The title of Euripides's Iphigenia in Tauris can literally be translated as 'Iphigenia Among the Taurians'. The term Tauris is not actually a place, but it refers to the Greek word for the Crimean Peninsula (Taurike). The Iphigenia story has fascinated and horrified artists since antiquity. Several later versions of the Iphigenia story were created, including one … Continue reading Thoughts on Iphigenia in Tauris
creative writing
Swing Time
Swing Time (1936) Director: George Stevens Swing Time is a wonderful film, and may be Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers's finest movie. Together they made ten Hollywood films, and nine of which were musicals for RKO. Six of them were the top money-makers for RKO. As Katherine Hepburn once said, "He gives her class, and she … Continue reading Swing Time
The Gorgias, A Dialogue of War and Battle
The Gorgias, a dialogue of "war and battle" has been called the natural introduction to the Republic. Why is this the case? The Gorgias shows us a unique drama - a pupil of a foreign rhetorician versus a pupil of the Athenian philosopher. It is a dialogue in battle, perhaps the dialogue in battle, as Callicles's opening words … Continue reading The Gorgias, A Dialogue of War and Battle
Morning Glory
Morning Glory (1933) Director: Lowell Sherman Morning Glory is an excellent film starring Katharine Hepburn, Douglas Fairbanks, Jr., and Adolphe Menjou. The whimsical music is composed by the brilliant Max Steiner. The film was derived from a yet-to-be-staged play of the same name by Zoe Akins. It tells the story of the youthful and idealistic Eva … Continue reading Morning Glory
Cratylus: Plato’s Dialogue on Language
In the character of Cratylus, we find a Platonic figure that most closely matches much of our contemporary philosophic challenge, namely the challenge posed by the Analytic philosophers. The dialogue is a dramatic piece, rather than a recounted story by either Socrates or another story-teller, of a conversation taking place between Hermogenes and Cratylus that … Continue reading Cratylus: Plato’s Dialogue on Language
Euthydemus’s Form of Relativism
Beginning at 293B in Plato's Euthydemus, Crito asks Socrates if Euthydemus was able to reveal anything to him yesterday at the Lyceum when they spoke in front a crowd of rowdy supporters of Euthydemus. Socrates exclaims that 'of course!' that Euthydemus had shown him things. Euthydemus asks Socrates whether he knows anything to which Socrates responds affirmatively … Continue reading Euthydemus’s Form of Relativism
