Burger describes her lecture topic as follows: "The family is a central concern for the Bible as well as for Greek poetry and philosophy. But there seems to be an important difference in the problem on which each tradition focuses. The dominant theme of the Book of Genesis is the rivalry of brothers (or sisters)—from Cain's fratricide to the attempted fratricide by Joseph's brothers. In Greek thought, on the other hand, the dominant theme is the “Oedipal” relationship of the son to the father (and mother)—from Hesiod's Theogony to Aristophanes' Clouds, Plato's Euthyphro and the tyrannical soul in Book IX of the Republic, with its allusion to Sophocles’ Oedipus Tyrannus. What is the significance of these differing perspectives on the principal problem of the family? Does the contrast shed light on the larger issue of Jerusalem and Athens?"

Burger is introduced by Tutor Jason Tipton.