This week, Jeff and Dave welcome into the studio seasoned translator Diane Arnson Svarlien, to talk about her new addition of three plays by the brilliant, scatological, Athenian comedian Aristophanes. Timed to the release of Hackett's new, attractive volume, Diane shares with us her own background in the Classics, how she became interested in Greek comedy, what it takes to translate iambic trimeters, pentameters, and more. Drawing from perhaps Aristophanes' three most popular send ups – Lysistrata, Ladies of Thesmophoria, and Addled Amphibians – the conversation ranges (and rages) widely. If you have been thinking about reading Aristophanes, dabbling in politics, the war between the sexes, and bathroom humor, or if you just want to know what it takes to make a great translation, don't miss this conversation with our friend Diane. Phlattothrattophlattothrat! Note: the muse in this episode is pretty spotless, but if you sign up for the Aristophanes giveaway, you should have some sense of what you're getting in advance. For those with young children, please use discretion.

This week Jeff and Dave are back to antebellum America with a long and luxurious look at Chapter 2 from Carl Richard's 2009 masterpiece, The Golden Age of the Classics in America. This chapter, "Democracy", explains how the post-revolutionary generation navigated their loyalties to Cicero vs. Demosthenes, and Athens vs. Rome. Along the way, we talk through the woodsy triumvirate of Sam Houston, Andrew Jackson, and Abraham Lincoln, whether a Yankee could have any true knowledge of the Classics, what's up with Jackson's hair, and how to impress Cherokee girls (hint: it requires memorizing 500 pages of Pope's Iliad). It's a rough, wild world, where J. Q. Adams tries both to support Greek independence from the Turks, and uphold the Monroe Doctrine, and where -- within 20 days of the Alamo -- Colonel Travis was dubbed the American Leonidas. Nervous about listening? Remember the words of that $20 celebrity Pres. Jackson: "One man with courage makes a majority".

This week the guys take ya'll on a virtual tour of the ancient cult site Epidauros. As part of Jeff's continuing project of 3D reconstructions on archaeological sites, he helms us through a look at the origins of the famous ancient healer (or quack?), the abaton where invalids sought to meet the demigod in their dreams or be introduced to one of his snakey representatives, the theater, the stadium, the tholos site where Aesclepius' remains were said to be buried, and more. Is there a good explanation for Asclepius' apparent ability to heal? Was it all a fraud, power of suggestion, secret technology, or really supernatural? Be sure not to miss this geographical meander through one of the most beautiful - and off the beaten path - sites of Classical and Hellenistic Greece. Also, don't miss the 4th century A.D. church at the site's northwest corner, be sure to check out the site map here (link), and what's Dave's deal with mints?