Among the Ancients II

London Review of Books
  • 0.0 (0)
  • BOOKS
  • MONTHLY
Among the Ancients II
LRB CLOSE READINGS

Full access to all our Close Readings series

₫129.000/mo or ₫1.299.000/yr after trial

Emily Wilson, celebrated classicist and translator of Homer’s Iliad and Odyssey, is back to take on another twelve vital works of Greek and Roman literature with the LRB’s Thomas Jones, loosely themed around truth and lies – from from Aesop’s Fables to Marcus Aurelius’s Meditations. Episodes will appear once a month throughout 2024. Among the Ancients is part of the Close Readings podcasts collection from the London Review of Books. To listen to all the series in full, subscribe: Directly in Apple Podcasts at the top of this podcast For Spotify and other podcast apps here: https://lrb.supportingcast.fm/close-readings Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

  1. 24/12/2024

    Marcus Aurelius

    For their final conversation Among the Ancients, Emily Wilson and Thomas Jones turn to the contradictions of the Roman emperor and Stoic philosopher Marcus Aurelius. Said by Machiavelli to be the last of the ‘five good emperors’ who ruled Rome for most of the second century CE, Marcus oversaw devastating wars on the frontiers, a deadly plague and economic turmoil. The writings known in English as The Meditations, and in Latin as ‘to himself’, were composed in Greek in the last decade of Marcus’ life. They reveal the emperor’s preoccupations with illness, growing old, death and posthumous reputation, as he urges himself not to be troubled by such transient things. Non-subscribers can hear the full version of this episode with ads. To listen ad-free and in full to other episodes of Among the Ancients II, and to all our other Close Readings series, sign up: Directly in Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/3pJoFPq In other podcast apps: https://lrb.me/closereadings Or purchase a gift subscription: https://lrb.me/audiogifts Further reading in the LRB: Mary Beard: Was he quite ordinary? https://www.lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v31/n14/mary-beard/was-he-quite-ordinary Emily Wilson: I have gorgeous hair https://www.lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v45/n11/emily-wilson/i-have-gorgeous-hair Shadi Bartsch: Dying to Make a Point https://www.lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v29/n22/shadi-bartsch/dying-to-make-a-point M.F. Burnyeat: Excuses for Madness https://www.lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v24/n20/m.f.-burnyeat/excuses-for-madness Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    1 hr

  2. 24/11/2024

    Apuleius

    Apuleius’ ‘Metamorphoses’, better known as ‘The Golden Ass’, is the only ancient Roman novel to have survived in its entirety. Following the story of Lucius, forced to suffer as a donkey until the goddess Isis intervenes, the novel includes frenetic wordplay, filthy humour and the earliest known version of the Psyche and Cupid myth. In this episode, Tom and Emily discuss Apuleius’ anarchic mix of the high and low brow, and his incisive depiction of the lives of impoverished and enslaved people. Non-subscribers will only hear an extract from this episode. To listen in full and to our other Close Readings series, sign up: Directly in Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/3pJoFPq In other podcast apps: lrb.me/closereadings Further reading in the LRB: Peter Parsons: Ancient Greek Romances https://www.lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v03/n15/peter-parsons/ancient-greek-romances Leofranc Holford-Strevens: God’s Will https://www.lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v25/n10/leofranc-holford-strevens/god-s-will Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    11 min

  3. 24/10/2024

    Juvenal

    In this episode, we tackle Juvenal, whose sixteen satires influenced libertines, neoclassicists and early Christian moralists alike. Conservative to a fault, Juvenal’s Satires rails against the rapid expansion and transformation of Roman society in the early principate. But where his contemporary Tacitus handled the same material with restraint, Juvenal’s work explodes with vivid and vicious depictions of urban life, including immigration, sexual mores and eating habits. Emily and Tom explore the idiosyncrasies of Juvenal’s verse and its handling in Peter Green’s translation, and how best to parse his over-the-top hostility to everyone and everything. Non-subscribers will only hear an extract from this episode. To listen in full and to our other Close Readings series, sign up: Directly in Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/3pJoFPq In other podcast apps: lrb.me/closereadings Further reading in the LRB: Remembering Peter Green https://www.lrb.co.uk/blog/2024/september/peter-green-1924-2024 Claude Rawson: Blistering Attacks https://www.lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v02/n21/claude-rawson/blistering-attacks Clare Bucknell & Colin Burrow: What is satire? https://www.lrb.co.uk/podcasts-and-videos/podcasts/close-readings/on-satire-what-is-satire Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    14 min

