Questions tagged [greek-language]
Questions about works of literature that were originally written in the Greek language, regardless of whether they were written or published in Greece or elsewhere.
116
questions
6
votes
2
answers
3k
views
Greek myth about an athlete who kills another man with a discus
I was wondering if someone could help me identify this story from Greek (I'm almost certain) legend that I read when I was young (in the 80s or 90s).
Anyway, an athlete is competing at the discus, but ...
2
votes
1
answer
714
views
What does Athena mean in this passage of book 3 of the Odyssey?
In book 3 of The Odyssey, Athena says this to Telemachus after he says that he will never gain her favor (in Robert Fagles' translation):
“Telemachus!”
Pallas Athena broke in sharply, her eyes afire—
...
3
votes
1
answer
290
views
What does Athena mean by 'slaughtering his droves of sheep and cattle'?
In book 1 of The Odyssey, Athena says to Zeus (in Robert Fagles' translation):
While I myself go down to Ithaca, rouse his son
to a braver pitch, inspire his heart with courage
to summon the flowing-...
4
votes
1
answer
564
views
What does Athena mean by "suave, seductive words" in the Odyssey?
In book 1 of The Odyssey, Athena says to Zeus (in Robert Fagles' translation):
"Atlas’ daughter it is who holds Odysseus captive,
luckless man—despite his tears, forever trying
to spellbind his ...
2
votes
1
answer
214
views
Meaning of Hesiod's line "reproaching the sons whom he himself begot..."
In Theogony lines 207 to 209, Hesiod says (English translation by Richard Caldwell, 1987):
reproaching the sons whom he himself begot;
he said they strained in wickedness to do a
great wrong
What ...
3
votes
1
answer
93
views
What evidence supports Calypso's island being Gozo (Malta)?
In the Odyssey, the island where Calypso lives is called Ogygia, but what real Mediterranean island is this? One long-standing theory has it as Gozo, the second island of Malta:
Ogygia or Phaeacia ...
4
votes
1
answer
188
views
In search of: The Lexicon of Exekias/Ezekias
I caught part of a TV segment that was featuring classical sources, the narrator mentioned one text he referred to as "The Lexicon of Exekias"
I jotted it down, thinking it would be easy to ...
8
votes
1
answer
166
views
Do we have (non-biblical) literary allusions referring to person as a "χριστός"?
A great starting place for Greek literature is always Perseus Tufts, and the entry for "χριστός" returned these dictionary entries and textual allusions.
As expected, we see entries for the ...
5
votes
0
answers
67
views
Does Nicanor's account of Alexander survive?
I came across allusions to a source in one of the volumes of the Ante-Nicene Fathers, relevant summary by Oxford:
The learned Roman scholar and antiquarian M. Terentius Varro decided
to take matters ...
4
votes
1
answer
475
views
On Some Grand Lines in a Greek Tragedy
I recently asked this question on Christianity SE, but it received no answers. It was suggested that I ask it here with the greek-language tag:
In his essay "The Syllabus" (which refers to ...
0
votes
1
answer
63
views
is it possible to adapt ancient graeco-roman prosodic styles, forms, principles, modifications into modern verses? [closed]
is it possible to adapt ancient graeco-roman prosodic styles, forms, principles, modifications into modern verses?
does anybody know good authors who write in vernacular or modern languages with greek ...
1
vote
0
answers
269
views
Catharsis in Medea
Catharsis is defined by Aristotle as a pure release of supressed emotions. It generally occurs at the end of the play or at the resolution, when the audience undergoes a powerful experience of a range ...
4
votes
1
answer
262
views
Greek Alexander Romance - Plot device or other function of Alexander's surreptitious stealing of Persian drinking cups?
In one of the more common form factors of the Greek Alexander Romance (by Pseudo-Callisthenes), we have this passage, located in Book II, 15:
As they began to drink more deeply, Alexander had an idea:...
9
votes
3
answers
766
views
Who is the 'pale Titan-woman' in Swinburne's 'Ave atque Vale'?
For those fond of intertextual references, 'Ave atque Vale' by Algernon Charles Swinburne, an English poet's lament for the French poet Charles Baudelaire, is something of a goldmine, being absolutely ...
4
votes
2
answers
317
views
Did Lord Byron fluff his Greek in his poem beginning 'Maid of Athens, ere we part'?
One of Lord Byron's most famous poems appears, in the earliest editions of his works, under the simple title of 'Song', but is now more widely know by its first line, 'Maid of Athens, ere we part'. ...