Homer’s The Odyssey Reading Group
On June 24 and July 1, 2026, The Humanities Institute and Ancient Studies held a reading group covering Homer’s Odyssey, just in time for the motion picture release. Whether you like movies or not, this was a great excuse to read the millennia-old story about a salty war hero who just wants to go home. UC Santa Cruz Ancient Studies faculty Anne Kreps and Martin Devecka discussed the wild world of Odysseus and what this epic can teach us about talking to strangers, lying, and picking a good disguise.
Watch June 24th here:
Watch July 1st here:
Martin Devecka, Associate Professor, Ancient Studies & Literature
As a cultural historian, Devecka writes on topics in ancient literature and society that range from robots to ruins. He is currently finishing a book manuscript on animal citizenship in the Roman Empire.
Anne Kreps, Associate Professor, Ancient Studies & History
As a historian of the ancient Near East, Kreps studies heresies, Gnosticism, and the politics of sacred texts. Her current work examines the Dead Sea Scrolls within New Religious Movements in the United States.
Images:
- Odysseus and Circe (book 10): top-two men who have been turned into animals already, Odysseus with sword, Circe with headscarf
- Odysseus and Elphanor in underworld (book 11): Odysseus sits with chin on hand, naked Elpanor (the crew member who dies in book 1) rises naked from the earth. The God Hermes stands behind Odysseus
- Odysseus draws the bow (book 21)
- Odysseus escapes the Cyclops (book 9): He ties himself to the belly of a goat.
This event was presented by The Humanities Institute and the UC Santa Cruz Ancient Studies Program. Co-sponsored by Bookshop Santa Cruz.