Exploring Interpretations of Classical Heroes

Each author has a different take on Odysseus,

has a different take on Helen,

has a different take on Polyphemus, as we were talking about,

has a different take on Telemachus.

You know, is Odysseus a hero or is he a villain?

Is he both? Is Agamemnon a hero or a villain?

Is Helen a hero or a villain?

You know, was she kidnapped or did she fall in love?

You know, or there's another version of it

where she's like transported to Egypt.

There's all these different versions of it.

And so if we understand it more as like source material

that people are riffing on over and over and over again,

almost like a song sample,

I think we understand a little bit more of what they're trying to do.

And then the idea is each one of these reads

helps correspond to something ultimately in your own life.