The Iliad

Rating:
Summary: Excellent Example of the Utter Foolishness of War
Review: Those Greeks got just about everything right, as Plato would put it, "only the dead have seen the end of war." Homer's Iliad can be interpereted many ways, which is what makes it such an interesting and multifaceted read. The original version I began reading was published in 1977 and written in a very dry, high-language style. I quickly switched to Robert Grave's "The Anger of Achilles." This is re-written version of the same story in a modernized language style. A much better read than the older version. Homer vividly shows man's arrogance and boldness at starting wars and waging them. The entire 10-year Trojan war centers around a single woman as the objective, Helen, wife of King Menelaus. Menelaus then asks Agamemnon to assist in the plot to return Helen to Sparta. Paris's bold capture of Helen from Sparta provokes the Greeks into gathering an enormous war fleet to sail for Troy with dire purpose. Much of this seems like a rediculous concept, but not if you stop to think about it. Consider this: The USA started the war on terror basically to nab 2 people, Bin Laden and Hussein. This is a strange dualism, isn't it? All variables aside, I think that this is an excellent, classic example of man's over-eagerness to wage war, but their ignorance of the consequences they reap because of it. This epic glorifies war so much, but barely explains the true psychological and social effects large wars have on the populace. I believe this novel was, in fact, written as an anti-war piece, so this is how I chose to interperet it. I am by no means downplaying the noble sacrifices the men and women of the US military have made to secure freedom for our country, because soon I will be one of those people when I enlist in the Army. Above all, a soldier prays for peace because they are the ones who must fight conflicts and be thrown headlong into the utter ugly chaos that is war. Homer may be history's first attempt at a hippy, but who knows? Homer is as much of an enigma as the reason why mankind still chooses to wage war. But war will always be a part of human nature, so we will be prepared.

Rating:
Summary: The Classics Never Die
Review: True it's hard to read if you aren't patient, but being a fan of american and Japanese films, the kind with lots of violence and stuff, this story is awesome. Unlike most popular belife this book is the story of The Wrath of Achilleus, and what happens when you make him mad. If you like anime, like Dragon Ball Z, or any show where the guys are super macho, this is a fantastic story. I think more people should read it, as it shows not only a massive battle between Achilleus and Hektor, but much of the historical ideals of the past.

Rating:
Summary: Written with a poem in mind
Review: What can another translation of Homer do? A question which has no answer for those who don't already know the answer themselves. -Richmond Lattimore This book is definitely a book to add to the Hall of Fame collection of Homer's best. Although it had its dry moments, it was definetely exciting and invigorating. This is a must buy for people who enjoy reading about the ancient times.

Rating:
Summary: Simply: a masterpiece
Review: While some may indeed prefer the poetics of Pope, for those approaching The Iliad for the first time or anew, Richmond Lattimore's translation is both accessible and memorable. It will also impress on readers the various mnemonics that are such an important part of how this oral work came to be handed down.

Unlike others, I do not find what amounts to blank verse in sections to be unpoetic. Unromantic, yes. But this is war. Lattimore's translation, completed in the shade of the atomic age and the Cold War, conveys the hope implicit in the embassy passage as well as the inexorable march to tragedy and the questions left to survivors. I know of no other English translation that communicates this as clearly to modern readers.

Especially after the Brad Pitt movie of Summer, 2004 which reduced the epic to two busy weeks, this is important reading. Lattimore's language captures the pace (no less horrifying because of its languor) and allows readers to piece together a reasonable understanding that could be shared with listeners in the firelight of millennia past.

Read others if multiple translations interest you, but start here.