Synopses & Reviews
From the award-winning translator of The Iliad and The Odyssey comes a brilliant new translation of Virgil's great epic
Fleeing the ashes of Troy, Aeneas, Achillesand#8217; mighty foe in the Iliad, begins an incredible journey to fulfill his destiny as the founder of Rome. His voyage will take him through stormy seas, entangle him in a tragic love affair, and lure him into the world of the dead itself--all the way tormented by the vengeful Juno, Queen of the Gods. Ultimately, he reaches the promised land of Italy where, after bloody battles and with high hopes, he founds what will become the Roman empire. An unsparing portrait of a man caught between love, duty, and fate, the Aeneid redefines passion, nobility, and courage for our times. Robert Fagles, whose acclaimed translations of Homerand#8217;s Iliad and Odyssey were welcomed as major publishing events, brings the Aeneid to a new generation of readers, retaining all of the gravitas and humanity of the original Latin as well as its powerful blend of poetry and myth. Featuring an illuminating introduction to Virgiland#8217;s world by esteemed scholar Bernard Knox, this volume lends a vibrant new voice to one of the seminal literary achievements of the ancient world.
For more than sixty-five years, Penguin has been the leading publisher of classic literature in the English-speaking world. With more than 1,500and#160;titles, Penguin Classics represents a global bookshelf of the best works throughout history and across genres and disciplines. Readers trust theand#160;series to provide authoritative texts enhanced by introductions and notes by distinguished scholars and contemporary authors, as well as up-to-dateand#160;translations by award-winning translators.
Synopsis
"The Fagles translation is destined to be the English Aeneid of the new century." -The Wall Street Journal Robert Fagles's award-winning translations of Homer's Iliad and Odyssey have sold more than a million copies and become classics in their own right. With this modern verse translation of Virgil's Aeneid, Fagles completes the classic triptych at the heart of Western civilization. Retaining all of the gravitas and humanity of the original, yet vibrant and contemporary, this seminal literary achievement of the ancient world is an unsparing portrait of a man caught between love, duty, and fate.
Synopsis
Robert Fagles's award-winning translations of Homer's twin works The Iliad and The Odyssey have sold more than a million copies and become classics in their own right. With this stunning modern verse translation, Fagles introduces Virgil's Aeneid to a whole new generation of readers and completes the classic triptych at the heart of Western civilisation. The Aeneid tells the story of an epic voyage in which Aeneas crosses stormy seas, becomes entangled in a tragic love affair with Dido of Cathage, descends to the world of the dead - all the way tormented by the vengeful Juno, Queen of the Gods - and finally reaches Italy, where he will fulfil his destiny: to found the Roman people. A stirring tale of arms and heroism, dispossession and defeat, and an unsparing portrait of a man caught between love, duty, and fate, The Aeneid brings to life a whole world of human passion, nobility, and courage.
Fagles's new translation retains all of the gravitas and humanity of the original as well as its powerful blend of poetry and myth. Featuring an illuminating introduction to Virgil's world from noted scholar Bernard Knox, this new Aeneid lends a vibrant, contemporary voice to the literary achievement of the ancient world.
Synopsis
After his bestselling "Iliad" and "Odyssey," today's top-dog classical translator hits the trifecta with Virgil's epic about the founder of Rome.--"Newsweek."
Synopsis
The Fall of Arthur, the only venture by J.R.R. Tolkien into the legends of Arthur King of Britain, may well be regarded as his finest and most skillful achievement in the use of the Old English alliterative meter, but it depicts drama and adventure in language only Tolkien could have written. Edited by his son Christopher Tolkien, who also provides detailed commentary and notes.
Synopsis
New York Times bestseller “An incomplete but highly compelling retelling . . . An action-packed, doom-haunted saga, full of vivid natural description.”—
New York Times Book ReviewThe Fall of Arthur recounts in verse the last campaign of King Arthur, who, even as he stands at the threshold of Mirkwood, is summoned back to Britain by news of the treachery of Mordred. Already weakened in spirit by Guineveres infidelity with the now-exiled Lancelot, Arthur must rouse his knights to battle one last time against Mordreds rebels and foreign mercenaries. Powerful, passionate, and filled with vivid imagery, this unfinished poem reveals Tolkiens gift for storytelling at its brilliant best. Christopher Tolkien, editor, contributes three illuminating essays that explore the literary world of King Arthur, reveal the deeper meaning of the verses and the painstaking work his father applied to bring the poem to a finished form, and investigate the intriguing links between The Fall of Arthur and Tolkiens Middle-earth.
“Compelling in pace, haunted by loss, it lives up to expectations.”—Daily Beast
“Erudite and beautiful.” - NPR.org
About the Author
Publius Vergilius Maro (70-19 B.C.), known as
Virgil, was born near Mantua in the last days of the Roman Republic. In his comparatively short life he became the supreme poet of his age, whose
Aeneid gave the Romans a great national epic equal to the Greeksand#8217;, celebrating their cityand#8217;s origins and the creation of their empire. Virgil is also credited and#160;with authoring two other major works of Latin literature, the
Eclogues and the
Georgics.
Robert Fagles (1933-2008) was Arthur W. Marks and#8217;19 Professor of Comparative Literature, Emeritus, at Princeton University. He was the recipient of the 1997 PEN/Ralph Manheim Medal for Translation and a 1996 Award in Literature from the American Academy of Arts and Letters. His translations include Sophoclesand#8217;s Three Theban Plays, Aeschylusand#8217;s Oresteia (nominated for a National Book Award), Homerand#8217;s Iliad (winner of the 1991 Harold Morton Landon Translation Award by The Academy of American Poets), Homerand#8217;s Odyssey, and Virgil's Aeneid.
Bernard Knox (1914-2010) was Director Emeritus of Harvardand#8217;s Center for Hellenic Studies in Washington, D.C. He taught at Yale University for many years. Among his numerous honors are awards from the National Institute of Arts and Letters and the National Endowment for the Humanities. His works include The Heroic Temper: Studies in Sophoclean Tragedy, Oedipus at Thebes: Sophoclesand#8217; Tragic Hero and His Time and Essays Ancient and Modern (awarded the 1989 PEN/Spielvogel-Diamonstein Award).