The Odyssey in Catching up on Classics (and lots more!)

Feb 07, 2013 Jeff Koeppen rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: classics, 2020-read, war, read-alongs-book-club, reading-envy-jenny, general-fiction, translated

I reread The Odyssey as part of the Reading Envy readalong. I think I first read it in high school but I'm questioning now if I finished it because I would've certainly remembered the events in the last few books. Overall, I really enjoyed simultaneously reading the Fagles translation and listening to the Emily Wilson translation. I preferred the Fagles translation. The Wilson translation seemed to simple for me and made it sound too contemporary. Some words seemed out of place, for example has I reread The Odyssey as part of the Reading Envy readalong. I think I first read it in high school but I'm questioning now if I finished it because I would've certainly remembered the events in the last few books. Overall, I really enjoyed simultaneously reading the Fagles translation and listening to the Emily Wilson translation. I preferred the Fagles translation. The Wilson translation seemed to simple for me and made it sound too contemporary. Some words seemed out of place, for example has Odysseus tell some one that he couldn't do his "exercise routine" while out at sea. It felt jarring to me, as did a few other words in this poem. It was narrated by Claire Danes, who did a fantastic job.

I thought the storytelling was great and our flawed and tricksy hero was captivating. What didn't work for me were the ever-present magical interventions and teleportation of the gods. In my usual reading the characters have to "science the shit" out of something to survive, like Mark Watne in The Martian; in fantasy the characters call up the gods and magic to get them out of a rough spot.

I had a number of parts which I really liked:

- It was neat hearing Homer talk about astronomy as I was walking my dogs predawn. I could see two of the constellations he was talking about: the Plow (the Big Dipper), and Bootes (the plow man); and, of course, the unmoving North Star. Thanks for throwing me some science, Homer.

- The emotional reunions: Odysseus and loyal Eumaeus the swineherd, Odysseus and Telemachus, Telemachus and Penelope - but my favorite one was the reunion between Odysseus and his loyal dog Argos! The poor old(!) dog living on a dung heap hadn't seen Odysseus for 20 years and recognized him even when no human did as Odysseus was in Athena's disguise. Odysseus even shed a tear. A dog lover! Great stuff.

- The Undercover Boss: Ithaca episode, in which its most famous resident, Odysseus, is turned in to an old beggar by Athena and experiences life amongst his faithful servants, and even his unknowing wife! Those who were rewarded at the show's end for kindness to the beggar were Eumaeus the swineherd, Philoetius the cowherd, and Eurcyleia, the old nurse / attendant. Those who were terminated (literally) from Odyssey's employment were Melanthius the goatherd, and Melanto the maid servant. The latter two were brother and sister so I guess their demeanor ran in the family. Melanthius received the worst punishment of all. Too much!

- The REVENGE! I was expecting some unpleasantness when Odysseus carried out his revenge, but not the bloodshed at the level of a Tarantino film which we experienced. He showed no pity at all. No mercy. The mass hanging of the disloyal maids was brutal, and he made them clean up all the other bodies first! Ouch.

I was surprised how much oil the Greeks used. They oiled everything. And if you were a traveler and happened upon a respectable home you were bathed and oiled. Not bad. I was a little disturbed by the amount of animal sacrifices. No animals or age groups were spared. The numbers seemed excessive at times. Did the gods really require that amount of butchering?

I listened to Wilson's Introduction last as it contains spoilers. It is full of interesting insights and is sort of a CliffsNotes summary. In Wilson's Translator's Note she gives us her credentials and background, and explains why her translation is different than ones that came before hers, and even why she chose certain words and descriptions. She wanted her translation to feel more modern and it certainly does. Overall, this was a fun experience. Fantasy and mythology aren't genres I read but I really enjoyed this classic epic tale. 4.5 stars. ...more

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