The Essential Homer (Hackett Classics) Homer.epub: How to Access and Enjoy the Classic Poems of Homer on Any Device
The Essential Homer (Hackett Classics) Homer.epub: A Review
Have you ever wondered what it was like to live in ancient Greece, to witness the epic battles of heroes and gods, to explore the wonders of the Mediterranean world, to hear the stories that shaped Western civilization? If so, then you might want to read The Essential Homer (Hackett Classics) Homer.epub, a book that contains selections from both the Iliad and the Odyssey, two of the most famous and influential poems ever written.
The Essential Homer (Hackett Classics) Homer.epub
Introduction
In this article, I will give you a brief overview of what The Essential Homer is, who Homer was, and why you should read this book. Then I will review each of the two poems included in The Essential Homer: the Iliad and the Odyssey. I will tell you what they are about, who are their main characters, and what are some of their themes. Finally, I will conclude with a summary of the main points and a recommendation and rating for this book.
What is The Essential Homer?
The Essential Homer is a book that contains selections from both the Iliad and the Odyssey, two epic poems attributed to the ancient Greek poet Homer. These poems are among the oldest and most influential works of Western literature, and they tell the stories of the Trojan War and the adventures of Odysseus on his way home.
The Essential Homer was translated by Stanley Lombardo, a professor of classics at the University of Kansas. He is known for his modern and accessible translations of ancient texts. He also provides an introduction and notes for each poem, as well as maps and glossaries.
The Essential Homer was published by Hackett Publishing Company in 2000. It is available in various formats, including PDF, EPUB, Kindle, Audio, MOBI, HTML, RTF, TXT. You can download it for free from the Internet Archive or buy it from online retailers such as Amazon or Barnes & Noble.
Who is Homer?
Homer is the name given to the author or authors of the Iliad and the Odyssey. He is considered to be the first and greatest poet of Western literature. However, very little is known about his life and identity. Some scholars believe that he was a single person who lived in the 8th or 7th century BC, while others think that he was a collective name for a group of oral poets who composed and performed the poems over several centuries.
Regardless of who Homer was, his poems have had a lasting impact on the culture and history of the Western world. They have inspired countless works of art, literature, philosophy, and science. They have also shaped the values and ideals of Western civilization, such as heroism, honor, justice, wisdom, and love.
Why read The Essential Homer?
There are many reasons why you should read The Essential Homer. Here are some of them:
You will enjoy the stories of the Iliad and the Odyssey, which are full of action, adventure, romance, tragedy, comedy, and fantasy. You will meet memorable characters such as Achilles, Hector, Helen, Paris, Agamemnon, Odysseus, Penelope, Telemachus, Circe, Calypso, Cyclops, Sirens, and many more.
You will learn about the ancient Greek culture and society, which influenced the development of Western civilization. You will discover their beliefs, customs, values, politics, religion, art, and science. You will also see how they interacted with other peoples and cultures of their time.
You will appreciate the beauty and power of poetry, which expresses human emotions and experiences in a vivid and creative way. You will admire the skill and artistry of Homer, who used various literary devices such as similes, metaphors, epithets, allusions, repetitions, parallelisms, contrasts, and more.
You will enrich your mind and soul with the wisdom and insights of Homer, who explored universal themes such as fate and free will, honor and glory, war and peace, homecoming and identity, hospitality and loyalty, cunning and deception, and more. You will also find moral lessons and ethical dilemmas that are relevant to your own life.
As you can see, reading The Essential Homer is not only enjoyable but also educational and inspirational. It is a book that can change your perspective on yourself and the world around you.
The Iliad
The Iliad is the first poem in The Essential Homer. It is an epic poem that tells the story of the Trojan War, a legendary conflict between the Greeks (also called Achaeans) and the Trojans (also called Dardanians) over the abduction of Helen by Paris. The war lasted for ten years and involved many heroes and gods on both sides.
What is the Iliad about?
The Iliad covers only a few weeks in the tenth year of the war. It begins with a quarrel between Agamemnon, the leader of the Greek army, and Achilles, the greatest Greek warrior. Agamemnon takes away a captive woman named Briseis from Achilles as a compensation for losing his own captive woman named Chryseis to her father Chryses, a priest of Apollo. Achilles feels dishonored by Agamemnon's act and withdraws from the war in anger. He also asks his mother Thetis, a sea goddess, to persuade Zeus to help the Trojans against the Greeks until Agamemnon apologizes to him.
