The dog who waited for Odysseus: Argos reflects the deep human-animal bonds of ancient Greece

By Susanna Phillippo, Senior Lecturer in Classics, Newcastle University
Sally Waite, Senior Lecturer in Greek Art and Archaeology History, Classics and Archaeology, Newcastle University

Homer’s Odyssey, with its fabulous monsters and intense tale of human endurance, was a natural candidate for Christopher Nolan’s latest Hollywood blockbuster. But amid all the fantasy and heroic human drama, there are two far more homely scenes in the poem which remain among the epic’s most memorable. Both involve animals.

One is the touching, tragically brief reunion of the hero (played in the film by Matt Damon) with his faithful dog Argos. It’s a deceptively low-key episode which reflects powerfully on the…

Read complete article

~	How do scientists know if climate change made a heat wave, extreme storm or wildfire worse?

~	Colorado prepares for screwworms, as the pest that was eradicated in 1966 returns to the US

~	Is withholding federal counterterrorism funds from states – as FEMA has threatened – legal?

~	Should paper checks be abolished like the penny?

~	India: Invoking of extraordinary police powers amid Delhi protests an “affront to human rights”

~	Japanese-Filipino children’s painful quests for filial recognition and citizenship

~	Ukraine: bad week on the home front for Volodymyr Zelensky

~	Labor national conference backs use of telehealth in voluntary assisted dying care

~	The Gambia’s hidden history: how a tiny river basin influenced colonial trade and slavery

~	UK: Manchester Mayoral Candidates Should Condemn UAE Abuses