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Reposted by Peter Gainsford

Joel @sentantiq.bsky.social · 6d

A commonly recognized feature in the speeches of Homer’s heroes is the offering of an example from another mythical tradition, called a paradeigma

sententiaeantiquae.com/2025/10/26/s...

Speaking of Centaurs: Paradeigmatic Problems in Iliad 1

In the first book of the Iliad, Nestor attempts to intervene in the conflict between Achilles and Agamemnon. He eventually tells both men to simmer down—Achilles should act insubordinately and Agam…

sententiaeantiquae.com

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Reposted by Peter Gainsford

Dr. Jeremy Swist @metalclassicist.bsky.social · 29d

I've been doing an AMA all day on r/AskHistorians if you care to jump in:

From the AskHistorians community on Reddit

Explore this post and more from the AskHistorians community

www.reddit.com

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Peter Gainsford @kiwihellenist.bsky.social · Oct 1

Greek chorus vs Oompa-Loompas.

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Peter Gainsford @kiwihellenist.bsky.social · Sep 26

Lately my teenage son and I have been playing chess just before bedtime. Tonight I got the first ever en passant mate in my life. After ..Bh5, the final moves were g4 hxg4#.

Image of a chess game, with the board flipped to show black's point of view. The FEN for the position is: 1k2r3/1pp5/7b/1N1p1p1b/1N5p/8/PPPP2PP/R1BK4 w Q - 0 1

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Reposted by Peter Gainsford

Justine Breton @bretonjustine.bsky.social · Sep 21

💀 Le 9 octobre prochain paraîtra mon livre Terry Pratchett et la Mort : Mourir en majuscules (@edlatalante.bsky.social).
La mort est un sujet central dans l’œuvre et la vie de Pratchett, une évidence qu’il a longtemps cherché à comprendre et non à craindre.
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www.l-atalante.com/catalogue/la...

Terry Pratchett et la Mort : Mourir en majuscules | Éditions L'Atalante

C’EST BIEN DE LEURS COUPS, AUX MORTELS.ILS N’ONT QUE QUELQUES ANNÉES DEVANT EUX,ET ILS LES PASSENT À SE COMPLIQUER LA VIE.FASCINANT. PRENDS...

www.l-atalante.com

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Peter Gainsford @kiwihellenist.bsky.social · Sep 22

Some days are just like this.

Jacob wrestling with the angel, by Gustave Doré. Caption: 'And the angel said unto him, "Stop hitting yourself." But he could not stop hitting himself, for the angel was hitting him with his own hands.

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Peter Gainsford @kiwihellenist.bsky.social · Sep 22

Here's a really good site for hosting academic papers without ads, without spamming your and your colleagues' inboxes, and without signing away all manner of rights.

Zenodo is operated by a European institution (CERN) and, best of all, is named after an ancient Homer scholar.

Zenodo

zenodo.org

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Reposted by Peter Gainsford

Dr. Nick Posegay @nposegay.bsky.social · Sep 17

Potential workaround if you're already logged in and get prompted by the ToS notification: opening this "privacy policy" link www.academia.edu/privacytakes you to a page where you can access the drop-down menu and reach "account settings." From there I was able to delete my account without agreeing.

Academia.edu | Privacy

Academia.edu is the platform to share, find, and explore 50 Million research papers. Join us to accelerate your research needs & academic interests.

www.academia.edu

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Reposted by Peter Gainsford

Dr. Nick Posegay @nposegay.bsky.social · Sep 17

I'm sorry, worldwide, irrevocable, non-exclusive, transferable permission to my voice and likeness? For what now? In any manner for any purpose???

This is in academia/.edu's new ToS, which you're prompted to agree to on login. Anyway I'll be jumping ship. You can find my stuff at hcommons.org.

By creating an Account with Academia.edu, you grant us a worldwide, irrevocable, non-exclusive, transferable license, permission, and consent for Academia.edu to use your Member Content and your personal information (including, but not limited to, your name, voice, signature, photograph, likeness, city, institutional affiliations, citations, mentions, publications, and areas of interest) in any manner, including for the purpose of advertising, selling, or soliciting the use or purchase of Academia.edu's Services.

