The word "economics" comes down to us from the Greek meaning "household management" and the various contingents of the household. Thus the science of the economy is the science of the household or the estate. The title of Xenophon's seminal but brief dialogue points us to the theme of the text: household management, or more … Continue reading Xenophon’s Perfect Country Gentleman in the Oeconomicus
great books
The War Between the Sexes in Lysistrata
Lysistrata is the only surviving Aristophanean play whose title designates the name of the main character. Most other plays convey the collective name of the Chorus or another chief theme of the play. Lysistrata means something like "releaser of war" or "army disbander" and we are invited by Aristophanes to consider her character above all others, as the … Continue reading The War Between the Sexes in Lysistrata
The Pursuit of Beauty in Edna Ferber’s So Big
So Big by Edna Ferber is going to take some time for me to mull over. It was an enjoyable novel, albeit scattered. It was published in 1924, and won the Pulitzer in 1925. It is a novel that is striving to find beauty in the ordinary, and it seeks to expose the new capitalist class … Continue reading The Pursuit of Beauty in Edna Ferber’s So Big
Thoughts on Wisdom in Ecclesiasticus
The grandson of the author of Ecclesiasticus opens the book with a prologue of his journey through Egypt translating the text into Greek, which has allowed him to impart great wisdom on his peers, the Egyptian Jewry -for the Torah is good, but only words written in their native tongue carry the greatest power. The author … Continue reading Thoughts on Wisdom in Ecclesiasticus
Dionysus’s Descent Into Hades In The Frogs
The Frogs is my favorite of Aristophanes's comedies. It is the only Aristophanean comedy to feature a god at the beginning -Dionysus, the god of the theatre, and his slave Xanthias. As they walk, Xanthias is meta-textually concerned with telling jokes that will make the audience laugh, and laughter presupposes some kind of suffering, though the … Continue reading Dionysus’s Descent Into Hades In The Frogs
Aristophanes’s The Birds: A New City in the Sky
Aristophanes The Birds ("Ornithets") is the only comedy written by Aristophanes whose entire action takes place far from the city of Athens. Consequently, the play makes little mention of the circumstances of the Peloponnesian War, or of contemporary Athenian politics. It won second prize at the Dionysia in 414 BC. It is a play about the … Continue reading Aristophanes’s The Birds: A New City in the Sky
Thoughts on the Book of Wisdom
The apocryphal Biblical text, sometimes called the "Book of Wisdom" is a collection of 19 chapters intended to encourage readers and listeners to pursue a life of wisdom. It is a non-canonical text that likely emerged from the educated city of Alexandria, Egypt. It is sometimes attributed to Solomon and was listed in the Vulgate … Continue reading Thoughts on the Book of Wisdom
Judith: Israel’s Great Heroine
Judith is the great apocryphal heroine of ancient Israel. Like an ancient Joan of Arc, she rises up during her nation's time of need. She employs her guile, like Odysseus, adorning a misleading costume and she dramatically slays Holofernes, the fearsome general of Assyria, before his army destroys the town of Bethulia near Jerusalem. The … Continue reading Judith: Israel’s Great Heroine
A Parody of Greek Mythology In The Peace
As with other comedies by Aristophanes, The Peace ("Eirene"), begins in an ordinary and everyday situation and extends out into the absurd, or the impossible. Like The Wasps, it also features a wealthy gentleman overcome by a unique and ridiculous appearance of a mental disease -he plans to fly up to the gods on a giant … Continue reading A Parody of Greek Mythology In The Peace
Susanna: An Apocryphal Fable
The Story of Susanna is a beautiful but brief tale of a virtuous woman, Susanna, who is wrongly accused of infidelity by two lustful men. She has been raised in a family that follows the laws of Moses. She is reportedly very beautiful, which is why two old men spy on her each day. One day, … Continue reading Susanna: An Apocryphal Fable