Zeus agrees to Thetis' request and sends a dream to Agamemnon to deceive him into attacking Troy. The Greeks suffer heavy losses at the hands of the Trojans led by Hector, the son of King Priam and Queen Hecuba. Several Greek heroes such as Diomedes, Ajax, and Odysseus try to stop Hector's advance but fail. The Trojans even manage to breach the Greek wall and set fire to some of their ships.
Achilles' friend Patroclus, who feels sorry for the Greeks, asks Achilles to let him wear his armor and lead his troops into battle. Achilles agrees but warns Patroclus not to pursue the Trojans beyond the wall. Patroclus disobeys Achilles' order and kills many Trojans, including Sarpedon, a son of Zeus. However, he is eventually killed by Hector, as a trophy.
Achilles is devastated by Patroclus' death and vows to avenge him. He reconciles with Agamemnon and receives new armor from Hephaestus, the god of fire and metalwork. He returns to the war and slaughters many Trojans, including twelve captives whom he sacrifices on Patroclus' funeral pyre. He also fights with the river god Scamander, who is angry at him for polluting his waters with blood and corpses. He finally confronts Hector outside the walls of Troy and kills him in a single combat. He then drags Hector's body behind his chariot around Patroclus' tomb for nine days.
The gods are displeased by Achilles' disrespect for Hector's body and intervene to preserve it from decay. They also persuade Achilles to accept a ransom from Priam, who comes to his tent at night with the help of Hermes, the messenger god. Achilles is moved by Priam's grief and compassion and returns Hector's body to him. The poem ends with the funeral of Hector, the defender of Troy.
Who are the main characters of the Iliad?
The Iliad has a large cast of characters, both human and divine. Here are some of the main ones:
Character
Description
Achilles
The son of Peleus, a king of Thessaly, and Thetis, a sea goddess. He is the greatest Greek warrior and the main protagonist of the Iliad. He is brave, proud, loyal, but also impulsive, stubborn, and wrathful. His anger at Agamemnon drives the plot of the poem.
Hector
The son of Priam, the king of Troy, and Hecuba, the queen. He is the leader of the Trojan army and the main antagonist of the Iliad. He is noble, courageous, dutiful, but also reckless, overconfident, and fatalistic. He kills Patroclus and is killed by Achilles.
Agamemnon
The son of Atreus, a king of Mycenae, and Aerope, a princess. He is the commander-in-chief of the Greek army and the brother of Menelaus, whose wife Helen was abducted by Paris. He is powerful, ambitious, authoritative, but also greedy, arrogant, and insensitive. He offends Achilles by taking his captive woman Briseis.
Odysseus
The son of Laertes, a king of Ithaca, and Anticlea, a princess. He is one of the most prominent Greek heroes and the protagonist of the Odyssey. He is clever, eloquent, resourceful, but also cunning, deceptive, and opportunistic. He plays a key role in many events of the war, such as the embassy to Achilles, the spy mission to Troy, and the invention of the wooden horse.
Zeus
The son of Cronus, a titan, and Rhea, a titaness. He is the king of the gods and the ruler of the sky. He is the most powerful, wise, and impartial of the gods, but also fickle, indecisive, and unfaithful. He supports the Trojans at the request of Thetis, but also respects the fate of both sides.
Athena
The daughter of Zeus, the king of the gods, and Metis, a titaness. She is the goddess of wisdom, warfare, and crafts. She is the patroness of Athens and Odysseus. She is brave, intelligent, and strategic, but also vengeful, competitive, and biased. She supports the Greeks against the Trojans, especially Achilles.
Apollo
The son of Zeus, the king of the gods, and Leto, a titaness. He is the god of light, music, prophecy, and healing. He is handsome, talented, and benevolent, but also proud, arrogant, and cruel. He supports the Trojans against the Greeks, especially Hector.
