Jonathan Shay, a MacArthur Fellow and clinical psychiatrist, will present a lecture titled "Homer on Military Leadership" as part of the Winslow Lecture Series at Hamilton College. Shay's talk will take place on Thursday, April 3, at 4:10 p.m. in the Science Center's Kennedy Auditorium. The lecture is free and open to the public.
Shay was awarded a MacArthur Fellowship in 2007 for combining the treatment of war veterans with a study of Homer's poems in order to gain a deeper understanding of the effects of war on those who experience it. In his book Achilles in Vietnam: Combat Trauma and the Undoing of Character (1994), he compares the experiences of Achilles and Vietnam veterans; and in Odysseus in America: Combat Trauma and the Trials of Homecoming (2002), he deals with the experiences of veterans on their return from war. His talk will address several questions. Is the leader a "shepherd of the people" or a "destroyer of the people?" Should we court-martial Captain Odysseus and honor Colonel Achilles, or vice versa?
Shay received a bachelor's degree from Harvard and an M.D. and Ph.D. from the University of Pennsylvania. Since 1987, he has been a staff psychiatrist at the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Outpatient Clinic in Boston. He has served as visiting Scholar-at-Large at the U.S. Naval War College, and was chair of Ethics, Leadership, and Personnel Policy in the Office of the U.S. Army Deputy Chief of Staff for Personnel.
The Winslow Classical and Archaeological Lectureship was established in 1943 by William Winslow.
Shay was awarded a MacArthur Fellowship in 2007 for combining the treatment of war veterans with a study of Homer's poems in order to gain a deeper understanding of the effects of war on those who experience it. In his book Achilles in Vietnam: Combat Trauma and the Undoing of Character (1994), he compares the experiences of Achilles and Vietnam veterans; and in Odysseus in America: Combat Trauma and the Trials of Homecoming (2002), he deals with the experiences of veterans on their return from war. His talk will address several questions. Is the leader a "shepherd of the people" or a "destroyer of the people?" Should we court-martial Captain Odysseus and honor Colonel Achilles, or vice versa?
Shay received a bachelor's degree from Harvard and an M.D. and Ph.D. from the University of Pennsylvania. Since 1987, he has been a staff psychiatrist at the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Outpatient Clinic in Boston. He has served as visiting Scholar-at-Large at the U.S. Naval War College, and was chair of Ethics, Leadership, and Personnel Policy in the Office of the U.S. Army Deputy Chief of Staff for Personnel.
The Winslow Classical and Archaeological Lectureship was established in 1943 by William Winslow.
