Is Christopher Nolan’s Odyssey more Stoic than Homer’s?
Caleb shares a quick solo take. A look at the movie through a Stoic lens.
There are “spoilers” – don’t listen yet if you don’t want to hear about Nolan’s approach.
A Stoic Book Review of the Odyssey (Episode 215)
The founders of Stoicism—Zeno, Cleanthes, Chrysippus—all wrote about Homer. Zeno’s longest work was called Homeric Problems. When we read the Odyssey, we’re reading what the Stoics read. We’re studying their curriculum.
(00:00) Introduction: A Stoic Take on Nolan’s Odyssey
(03:50) Gods as Nature, Not Beings
(07:40) Responsibility and Hard Choices
(10:10) Perseverance: Seneca on Odysseus
(11:10) The Sirens and the Drive to Know
(12:30) The Suitors: Justified Revenge?
(16:20) Exile and the Problem with Xenia
(19:40) Calypso, the Lotus, and Therapy Culture
(22:40) Final Verdict
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Thanks to Michael Levy for graciously letting us use his music in the conversations:
