Hollywood ushers in the summer blockbuster season this week with “Troy” a glittering, stars-in-sandals take on Homer’s Iliad. The big-budget film juices up the passion, jealousy, revenge, and honor in battle that have endured throughout 3000 years of Western history. There won’t be a pantheon of gods manipulating the humans here. But there will be Brad Pitt as Achilles, and that in itself is a guarantee that America is about to rediscover the glory of Troy.
But despite this big screen revival, some archaeologists suggest that the Trojan War may never have happened, that the angry Achilles may never have fought, and the city of Troy is something that lives more in myth.
Guests:
Brian Rose, archaeologist, professor of classics at the University of Cincinnati, featured in the “Conquering Troy” documentary on National Geographic Channel
Mary Lefkowitz, professor of classical studies at Wellesley College, specializing in Greek poetry and mythology, author of “Greek Gods, Human Lives: What We Can Learn Form Myths.”