The Iliad Reimagined: History, Mythology, Legend, & Fiction

Curriculum

The Trojan War: a story that launched at least a thousand stories. We will spend a few hours each Tuesday engaging with a variety of material related to the epic tale, including: a survey of the mythology and history of ancient Greece; an in-depth reading of Homer’s The Iliad; a review of the triumphs and tragedies of the search for historical Troy; a look at some of the ways the Trojan War is depicted in popular culture; a brief study of how Greek mythology was used as a foundation for Roman mythology; and an in-depth reading of Virgil’s The Aeneid.

Equivalent to one year of high school English.

Values

• Gain an understanding of the nature of epic poetry and the art of story-telling.
• Become familiar with the events and characters of the Iliad and the timeless story of the Trojan War.
• Review the history of Ancient Greece and consider its impact on the world today.
• Study the basics of Greek Mythology and how religion impacts culture.
• Explore the idea of the hero.
• Recognize the creation and establishment of the patriarchy within a warrior-class society.
• Examine the effects of war on individuals, civilizations, and culture.
• Gain insight into the emotional strengths and weaknesses of the human condition.

Topics

September 18: Greek Mythology & History of Ancient Greece
September 25: Greek Mythology & History of Ancient Greece / Troy
October 2: Greek Mythology & Homer and “heroic hexameter”
October 9: Greek Mythology & The Iliad
October 16: Greek Mythology & The Iliad
October 23: Greek Mythology & The Iliad
October 30: The Iliad
November 6: Quiz / The Iliad
November 13: The Iliad
November 20: The Iliad
November 27: Search for Troy
December 4: Midterm
January 8: The Song of Achilles
January 15: The Song of Achilles
January 22: Ilium
January 29: Ilium
February 5: Ilium
February 12: Ilium
February 19: Ilium
February 26: Olympos
March 5: Olympos
March 12: Olympos
March 19: Olympos
April 2: Olympos
April 9: Olympos
April 16: Quiz & Roman Mythology
April 23: The Aeneid
April 30: The Aeneid
May 7: The Aeneid
May 14: The Aeneid
May 21: The Aeneid
May 28: Final

Books (in any format/device: book, phone, tablet, Kindle etc.) Required:
The Iliad translated by Caroline Alexander
The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller
Ilium by Dan Simmons
Olympos by Dan Simmons
The Aeneid translated by Stanley Lombardo

It is really important each participant has the correct translation of The Iliad and The Aeneid, because they won’t be able to keep up otherwise. The translations are all significantly different and we will be doing a bit of reading out loud each week.

All of these books contain some mature, high school level themes, including some violence and mild sexual content. Contact us for more detail if you like.

Registration for this Math Circle is now closed.