The Iliad

Description

The Iliad is a riddle, wrapped in a mystery, inside an enigma, for which Barry Powell, one of the twenty-first century s leading Homeric scholars, has given us a magnificent new translation. Graceful, lucid, and energetic, Powell s translation renders the Homeric Greek with a simplicity and dignity reminiscent of the original. The text immediately engrosses students with its tight and balanced rhythms, while the incantatory repetitions evoke a continuous "stream of sound" that offers as good an impression of Homer s Greek as one could hope to attain without learning the language.

Accessible, poetic, and accurate, Powell s translation is an excellent fit for today s students. With swift, transparent language that rings both ancient and modern, it exposes them to all of the rage, pleasure, pathos, and humor that are Homer s Iliad. Both the translation and the introduction are informed by the best recent scholarship.

FEATURES

* Uses well-modulated verse and accurate English that is contemporary but never without dignity

* Powell s introduction sets the poem in its philological, mythological, and historical contexts

* Features unique on-page notes, facilitating students engagement with the poem

* Embedded illustrations accompanied by extensive captions provide Greek and Roman visual sources for key passages in each of the poem s twenty-four books

* Eight maps (the most of any available translation) provide geographic context for the poem s many place names

* Audio recordings (read by Powell) of fifteen important passages are available at www.oup.com/us/powell and indicated in the text margin by an icon

A Look Inside: The Iliad [Click Images to Enlarge]

First Seven Lines of the Iliad: This reconstruction is based on what we know about the earliest Greek orthography.

The Walls of Troy: The translator standing before the walls of the sixth city at Troy.

The Judgment of Paris: On the right a youthful Paris sits on a stone in a rural location. The sheep near his feet indicates that he is a shepherd. Athenian red-figure water jar, c. 450 BC.

The Rage of Achilles: The seated Agamemnon holds the scepter of authority and sits on a throne, his lower body wrapped in a robe. Athena seizes Achilles from behind by the hair. Roman mosaic from Pompeii, c. First Century AD.

The Wedding of Zeus and Hera: A half-naked Zeus, sitting on a rock, clasps the wrist of Hera. One of her breasts is exposed as Hera removes her head covering in a traditional gesture of submission. c. 540 BC

Hephaistos Prepares Arms for Achilles: The smithy-god, bearded and wearing a felt cap, sits in an elaborately draped hall on a platform holding a cloth with which he is polishing the finished shield. Between him and Thetis are the breastplate and the shinguards (the surface of the fresco is damaged here). From Pompeii, c. AD 60.