Homer's Hero

Homer's Hero
Author :
Publisher : State University of New York Press
Total Pages : 274
Release :
ISBN-10 : 9781438476681
ISBN-13 : 143847668X
Rating : 4/5 (68X Downloads)

Book Synopsis Homer's Hero by : Michelle M. Kundmueller

Download or read book Homer's Hero written by Michelle M. Kundmueller and published by State University of New York Press. This book was released on 2019-10-01 with total page 274 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: 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.


Homer's Hero Related Books

Autonomy and Self-Respect
Language: en
Pages: 230
Authors: Thomas E. Hill, Jr
Categories: Philosophy
Type: BOOK - Published: 1991-07-26 - Publisher: Cambridge University Press

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

This stimulating collection of essays in ethics eschews the simple exposition and refinement of abstract theories. Rather, the author focuses on everyday moral
Homer's Hero
Language: en
Pages: 274
Authors: Michelle M. Kundmueller
Categories: Philosophy
Type: BOOK - Published: 2019-10-01 - Publisher: State University of New York Press

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

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
From Bondage to Freedom
Language: en
Pages: 266
Authors: Michael LeBuffe
Categories: Philosophy
Type: BOOK - Published: 2010-01-21 - Publisher: Oxford University Press

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

Spinoza rejects fundamental tenets of received morality, including the notions of Providence and free will. Yet he retains rich theories of good and evil, virtu
Human Excellence and an Ecological Conception of the Psyche
Language: en
Pages: 256
Authors: John Hanwell Riker
Categories: Philosophy
Type: BOOK - Published: 1991-07-03 - Publisher: State University of New York Press

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

This book explores the possibility of grounding the idea of human excellence, which has traditionally been associated with hierarchical systems, on an ecologica
Excellence
Language: en
Pages: 275
Authors: Andreas J. Köstenberger
Categories: Religion
Type: BOOK - Published: 2011-10-05 - Publisher: Crossway

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

We are called to excellence in all aspects of our lives and activities, and not least in our character. Andreas Köstenberger summons all Christians, and especi