Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #34141 in Books
• Published on: 1998-04-02
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 490 pages

Customer Reviews

No Homeric epithets
A really excellent translation; my only quibble being that Fitzgerald does away with the epithets to make for easier reading. While this is not a problem unless you're a classics nerd, I personally enjoy the repetitions and feel that without them the "special Greekness", as G. S. Kirk has it, is lost. Far from being monotonous, "swift-foot'd Achilles" appeals in a way "the great runner, Prince Achilles" can never do.

5 star achievement - but 3 star enjoyment
I have just finished this book and I have to admit that for much of the time it was both highly enjoyable in parts but a big mental effort for much of the time. This version of the epic story is I understand less "poetic" in structure than others and indeed it does appear to have a straightforward dramatic narrative structure. I have for some time had an
interest in the classical historic periods of Greece and Rome and I think that this sustained me in getting to the end. The book is at its best when engaging the central cast of the dozen or so well known names. The dialogue and speeches are captivating and resonate in a Shakespearean manner.

The epic and heroic nature of the story and the central characters is well conveyed as is the savage and brutal nature of the hand to hand fighting. However the problem of the booklies with the vast sections (over 150 pages) which depict far too much "A speared B", "C shattered the head of D" etc etc, wherein the blow by blow slaughter of a vast peripheral cast of 100's of unrememberable names is recounted ad nauseum.

This however is magnificently countered by the last third of the book after the re-entry into the conflict firstly of Patroclus and then more importantly of Achilles. The story then soars to its epic conclusion.

I have to admit that this was a book I thought I should read, but although it is clearly a work of considerable achievement and merit, hand on heart I have to question the judgement of those who overstate the enjoyment factor. This is certainly a book I am glad to have read but most likely it will remain on my book shelf as testament to the fact I have done so rather than the likelihood I will ever pick it up again. I suspect that the copies of those less honest will have the same destiny.

An ancient classic that still resonates today
Not only is The Iliad a classic tale, it is surprisingly relevant to us in the 21st century. It may have been written over 2500 years ago, but it raises interesting questions about war and its effects. The battle scenes are exciting, but the best thing about this epic is the way Homer describes the effects of the conflict on the warriors and their families. Some crave the glory war brings, others only fight because it is their duty. Most striking about The Iliad is how similar the ancient Greeks were to us today.