Rating: 
Summary: Wonderful Translation
Review: So, everyone knows the story of the Iliad. We're all familiar with the Greeks and the Trojans and the horse and lines written about it with regard to "Who is he to Hecuba?" I've been reading different translations of it since grade school. What sets this one apart?Richmond Lattimore, a Dartmouth College Alum, goes to great lengths to preserve the original language and tries to keep the story in poetic form while translating the Greek as literally as possible. This is seen on simpler levels, i.e. the use of non-anglicized name (Aias instead of Ajax) but pervades the entire book on a larger level. This keeps the awe which the tale conveys entact, and even makes it quite powerful, without going over the top and being silly, like the translations of certain professors at Princeton.
Rating:
Summary: Wonderful Translation
Review: So, everyone knows the story of the Iliad. We're all familiar with the Greeks and the Trojans and the horse and lines written about it with regard to "Who is he to Hecuba?" I've been reading different translations of it since grade school. What sets this one apart? Richmond Lattimore, a Dartmouth College Alum, goes to great lengths to preserve the original language and tries to keep the story in poetic form while translating the Greek as literally as possible. This is seen on simpler levels, i.e. the use of non-anglicized name (Aias instead of Ajax) but pervades the entire book on a larger level. This keeps the awe which the tale conveys entact, and even makes it quite powerful, without going over the top and being silly, like the translations of certain professors at Princeton.
Rating:
Summary: Best translation of the Greek I have seen
Review: The five stars are for the princely Lattimore translation, of course. No one alive is able to review the Iliad; the word "classic" is trite and hollow when applied to Homer's work, it is beyond such terms, ever able to be reinvented and reinterpreted for every passing generation, ideology, style, or even individual reader. The marvel of this translation is the way that it has stood up over the years, still as much poetry in English as the Iliad is in Greek. Amazing. The only translation of the Iliad to own and read for pleasure. Homer's prose leaps off the page, and seems ever new in its noble crispness and bloodthirsty persistance. Lattimore should be beatified for this text.
Rating:
Summary: Mythology Rules
Review: The Iliad by Homer is a book that i think everyone can enjoy it comes in a lot of different reading levels and is relativly easy to understand. I thought the book was well written and the plot kept me reading for more. i recommend this book to anyone who likes the old school style of art of war and sword vs shield style genre.
Rating:
Summary: A Noble Translation of a Magnificent Work
Review: The ILIAD of Homer is one of the bedrock tales of Western civilization, and Richmond Lattimore's 1951 translation achieves its stated purpose of remembering the four qualities of Homer that Matthew Arnold once set out as key for his translators to keep in mind: "[Homer] is rapid, plain and direct in thought and expression, plain and direct in substance, and noble." Taking place in the tenth and final year of the Trojan War, the ILIAD opens with the anger of Achilles at the great king Agamemnon for taking away his favorite concubine (a spoil of war). Each man's pride is too much: Agamemnon refuses to give back the girl and Achilles refuses to continue fighting. Since Achilles is the Greeks' greatest warrior, the fortunes of the Trojans markedly improve while he famously sulks in his tent. But the Greeks fight on, and such heroes as Diomedes, Aias (Ajax) and Odysseus continue the fight to sack Troy as return the queen Helen to her husband Menelaos, King of Argos. Over the lengthy yet colorful descriptions of battle, they are driven back to their ships by the Trojans, led by their prince and greatest warrior, Hektor (brother of Paris, who has stolen Helen with the help of Aphrodite). The ILIAD is really the story of Achilles, and is his tragedy. Once the danger of defeat seems imminent, Agamemnon offers to give the girl back and make amends (as long as Achilles realizes who's still boss) but Achilles remains caught up in his prideful wrath. He eventually returns to the fight and drives the Trojans back inside their own walls, but the price he pays is dear. The ILIAD is also notable for its depiction of the gods. Far from being above it all, Athena, Ares and their immortal siblings get right down on the beach and take sides in the war. You might think that a battlefield is no place for the goddess of love, but don't worry, Aphrodite soon learns the same. The Greeks will suffer, but the greater powers of Mt. Olympos are behind them, effectively making their victory inevitable. Since Lattimore was trying to get as close to the Greek as he could, his English translation is less poetic than those of Robert Fitzgerald or, I imagine, Robert Fagles (who is next on my list). But it does have its own stately rhythm that should hardly be inaccessible to the modern college student or adult. For high schoolers, though, I would recommend reading one of the other translators first, as the first time one reads Homer, it should be for the story. And what a story!
