Homer's Hero
Human Excellence in the Iliad and the Odyssey
Seiten
2020
State University of New York Press (Verlag)
978-1-4384-7666-7 (ISBN)
State University of New York Press (Verlag)
978-1-4384-7666-7 (ISBN)
Draws on Plato to argue that Homer elevated private life as the locus of true friendship and the catalyst of the highest human excellence.
Offering a new, Plato-inspired reading of the Iliad and the Odyssey, this book traces the divergent consequences of love of honor and love of one's own private life for human excellence, justice, and politics. Analyzing Homer's intricate character portraits, Michelle M. Kundmueller concludes that the poet shows that the excellence or virtue to which humans incline depends on what they love most. Ajax's character demonstrates that human beings who seek honor strive, perhaps above all, to display their courage in battle, while Agamemnon's shows that the love of honor ultimately undermines the potential for moderation, destabilizing political order. In contrast to these portraits, the excellence that Homer links to the love of one's own, such as by Odysseus and his wife, Penelope, fosters moderation and employs speech to resolve conflict. It is Odysseus, rather than Achilles, who is the pinnacle of heroic excellence. Homer's portrait of humanity reveals the value of love of one's own as the better, albeit still incomplete, precursor to a just political order. Kundmueller brings her reading of Homer to bear on contemporary tensions between private life and the pursuit of public honor, arguing that individual desires continue to shape human excellence and our prospects for justice.
Offering a new, Plato-inspired reading of the Iliad and the Odyssey, this book traces the divergent consequences of love of honor and love of one's own private life for human excellence, justice, and politics. Analyzing Homer's intricate character portraits, Michelle M. Kundmueller concludes that the poet shows that the excellence or virtue to which humans incline depends on what they love most. Ajax's character demonstrates that human beings who seek honor strive, perhaps above all, to display their courage in battle, while Agamemnon's shows that the love of honor ultimately undermines the potential for moderation, destabilizing political order. In contrast to these portraits, the excellence that Homer links to the love of one's own, such as by Odysseus and his wife, Penelope, fosters moderation and employs speech to resolve conflict. It is Odysseus, rather than Achilles, who is the pinnacle of heroic excellence. Homer's portrait of humanity reveals the value of love of one's own as the better, albeit still incomplete, precursor to a just political order. Kundmueller brings her reading of Homer to bear on contemporary tensions between private life and the pursuit of public honor, arguing that individual desires continue to shape human excellence and our prospects for justice.
Michelle M. Kundmueller is Assistant Professor of Political Science at Old Dominion University.
Acknowledgments
Introduction: Human Excellence in Homer
Part I. The Iliad
1. Homer’s Honor-Loving Heroes: Ajax and Agamemnon
2. Homer’s Love-Torn Heroes: Achilles and Hektor
3. Homer’s Pausing Hero: Odysseus at Troy
Part II. The Odyssey
4. A Hero’s Story
5. Remembering Home
6. At the Heart of Homecoming
7. The Meaning of Homecoming
Conclusion: Homer’s Hero
Notes
Bibliography
Index
| Erscheinungsdatum | 15.05.2020 |
|---|---|
| Zusatzinfo | Total Illustrations: 0 |
| Verlagsort | Albany, NY |
| Sprache | englisch |
| Maße | 152 x 229 mm |
| Gewicht | 227 g |
| Themenwelt | Geisteswissenschaften ► Philosophie ► Philosophie Altertum / Antike |
| Sozialwissenschaften ► Politik / Verwaltung ► Politische Theorie | |
| ISBN-10 | 1-4384-7666-3 / 1438476663 |
| ISBN-13 | 978-1-4384-7666-7 / 9781438476667 |
| Zustand | Neuware |
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