Exploring the myth and metaphor of Cassandra and the price of foresight

You’ve likely heard the Greek myth of Cassandra, a woman given the gift of prophecy who was cursed never to be believed.

This hour, a look at the Cassandra story and its relevance today, including some real-life Cassandras, like the diplomat who tried to stop World War II and the public health official who tried to warn us about the COVID-19 pandemic.

GUESTS:

• Joel Christensen: Professor of classical studies at Brandeis University; his newest book is The Many-Minded Man: The Odyssey, Psychology, and the Therapy of Epic
• Charity Dean: CEO, founder, and chairman of the Public Health Company
• Steve Kemper: Author of Our Man in Tokyo: An American Ambassador and the Countdown to Pearl Harbor
• Amanda Rees: Historian of science at the University of York and the author of Human

The Colin McEnroe Show is available as a podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Amazon Music, TuneIn, Listen Notes, or wherever you get your podcasts. Subscribe and never miss an episode!

Subscribe to The Noseletter, an email compendium of merriment, secrets, and ancient wisdom brought to you by The Colin McEnroe Show.

Join the conversation on Facebook and Twitter.

Colin McEnroe, Jonathan McNicol, and Cat Pastor contributed to this show, which originally aired January 25, 2023.

Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donate

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.