I Fear Greeks Bearing Gifts

This title comes from the most famous scam in the ‘pre-truth’ world of Greek myth: the story of the Wooden Horse. After endless fighting, it was not warrior prowess, but trickery that brought the divine city of Troy to its knees. We encounter deceit at every turn in the Greek stories, Athene congratulates the hero Odysseus on his devious qualities of wit, sharpness and trickery. Deception was Zeus’ primary means of sexual conquest – no surprise that sex is the arena in Greek myth where trickery is most in evidence.

Dr Heather Sebo completed her PhD on mythic subtexts in Euripides’ Helen at the University of Melbourne. She has been committed to the teaching of myth and developed the first myth course at Monash University in the 1990's. She is Adjunct Lecturer in Classics at Latrobe University and ancient Greek drama consultant for the Complete Works Theatre Company.

Part of La Trobe Classics in the City 2025 - Classical Cons: The Art of the Scam in Ancient Greece and Rome