Literary Tales Ep. 3: Greek Theogony and Theodicy | Discourses on Minerva

In this episode of Literary Tales, we examine the dialectical development of Greek theogony and theodicy from Hesiod and Homer down through Pseudo-Apollodorus with concluding remarks on this tradition’s supersession by Virgil. In starting from Hesiod’s Theogony and exploring the role of the gods, their birth and divine decrees, through Homer and the Bibliotheca, I argue that the progression of Greek theogonic and theodic writing was a natural development of wrestling with the Greek gods.

This lecture is partly based on my essay “Lust, Sex, and War: On the Depravity of the Pagan Gods” (March 20, 2019)