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Homer Reborn

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Homer Reborn is a blog network created by me-Jason Roberts. Its goal is to bring back the Classical world-to show the relevance not only of Aristotle or Sophocles, but Thucydides, Homer, Herodotus, Plutarch, Polybius, Cato, etc.-a wide list of invaluable tools, admirable heroes who can help us (yes, even Objectivist!) in many ways.

Currently, Homer Reborn is split into two sections: Letters From An Enthusiast (written by Jason Roberts), with a focus on history and politics; and The Inner Temple (written by Travis West, aka. Cicero), with a focus on philosophy.

I encourage everyone to come over and witness the importance of the Classical works-it does a body good.

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I just wanted to give everybody a general update on what has been happening over at Homer Reborn. We've been very busy lately!

I started a series entitled "Life's Lessons", which analyses different fables of Aesop. The first discusses the importance of thought before action. The second discusses how humans are defined by their actions as opposed to merely what they proclaim.

Our first Feature Article, by Jeff Luebcke, entitled "Republican Generals", is a fascinating article. It compares two generals under a Republic (one Ancient, one semi-modern), and explains why a general who fights for a Republic doesn't lose. A must read!

My article, "Soft Around the Edges", explains how we as Americans must not be "soft" when it comes to China by explaining a similar situation in Ancient Greece.

Two more Feature articles, more philosophical in nature, as well as a new article discussing Russia and Putin are on the way. Be sure to check them out!

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Do you know Free Capitalist? He's really into the classics, and has convinced me that they have much to offer that the Objectivist corpus does not: real life examples of virtuous men. In particular, the emphasis on virtue being a habit. For someone that's relatively new to the classics, what do you recommend as a good reading list?

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Do you know Free Capitalist?  He's really into the classics, and has convinced me that they have much to offer that the Objectivist corpus does not: real life examples of virtuous men.  In particular, the emphasis on virtue being a habit.  For someone that's relatively new to the classics, what do you recommend as a good reading list?

I have known Free Capitalist for about 4 years now ;). And indeed he is correct about the Classics!

What I would suggest depends mainly upon your interests; philosophy, history, literature, etc.

Personally, I would suggest some literature first to get an overall "sense" of the Greek world. I would suggest Homer's Iliad and Odyssey. They are both very good books about admirable, virtuous men.

After reading them, I would go on into history. Once again, you must ask yourself a question: Greece or Rome? Both contain virtuous men and are great reads.

I hope this helps :).

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I see. We went to Philadelphia on the 5th of this month to see Independence Hall and other historical places of interest; he's one of the most benevolent O'ists I've ever met.

Can you recommend particular translations? I tried reading a pretty direct translation of the Odyssey once and it was quite difficult.

I'm interested in history above all, and the Roman Republic in particular (though I'm also interested in learning about any well-goverened Greek city-states).

I would say I'm interested in reading what the Founders read.

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Are you the picture taker? If so, I must thank you! Those pictures are amazing.

As to translations: I would start with Robert Fagles. His translations of The Odyssey and The Iliad are the ones that I personally read. They are both very smooth, poetic reads that at the same time don't get "lost" in verbage. They are also pretty cheap, so there's another plus.

After reading those two, I'd begin with Polybius. Polybius basically puts you in the "middle of the action"-his goal is to describe the Punic Wars. Not only is Rome at her prime during this period, but her entire population was nothing short of virtuous. A great read :). The Penguin Classics edition is what I would suggest.

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