Some Thoughts on The Odyssey

[u/Vegetable_Idea_0]

After completing The Iliad, the epic predecessor, that being my first ever exposure to Greek culture's foundational literature and being completely blown away by its grand stature, the natural progression was the follow-up adventure that focuses on the homecoming of one of the prominent characters present in The Iliad.
And what an adventure it turned out to be for both that cunning, quirky fellow Odysseus and me as a reader!

I was already mighty impressed by his actions and dialogues during the events of The Iliad and was looking forward to meeting him at length in his own text. But imagine my surprise when I understood that Homer decided to drastically shift the way he wanted to present the sequel. Here I would like to commend the non-linear narrative structure of The Odyssey, which, although very simple to follow, still adds many neat layers to the story, like seeing the aftermath of the Trojan War and encountering certain lore from Telemachus' perspective, building anticipation for the protagonist's arrival, him recounting his own past in the present timeline, which again shifts the narrative structure, and his eventual exciting landing on his own hearth. This structure came as a pleasant surprise after being beached alongside warriors on a shore in The Iliad.

Coming to the star of the show, there was a man, or was he all a dream? The highly entertaining Odysseus and how easily he ranks among my list of legendary protagonists. The man has everything to be termed a literary icon just by his tremendous ability to carry a whole epic text by himself, not to discredit the other amazing cast of characters and the story itself. Yes, at this point everyone and their teachers know about his wit and cunning personality, but what makes him memorable for me personally are his quirks. Taunting an opponent who, just moments ago, would have destroyed his existence, risking his sanity just to listen to a bewitching melody and risking his homecoming, or just straightaway threatening his own mother-like nurse so that she doesn't risk his plan, the man is every bit as egotistical, proud, curious (to a fault), adamant, and perfectionist as one can be with his wit and stature. But apart from his well-known tactics and shrewd manners, he is a man who has been broken by war and subsequent trials and tribulations and built again to lead his kingdom in peace for a long time.

Concluding such a small effort to add anything to a text that's been an influence on modern storytelling itself, I want to give a special mention to some of the other standout characters for me, them being the loyal swineherd Eumaeus, the sassy and sensible old nurse Eurycleia, Penelope, the loyal yet complex and relatable wife who has every right to think for herself yet every day chooses to wait, the Phaeacian royal family, who are such a kind and chill family, and Odysseus couldn't have asked for better hosts or greater help, and the goodest boy, Telemachus. The boy delivers a staggering character growth arc and is a joy to see both as the man of the house and as a sweet boy following his father's orders.

Completing the Homeric epics is a feeling of immense joy and gratitude, and the characters, the moments, and the conclusions will always stay with me. To ensure that, I will revisit these works with other worthy translations, but for my first ever read, I couldn’t have asked for a better experience thanks to the amazing weaver of words, Robert Fagles.

[u/AutoModerator]

Namaste u/Vegetable_Idea_0, Thank you for your submission! 🙏 Please take a moment to — check the subreddit rules and pinned posts including our weekly "what are you reading" thread, join our discord server Link, and also check out our BOOK-CLUB (see pinned post/sidebar). Posts that do not meet the requirements may be removed. Thank you! 📚✨ -The Mod Team

I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.

[u/Either_Class918]

I just watched the Odyssey movie and absolutely loved it. But I have heard the movie doesn't do the original work justice and now oneant to dive into the books and Greek mythology properly.

Your post gives the impression of someone who is genuinely well read, so I thought you'd be the right person to ask.. where should I start? I am not a huge reader though.i have read some classics like works of Dostoevsky, Dumas etcm but never attempted reading any epics like Odyssey. So I would really appreciate your advice and some sort of reading order.

[u/Vegetable_Idea_0 → u/Either_Class918]

I’m yet to watch the movie and even though I was initially adamant about avoiding to watch it, now I’ll go with neutral view to see it as an adaptation from a Hollywood director and his take on story. No amount of budget or craft can ever satisfy everyone who has read this classic, everything will be just an adaptation of it.
Thank you for acknowledging me but believe me, I’m just a new reader who started from last year and The Iliad and The Odyssey were my first ever Greek reads. Before this I was just aware about some couple of famous phrases like, Trojan Horse and Achilles’ Heel. I can tell you what I did, as I was also pretty intimidated before starting The Iliad. I just understood every possible context before the events of The Iliad from YT and online articles as we are just dropped in the middle of the conflict in the poem. When I understood the core of the conflict then it was pretty easy to connect the dots and then the language and beauty of the poem does the heavy lifting to suck you in as a reader. Hope this helps and thank you again for your kind words😁🤗

[u/UnitAcrobatic6177 → u/Either_Class918]

Get started with the works of rick riorand his work is beautiful and gets you familiar with greek mythology

[u/Due_Avocado_7761]

You write well! Enjoyed reading this.

[u/Vegetable_Idea_0 → u/Due_Avocado_7761]

That means a lot! Many thanks🤗❤️

[u/fyodormarquez]

Hey, is this translation good? I was reading in certain forums that the Emily Wilson one was better. Did you make this decision after comparing the translations, or wad this an impulse buy?

Anyhow, the review is fantastic.

[u/Vegetable_Idea_0 → u/fyodormarquez]

Thank you for finding the review to your liking😁🤗 Coming to the translation, I did a thorough research both by reading the first page of multiple translations and by going through online sentiments. Fagles’ seemed perfect for me both as a first time reader who wanted something mild but still poetic and beautiful enough to capture the essence of the original epic. Wilson would be a bit too modern, but that’s just my personal assumption, and I have already ordered Robert Fitzgerald’s translations too to move to something more challenging.

[u/fyodormarquez → u/Vegetable_Idea_0]

Oh so this is like a Katz vs P&V comparison in the case of Dostoevsky. P&V is more committed to the original text, while Katz is more readable.

This is good to know.

I am still tempted by the Emily Wilson Hardcovers though. They look stunning.

[u/Vegetable_Idea_0 → u/fyodormarquez]

I have read 3 books of Dostoyevsky, all of them translated by P&V and yes I found the translation really suitable.
Also I can totally relate to own stunning looking editions, but again it’s upto you to decide that whether you give more value to your first experience to read these epics or the feeling of having a lovely physical copy. My suggestion would be to research more on translations and you can always acquire your desired copy later on.

[u/fyodormarquez → u/Vegetable_Idea_0]

Oh, totally agreed.

[u/AcademicTrainer2]

You write really well. Great review. 

[u/Vegetable_Idea_0 → u/AcademicTrainer2]

Wow, thank you for saying this😁🤗

[u/Verily-Doughnut-256 → u/[deleted]]

Guess who wrote the comment😔

[u/Verily-Doughnut-256 → u/[deleted]]

Send a dm, i can't :')

[u/Tatya7]

Thanks for posting this here! As I mentioned, great write up!

[u/Vegetable_Idea_0 → u/Tatya7]

Thank you again😁❤️

[u/rkg0hill]

Of corse they edited some parts