  4. 24/09/2024

    Tacitus

    The Annals, Tacitus’ study of the emperors from Tiberius to Nero, covers some of the most vivid and ruthless episodes in Roman history. A masterclass in political intrigue (and how not to do it), the Annals features mutiny, senatorial backstabbing, wars on the imperial frontiers, political purges and enormous egos. Emily and Tom explore the many ambiguities that make the Annals rewarding, as well as difficult, reading and discuss Tacitus’ knotty style and approach to history. Non-subscribers will only hear an extract from this episode. To listen in full and to our other Close Readings series, sign up: Directly in Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/3pJoFPq In other podcast apps: lrb.me/closereadings Further reading in the LRB: Mary Beard: Four-Day Caesar https://www.lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v26/n02/mary-beard/four-day-caesar Anthony Grafton: Those Limbs We Admire https://www.lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v33/n14/anthony-grafton/those-limbs-we-admire Shadi Bartsch: Fratricide, Matricide and the Philosopher https://www.lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v37/n12/shadi-bartsch/fratricide-matricide-and-the-philosopher Mark Ford: The Death of Petronius https://www.lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v30/n24/mark-ford/the-death-of-petronius Emily Wilson is Professor of Classical Studies at the University of Pennsylvania and Thomas Jones is an editor at the London Review of Books. Get in touch: podcasts@lrb.co.uk Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    13 min

  5. 24/08/2024

    Lucan

    In his prodigious, prolific and very short career, Lucan was at turns championed, disavowed and finally forced into suicide at 25 by the emperor Nero. His only surviving work is Civil War, an account of the bloody and chaotic power struggle between Julius Caesar and Pompey the Great. In their first episode on Latin literature’s so-called ‘Silver Age’, Tom and Emily dive into this brutal and unforgiving epic poem. They explore Lucan’s slippery relationship to power, his rhetorical virtuosity and the influence of Stoicism on his worldview. Non-subscribers will only hear an extract form this episode. To listen in full and to our other Close Readings series, sign up: Directly in Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/3pJoFPq In other podcast apps: lrb.me/closereadings Further reading in the LRB: John Henderson: Dead Eyes and Blank Faces https://www.lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v20/n07/john-henderson/dead-eyes-and-blank-faces Nora Goldschmidt: Pompeian Group Therapy https://www.lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v44/n18/nora-goldschmidt/pompeian-group-therapy Thomas Jones: See you in hell, punk https://www.lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v40/n23/thomas-jones/see-you-in-hell-punk Emily Wilson is Professor of Classical Studies at the University of Pennsylvania and Thomas Jones is an editor at the London Review of Books. Get in touch: podcasts@lrb.co.uk Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    13 min

  6. 24/07/2024

    Plautus and Terence

    In episode seven, we turn to some of the earliest surviving examples of Roman literature: the raucous, bawdy and sometimes bewildering world of Roman comedy. Plautus and Terence, who would go on to set the tone for centuries of playwrights (and school curricula), came from the margins of Roman society, writing primarily for plebeians and upsetting the conventions they simultaneously established. Plautus’ ‘Menaechmi’ is full of coinages, punning and madcap doubling. Terence’s troubling ‘Hecyra’ tells a much darker story of Roman sexual mores while destabilizing misogynistic stereotypes. Emily and Tom discuss how best to navigate these very early and enormously influential plays, and what they lend to Shakespeare, Sondheim and the modern sitcom. Non-subscribers will only hear an extract from this episode. To listen in full and to our other Close Readings series, sign up: Directly in Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/3pJoFPq In other podcast apps: lrb.me/closereadings Further reading in the LRB: Emily Wilson: Ave, Jeeves! https://www.lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v30/n04/emily-wilson/ave-jeeves James Davidson: Laugh as long as you can  https://www.lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v37/n14/james-davidson/laugh-as-long-as-you-can Emily Wilson is Professor of Classical Studies at the University of Pennsylvania and Thomas Jones is an editor at the London Review of Books. Get in touch: podcasts@lrb.co.uk Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    14 min

  7. 24/06/2024

    Lucian

    The broad theme of this series, truth and lies, was a favourite subject of Lucian of Samosata, the last of our Greek-language authors. A cosmopolitan and highly cultured Syrian subject of the Roman Empire in the second century CE, Lucian wrote in the classical Greek of fifth-century Athens. His razor-sharp satire was a model for Erasmus, Voltaire and Swift. Emily and Tom share some of their favourite excerpts from ‘A True History’ and other works – with trips to the moon, boundary-pushing religious scepticism and wildly improbable but not technically untrue readings of Homer – and discuss why they still read as fresh and funny today. Non-subscriber will only hear extracts from the rest of this series. To listen in full and to our other Close Readings series, sign up: Directly in Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/3pJoFPq In other podcast apps: lrb.me/closereadings Further reading in the LRB: Tim Whitmarsh: Target Practice https://www.lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v32/n04/tim-whitmarsh/target-practice James Davidson: Stomach-Churning https://www.lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v19/n02/james-davidson/stomach-churning Emily Wilson is Professor of Classical Studies at the University of Pennsylvania and Thomas Jones is an editor at the London Review of Books. Get in touch: podcasts@lrb.co.uk Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    14 min