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Peter Gainsford @kiwihellenist.bsky.social · Sep 13

Favourite take of the day, as a reaction to seeing some really dumb stuff in classic Who:

Image of YouTube comment, saying: '"damn doctor who used to be weird" (dugga doo theme plays) "oh right"'

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Reposted by Peter Gainsford

Laura @lauropea.bsky.social · Aug 25

INDO-EUROPEAN #1: *h₁ey, *knh₃ck *knh₃ck

INDO-EUROPEAN #2: *kʷo's *thh₂re?

IE 1: *Larry

IE 2: *Larry *kʷo?

IE 1: Laryngeal! 😁

IE 2: ...

IE 1: *gh₂ddit? 🤣

IE 2: that was so bad I think we need to all get in our chariots and head out in all directions just to get as far away as we can from you

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Reposted by Peter Gainsford

Al Yankovic @alyankovic.bsky.social · Jul 27

My last living musical hero is still my hero but unfortunately no longer living. RIP to the great, great Mr. Tom Lehrer.

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Peter Gainsford @kiwihellenist.bsky.social · Jul 28

I have a piece out on the invention of the Trojan War in Ancient History Magazine 55. 'The Trojan War belongs to the era of the Argonauts, Perseus and Medusa, and Heracles: it belongs to the era of myth.'

(Not an academic magazine, but I'd be saying the same thing if I were still in academia!)

Ancient History Magazine 55

Ancient history is full of people dubbed tyrants, yet the precise nature of ancient tyranny varied across periods and cultures. They could be bloodthirsty warlords, power-hungry populists, or even the...

www.karwansaraypublishers.com

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Peter Gainsford @kiwihellenist.bsky.social · Jun 30

I'll let anything pass if we get the story where Odysseus gets exiled from Ithaca for killing the suitors, goes to Italy, co-founds Rome with Aeneas, gets turned into a horse by Circe's apprentice 'Salt' (Hals), and dies as an aged quadruped.

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Peter Gainsford @kiwihellenist.bsky.social · Jun 21

Oof. Made it past the winter solstice. More daylight, here we come.

Kia pai te Matariki!

Table of sunrise and sunset times for Wellington, New Zealand, for June 2025

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Reposted by Peter Gainsford

Dr. Jeremy Swist @metalclassicist.bsky.social · Jun 17

Normal Greeks: “emergency exit procedure.”

Me, a late antique Hellenist: “liturgy of the exodus of danger.”

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Peter Gainsford @kiwihellenist.bsky.social · Jun 14

Thank you!

Peter Gainsford @kiwihellenist.bsky.social · Jun 14

That description matches the one I'm looking at -- thank you! I should have mentioned it switches to prose _after_ the opening invocation in verse ...

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Peter Gainsford @kiwihellenist.bsky.social · Jun 14

It starts off with a few lines of verse and then breaks into prose after the proem. (At least, in the copy I'm looking at.)

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Peter Gainsford @kiwihellenist.bsky.social · Jun 13

There's a Spanish prose translation of the Odyssey that has some notable features, but I can't track down who the translator is. Might anyone know?

The first line runs:
Cuéntame, Musa, la historia del hombre de muchos senderos...

It's fairly widespread, but I can't find the translator credited.

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Peter Gainsford @kiwihellenist.bsky.social · May 18

Darth Vader meme. Text: 'If you only knew the power of the aorist participle.'

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Peter Gainsford @kiwihellenist.bsky.social · May 17

I mean, they've got the same potential as any villain. With new writers, new modes of storytelling, the possibilities are endless.

It's just that ... they don't evoke good memories. I mean, memories of good past stories.

Well, at least there's room for that to improve!

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Peter Gainsford @kiwihellenist.bsky.social · May 17

Mmmmm that's a Doctor Who villain I'd not mind if they had just been forgotten forever.

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Peter Gainsford @kiwihellenist.bsky.social · May 8

I get the sense he feels more Peruvian than Chicagoan nowadays. Maybe they could try offering deep-dish ceviche. Or then there's this...

Shrimp Ceviche Pizza with Avocado Hummus

A grilled flatbread (or pizza crust) smeared with creamy avocado hummus topped with crumbled, lean chorizo and cotija, and the pièce de résistance - shrimp ceviche... Mexican Grilled Pizza with Shrimp...

beyondmeresustenance.com

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Peter Gainsford @kiwihellenist.bsky.social · May 6

Simpsons did i-- er, I mean, not them... some other people I guess...

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