Rating:
Summary: Lattimore does justice to Homer
Review: The reviewer from San Diego who said the Lattimore translation was good for classics students, bad for everyone else, is dead wrong. Lattimore captures the feel and spirit of Homer better than any other translation into English. If you're not accustomed to reading literature, whether in a highly inflected language or not, you might have trouble with Lattimore, but that does not diminish the quality of Lattimore's work. Anyone who can read poetic narrative can read and appreciate Lattimore. I have read the Iliad and Odyssey in Lattimore's translations at least 4 times each and each time I find more to appreciate. Most of the lovers of great literature I know prefer Lattimore for the same reason -- his translation is so natural and simple. Hey, San Diego, if you want difficult, try the translations of Homer by Alexander Pope, or George Chapman.
Rating:
Summary: The Iliad of Homer, Translated by Alexander Pope
Review: The two classic verse (English) translations of Homer's Iliad & Odyssey are by George Chapman (1611) and Alexander Pope (1725). A classic prose translation of both works is the one by Lang, Leaf, and Myers (Iliad), and Butcher, Lang (Odyssey). A good, literal prose translation from the 1890's of the Odyssey is the George Herbert Palmer. Good literal, modern prose translations of both works are the ones by A. T. Murray. The better prose and verse translations of the latter half of the 20th century (E. V. Rieu, Fagles, Lattimore, Fitzgerald, Lombardo, Mandelbaum, etc.) are all, though they obviously have different approaches, pretty much at the same level of inspiration. To get most of Homer in English you have to first learn the poems from ANY translation that speaks to you (even starting with a paraphrased prose version for 'children' is a good idea), then you have to read the Chapman and Pope along with a good, literal prose version. This Penquin Classics edition of Pope's translation of the Iliad includes all of Pope's notes for each book as-well-as his Preface, Essays on the nature of Homer's battle scenes and on the Shield of Achilles, and the three remarkable indexes (Index of Persons and Things, Poetical Index, and Index of Arts and Sciences). The notes contain, along with Pope's original notes, numerous extracts from ancient and modern commentators of the poem including the allegorizing of the various scenes and events and so on. Pope's verse itself makes Homer a startling new experience for anyone only familiar with 20th century translations. Because the verse is in heroic, rhymed couplets each detail of the poem stands more clearly on its own. Details that get blended in and painted over in modern translations stand out in Pope's verse. The verticalness of the poem (hierarchy of levels of being from beneath human to human to semi-divine to divine...) is made more visible. Architecture and natural description is more vivid. Pope also brings out the higher psychological play between the characters and gods and goddesses. This edition is definitely worth its price.
Rating: 
Summary: The Iliad by Homer
Review: The world of mythology not only interests but captivates young men. The idea of having gods that play with the outcome of everything may be what a female likes to read about. All in all this book has it all.
Homer's Iliad has action. There is a scene where Ajax's shield is jabbed by Hektor and his spear goes through 7 layers ofthe shield.
The god Zeus controls the fate of all of those involved with the Trojan war. The part the gods play is very much like a soap opera. This will mellow out the action and cause more at the same time.
This is a great book for anyone that likes history action or suspense. Read it!!!!!
Rating:
Summary: Translation is really literal great for classical students
Review: This is about as close as one can get to a word by word translation of the Illiad from Greek into english. Lattimore's work is excellent for those who translate Greek. If you want to understand what was said by the Greek text this is a must wiether you read greek or not. Lattimore's goal was consistancy with the greek. I enjoy Robert Fitzgerelds and Robert Fagels translations more for a pleasure read of the Illiad.
Rating:
Summary: A bright beginning
Review: This is the beginning of everything. I'm not one of those who consider the Bible as the beginning of Western literature because those Jewish tales are interesting but not European. I have nothing to add about the Iliad that hasn't been said or written before and I wouldn't even try. But when I hear those first words 'Sing, o goddess, Achilles' wrath -ill-fated wrath...' something trembles inside me because I know my forbears are talking to me and telling me a terrible story of bravery and death, of war, bravery, swords, love, terrible human sacrifices that took place in the Mediterranean world just a few thousand years ago. It's so human -even the bravest warrior is afraid when he sees death coming. And I highly recommend to read aloud or recite those words because this is not a novel, but poetry and you have to feel it in your mouth, even if you don't speak or read Greek. I can tell you, Homer sounds marvellous in Spanish and I guess that if you have a good translation, it must sound wonderful in English or French or German as well. So this is not a review but a testimony of my love towards the first one we know that created beauty with words and with such a bloody story.
|