  8. 24/05/2024

    Plato's 'Symposium'

    Plato’s 'Symposium', his philosophical dialogue on love, or eros, was probably written around 380 BCE, but it’s set in 416, during the uneasy truce between Athens and Sparta in the middle of the Peloponnesian War. A symposium was a drinking party, though Socrates and his friends, having had a heavy evening the night before, decide to go easy on the wine and instead take turns making speeches in praise of love – at least until Alcibiades turns up, very late and very drunk. In this episode of Among the Ancients, Emily and Tom discuss the dialogue’s philosophical ideas, historical context and narrative form, and why Aristophanes gets the hiccups. Non-subscriber will only hear extracts from the rest of this series. To listen in full and to our other Close Readings series, sign up: Directly in Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/3pJoFPq In other podcast apps: lrb.me/closereadings Further reading: Donald Davidson: Plato’s Philosopher https://www.lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v07/n14/donald-davidson/plato-s-philosopher Anne Carson: Oh What a Night (Alkibiades) https://www.lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v42/n22/anne-carson/oh-what-a-night-alkibiades M.F. Burnyeat: Art and Mimesis in Plato’s Republic https://www.lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v20/n10/m.f.-burnyeat/art-and-mimesis-in-plato-s-republic Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    12 min
See All (13)

Shows with Subscription Benefits

  • Seamus Perry and Mark Ford return for a second series of their acclaimed, 'revolutionary, *****' (The Times) podcast series looking at the lives and works of poets in the late 19th and 20th centuries. Seamus Perry is Professor of English at the University of Oxford and Mark Ford is Professor of English at University College London. Modern-ish Poets is part of the Close Readings podcast collection from the London Review of Books. To listen to the first series of Modern-ish Poets, and to Seamus and Mark's twelve-part series The Long and Short, sign up to the Close Readings subscription: Directly in Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/3pJoFPq In other podcast apps: https://lrb.me/closereadings Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    • 0.0 (0)
    • BOOKS

  • Close Readings is a new multi-series podcast subscription from the London Review of Books exploring different periods of literature through selections of key works. A new episode will appear every month from each of our Close Readings series running this year. This feed is identical to the 'free' version of Close Readings, which contains free extracts for non-subscribers. Subscribers can listen to all the full episodes in both feeds: https://podcasts.apple.com/ug/podcast/close-readings/id1669485143 RUNNING IN 2025: 'Conversations in Philosophy' with Jonathan Rée and James Wood 'Fiction and the Fantastic' with Marina Warner, Anna Della Subin, Adam Thirlwell and Chloe Aridjis 'Love and Death' with Seamus Perry and Mark Ford 'Novel Approaches' with Clare Bucknell, Thomas Jones and other guests ALSO INCLUDED IN YOUR CLOSE READINGS SUBSCRIPTION: 'Among the Ancients' with Emily Wilson and Thomas Jones 'Medieval Beginnings' with Irina Dumitrescu and Mary Wellesley 'The Long and Short' with Mark Ford and Seamus Perry 'Modern-ish Poets: Series 1' with Mark Ford and Seamus Perry 'Among the Ancients II' with Emily Wilson and Thomas Jones 'On Satire' with Colin Burrow and Clare Bucknell 'Human Conditions' with Adam Shatz, Judith Butler, Pankaj Mishra and Brent Hayes Edwards 'Political Poems' with Mark Ford and Seamus Perry 'Medieval LOLs' with Irina Dumitrescu and Mary Wellesley Get in touch: podcasts@lrb.co.uk

    • 0.0 (0)
    • BOOKS

  • Seamus Perry and Mark Ford consider poems that have been understood, admired and perhaps criticised for their politics, ranging across several hundred years of literary history. Mark Ford is Professor of English at University College, London, and Seamus Perry is Professor of English Literature at Balliol College, Oxford. Political Poems is part of the Close Readings podcast collection from the London Review of Books. Listen to this episode ad free, and get full access to all our Close Readings series, including more from Mark and Seamus: Sign up to the Close Readings subscription to listen ad free and to all our series in full: Directly in Apple Podcasts: https://lrb.me/ppapplesignup In other podcast apps: https://lrb.me/ppsignup Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    • 0.0 (0)
    • BOOKS

