Uploaded February 2026 | Updated September 2026, 1 hour ago
Discussion about Odysseus' portrayal in the Homeric epics. Many participants felt that the character receives more good press than bad press in the Odyssey, although largely bad press in the Iliad. Professor Nagy noted how Odysseus even seems to get an implicit hero cult in the former, and is clearly the hero of the story, whereas the intensity of bad press varies considerably between the two epics. Participants also considered instances of Odysseus' 'trickery' — such as carving out the meat as a host even though he was a guest -— but also more insidious moments akin to war crimes. Discussion then turned to scenes in the Homeric epic that seemed to aptly capture both notions of nóstos and nóos; participants highlighted Scroll 13 and the scene of Sirens singing beautifully but as fake Muses as possible examples. Other topics included the presence and role of micro Iliads, and Odysseus as a savior yet simultaneous non-savior.
Mentioned in the discussion:
DeStone, Keith. 2016.09.28. "Getting Over Odysseus," in Classical Inquiries
https://classical-inquiries.chs.harvard.edu/getting-over-odysseus/
Nagy, Gregory. 1999 (second edition). The Best of the Achaeans: Concepts of the Hero in Archaic Greek Poetry
https://nrs.harvard.edu/urn-3:hul.ebook:CHS_NagyG.The_Best_of_the_Achaeans.1999
Recorded in Fall 2021 during v16 of the MOOC, The Ancient Greek Hero in 24 Hours, focusing on Hours 9 and 10, and responses to the Discussion Questions.
With Gregory Nagy, Keith Destone, and members of the HeroesX Team.
Discussion about Odysseus' portrayal in the Homeric epics. Many participants felt that the character receives more good press than bad press in the Odyssey, although largely bad press in the Iliad. Professor Nagy noted how Odysseus even seems to get an implicit hero cult in the former, and is clearly the hero of the story, whereas the intensity of bad press varies considerably between the two epics. Participants also considered instances of Odysseus' 'trickery' — such as carving out the meat as a host even though he was a guest -— but also more insidious moments akin to war crimes. Discussion then turned to scenes in the Homeric epic that seemed to aptly capture both notions of nóstos and nóos; participants highlighted Scroll 13 and the scene of Sirens singing beautifully but as fake Muses as possible examples. Other topics included the presence and role of micro Iliads, and Odysseus as a savior yet simultaneous non-savior.
Mentioned in the discussion:
DeStone, Keith. 2016.09.28. "Getting Over Odysseus," in Classical Inquiries
https://classical-inquiries.chs.harvard.edu/getting-over-odysseus/
Nagy, Gregory. 1999 (second edition). The Best of the Achaeans: Concepts of the Hero in Archaic Greek Poetry
https://nrs.harvard.edu/urn-3:hul.ebook:CHS_NagyG.The_Best_of_the_Achaeans.1999
Recorded in Fall 2021 during v16 of the MOOC, The Ancient Greek Hero in 24 Hours, focusing on Hours 9 and 10, and responses to the Discussion Questions.
With Gregory Nagy, Keith Destone, and members of the HeroesX Team.
