Monthly Archives: October 2011

On metamorphoses and butterflies

Posted on 31 October 2011 by

Γίνονται δ’ αἱ μὲν καλούμεναι ψυχαὶ ἐκ τῶν καμπῶν … καὶ μεταβάλλουσι τὴν μορφήν, καὶ καλοῦνται χρυσαλλίδες … χρόνου δ’ οὐ πολλοῦ διελθόντος περιρρήγνυται τὸ κέλυφος καὶ ἐκπέτεται ἐξ αὐτῶν πτερωτὰ ζῷα, ἃς καλοῦμεν ψυχάς. So-called butterflies come into being … Continue reading →

Posted in ANCIENT & MODERN | 1 Comment

Lucretius, the Biochemistry of Olfaction, and Scientific Discovery

Posted on 31 October 2011 by

First published as  “Lucretius, the Biochemistry of Olfaction, and Scientific Discovery” in Euphrosyne: Revista de Filologia Clássica n.s. IX  (1978): 7-18 [Reprinted with the permission of the editorial board of Euphrosyne] Lucretius, the Biochemistry of Olfaction, and Scientific Discovery   … Continue reading →

Posted in CLASSICA, GALLIMAUFRY, LITERATURE | 1 Comment

Woman

Posted on 31 October 2011 by

This friend from Muping in Shandong province China was a serene model. In her quiet way she made me think of still waters running deep, and I tried to capture her essential womanness:

Posted in OBITER PICTA | 1 Comment

Homeric Hymn to Aphrodite – COMMENTS 1

Posted on 31 October 2011 by

The thirty-three poems known collectively as the Homeric Hymns are from a thematic and narrative viewpoint no doubt of very great antiquity, but they are traditionally situated in the eighth through sixth centuries BCE.  The Homeric Hymn to Aphrodite (hereafter … Continue reading →

Posted in CLASSICA, LITERATURE | 5 Comments

Homeric Hymn to Aphrodite 2: 5.34-67 TEXT & TRANSLATION

Posted on 31 October 2011 by

HHA 1: 5.1-33 The Greek text is printed by permission of Thesaurus Linguae Gracae ® TLG® is a registered trademark of The Regents of the University of California. The original text is also available here (at PERSEUS). TEXT τῶν δ’ … Continue reading →

Posted in CLASSICA, LITERATURE | 8 Comments

Homeric Hymn to Aphrodite 1: 5.1-33 TEXT & TRANSLATION

Posted on 27 October 2011 by

NOTE It had been my original plan to publish in each entry to this series on the Homeric Hymn to Aphrodite (hereafter, HHA) the text and translation followed by a brief commentary.  The latter, it turned out, tended to be … Continue reading →

Posted in CLASSICA, LITERATURE | 7 Comments

Beowulf in the White House

Posted on 13 October 2011 by

As readers of this blog know, I am a big movie fan – I’m actually supposed to say ‘film’ or ‘cinema’ but not ‘film’ – big deal!  And I’ve also been a great fan of certain types of TV programs … Continue reading →

Posted in FILM REVIEW, GALLIMAUFRY | 1 Comment

TARGET

Posted on 13 October 2011 by

DATA and CAST Ten years before Target (1985), Arthur Penn directed Gene Hackman in the detective film Night Moves (1975).  Here they are, at it again, and a fabulous job it is!  Target is not entirely dissimilar in its thematic … Continue reading →

Posted in FILM REVIEW | 1 Comment

Addictions nothing new …

Posted on 13 October 2011 by

οὔκ, ἀλλὰ “φιλο-” μέν ἐστιν ἀρχὴ τοῦ κακοῦ. No, that’s not it either, but “crazy-in-love addicted to …” is what his problem begins with! Aristophanes, “Wasps” 77 Once upon a time one famous talk-show host interviewed another famous talk-show host … Continue reading →

Posted in ANCIENT & MODERN | 1 Comment

Look!

Posted on 12 October 2011 by

ille mi par esse deo videtur, ille si fas est superare divos, qui sedens adversus identidem te spectat et audit dulce ridentem … He indeed seems like a god to me, even to surpass (forgive me!) gods, sitting as he … Continue reading →

Posted in ANCIENT & MODERN | 1 Comment