Daphnis and Chloe (Penguin Classics)

Rating:
Summary: Implausible and ludicrous - just like true love
Review: "Charming" and "Idyllic" are two words you'll meet often when reading reviews of this ancient tale. And certainly it is both those things. It is the best known and best loved of the "Erotici Graeci", or Greek love stories, that date from the early centuries of the Common Era. It is characteristic of the genre, featuring as it does pirates, supernatural events and some highly implausible plot elements.

The Penguin Classics edition has an excellent translation, introduction and notes by Paul Turner.

The story includes the curious conceit, common in folk tales, that an infant of aristocratic parentage, raised by peasants, will grow up exhibiting all the innate qualities of nobility, like cuckoo chicks raised in another bird's nest. Nature is all; nurture is nothing. This idea can be found in literature until at least late in the nineteenth century. To (most) modern readers it seems ludicrous. In comparison, the belief in Pan and the Muses appears quite reasonable.

Historians and archeologists can tell us much about ancient civilizations, except for the most interesting thing of all; what were these people really like? Novels, drama and poetry give us glimpses into their very hearts and minds. We learn about their relationships between each other and between themselves and their gods. Sometimes we wonder at how alien and strange they appear; at others we are struck at how much like us - like people always, everywhere - they are. Some things never change. Among them are the pains and joys of young love. For as long as there are young lovers, there will be "Daphnis and Chloe".

Rating:
Summary: Sheer, unadulterated bliss.
Review: Man...Daphnis and Chloe. Surely, this is one of the Best Things Ever. An utterly gorgeous evocation of innocent, sweetly naive pastoral life. I honestly can't think of a single work of literature I've enjoyed more. It's short, but richly deserving of multiple readings. If you're not capable of enjoying it, I don't want to know you. It is truly Great, capital 'G'. However, in the interest of objectivity, I should note that there is one thing about it that somewhat irks me: in the end, the title characters are revealed to by of noble birth. That's not a spoiler; you know it right from the get-go. So, while it was inevitable, it just didn't quite work for me. I would have liked to see them go on in idyllic splendour (note the British spelling) forever.

That, however, is a minor quibble. You must read this. It could even save your life: let's say you've read it, and then, sometime later, for whatever reason, you decide to commit suicide. You'd be very likely to think, at some point, 'hey, wait a minute--I can't die now; I need to reread Daphnis and Chloe!' So then you'd turn the engine off, and after you finished your rereading, you'd realize, 'hey--life is GOOD! What was I thinking?' And you'd be right. Something like this couldn't exist if the world wasn't in some sense fundamentally good.

Rating:
Summary: A delightful tale
Review: The story dates from classical Greece. After two thousand years, the story is still fresh and charming - the sign of a true classic. It's about young love, eager and inept, with gods, pirates, and other harmless excitement. The writer included the happy fumblings of physical affection that a modern author would have shied from, sweet and not at all salacious. The story finishes with an improbable and triumphantly happy ending. Good happy fun, and not a lengthy read.

Beyond the story itself, I found this book very informative. The story is supposedly one that Shakespeare read, and it shows. Some of the Bard's endings look a bit recycled once you've read Daphnis and Chloe. I also found that it explained Marc Chagall's cycle of lithographs - the images make more sense, now that I've seen their inspiration. In addition, there's satisfaction in knowing that this story, with such influence on such great minds, and is now a part of my education, too.

All that was extra reward, though. I wanted the book because Chagall's illustration. It's there, in dozens of beautiful color reproductions, including some two-page spreads. Up til now, Marc Chagall has always been in the lower ranks among my favorite artists. After seeing his work in this book, I have a new respect for it. He's still not among my very favorites, but I enjoy the lithos shown here. Even more, I enjoy them as a coherent body visual work and as a narrative.

Best, though, is quality of this book for its price. It's well printed on heavy stock, and the color printing is strong and nuanced. The production values in the color pages and the sheer number of them are quite astonishing for a book that costs so little. I plan to enjoy this book for a long time.