Walking to class...
Oh for shame, how the mortals put the blame on us gods,
for they say evils come from us,
but it is they, rather, who by their own recklessness
win sorrow beyond what is given…
— Zeus, in the Odyssey
Today, my students and I finished reading the Odyssey. Living in the narcissistic age of Facebook and under constant pressure to become one’s own “brand,” we contemplated why sometimes it’s better to be a “nobody” than a “somebody”–and discussed who in our own lives we view as heroes and why. Topping the list–was Jesus, followed by a number of celebrities–like Tupac, George Carlin, and Marilyn Monroe…