Aphrodite
The daughter of Zeus, the king of the gods, and Dione, a goddess. She is the goddess of love, beauty, and sexuality. She is beautiful, charming, and seductive, but also vain, jealous, and manipulative. She supports the Trojans against the Greeks, especially Paris.
What are some themes of the Iliad?
The Iliad explores many themes that are relevant to human life and society. Here are some of them:
Fate and free will
The Iliad shows the tension between fate and free will, between the predetermined course of events and the choices and actions of individuals. The gods often intervene in the war, either to help or hinder the human characters, but they also respect the fate that is woven by the three goddesses called the Fates. The human characters also have some degree of agency and responsibility for their actions, but they are also limited by their nature and circumstances. For example, Achilles knows that he has two fates: to die young and gain eternal glory, or to live long and be forgotten. He chooses the former, but he also regrets his decision when he loses his friend Patroclus.
Honor and glory
The Iliad shows the importance of honor and glory, especially for the Greek heroes who fight for fame and reputation. Honor and glory are measured by one's achievements in battle, by one's prizes and spoils of war, by one's recognition and respect from others. Honor and glory are also linked to one's identity and self-worth. For example, Achilles feels dishonored when Agamemnon takes away his prize Briseis, and he seeks to restore his honor by killing Hector and avenging Patroclus.
War and peace
The Iliad shows the realities and consequences of war, both for the individual and for the society. War is depicted as a brutal, violent, and destructive force that causes suffering, death, and grief for both sides. War also brings out the best and the worst in human nature, such as courage, loyalty, friendship, but also anger, hatred, revenge. War also affects the relationships between men and women, between parents and children, between rulers and subjects. War also raises questions about the causes and motives of war, such as pride, greed, lust, or justice.
The Odyssey
The Odyssey is the second poem in The Essential Homer. It is an epic poem that tells the story of Odysseus, one of the Greek heroes who fought in the Trojan War. It narrates his long and perilous journey home to Ithaca after the fall of Troy. He faces many dangers and obstacles along the way, such as storms, monsters, witches, sirens, giants, and suitors who want to marry his wife Penelope.
What is the Odyssey about?
The Odyssey covers ten years after the end of the Trojan War. It begins with a council of the gods on Mount Olympus, where Athena persuades Zeus to help Odysseus return home. Odysseus has been held captive by Calypso, a nymph who loves him and wants him to stay with her on her island Ogygia. Meanwhile, in Ithaca, Penelope is besieged by many suitors who want to marry her and take over Odysseus' throne. She tries to delay them by weaving a shroud for her father-in-law Laertes and promising to choose a husband when she finishes it. However, she secretly unravels it every night. Odysseus' son Telemachus is also unhappy with the situation and decides to go in search of his father with the help of Athena.
The poem then shifts to Odysseus' perspective and recounts his adventures in flashback. He tells his story to Alcinous, the king of Phaeacia, who offers him hospitality and a ship to take him home. Odysseus reveals that after leaving Troy with his men, he encountered many wonders and dangers on his way home. He visited the land of the Cicones, where he lost some of his men in a raid; he visited the land of the Lotus-eaters, where some of his men were tempted to forget their home; he visited the land of the Cyclops Polyphemus, who ate some of his men and trapped them in his cave; he escaped by blinding him with a wooden stake and hiding under his sheep; the island of Aeolus, the god of the winds, who gave him a bag of winds to help him sail home; he almost reached Ithaca, but his curious men opened the bag and unleashed a storm that blew them back; he visited the land of the Laestrygonians, who were cannibal giants who destroyed most of his ships; he visited the island of Circe, a witch who turned some of his men into pigs; he freed them with the help of Hermes, who gave him a herb called moly to resist Circe's magic; he stayed with Circe for a year and became her lover; he visited the underworld, where he met the spirits of his dead comrades, his mother Anticlea, the prophet Tiresias, and many other famous figures from Greek mythology; he returned to Circe's island and received her advice on how to avoid the dangers ahead; he sailed past the Sirens, who lured sailors with their enchanting songs; he passed between Scylla and Charybdis, two monstrous creatures that threatened to devour his ship and his men; he reached the island of Thrinacia, where his men disobeyed his order and killed and ate the cattle of Helios, the sun god; he left the island with his remaining men, but Zeus punished them with a thunderbolt that destroyed his ship and killed his men; he drifted alone for nine days until he reached Ogygia, where Calypso kept him for seven years.
