Miscellaneous

You are Aeneas, Troy's preeminent hero. Your loyalty and integrity are legendary. Will your values hold firm after the destruction of your city, a grueling exile, and yet another war?

You are Odysseus, the wiliest hero of ancient Greece. Your love for family is as strong as your quest for adventure. What will you do, when given the choice of immortality? Or when a man-eating monster has you and your men trapped in his cave?

This folk opera of nine tracks, 24 songs, interprets the story of The Odyssey in song, invoking the spirit of the Ancient Greek bards who originally brought forth the timeless story. The Odyssey consists of 24 short songs sung by Joe Goodkin while playing the acoustic guitar. The performance is continuous and runs around 30 mins. The Odyssey is especially suited for high school and college classes reading The Odyssey, but can be adapted for audiences of any age with any level of familiarity with the story.

You are Achilles, the greatest hero Greece has ever known. You fight with honor and pride. Your skills at arms are unmatched. You have never experienced defeat. But on the battlefields of Troy you have a decision to make: stay true to your code of honor and not fight, or come to the aid of your countrymen and win fame and glory, becoming an even greater legend.

How did the ancients treat their pets? What did they do if they needed a quick bite to eat? What sorts of games did their children play? Such details emerge in this compendium of “out-of-the-way” facts and amusing anecdotes, shedding light on daily life in classical Greece and Rome. They Did It First provides a multifaceted look at the ancient world—from the obscure to the surprisingly familiar—by deftly weaving together evidence from written sources and material culture. As the author proceeds through an assortment of topics, parallels between antiquity and the modern world become clear.

They Said It First provides a unique twist on quotation collections: ancient Greek and Roman sayings, alongside English translations, are paired with their more modern counterparts. The likes of W. E. B. Dubois and Mark Twain may have eloquently expressed eternal truths and pithy witticisms—but frequently, Homer or Seneca the Younger got there first.

Encounter stories of ancient Greek and Roman augurs, special seers who interpreted bird signs—entirely in Latin!

Marcus, a young Roman boy, has been struggling to show his father Titus that he is simply not cut out for life as an augur. Why can’t he seek adventure and glory as a soldier? Titus, in turn, can’t quite get Marcus to understand the importance of augury, especially its role in keeping Roman soldiers safe. Titus has seen the dangers of war firsthand and fears for his son’s future. By telling Marcus stories of legendary Greek and Roman augurs, Titus hopes to convey some tough truths about military life—and why divining the gods’ will is essential. Along the way, he also reveals how augury has been woven into the fabric of Rome’s very existence.

Encounter ancient Roman comedy—entirely in Latin!

Titus, named after Roman playwright Titus Maccius Plautus, lives with his parents and sisters on the Aventine Hill in Rome. Without much time for leisure, everyone in the family looks forward to festival days. Titus in particular eagerly awaits the ludi scaenici, special celebrations when plays are performed. But when it’s time to honor Magna Mater, the Great Mother goddess, with a comedy, Titus wakes up late! Can he catch up with his father and sisters and find a seat in time to watch the show?

Who knew the ancient world could be so funny? This collection of cartoons was taken from the archives covering 26 years of publication of Pompeiiana, a newsletter devoted to student-developed material. Popular topics for the cartoons include Medusa (e.g., her chicken-haired cousin), Julius Caesar (e.g., Caesar reforms the colander), the Trojan War (e.g., Ulysses getting a Trojan warrior to shout his comments thus making the Trojan hoarse) as well as commentary on Caligula's horse in the senate (always voting "neigh"∫) and Horatius playing cards or Horatius at bridge.