★★★★★ 5
2,800 years worth of people have heard/read Homer
Format: Hardcover
I just finished reading volume 1 of Homer's Iliad published by The LOEB Classical Library in conjunction with Harvard University Press. The translation is by A.T. Murray with revisions made by William F. Wyatt. The LOEB Classical Library is a academically trusted collection of Greek and Latin publications. The translations are normally more literal than those you might find at your local Barnes and Noble, therefore they read more like an archaic form of English.
Homer's Iliad can be found on nearly every great works of literature list. Harold Bloom considered Homer to be in the same family with Cervantes, Dante, and Shakespeare. The Iliad has been read for thousands of years, and every reputable honors program includes his works in their required readings lists. His writings influenced Tolkien and George R.R. Martin. His descriptions of war are grotesque and inspiring. The pantheon of deities he created in his stories set the stage for the Greek mythology that followed him. This is the understanding I had when approaching the book. The bar was set rather high and unlike most expectations these ones were surpassed.
As I finished reading volume 1, I asked myself, "how could a writer from the 8th century B.C. have achieved so much, when so many from our era have achieved so little?" Homer had no paper trail of literary criticism to follow. He had no classes in writing style and technique, and yet the Iliad is of such a high caliber that we still read him today. Wayne C. Booth brought to our attention Homer's "leave nothing up to the reader" style of reading. If Homer wants you to favor one group over another, he is going to come out and say it. He can tell you every thought and intent of each character. Homer doesn't care that it would be impossible for anyone to know the thoughts of Agamemnon or Hector. He knows what they thought and that's enough. Many writers today shy away from such literary techniques in favor of modes that demand "reader response." This is not necessarily bad, it's just a different approach but many of their works, if not all, will not demand the attention of 2,800 years worth of readers.
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Reviewed in the United States on August 4, 2012
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