The poem then returns to the present and resumes Odysseus' journey home. He leaves Ogygia with Calypso's help and sails to Phaeacia, where he meets Alcinous and tells him his story. He receives gifts and honors from Alcinous and his people and sails to Ithaca with their escort. He arrives at night and disguises himself as a beggar with Athena's help. He meets his faithful swineherd Eumaeus, who welcomes him and tells him about the situation in Ithaca. He also meets Telemachus, who has returned from his search for his father. He reveals his identity to him and they plan to kill the suitors. He visits his palace in disguise and tests the loyalty of his servants and subjects. He endures the insults and attacks of the suitors, especially Antinous, their leader. He also meets Penelope, who does not recognize him but feels a connection with him. She tells him that she will hold a contest for the suitors: whoever can string Odysseus' bow and shoot an arrow through twelve axe heads will win her hand. She hopes that none of them can do it, as only Odysseus could perform this feat.
The next day, the contest begins. None of the suitors can string the bow, except for Odysseus, who reveals himself and kills Antinous with an arrow. He then kills the rest of the suitors with the help of Telemachus, Eumaeus, and another loyal servant named Philoetius. He also punishes some of the disloyal servants who conspired with the suitors. He then reunites with Penelope, who tests him by asking him about their bed. He proves his identity by describing how he built their bed around an olive tree trunk. They embrace and make love. The next day, he visits his father Laertes, who lives in a farm outside the town. He proves his identity to him by showing him a scar on his leg that he got from a boar hunt when he was young. They join forces with Telemachus and some loyal friends to fight against the relatives of the slain suitors, who seek revenge for their deaths. However, the fight is stopped by Athena, who commands both sides to make peace and end the bloodshed. The poem ends with Odysseus finally at home with his family and people.
Who are the main characters of the Odyssey?
The Odyssey has a large cast of characters, both human and divine. Here are some of the main ones:
Character
Description
Odysseus
The son of Laertes, a king of Ithaca, and Anticlea, a princess. He is one of the most prominent Greek heroes and the protagonist of the Odyssey. He is clever, eloquent, resourceful, but also cunning, deceptive, and opportunistic. He faces many dangers and obstacles on his way home after the Trojan War.
Penelope
The daughter of Icarius, a king of Sparta, and Periboea, a princess. She is the wife of Odysseus and the mother of Telemachus. She is faithful, patient, and clever, but also sad, lonely, and doubtful. She waits for Odysseus' return for ten years and resists the pressure of the suitors who want to marry her.
Telemachus
The son of Odysseus and Penelope. He is the prince of Ithaca and the heir of Odysseus' throne. He is young, brave, and loyal, but also inexperienced, insecure, and frustrated. He goes in search of his father with the help of Athena.
Athena
The daughter of Zeus, the king of the gods, and Metis, a titaness. She is the goddess of wisdom, warfare, and crafts. She is the patroness of Athens and Odysseus. She is brave, intelligent, and strategic, but also vengeful, competitive, and biased. She supports Odysseus against his enemies and helps him return home.
Zeus
The son of Cronus, a titan, and Rhea, a titaness. He is the king of the gods and the ruler of the sky. He is the most powerful, wise, and impartial of the gods, but also fickle, indecisive, and unfaithful. He allows Athena to help Odysseus, but also respects the fate of both sides.
Poseidon
The son of Cronus, a titan, and Rhea, a titaness. He is the god of the sea, earthquakes, and horses. He is powerful, proud, and temperamental, but also generous, protective, and creative. He hates Odysseus for blinding his son Polyphemus and tries to prevent him from returning home.
Calypso
The daughter of Atlas, a titan who holds up the sky, and Pleione, an oceanid. She is a nymph who lives on the island of Ogygia. She is beautiful, enchanting, and lonely, but also possessive, selfish, and stubborn. She loves Odysseus and keeps him captive on her island for seven years.
Circe
The daughter of Helios, the sun god, and Perse, an oceanid. She is a witch who lives on the island of Aeaea. She is beautiful, powerful, and mysterious, but also cruel, deceptive, and capricious.