Classical Mythology Goes on Nashville Odyssey
A guest post by Professor Marisue Coy …
To call our trip an odyssey is appropriate because we traveled on our journey, had adventures, and struggled (a little) to find our way home. More on that later…
When a city names its professional football team the Titans, that city obviously respects Greek mythology. As further proof of that respect, Centennial Park stands in the middle of Nashville, and its reproduction of the Parthenon, the ancient Greek temple honoring Athene, goddess of wisdom, has attracted visitors for decades. Students enrolled in my Classical Mythology classes have visited the Parthenon nearly every semester, but this spring they got an added bonus, a visit to the Frist Museum.
April 17 started out as one of the most beautiful spring days of the year. Eight students and I left KWC’s campus in a van at 9:00 a.m. to travel to Nashville, TN. Nashville’s Frist Museum had an exhibition of Greek heroes, so we first stopped at the museum, where we saw ancient vases and artifacts depicting the stories we had studied. We could take “quizzes” to see which hero or heroine we most resembled and then look for “ourselves” in the exhibit. We wandered around that exhibit and came away with an even better appreciation for the ancient Greek stories.
In addition, we saw not only the collection of European Masterpieces (one of which depicted the “Judgment of Paris,” a pivotal story in Greek mythology), but also an innovative and fascinating exhibit by a Korean artist whose combination of metal and lights and electronics to create flowers and other unusual creatures fascinated us. It was absolutely beautiful.
After seeing all we could at the museum, we boarded the van for the quick trip to the Parthenon. When we approached, finding a place to park proved tricky because of a huge festival taking place in the park, but at last we found a spot and walked across the street to a restaurant to grab some lunch.
After another stop at an ice cream shop, we walked back to the Parthenon and spent time roaming inside to see the 40+ foot statue of Athene along with many other statues and pieces of information about the gods and goddesses of Greek mythology. We then walked around the outside of the Parthenon and enjoyed a stroll through the park. As much as we might have liked to stay longer, we found our way back to our van and headed home.
In true Greek mythology fashion, we faced a few obstacles. Like Odysseus in his journey back from the Trojan War, we found that going straight home just wasn’t meant to be. When the gas gauge indicated a need for gas, we found ourselves pretty much in the middle of nowhere with what seemed to be an empty tank. Again, in true Greek mythology tradition, we relied on heroism (two students got directions from some friendly farmers) and maybe even a little divine intervention (we found a gas station fairly easily once we got back on track). To say we were relieved would be an understatement.
At last, we arrived back on campus maybe a half hour later than we planned. In the end, we decided the entire trip was worth the effort, and no one complained about the final part of the adventure. We were thankful that at least, unlike Odysseus when he traveled home in the Odyssey, we weren’t lost for ten years.
For more photos, check out the Classical Mythology Nashville Trip photo set on Flickr.
<>