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About the lecture:

Athletic scenes in the Odyssey are numerous, occur at critical moments in the text, and illustrate status, identity, and power dynamics between various characters. Much has been written on the famous scenes of athletics in the poem, such as the games of the Phaeacians, the boxing match between Odysseus and the beggar Irus, and contest of the bow. This talk focuses on several other athletic depictions in the poem to consider the breadth of ancient cultural knowledge of sport and its importance across the epic. 

About the speaker:

Sanjaya Thakur is Judson Bemis Professor of Humanities and Professor of Classics at Colorado College. Heis also currently Elizabeth A. Whitehead Distinguished Scholar at the ASCSA for 2022–23 and serves as Director of the Classical Summer School at the American Academy, Rome (2021-23). Professor Thakur is author of numerous articles on Augustan literature and culture, and his research interests also include ancient sport, both Greek and Roman.