 1963 Term Professor in the Humanities at the University of Pennsylvania, an award-winning translator of Homer's Iliad and Odyssey, and a MacArthur Fellowship recipient.
Sophie Gee is a professor of English at Princeton University, the Vice-Chancellor Fellow at the University of Sydney, and a co-host of the hit podcast "The Secret Life of Books."
Pasquale Toscano (*24) is an assistant professor of English at Vassar College who's written about epic, Milton, and disability for a range of venues, both academic and public-facing.
This event was recorded on February 17, 2026.
This recording is presented in partnership by Princeton Public Library and Princeton Classics, the Princeton University Department of English, and the Princeton University Humanities Council.
Classicist and translator Emily Wilson is joined in conversation by Sophie Gee and Pasquale Toscano to explore how epic confronts rising populism, nation-building and authoritarian rule.
Why does epic—the most ancient of all genres—seem to be everywhere right now? And why is it especially needed in this moment of rising populism, nation-building, and authoritarian rule? These are the questions Sophie Gee and Pasquale Toscano discuss with Emily Wilson, a classicist and renowned translator of Homer. Please join us to grapple with how this unmodern form helps us confront the challenges of today.
In Conversation:
Emily Wilson is the College for Women Class of 1963 Term Professor in the Humanities at the University of Pennsylvania, an award-winning translator of Homer's Iliad and Odyssey, and a MacArthur Fellowship recipient.
Sophie Gee is a professor of English at Princeton University, the Vice-Chancellor Fellow at the University of Sydney, and a co-host of the hit podcast "The Secret Life of Books."
Pasquale Toscano (*24) is an assistant professor of English at Vassar College who's written about epic, Milton, and disability for a range of venues, both academic and public-facing.
This event was recorded on February 17, 2026.
