PALLADION MŰHELY

A kurzuson minden órán egy fejezetet dolgozunk fel a Reading Greek (Joint Association of Classical Teachers’ Greek Course, 2. kiadás, Cambridge University Press, 2007) című tankönyvből. A tanult anyag áttekintéséhez, memorizáláshoz és gyakorlásához a Reading Greek nyelvtani kötetét használjuk.

Elvárt előzetes ismeretek: a névszóragozás (1., 2., 3. declinatio) alapszintű ismerete; a jelen idejű aktív és mediális indicativusi igeragozás; a leggyakoribb névmások (személyes névmás, mutató névmások) alakjainak fölismerése. Ez megfelel a Reading Greek (Joint Association of Classical Teachers, Cambridge) 1–3. fejezet anyagának.

Ancient Greek Reading Seminar 2026 Winter
Sophocles: Philoctetes

 „… I see with mortal men
the tongue, not action, rules in everything.”

The Palladion Reading Course of Winter 2026 proposes a fresh examination of one of the most polyvalent classical tragedies, Sophocles’ Philoctetes. Written in Athens during the late – but not yet fatal – years of the Peloponnesian War, the play revisits the world of Homer by bringing on stage three celebrated heroes of the Trojan War: Odysseus, Neoptolemos, and Philoctetes. However, the playwright looks at the bygone events through such a strong moral lens that the heroic acts of Homeric reality evoke pressing dilemmas of contemporary Athenian politics and philosophy, as well as fundamental aspects of human existence: obedience and integrity, choice and responsibility, fate and free will.
During the course, we will read and discuss key scenes of the drama: the dispute of Odysseus and Neoptolemos over the means of obtaining the famous bow, the encounter between Neoptolemos and Philoctetes, the rise of hope followed by painful disillusionment, Neoptolemos’ transformation from Odysseus’ companion to Philoctetes’ admirer, and finally, the protagonist’s desperate protest against his fate. Through close reading, the course aims to observe the motives and reasoning behind human actions, and to understand how the web of lies woven by the witty Odysseus to hunt down the lonely Philoctetes becomes in fact a catch for the honest but naïve Neoptolemos.

The reading course is open to any participants with a sound knowledge of Ancient Greek morphology (declensions, conjugation of ω-verbs, and basic vocabulary), and some prior experience in reading Ancient Greek texts. Throughout the course, we will read, analyse, and interpret selected dialogues, speeches and choral songs of the drama, with an emphasis on precise grammatical analysis and careful contextual interpretation. More advanced grammatical topics will also be introduced as needed, in response to the interests and abilities of the participants.

Suggested editions of the text to be used:

• R. C. Jebb (ed., introd., comm.): Sophocles’ Philoctetes. Cambridge University Press, 1898.
• S. L. Schein (ed., introd., comm.): Sophocles’ Philoctetes. Cambridge Greek and Latin Classics, 2013. 

Suggested works about the Philoctetes:

• Oliver Taplin: The Mapping of Sophocles’ Philoctetes: Bulletin of the Institute of Classical Studies 34, 69–77.
• M. H. Jameson: ’Politics and the Philoctetes’: Classical Philology 51/4 (1956), 217–227.
• Charles Segal: ’Philoctetes and the Imperishable Piety’: Hermes 105/ 2 (1977), 133–158.
• Thomas M. Falkner: Containing Tragedy: Rhetoric and Self-Representation in Sophocles’ „Philoctetes”: Classical Antiquity 17/1 (1998), 25–58.
• Gordon M. Kirkwood: ’Persuasion and Allusion in Sophocles’ ‘Philoctetes’: Hermes 122/4 (1994), 425–436.