Great Books Ep 36. The Odyssey Book 8. Harmony and Peace: The Enduring Power of Storytelling in Society.

If a nation has a very good entertainment industry that produces entertainment to keep people engaged, there would be fewer fights and wars, which gives more time to create better entertainment.

But when the Phaeacians pressed Demodocus to sing further, for they delighted in his lays, then Ulysses again drew his mantle over his head and wept bitterly.

~ The Odyssey - Book VIII (Samuel Butler Translation. p223)

RR

In Book 8 of The Odyssey, King Alcinous hosts a feast in honor of his guest, whose name he does not know yet. During the feast, the bard…