Synopses & Reviews
Part of Penguins beautiful hardcover Clothbound Classics series, designed by the award-winning Coralie Bickford-Smith, these delectable and collectible editions are bound in high-quality, tactile cloth with foil stamped into the design.
The Iliad is the first and the greatest literary achievement of Greek civilizationthe cornerstone of Western culture and an epic poem without rival in world literature. The story centers on the critical events in the last year of the Trojan War, which lead to Achilleuss killing of Hektor and the fall of Troy. But Homer's theme is not simply war or heroism. With compassion and humanity, he presents a universal and tragic view of the world: human life lived under the shadow of suffering and death set against a vast and largely unpitying divine background.
This edition presents Penguin Classics founder E. V. Rieu's lively translation of Homers great epic.
Synopsis
'The first great book, and the first great book about the suffering and loss of war' Guardian
One of the foremost achievements in Western literature, Homer's Iliad tells the story of the darkest episode in the Trojan War. At its centre is Achilles, the greatest warrior-champion of the Greeks, who refuses to fight after being humiliated by his leader Agamemnon. But when the Trojan Hector kills Achilles' close friend Patroclus, he storms back into battle to take revenge - knowing this will ensure his own early death. E. V. Rieu's acclaimed translation of The Iliad was one of the first titles published in Penguin Classics, and now has classic status itself.
Originally translated by E. V. RIEU
Revised and updated by PETER JONES with D. C. H. RIEU
Edited with an Introduction and notes by PETER JONES
Synopsis
Includes bibliographical references (p. [lxxv]-lxxvii) and index.
Synopsis
E.V. Rieus beloved translation of the great war epic of Western literature, revised and updated by D. C. H. Rieu
One of the foremost achievements in Western literature, Homer's Iliad tells the story of the darkest episode of the Trojan War. At its center is Achilles, the greatest warrior-champion of the Greeks, and his conflict with his leader Agamemnon. Interwoven in the tragic sequence of events are powerfully moving descriptions of the ebb and flow of battle, the besieged city of Ilium, the feud between the gods, and the fate of mortals.
For this Penguin Classics edition, classicist D. C. H. Rieu has revised the work of his father, E. V. Rieu, celebrated translator and founding editor of the Penguin Classics imprint. The book also includes an introduction and notes by Peter V. Jones.
About the Author
Seven Greek cities claim the honor of being the birthplace of
Homer (c. 8th7th century BC), the poet to whom the composition of the
Iliad and the
Odyssey are attributed. The
Iliad is the oldest surviving work of Western literature, but the identityor even the existenceof Homer himself is a complete mystery, with no reliable biographical information having survived.
E. V. Rieu initiated Penguin Classics with Allen Lane, and his famous translation of the Odyssey was the first book published in the series in 1947. The Iliad followed in 1950.
Coralie Bickford-Smith is an award-winning designer at Penguin Books, where she has created several highly acclaimed series designs. She studied typography at Reading University and lives in London.
Table of Contents
The Iliad Foreword
Introduction
Introduction to the 1950 Edition
Notes on this Revision
The Main Characters
Further Reading
Maps:
1. A reconstruction of Homer's imagined battlefields
2. The Troad
3. Trojan places and contingents
4. Homeric Greece
5. Greek contingents at Troy
Preliminaries
The Iliad
1. Plague and Wrath
2. A Dream, a Testing and the Catalogue of Ships
3. A Duel and a Trojan View of the Greeks
4. The Oath is Broken and Battle Joined
5. Diomedes' Heroics
6. Hector and Andromache
7. Ajax Fights Hector
8. Hector Triumphant
9. The Embassy to Achilles
10. Diomedes and Odysseus: The Night Attack
11. Achilles Takes Notice
12. Hector Storms the Wall
13. The Battle at the Ships
14. Zeus Outmanoeuvred
15. The Greeks at Bay
16. The Death of Patroclus
17. The Struggle Over Patroclus
18. Achilles' Decision
19. The Feud Ends
20. Achilles on the Rampage
21. Achilles Fights the River
22. The Death of Hector
23. The Funeral and the Games
24. Priam and Achilles
Appendices
1. A Brief Glossary
2. Ommitted Fathers' Names
Index