'I must break you':
Ivan Drago, the Italian Stallion, and the Values of Homeric Epic

What does Sylvester Stallone's Rocky IV (1985CE) have to do with Homer's Iliad (750BCE)? And what could the Iliad possibly teach us about our own culture? This presentation, a version of which was presented at the Film & History conference in October, explores how the prevailing reading of Rocky IV (as pro-American Cold War propaganda) can be challenged and even overturned by looking through the lens of the famous epic of the Trojan War. This paper is also a good example of my pedagogical strategies for teaching Classics courses, where students are encouraged to read "texts" critically and to make connections between ancient and (more) modern material. I shall incorporate clips from the film for your viewing pleasure, and there should be ample time for discussion afterward (topics may include the validity of teaching reception - or teaching using reception, reader-response theory, and the finer points of Dolph Lundgren's physique).

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Hot buffet lunch will be available for $3.00 beginning at 12:00 noon.  To ensure an accurate count, please RSVP to vpaa@beloit.edu by noon on Monday, February 4.

This event is open to Beloit College faculty and staff only.