But, more than Homer or Sophocles, Aristophanes, the oldest of the comic playwrights, may be the man for our current moment. Students are often first introduced to its martial and tragic side. “The glory that was Greece” comes in many flavors, shades, and accents. The idea of a Western canon deriving from the ancient world has been challenged by some left-wing educators even as it has been taken up by right-wing ideologues: its condition as a political football makes the field’s existence all the more fragile.Īlthough the times seem to be changing, the classics are still relevant today, perhaps more so than ever. University enrollments in all humanities programs have declined programs, especially in the classics, are imperiled. The study of the languages and literature of ancient Greece and Rome-a discipline once considered so foundational it was simply known as “the classics”-has been under siege for decades.
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