The Vote To Save a City ā The Deadly Mytilinean Debate with Paul Cartledge
This week, Jimmy and Armand plunge into the tense world of ancient Athenian democracy, where the fate of an entire city hung on a single vote. The fierce Mytilene Debate showcased the incredible power of demagogues, the importance of the thin line between justice and vengeance and the undeniable power of āsleeping on itāā¦
They also unpick the origins and intricacies of Ancient Athenian Democracy, ostracism by pottery shard, and how quoting Euripides might just save your life...
Thank you to Professor Paul Cartledge for the suggestion for this weekās episode. The Main Text Explored was Thucydidesā History of the Peloponnesian War, Book III.Ā
Presented by Armand DāAngour and Jimmy Mulville
Produced by Diggory Waite
A Hat Trick Production
For more on the charity Classics For All, who support state schools to introduce or develop the teaching of classical subjects sustainably on the curriculum or as an after school activity, visit www.classicsforall.org.uk
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32:10
āThe Old Lieā ā The Roman Ode that Haunted the Trenches
āDulce et decorum est pro patria moriā ā āIt is sweet and glorious to die for oneās country.ā
This week, Jimmy and Armand dive into the conflicted world of Horace, the Roman poet who famously threw away his own shield, switched sides in a civil war and then wrote stirring verses urging young men to die for Romeās new leadership.
We explore Horaceās transformation from the carefree party bard many imagine, into a potential imperial propagandist; how Augustus used poetry to shape public feeling; and how this short Latin phrase ā once used to promote war ā would echo across the centuries, only to be picked up and shattered by Wilfred Owen in his devastating First World War poem.
Also in this episode: a Roman consul who walks willingly to torture, Horaceās surprisingly cheeky thoughts on adultery, and how Yorkshire accents might just be the secret to perfect Latin pronunciation.
Main texts explored:
Horace ā Odes, Book 3, Ode 2 (Angustam amice pauperiem pati) Contains the famous line: āDulce et decorum est pro patria mori.ā
Horace ā Odes, Book 1, Ode 37 (Cleopatra Ode)
Horace ā Odes, Book 3, Odes 1ā6 (The āRoman Odesā) Explored generally.
Horace ā Odes, Book 3, Ode 7 (Ode on Adultery)
Wilfred Owen ā āDulce et Decorum Estā
Cavafy ā āThermopylaeā (modern poem)
Horace ā Odes, Book 3, Ode 5 (Regulus Ode)
Presented by Armand DāAngour and Jimmy Mulville
Produced by Diggory Waite
A Hat Trick Production
For more on the charity Classics For All, who support state schools to introduce or develop the teaching of classical subjects sustainably on the curriculum or as an after school activity, visit www.classicsforall.org.uk
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The Father of History or the Father of Lies? Herodotus' Histories with Han Parker
Was Herodotus the Father of History ā or the Father of Lies?
Jimmy and Armand dive into the strange and spectacular world of Herodotus ā a world filled with fox-sized, gold-digging ants, Pharaohs running brutal language experiments on babies and cultures whoād never dream of burning their dead⦠but would happily eat them.
They explore how Herodotus crafted his Histories, why later Greek historians threw serious shade at his methods, and how someone with more in common with a travel vlogger or Victorian explorer than a modern academic came to shape our understanding of history itself.
Main texts explored: Histories, Herodotus
Presented by Armand DāAngour and Jimmy Mulville
Produced by Diggory Waite
A Hat Trick Production
For more on the charity Classics For All, who support state schools to introduce or develop the teaching of classical subjects sustainably on the curriculum or as an after school activity, visit www.classicsforall.org.uk
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Gods, Frogs and The Ancient Greek Elvis ā The Music of Ancient Greece
He gyrated, he pouted, he played two pipes at once ā and he may have been the Elvis of ancient Greece...
This week, Jimmy and Armand plunge into the strange, stirring soundscape of the classical world, where music wasnāt background ā it was everything.
We meet professional pipers who whipped crowds into frenzies, women whose musical talent could buy them out of slavery, and frogs who sang in rhythmic unison to torment a god. From breath-defying performance techniques to the eerie beauty of melodies reconstructed from scraps of papyrus, this is a world where language and pitch were inseparable ā and where the past can still sing.
The music heard (in order) was:Ā
āImprovisation on the Lourve Aulosā performed by Callum Armstrong.
'The Frog Chorus' from āThe Frogsā by Aristophanes performed by Callum Armstrong.
āPindar's 12th Pythian Odeā performed by Stef Conner and Barnaby Brown.
āEuripides Orestesā performed by a mixed choir and Barnaby Brown on the Aulos.
A big thank you to all the performers.Ā
Presented by Armand DāAngour and Jimmy Mulville
Produced by Diggory Waite
A Hat Trick Production
For more on the charity Classics For All, who support state schools to introduce or develop the teaching of classical subjects sustainably on the curriculum or as an after school activity, visit www.classicsforall.org.uk
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āThey Make a Desert and Call It Peaceā āĀ Tacitus' Agricola
āThey make a desert and call it peace.ā Itās one of the most brutal lines in ancient history ā but was it ever actually spoken?Ā
Jimmy and Armand unpack the sharp, unsettling world of Roman historian Tacitus, who often slipped his most biting critiques of Ancient Rome into the mouths of her enemies. We explore the fine line between history and drama, how Roman speeches were crafted rather than recorded, and what that says about truth, narrative, and power.
Also in this episode: collapsing assassination boats, Roman mothers who just wonāt die, the surprising origin of the phrase āparting shotā (which isnāt actually āparting shotā at all!) and why Chelmsford was once (sort of) the heart of the Roman Empire.
The main texts explored were:Ā
Agricola,Ā Tacitus
Annals, Tacitus
Histories, Tacitus
Presented by Armand DāAngour and Jimmy Mulville
Produced by Diggory Waite
A Hat Trick Production
For more on the charity Classics For All, who support state schools to introduce or develop the teaching of classical subjects sustainably on the curriculum or as an after school activity, visit www.classicsforall.org.uk
Want a quick way to know more about Classical Myths and Literature? Join Armand D'Angour (Professor of Classics at Oxford University) and Jimmy Mulville (Comedy Producer, Chairman of charity 'Classics For All' and lifelong classics devotee) as they explore stories and quotes that are familiar through their use in our everyday lives.
Ever said 'Carpe Diem!' or heard about the 'Oedipus Complex'? Ever really thought about where that quote comes from or what the Oedipus Complex really refers to?
Let Armand and Jimmy tell you where these originated, what they actually mean, and who wrote them.
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