Homer’s Odyssey is one of the greatest works of world literature and has always commanded admiring attention, as evidenced by the numerous translations over the centuries and its inclusion in many college literature courses. But Christopher Nolan’s 2026 film, which has grossed $1.684 billion worldwide as of September, has taken popular interest in the original to a new level, elevating Emily Wilson’s recent translation to some bestseller lists. Homer’s great epic is having a moment. In this forum, three UMD scholars, drawn from various disciplines, will assess Homer's ancient original and its context and its modern translation to film. 

Featured Speakers 

Lillian Doherty is a Professor Emerita of Classics at UMCP. Her primary field of specialization is Homeric epic, and she has written or edited two books and a number of articles on the Odyssey, with special attention to its narrative structure and its portrayal of female characters. Her Approaches to Teaching Homer’s Odyssey was published in 2026. 

Luka Arsenjuk is an associate professor and teaches in the program in Cinema and Media Studies. He is currently writing a book about heist movies. 

Dr. Emily Egan is an Associate Professor of Ancient Eastern Mediterranean Art and Archaeology in the Department of Art History and Archaeology. Her research explores the iconography and production of Greek wall paintings from the Late Bronze Age, the period in which Homer's epics are famously set. For two decades, she has conducted fieldwork at two key sites mentioned in the Odyssey, the Palace of Agamemnon at Mycenae and the Palace of Nestor at Pylos, where she strives to reconstruct fragmentary artworks and to interpret them within their (art-)historical contexts.