Read a Book. Save Yourself. Save the World.
As a teacher of classical literature for over twelve years, I am excited to be offering a course on The Iliad for adults this summer. Here are ten reasons why you should put down your phone and pick up a book this summer!
1. The Iliad is the first book in Western culture and one of our oldest stories. It was written down around 850 B.C., just when the Greek alphabet was being invented. But it’s older than that. The story (or elements of the story) had been passed down via oral tradition for hundreds of years by the Mycenaeans, the ancient Greeks’ early ancestors. The story is set during the Trojan War, which probably happened in the late Bronze Age, around 1250 B.C.
2. About The Iliad, Simon Weil once wrote: “Nothing that the peoples of Europe have since produced has been worth the first poem to have appeared among them.” (We’ll be discussing the essay in which that quote appears as part of the class.) Here’s an idea: How about instead of binging on the latest, depressing piece of crap produced by Netflix, you spend those 10-20 hours reading the greatest thing to ever come out of Western civilization? (The Iliad is also kind of depressing, but it is also at times funny, always poignant, and incredibly beautiful.)
3. Poetry is a branch of knowledge. If you go to the Stanza della segnatura in the Palace of the Vatican in Rome, you can look up and see four frescos that Raphael painted representing philosophy, theology, poetry, and law. “The Parnassus” depicts Apollo, the god of music and poetry, along with the Muses; Homer is there, on the left in blue. Why is poetry a branch of knowledge? Perhaps William Carlos Williams said it best:
It is difficult
to get the news from poems
yet men die miserably every day
for lack
of what is found there.
4. The Iliad reminds us of the effects of sin, specifically the sin of wrath. If you have a short temper, lash out at people, and hold grudges; if you too frequently ruminate on the weaknesses of others; if you have ever done anything out of spite, just because you felt “dissed” (disrespected); if you have ever thought to yourself, “I’ll show them!”, then first of all, join the club! Wrath stems from pride, the mother of all vices. Sometimes one great poem is worth a million sermons
Article from LewRockwell
LewRockwell.com is a libertarian website that publishes articles, essays, and blog posts advocating for minimal government, free markets, and individual liberty. The site was founded by Lew Rockwell, an American libertarian political commentator, activist, and former congressional staffer. The website often features content that is critical of mainstream politics, state intervention, and foreign policy, among other topics. It is a platform frequently used to disseminate Austrian economics, a school of economic thought that is popular among some libertarians.
