Growing Up with the Odyssey
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Growing Up with the Odyssey
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Re: Growing Up with the Odyssey
#2The Canon, esp. Ancient Greek works used to hold much more sway over the intellectual psyche, which they no longer have, so much so that in the second half of 20th century it was suggested to rename Joyce's Ulysses Hamlet, to recreate the boldness of having the title laid against a well-known book. Wilson was born in 1971 so the play she's reminiscing here was done around 1979.
I think suggesting to put together such a play for grade school would be absurd, even in the relatively affluent Chicago public school that my son goes to. Many of the otherwise well-educated parents would hardly be acquainted with the book!
Re: Growing Up with the Odyssey
#3I always read the Odyssey (I think the Fitzgerald translation) to my younger high-school age kids (in batches) as part of our home education efforts (8 kids, from birth through high school) and the power and paradoxically absolute modernity of Homer's characters (human nature is unchanging) always held their attention quite well, and was, I hope, rewarding.
Of course, Fitzgerald points out that, no matter the power of the translation, something is seriously lost by not reading the original Greek. One of the sadnesses of the limitations of a chosen life...
Re: Growing Up with the Odyssey
#4The Canon, esp. Ancient Greek works used to hold much more sway over the intellectual psyche, which they no longer have, so much so that in the second half of 20th century it was suggested to rename Joyce's Ulysses Hamlet , to recreate the boldness of having the title laid against a well-known book. Wilson was born in 1971 so the play she's reminiscing here was done around 1979. I think suggesting to put together suc…
That's a shame, since one's understanding of so much of Western art of all sorts is greatly improved by familiarity with: 1) the Bible, and 2) a dozen or so Greek and Roman authors, including and especially Homer. By losing that foundation one engages with pretty much the entire body of Western art at a huge disadvantage. It's a kind of common language of symbols, tropes, and allusions that bind the whole thing together, without which much is lost.
Re: Growing Up with the Odyssey
#5I always read the Odyssey (I think the Fitzgerald translation) to my younger high-school age kids (in batches) as part of our home education efforts (8 kids, from birth through high school) and the power and paradoxically absolute modernity of Homer's characters (human nature is unchanging) always held their attention quite well, and was, I hope, rewarding. Of course, Fitzgerald points out that, no matter the power o…
>Of course, Fitzgerald points out that, no matter the power of the translation, something is seriously lost by not reading the original Greek. One of the sadnesses of the limitations of a chosen life
I'm greek and I still can't read the original, Homer's language is very difficult. I can only imagine how hard it must be for people with no exposure to any form of the Greek language
Re: Growing Up with the Odyssey
#6I was lucky enough to read and understand the Odyssey in ancient Greek and realize how beautiful it is. I always felt that it has really kick-started my part of the brain that imagines and dreams. Translations are great but if you could ever read such a masterpiece in its original language you would do yourself a favour. Kinda of like learning Lisp one day :).
Re: Growing Up with the Odyssey
#7The Canon, esp. Ancient Greek works used to hold much more sway over the intellectual psyche, which they no longer have, so much so that in the second half of 20th century it was suggested to rename Joyce's Ulysses Hamlet , to recreate the boldness of having the title laid against a well-known book. Wilson was born in 1971 so the play she's reminiscing here was done around 1979. I think suggesting to put together suc…
That's a shame, since one's understanding of so much of Western art of all sorts is greatly improved by familiarity with: 1) the Bible, and 2) a dozen or so Greek and Roman authors, including and especially Homer. By losing that foundation one engages with pretty much the entire body of Western art at a huge disadvantage. It's a kind of common language of symbols, tropes, and allusions that bind the whole thing toget…
The modern shift away from the classics as standard part of western education is sad, but understandable to me.
I believe it started as a reaction to the teaching rigidness and the over-reverence of classic texts by previous generations, people just got fed up. But more importantly there's now a variety of texts that explain, enhance or abridge the classics in a more approachable manner and an overabundance of new knowledge and art to explore.
However, there's still lot to earn by reading the original texts. I reread the Iliad and the Odyssey in my late twenties and I felt this fuzzy feeling of familiarity, that human nature hasn't changed that much (if at all) through the ages. Wrath, love, courage, friendship, betrayal, revenge, vanity, wisdom, ingenuity, stupidity - way too familiar.
One of my favorite parts of the Odyssey is when Odysseus' dog recognizes him. In a few words Homer describes the special bond between dogs and humans, a relationship that spans millennia and keeps strong even (more so) to this day.
Re: Growing Up with the Odyssey
#8I always read the Odyssey (I think the Fitzgerald translation) to my younger high-school age kids (in batches) as part of our home education efforts (8 kids, from birth through high school) and the power and paradoxically absolute modernity of Homer's characters (human nature is unchanging) always held their attention quite well, and was, I hope, rewarding. Of course, Fitzgerald points out that, no matter the power o…
>Of course, Fitzgerald points out that, no matter the power of the translation, something is seriously lost by not reading the original Greek. One of the sadnesses of the limitations of a chosen life I'm greek and I still can't read the original, Homer's language is very difficult. I can only imagine how hard it must be for people with no exposure to any form of the Greek language
As a point of clarification, are you saying that Homeric Greek is difficult for a native speaker of Modern Greek, or are you saying that, objectively speaking, Homeric is a fundamentally more difficult language to use? I took two semesters of Attic about a million years ago and one of my romantic aspirational goals is to learn Homeric enough to enjoy the Iliad in the original.
Re: Growing Up with the Odyssey
#9The Canon, esp. Ancient Greek works used to hold much more sway over the intellectual psyche, which they no longer have, so much so that in the second half of 20th century it was suggested to rename Joyce's Ulysses Hamlet , to recreate the boldness of having the title laid against a well-known book. Wilson was born in 1971 so the play she's reminiscing here was done around 1979. I think suggesting to put together suc…
That's a shame, since one's understanding of so much of Western art of all sorts is greatly improved by familiarity with: 1) the Bible, and 2) a dozen or so Greek and Roman authors, including and especially Homer. By losing that foundation one engages with pretty much the entire body of Western art at a huge disadvantage. It's a kind of common language of symbols, tropes, and allusions that bind the whole thing toget…
We live in an age of cultural abundance. There are many paths and you can't walk them all.
Re: Growing Up with the Odyssey
#10I always read the Odyssey (I think the Fitzgerald translation) to my younger high-school age kids (in batches) as part of our home education efforts (8 kids, from birth through high school) and the power and paradoxically absolute modernity of Homer's characters (human nature is unchanging) always held their attention quite well, and was, I hope, rewarding. Of course, Fitzgerald points out that, no matter the power o…
>Of course, Fitzgerald points out that, no matter the power of the translation, something is seriously lost by not reading the original Greek. One of the sadnesses of the limitations of a chosen life I'm greek and I still can't read the original, Homer's language is very difficult. I can only imagine how hard it must be for people with no exposure to any form of the Greek language
As someone who taught themselves greek to read Homer, Aristotle, and the bible, it’s not as hard as you might think. Grab a grammar book and a dictionary for the dialect and get to work! Checking with other translations is not cheating but encouraged—that’s how you learn the subtly of obstruse (to a romantic ear) greek words like sophrosyne and common idioms.
Of course, it’s an absolutely massive time commitment, but not a terrible way to spend a sunday afternoon.