La Trobe Classics in the City 2026
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About
An odyssey through the Odyssey.
Seen the film? Read the book? Join La Trobe University’s experts in the ancient world to find out more about the real Odyssey – Homer’s version.
Book each talk seperately.
Talk 1
Odysseus: hapless victim of the gods or victim of his own arrogance? with Dr Christopher Gribbin
Odysseus: hapless victim of the gods or victim of his own arrogance? with Dr Christopher Gribbin
Driven by a combination of curiosity, arrogance and a desire for a good time, Odysseus makes multiple decisions that prolong his journey home. This talk will examine the complex character of Odysseus as portrayed by Homer and who’s really to blame for his long voyage.
Talk 2
Odysseus in the Underworld with Dr Gillian Shepherd
Odysseus in the Underworld with Dr Gillian Shepherd
Where exactly is the Underworld and how do you get there? Who were the dead that Odysseus met, what did they look like and what did they have to say? Join Gillian on a journey to the Underworld to find out what it is like down there…
Talk 3
What’s in a Name? with Dr Heather Sebo
What’s in a Name? with Dr Heather Sebo
The Odyssey poet pays a great deal of attention to names, especially to the name of his hero. In the course of the poem, Odysseus is asked who he is, to name himself: first by the monstrous Cyclopes and then by Antinoos, the King of the Golden Age Phaiakian people.
Talk 4
Just Drink This: Medicine, Magic and Memory in the Odyssey with Dr Leanne McNamara
Just Drink This: Medicine, Magic and Memory in the Odyssey with Dr Leanne McNamara
Helen’s nepenthes removes grief, the lotus erases memories, Circe’s pharmaka transforms humans to animals and back again, while Hermes’ moly protects against enchantments. What are these substances? Are they natural or supernatural; magic or medicine; helpful or harmful? Who can use or control them, and what does this tell us about ancient hopes and fears? Join Leanne on a journey through the fantastical potions and practitioners of the Odyssey.
Talk 5
Waiting and Weaving: Women in Homer and beyond with Dr Aimee Turner
Waiting and Weaving: Women in Homer and beyond with Dr Aimee Turner
The image of Penelope waiting for Odysseus, weaving away during the day, is an enduring one. But did weaving only symbolise female virtue? Join Aimee as she contrasts the virtue signalling of weaving with stories in which the loom served as a tool of resistance, challenging patriarchal power.
Talk 6
Odysseus invades Rome with Dr Rhiannon Evans
Odysseus invades Rome with Dr Rhiannon Evans
The tale of the Trojan Horse and the fall of Troy is told in Homer’s Odyssey and other Greek works. We’ll see a lot more of the Trojan Horse, and of course the Trojan victims of the city’s fall, while Odysseus himself becomes a rather shadowy background figure – a bogeyman who haunts the Trojans both before and after the slaughter.