I have something in common with Alexander the Great

ɪ ʜᴀᴠᴇ ꜱᴏᴍᴇᴛʜɪɴɢ ɪɴ ᴄᴏᴍᴍᴏɴ ᴡɪᴛʜ ᴀʟᴇxᴀɴᴅᴇʀ ᴛʜᴇ ɢʀᴇᴀᴛ, ᴀɴᴅ ꜱᴏ ᴅᴏ ʏᴏᴜ, ɪꜰ ʏᴏᴜ ʀᴇᴀᴅ ᴛʜᴇ ɪʟɪᴀᴅ.

One of my favourite pieces of text is Homer’s epic poem, The Iliad, about the last weeks of the Trojan War.

This was Alexander’s favourite work too, and he read it endlessly.

Homer’s other seminal work, The Odyssey, is also a favourite of mine. The protagonist, Hercules, was one of my favourite heroes as a child, after Paul Newman.

Alexander’s tutor was Aristotle, who was taught by Plato, who was taught by Socrates. I’d like to believe that all of them read The Iliad too.

I find it fascinating that their eyes pored over the same text that mine have. Books are a magnificent way to make gods and commoners the same, even if only for a brief time.

I love the idea of it.

* ɪᴍᴀɢᴇ. ᴛʜᴇ 12 ʟᴀʙᴏᴜʀꜱ ᴏꜰ ʜᴇʀᴄᴜʟᴇꜱ: ꜱᴛᴇᴀʟ ᴛʜᴇ ᴍᴀʀᴇꜱ ᴏꜰ ᴅɪᴏᴍᴇᴅᴇꜱ.