  • Close Readings is a new multi-series podcast subscription from the London Review of Books. Two contributors explore areas of literature through a selection of key works, providing an introductory grounding like no other. Listen to some episodes for free here, and extracts from our ongoing subscriber-only series. How To Subscribe In Apple Podcasts, click 'subscribe' at the top of this podcast feed to unlock the full episodes. Or for other podcast apps, sign up here: https://lrb.me/closereadings RUNNING IN 2025: 'Conversations in Philosophy' with Jonathan Rée and James Wood 'Fiction and the Fantastic' with Marina Warner, Anna Della Subin, Adam Thirlwell and Chloe Aridjis 'Love and Death' with Seamus Perry and Mark Ford 'Novel Approaches' with Clare Bucknell, Thomas Jones and other guests ALSO INCLUDED IN THE CLOSE READINGS SUBSCRIPTION: 'Among the Ancients' with Emily Wilson and Thomas Jones 'Medieval Beginnings' with Irina Dumitrescu and Mary Wellesley 'The Long and Short' with Mark Ford and Seamus Perry 'Modern-ish Poets: Series 1' with Mark Ford and Seamus Perry 'Among the Ancients II' with Emily Wilson and Thomas Jones 'On Satire' with Colin Burrow and Clare Bucknell 'Human Conditions' with Adam Shatz, Judith Butler, Pankaj Mishra and Brent Hayes Edwards 'Political Poems' with Mark Ford and Seamus Perry 'Medieval LOLs' with Irina Dumitrescu and Mary Wellesley Get in touch: podcasts@lrb.co.uk Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    • 0.0 (0)
    • BOOKS

  • Adam Shatz talks separately to three guests – Judith Butler, Pankaj Mishra and Brent Hayes Edwards – about some of the most revolutionary thought of the 20th century. Judith, Pankaj and Brent will each discuss four texts over four episodes, as they uncover the inner life of the 20th century through works that have sought to find freedom in different ways and remake the world around them. They explore, among other things, the development of arguments against racism and colonialism, the experience of artistic expression in oppressive conditions and how language has been used in politically substantive ways. Authors covered: Jean-Paul Sartre, Simone de Beauvoir, Frantz Fanon, Hannah Arendt, V. S. Naipaul, Ashis Nandy, Doris Lessing, Nadezhda Mandelstam, W. E. B. Du Bois, Aimé Césaire, Amiri Baraka and Audre Lorde. Episodes will appear once a month throughout 2024, on the 10th of each month. Human Conditions is part of the Close Readings podcasts collection from the London Review of Books. To listen to the full episodes, subscribe to Close Readings: Directly in Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/3pJoFPq In other podcast apps: lrb.me/closereadings Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    • 0.0 (0)
    • BOOKS

  • Were the Middle Ages funny? To answer that question, Mary Wellesley and Irina Dumitrescu hunt through some of the rudest, silliest and surprising works in English literature in search of the Medieval sense of humour. Mary Wellesley and Irina Dumitrescu are both writers and historians, and regular contributors to the London Review of Books. Sign up to listen to this series ad free and all our subscriber series in full, including Mary and Irina's twelve-part series Medieval Beginnings: Directly in Apple Podcasts: https://lrb.me/medlolapplesignup In other podcast apps: https://lrb.me/medlolscsignup Get in touch: podcasts@lrb.co.uk Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    • 0.0 (0)
    • BOOKS
LRB CLOSE READINGS

Full access to all our Close Readings series

₫129.000/mo or ₫1.299.000/yr after trial

View Subscription FAQs

About

Emily Wilson, celebrated classicist and translator of Homer’s Iliad and Odyssey, is back to take on another twelve vital works of Greek and Roman literature with the LRB’s Thomas Jones, loosely themed around truth and lies – from from Aesop’s Fables to Marcus Aurelius’s Meditations. Episodes will appear once a month throughout 2024. Among the Ancients is part of the Close Readings podcasts collection from the London Review of Books. To listen to all the series in full, subscribe: Directly in Apple Podcasts at the top of this podcast For Spotify and other podcast apps here: https://lrb.supportingcast.fm/close-readings Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Information

More From London Review of Books

You Might Also Like

To listen to explicit episodes, sign in.

Stay up to date with this show

Sign in or sign up to follow shows, save episodes and get the latest updates.
Select a country or region

Africa, Middle East, and India

Asia Pacific

Europe

Latin America and the Caribbean

The United States and Canada