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Title: The World of Odysseus (New York Review Books Classics Series) by M. I. Finley, Bernard Knox ISBN: 1-59017-017-2 Publisher: New York Review of Books Pub. Date: 10 August, 2002 Format: Paperback Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $12.95 |
Average Customer Rating: 4.71 (7 reviews)
Rating: 4
Summary: An Excellent "Epilogue" to Homer
Comment: Reading Finley immediately after you finish Homer allows you to revisit the epics' individual passages and tie them into coherent themes. Finley's discussion of the Greek household, or oikos, is especially good, as are his insights on giftgiving. The world that Homer sang of is a stark contrast to the more familiar, Classical Greece, and yet the seeds of that Greece (and hence our world) are already reconizably there. Perhaps they are there in a truer, less alloyed form.
The only regrettable part of this book is the second appendix, a speech that Finley later gave on Schliemann. It is full of such professional bitterness that one begins to doubt Finley's decency. The publisher produced a gem of a book, but it should seriously consider removing these few pages in future editions.
Rating: 4
Summary: The "Odyssey" and "Iliad" in their historical contexts
Comment: "The World of Odysseus" is a book with a unique intent: use archaeology and what historians have pieced together about pre-Classical Greece to describe the society that Odysseus (and the other characters of the Odyssey/Iliad) would have known at the time of the Trojan War. From theorizing about Homer's identity, to speculating on the relationship between Penelope and Odysseus, the author succeeds in a sotry nearly as interesting as the Odyssey itself.
In any discussion about Homer and the epics, invariably questions arise about their historicity. Whole forests have been felled, and TV programs of varying (to say the least) accuracy have been broadcast about this point. The autor contends that such discussion is tangential to the real issue: the myth itself is important in what the content tells us about Greek society of the time-roughly 1200 BC. Thus, considering that Homer is relating actual locations and personages, but assuming the tales about the Gods were satire totally misses the point of the poems. All aspects of society are covered: customs, religion and class all get well written chapters. A pretty solid social history of Bronze-Age Greece. What tells against the book though is its age. Naturally the latest archaeology and theories don't appear here. Recommended as excellent background to the study of these two epic poems.
Rating: 5
Summary: A must for the Homeric reader
Comment: This is a fantastic account of an epoch in which the worlds of history and mythology merge together. The historical significance of myriad passages in Homer are discussed and elaborated on. One cannot but stand in awe of Finley's perspicuity in deciphering the historical importance of even the minutest details.
This is a superb reference guide to assist one's journey thru the archaic but wonderous historical niche of the ancient Greeks. For those who have already read the works of Homer, the present work is a very useful tool to examine more closely the subtle information provided in even the most remote passages of the epics.
This book is highly recommended to anyone who has ever read Homer, as well as anyone who would ever like to. For students of Greek history and literature, this one is a can't miss!
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Title: Homeric Moments: Clues to Delight in Reading the Odyssey and the Iliad by Eva T. H. Brann ISBN: 0967967570 Publisher: Paul Dry Books Inc Pub. Date: October, 2002 List Price(USD): $19.95 |
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Title: Greeks and the Irrational by Eric R. Dodds ISBN: 0520003276 Publisher: University of California Press Pub. Date: December, 1962 List Price(USD): $19.95 |
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Title: Homer on Life and Death by Jasper Griffin ISBN: 0198140266 Publisher: Clarendon Pr Pub. Date: December, 1983 List Price(USD): $27.50 |
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Title: The Heroic Temper: Studies in Sophoclean Tragedy by Bernard MacGregor Walke Knox ISBN: 0520049578 Publisher: University of California Press Pub. Date: June, 1983 List Price(USD): $19.95 |
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Title: For Harmony and Strength: Japanese White-Collar Organization in Anthropological Perspective (Center for Japanese Studies) by Thomas P. Rohlen ISBN: 0520038495 Publisher: University of California Press Pub. Date: July, 1979 List Price(USD): $25.00 |
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