Combat and Classics Podcast

In the last book of Xenophon's "Anabasis" we look back at the three challenges Xenophon has experienced: going to war alongside Cyrus, marching the Greeks through enemy territory, and the army by the sea trying to get home. We explore what Xenophon wants and the idea of leadership in these three situations and ask "what's the difference between a military leader and a political leader?" You c...

How are dance parties related to diplomacy? The schisms continue in Book 6 within the Greek army, but some schisms seem better than others. Some try to make friends with the locals, some go for help, some go raiding.  Xenophon turns down the generalship of the whole army.

The rebels have arrived at the Black Sea, but through betrayal and bad decisions, things go awry..... Xenophon leads an expedition for provisions, but the ships they are waiting for don't show up. We flash forward to Xenophon the writer, who's bought some land in exile and wants to build a temple to Artemis. Xenophon toys with the idea of founding a city where the army is camped - who knows if he...

Xenophon and the Greek host begin their march north, out of the Persian king's territory, through the icy highlands of Armenia, until at last, from a mountain, they catch sight of "the sea! the sea!"  So how do the demands of the terrain and weather impose necessities on the Greeks, and how does Xenophon deal with these necessities?  Is this easier, or harder, than dealing with human bei...

The Greek army has been beheaded: all its generals are dead.  The remaining soldiers lie down on the ground in despair.  And Xenophon has a dream, one that somehow leads him to reanimate the Greeks and start them on their march north out of Persia.  Brian, Shilo, and Jeff talk about how Xenophon revives the troops, why he's in Persia, and whether he disobeyed Socrates' advice to go...

At the beginning of Book 2, Cyrus is dead, but the Greeks are victorious.  By the end of Book 2, every Greek general is dead through Tissaphernes' treachery.  How did this happen?  What does this have to do with Clearchus, the de facto Greek general, and in particular with his piety?  And what is the hidden meaning of... palm trees?  Join us for the next episode in our rea...

Brian, Shilo, and Jeff start their reading of Xenophon's great adventure story, "The Anabasis" -- or "Ascent" -- "of Cyrus."  We have a new Cyrus; is he the same as the old Cyrus?  How is Cyrus the Younger different from Cyrus the Great?  (Is he Cyrus the not-so-Great?)  And whose ascent is Xenophon's title talking about, since Cyrus the not-so-Great (spoiler alert!) dies at th...

Brian and Jeff are joined by Michael Grenke, St. John's College - Santa Fe, to discuss Lise van Boxel's posthumously published book "Warspeak" from PoliticalAnimalPress.com. Purchase your copy here .

All good things must come to an end -- but so must all bad things, and Cyrus' empire ends badly.  Was Cyrus happy?  Is it possible to rule human beings the way he did, like a god, and also make yourself and them happy?  And why did such a cold king have two sons?  Brian, Shilo, and Jeff have answers, and these answers raise new and interesting questions, and point to another of...

Abradatas is hacked to pieces, and Panthea kills herself over his corpse.  Croesus is defeated by Cyrus, and tries to teach him what "know thyself" means.  And Cyrus surrounds himself with a bodyguard... of eunuchs?  In this episode, Brian, Shilo, and Jeff finally confront the question of what "the education of Cyrus" really means.  To suffer is to learn... but do any of these...

Brian, Shilo and Jeff get together to talk more about the difference between sexual and political love, or eros, and about the connection between eros and gratitude.  We end on another cliffhanger, as Cyrus' army, complete with siege engines, is about to attack the Assyrian host.  And Jeff admits to a crackpot theory about the connection between love, chariots, and... Plato?

Shilo Brooks returns for the next podcast in our series on Xenophon's Education of Cyrus .  We talk about Book V, the love book -- easy now -- and especially about the differences between sexual and political love.  Cyrus' special friend returns, as does his boyfriend, and the Susan woman.  And the book ends with another kiss!  We also learn the secret of when Cyrus, and Xenoph...

Shilo Brooks returns for Book IV of Xenophon's "The Education of Cyrus." We discuss Cyrus' attack on the Assyrians, consolidation, cavalry, and Cyrus' first boyfriend returns (::kiss::kiss::) and the Susan woman. For more info check out combatandclassics.org. We now have a newsletter, Instagram (@combatandclassics), and twitter (@combat_classics).

Shilo Brooks returns for another episode of "The Education of Cyrus" by Xenophon. We discuss moderation, virtue, risk and a brief mention of the ugly boyfriend.

Dr. Joseph Wood ( Institute for World Politics and Cana Academy ) joins Brian and Jeff to discuss Pierre Manent's "The Metamorphoses of the City," Chapter 2: The Poetic Birth of the City. We discuss the relationships between war and politics, especially as it relates to The Iliad.

Shilo Brooks returns to continue our exploration of Xenophon's "The Education of Cyrus" Book II where Cyrus goes to war against the Assyrians and we try to tease out what fundamentals of warfare Cyrus discovers versus what he's taught by the Persians.

Shilo Brooks returns to the pod to discuss Book I of Xenophon's "Education of Cyrus" examining the early upbringing of Cyrus and the nature of government.

Andrea Radasanu returns to discuss the Sicilian Expedition from Thucydides "History of the Peloponnesian War."

Jeff and Brian are joined by Shilo Brooks, Director of the Engineering Leadership Program at the University of Colorado - Boulder, to discuss the role of engineering in the liberal arts and his lovely essay on the Wright Brothers for Scientific American: https://blogs.scientificamerican.com/observations/why-did-the-wright-brothers-succeed-when-others-failed/ https://www.colorado.edu/herbst/shilo-b...

Jeff and Brian are joined by Dr. Andrea Radasanu, Acting Director of the University Honors Program at Northern Illinois University, to discuss Thucydides "History of the Peloponnesian War," specifically the Athenian plague and Pericles funeral oration. For more info on Andrea and NIU, click here: https://www.niu.edu/honors/about/staff.shtml

Brian and Jeff are joined by Claudia Hauer, St. John's College Tutor and Visiting Professor at the United States Air Force Academy to discuss her new book "Strategic Humanism: Lessons of Leadership from the Ancient Greeks." To pre-order, click below: https://www.politicalanimalpress.com/product/strategic-humanism/

Join Brian, Ashley Johnson ( https://www.writethinkdream.com/ ) and Anne Kniggendorf (twitter: @annekniggendorf) in their discussion of the 19th century classic, Madame Bovary by Gustave Flaubert.

Our dear friend, co-founder, co-host and great souled human, Lise van Boxel, has passed away. We present our humble tribute.

ANNOUNCEMENT: We recently learned that C&C co-founder Lise van Boxel has been diagnosed with Stage IV lung cancer. She is currently undergoing treatment. If you would like to help and express your support, please visit the GoFundMe page created for her benefit. In this episode, Brian is joined by guest Scott Hambrick , founder of Online Great Books . Brian will be teaching a seminar through Sc...

We begin our next "close read" series with the first two sections of Nietzsche's Thus Spoke Zarathustra, which conclude with the famous line "God is dead." Lise, Jeff, and Brian discuss Nietzsche's imagery, allusions, and treatment of questions of love, envy, and humanity.