I have been thinking about reading more poetry recently so when I saw copies of Emily Wilson’s translations of The Iliad and The Odyssey at the bookshop I jumped on them. Of course, as a newbie to poetry this is jumping off of the deep end but also at the same time, these poems are long enough for me to chew on them for a while.
Table of Contents
The packetcat reads The Iliad Project
The plan for this reading is going to be different than how I usually read books. Instead of reading the entire poem in the span of two weeks, I am instead going to read one “book” from The Iliad a week until I finish it. That means this reading will take me about half a year or so to finish.
I also intend to do a post like this for every book of The Iliad as a way of understanding the text at a deeper level than just a surface level reading. Writing about it will enable this level of introspection with the text and therefore improve my general ability to read and interpret poetry.
The Introduction and the Translator’s Note
Before we start on the text of the poem, there is a introduction and translator’s note written by the translator of this edition of The Iliad, Emily Wilson. Reading these two things was very illuminating and provided much needed context about the poem I am going to read.
The introduction itself is quite lengthy and goes into detail describing the various themes of The Iliad and how the Homeric form of poetry expresses the various themes and puts them into the historical context of when this was written and performed.
I’ll quote a paragraph from the very beginning of the introduction which I really liked:
The poem evokes human greatness and human vulnerability. People are “godlike” in their courage and skill, but even the greatest mortals fall and clutch the dust between their bloody fingers. The beautiful word minunthadios, “short lived,” is used of both Achilles and Hector, and applies to all of us. We die too soon, and there is no adequate recompense for the terrible, inevitable loss of life. Yet through poetry, the words, actions, and feelings of some long-ago brief lives may be remembered even three thousand years later.
Introduction, page 1
On the Translator’s Note
I really enjoyed this technical but entirely understandable translator’s note explaining just why translating The Iliad is a difficult task and what considerations and processes Emily employed in her translation. I am no expert on the art and science of translation but reading this note definitely put into perspective the enormity of the task that was performed.
I’ll quote a paragraph here that I liked:
There is nothing like The Iliad. No translator including me, can fully replicate all the poetic, dramatic and emotional effect of the Greek. No translation can be simply “the same” as the original. A translator who underestimates her task will produce a clunky, incoherent mess. So I knew from the start that I had to make careful decisions about which features of the Greek poem I most wanted to echo, and work with diligence, humility, and creativity to find ways to construct these effects from scratch, within the entirely different palette of the English language.
Translator’s Note, lxii
Book 1: The Quarrel
Here we are the beginning of The Iliad. The scene is a discussion between Achilles and Agamemnon which quickly turns sour and almost devolves into physical violence.
One of the first things that I noticed was the use of patronymics and titles, for example – Achilles is referred to as the son of Pelaus, Agamemnon is referred to as both the lord of men and also the son of Atreus. Titles and patronymics are important to the Ancient Greeks as was mentioned by Emily in her translator’s note and just in this first book, that becomes quite apparent.
This first book also introduces several of the Ancient Greek gods that play a role in this poem, we have Zeus, Apollo, Hera, Hephaestus, Thetis and Athena. The most striking and memorable event in this book is the appearance of Athena in physical form to Achilles. I put a quote of the stanza I really like here.
At this, Achilles, son of Peleus,
pages 8-9, Book 1: The Quarrel
was deeply troubled, and his inmost heart
inside his hairy chest was split in two,
as he considered whether he should draw
the sharp sword that was hanging by his thigh,
and rouse the men, and slaughter Agamemnon—
or curb his anger and restrain his impulse.
And as he pondered in his mind, he started
to draw the mighty blade out from its sheath–
but then Athena swooped down from the sky
She had been sent forth by the white-armed goddess
Hera, who loved both men, Athena stood
behind Achilles , son of Peleus,
and grabbed him by his chestnut hair. She was
invisible to everyone but him.
Achilles, started, turned and recognized
Athena. She had bright, unearthly eyes.
His words flew out.
A few things I gleaned from this stanza alone, physical attributes of one of our main characters Achilles – hairy chest and chestnut hair. The visual image of the goddess Athena grabbing a warrior like Achilles by his chestnut hair is quite striking. We also get some physical attributes for the two goddesses mentioned – “white-armed” Hera and Athena’s “bright, unearthly eyes”.
Another aspect that is interesting to me is the relationship between Hera and the men she loves – Achilles and Agamemnon – I interpreted this as a maternal love. A love so deep that Hera sends an agent, Athena to intervene before Achilles slays Agamemnon.
Speaking of maternal love, the interaction between Achilles and his mother, the goddess Thetis is also quite an emotional one. The stanza that spans multiple pages and ends with Thetis in tears is ample demonstration of Thetis’ love for her son and her desire to help him by talking to Zeus on his behalf.
[..]Thetis in tears replied, “My boy, my child,
page 17, Book 1: The Quarrel
why did I birth you for such suffering?
Why did I mother you, take care of you?
I wish you could sit quietly by your ships,
and never have to suffer tears or trouble,
because it is your destiny to live
so very short a time, not long at all. [..]
In this excerpt from the stanza of the conversation between Thetis and Achilles, the scene is set for a tragedy, we learn that Achilles while being a son of an immortal goddess is mortal himself and is indeed cursed with a short life by destiny/the Fates.
After Thetis talks to Zeus we get a scene amongst the various gods in the house of Zeus on Mount Olympus which concludes this book. Especially striking here is the relationship dynamic between Zeus and Hera. This short stanza provides a demonstration.
The ox-eyed goddess Hera was afraid.
page 22, Book 1: The Quarrel
She sat down quietly and quelled her rage.
Within the house of Zeus on Mount Olympus
the gods were worried, and the famous craftsman
Hephaestus spoke up to support his mother,
the white-armed goddess Hera, whom he loved.
An Aside about a Word
One word that made me curious was “aegis”, as in “Zeus, the holder of the royal aegis” – as I just learned this usage is one from its origins in Greek. Here’s a quote from Merriam-Webster’s explanation of the word.
English borrowed aegis from Latin, but the word ultimately comes from the Greek noun aigís, meaning “goatskin.” In ancient Greek mythology, an aegis was something that offered physical protection. It has been depicted in various ways, including as a magical protective cloak made from the skin of the goat that suckled Zeus as an infant, and as a shield fashioned by Hephaestus that bore the severed head of the Gorgon Medusa. The word first entered English in the 15th century as a noun referring to the shield or breastplate associated with Zeus or Athena. It later took on a more general sense of “protection” and, by the late-19th century, it had acquired the extended senses of “auspices” and “sponsorship.”
Merriam-Webster. (n.d.). Aegis. In Merriam-Webster.com dictionary. Retrieved August 5, 2024, from https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/aegis
Conclusion
That is all I have for this book. This first book has me excited to continue reading The Iliad and excited for what other kinds of things I can glean from this text. I am still getting used to reading the poem in its iambic pentameter structure but I suspect that familiarity with the form will come as I read more of this poem.
See y’all next time!