Dr. Alex Petkas
Co-founder, The Classical Society · Advisory Board
Classicist and podcaster who left a tenure-track post to bring Plutarch to a modern audience, and who led Meriwether Academy’s dinner symposium on the Spartan general Lysander.
Watch His LectureThe Cost of GloryAbout Alex Petkas
Dr. Alex Petkas holds a PhD in classics and left a tenure-track academic position to build an independent classical education project. He is the host of The Cost of Glory, a podcast that retells the biographies in Plutarch’s Lives for a modern audience, available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and YouTube.
He co-founded The Classical Society, a network of men working to bring the classical virtues back into business, culture and politics, and he has led men’s retreats to Rome and Greece, where the lives he narrates were actually lived.
Plutarch at Meriwether
Plutarch is the backbone of Meriwether Academy’s weekly Men’s Book Club, and Petkas has spent years retelling the Lives for a modern audience. In April 2026 he led Meriwether’s dinner symposium on Plutarch’s Life of Lysander, the Spartan admiral who won the Peloponnesian War and paid for it with his reputation. He joined Warren Steury on episode 2 of the Meriwether Academy Podcast to talk about heroic virtue, and he serves on Meriwether’s advisory board. New readers can start with our guide on how to read Plutarch’s Lives.
Lectures and talks by Alex Petkas
Dr. Petkas’s symposium, lecture and podcast conversation with Meriwether Academy, free to watch.
Lysander and the Price of Victory
The work of Alex Petkas
Listen, join and travel with Dr. Petkas beyond Meriwether.
The Cost of Glory
Petkas’s podcast on the lives of the Greco-Roman statesmen, generals, orators and founders, drawn from Plutarch. The site also hosts The Rostra, an online community for weekly speaking practice, and live retreats.
Visit costofglory.com →The Classical Society
A society of men bringing classical virtue back into business, culture and politics, which Petkas co-founded.
Visit The Classical Society →The Cost of Glory on X
Daily Plutarch, history and episode updates from Dr. Petkas.
Follow on X →The Cost of Glory in Nashville
Read Plutarch with us
About Dr. Alex Petkas
Who is Alex Petkas?
Dr. Alex Petkas is a classicist with a PhD in classics, the host of The Cost of Glory podcast on Plutarch’s Lives, and co-founder of The Classical Society. He serves on Meriwether Academy’s advisory board.
What is The Cost of Glory podcast?
It is a podcast in which Alex Petkas retells the biographies in Plutarch’s Lives. It is available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and YouTube.
What did Alex Petkas speak about at Meriwether Academy?
In April 2026 he led a dinner symposium on Plutarch’s Life of Lysander. Watch it in the lecture archive.
How can I read Plutarch with others in Nashville?
Join Meriwether Academy’s free weekly Men’s Book Club, which reads one of Plutarch’s Lives each week.
Our board, advisors and speakers
The scholars, artists and leaders who have taught at Meriwether Academy in Nashville. Meet the whole fellowship.
Warren SteuryFounder & President
Col. Jim PattersonAdvisory Board
Dr. Mark AndersonAdvisory Board · Belmont University
Dr. Jason PediconeAdvisory Board · Paideia Institute
Justin ShubowNational Civic Art Society
Joe AllenAuthor of Dark Aeon
Dr. Benjamin SmithCatholic Studies Academy
Sabin HowardSculptor, National WWI MemorialHear our next speaker in person
Meriwether Academy hosts dinner lectures with scholars and artists, a free weekly men’s book club, and wilderness expeditions across Tennessee.
See Upcoming EventsBrowse the Lecture Archive