Argonautica, Book 3

by Apollonius of Rhodes, Richard L. Hunter (Editor), W.R. Connor (Editor)

Composed in the third century B.C., the Argonautica is the only extant Greek epic between Homer and the later Roman Empire. It tells of Jason's successful expedition with the Argonauts to recover the Golden Fleece from Colchis on the Black Sea. Medea, a young Colchian princess, falls in love with Jason and helps him survive the ordeals imposed by her father. The description of Medea's emotional suffering exercised a profound influence on subsequent writers and especially on Virgil in his account of Dido and Aeneas. Dr. Hunter's edition provides a comprehensive introduction to the poem and its poet, an up-to-date text of Book III and a full commentary that discusses the problems of language and translation. He also delves into the poetic meaning of the work and Apollonius' creative use of the Homeric heritage.

Genres: Classics, Mythology, Fiction

280 pages, Paperback

Published January 12, 2008

About the author

Apollonius of Rhodes (Ancient Greek: Ἀπολλώνιος Ῥόδιος Apollṓnios Rhódios; Latin: Apollonius Rhodius; fl. first half of 3rd century BCE), is best known as the author of the Argonautica, an epic poem about Jason and the Argonauts and their quest for the Golden Fleece. The poem is one of the few extant examples of the epic genre and it was both innovative and influential, providing Ptolemaic Egypt with a "cultural mnemonic" or national "archive of images",[1] and offering the Latin poets Virgil and Gaius Valerius Flaccus a model for their own epics. His other poems, which survive only in small fragments, concerned the beginnings or foundations of cities, such as Alexandria and Cnidus – places of interest to the Ptolemies, whom he served as a scholar and librarian at the Library of Alexandria. A literary dispute with Callimachus, another Alexandrian librarian/poet, is a topic much discussed by modern scholars since it is thought to give some insight into their poetry, although there is very little evidence that there ever was such a dispute between the two men. In fact almost nothing at all is known about Apollonius and even his connection with Rhodes is a matter for speculation.[2] Once considered a mere imitator of Homer, and therefore a failure as a poet, his reputation has been enhanced by recent studies, with an emphasis on the special characteristics of Hellenistic poets as scholarly heirs of a long literary tradition writing at a unique time in history.

Alternate spelling:
Spanish: Apolonio de Rodas

Reviews

[Debi · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of my favorites. However, it's a LOONG text to translate. I finished it in English but only got about 1/3 of the way through in Greek. Right now I'm busy with other Greek texts and haven't looked at this for months so I'm finally admitting that I'll have to finish translating this at some other time and am moving the book off my desk.