The Odyssey

I have long wanted to read this book, but was intimidated by the thought of tackling what I thought was an immense and hard to understand novel. This translation by Robert Fagles gives clarity to the reading of this novel. There is a glossary in the back that tells you who everyone mentioned in the book is, in case you need to refresh your memory. There are also maps and explanations that help to describe what is unfolding. The book is nicely laid out and bound and I actually like the rustic feel to the pages.

This is a beautiful book. It is a softcover book but it has flaps on each side of the cover that provide the same information as do the dust covers of hardcover books. Since I have old eyes (I'm not young), I am surprised at how easy it is for me to read this book's print, which is very dark and somewhat larger than the print in most regular print books. The book also contains many pages of useful, informative commentary that appear in the introductory section of the book.

Like Homer's Iliad story the Odyssey takes place in a sort of Twilight Zone realm where the Olympian gods and goddesses are always working behind the scenes to influence the affairs of mortals.Personally I believe in those mythological entities.The Greek authors Hesiod and Homer said they heard the mythological stories from the Muses who are daughters of Zeus who love song and banquets.The Muses 'sang' these stories to Hesiod and Homer.Years ago people thought the Trojan War was just a fictional story but then the ruins of Troy were discovered.So now those people say that yes the Trojan War was a historical event but the supernatural aspects of the story are fictional.But the supernatural aspects will eventually also be shown to be true I believe.For the ancient Greeks Zeus is God Himself it seems.I don't think that's totally accurate but yet someone like Zeus may represent some aspect of God.So maybe the Greeks weren't totally wrong.This may be getting into a subject that is subtle and not easy to understand.I gave this book a 5 star rating since it's an important book for people who are interested in Greek mythology.I haven't read any other translations but this one seems good to me.Further readingEdgar Cayce said in a past life he experienced the Trojan War and he was an eye witness when Achilles tied Hector to his chariot and dragged him around.Mythic TroyThe Complete Story Legend Archeology and Intuition[Paperback – May 1, 2004]by Kevin J. TodeschiThe Lives of Edgar Cayce[Paperback – January 1, 1995]by W. H. Church

As I said in a recent review of Robert Fagles' translation of the Iliad into English, there are very few people on the planet with the necessary knowledge to judge his work as a translator of Homer, and so I cannot comment on the quality of the translation other than to say that I enjoyed the end product immensely. I'll confine my comments more narrowly towards the poem itself and Homer, its author.After reading Fagles' translations of the Iliad and the Odyssey I am struck by one thing and that is this. At no time do any of the major characters (Achilles, Odysseus, etc.) show regret for killing any of the numerous people that they do. They may regret that they offended the gods in some way but that is not the same thing as admitting moral culpability. So for example, in Book 9 of the Odyssey, Odysseus recounts how after leaving Troy (which he sacked) his ships attacked the city of Ismarus, home to the Cicones. His men killed all the men of the town and took all the women as sex slaves. Never once does Odysseus show regret for this action which took place after the Trojan War was already over. Never once does any god or goddess (e.g., Athena) chastise him for this action or punish him for it. He and his men are punished for other lesser offenses such as killing the cows of the Sun, but the attitude that Homer clearly has is that all things are fair in war.This is clearly the attitude of Homer's own times and it stands in stark contrast to our own. The Homeric gods do not uphold a consistent standard of morality applicable to all human beings. Indeed, since they fight amongst each other and since they each have their own agenda all that a man need do to survive is to find favor with a particular god or goddess who will protect him. And that seems to be what Odysseus does with Athena protecting him although Poseidon wants him to suffer. So the question of whether Odysseus is morally right would not even enter Homer's mind. It is beside the point. If we keep this point in mind I think we can understand the flow of the poem much better.It does seem ironic that a man like Odysseus would be zealous for supplicants' rights, supposedly granted by Zeus, in the case of himself being the supplicant (e.g., in Phaeacia, etc.) while at the same time refusing Leodes in Book 22 who pleads for his life. Odysseus lops off his head with a sword. Apparently Homer sees no contradiction in this since no explanation is ever given, but then again Odysseus is the man of twists and turns. I doubt his moral rectitude was ever the main point. Homer makes him out to be somewhat prickly and unapproachable. If he were written today we would call Odysseus the antihero which is quite ironic given that he is one of the prime archetypes of the Greek hero.Of course, the travels and travails starting with the island of the Cyclops are great fun. It's hard to imagine that Homer had some historical itinerary in mind although I would note that at the time of writing the Odyssey (725 - 675 BCE) the Greeks were exploring and establishing colonies around the entire Mediterranean. There must have been fabulous sailors' tales in circulation concerning the strange people the Greeks were coming into contact with. This would have been similar to the fantastic tales that came out of the European age of exploration in the 16th and 17th centuries. All it would take would be for Homer to latch onto some of the more outrageous tales and adapt them to his own needs.Book 11 which has Odysseus and crew voyage to Hades, the Land of the Dead, was quite interesting although it was never quite explained why the spirits in Hades couldn't build their own ships and leave Hades the way Odysseus did. In any case the Odyssey is a lot of rollicking good fun for the most part. It is one of the first adventure stories ever told and it's still a great read all these centuries later.

Had to buy it for a class, so I wasn't that invested at first, but it is a great tale. Not easy to follow all the time, but definitely not a hard read. The cover material was fine and I like how the pages looked on the edges.

The media could not be loaded. The Odyssey was way more intense than I expected. A mix of chaos, gods, monsters, and one guy just trying to get home. It’s wild, dramatic, and surprisingly relatable at times.

I’ve looked at several translations and think this one is the best: bold, head forward, surprisingly tender. Just the right balance between keeping the original and making it come rushing to the ear of an English speaker.

Great translation, fun design (pages and cover have good texture)