The Odysseys of Homer ✦ BOOK 19 ✦ AUDIOBOOK CLASSICS

The Odysseys of Homer ✦ BOOK 19 ✦ AUDIOBOOK CLASSICS



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The Odysseys of Homer

HOMER (c. 8th cen - c. 8th cen), translated by George Chapman (c. 1559 - 1634)



Genre(s): Classics (Antiquity), Epics



Language: English

The Odysseys are a collection of stories about Ulysses' journey home from the war at Troy purportedly written in the 8th century BCE by Homer, a blind poet thought to have lived in the Greek colonies in Asia Minor, possibly at Smyrna. The events described are thought to have occurred centuries before being recorded by Homer, handed down orally since the twelfth century BCE, the golden era of the Greek Bronze Age when the world was populated by heroic mortals and often visited by the Gods. This verse translation in couplets by George Chapman was originally published in 1616, the first translation from the ancient Greek directly to English, although likely influenced by previous Latin translations. Chapman's translation has been admired by many, including John Keats and others. Many of these stories are familiar to us, Ulysses and the Sirens, Circe turning his crew to swine, their escape from the Cyclops on the bellies of his sheep, but Chapman's version includes violent episodes and suggestive innuendo that I don't recall from my childhood days. (Introduction by Fritz)



The epic poem of Odysseus begins ten years after the capture of Troy in Ithaca, his homeland. In his palace a large group of suitors have arrived and taken up residence to court Penelope, Odysseus’s wife. She, however, does not wish to remarry and makes them wait while her son Telemachus searches for just cause and a good reason to banish them from their home. All the while, Antinous plots to kill Telemachus and remove his opposition in the palace.



However, lost in the Mediterranean is Odysseus still trying to return home. Trapped on the island of Ogygia by the nymph Calypso, he wishes to return to his family but does not have the means to as he has lost his crew and ship. The Gods of Olympus continue to debate what they shall do about Odysseus, but Athena takes the initiative to visit and help his son, Telemachus. She arrives and convinces Telemachus to censure the suitors for their behavior and convinces him to travel to Pylos and Sparta. He learns while there that Odysseus is still alive and trapped by Calypso. While Telemachus prepares to return, Antinous puts his plans in motion to kill him.



Zeus finally decides to rescue Odysseus from Calyspo’s island and sends Hermes to convince Calypso to let him leave. He finally sets sail home, but is quickly shipwrecked again by Poseidon, the God who he had angered when Odysseus blinded his son Polyphemus, the Cyclops. Athena steps in to save Odysseus and brings him to the island of Scheria where he is found by Nausicaa, Princess of the Phaeacians. He reveals who he is to the King and Queen here and they immediately agree to help him return home. They first want to hear his story though.



Odysseus thus describes the months of travel that led him to the island of Calypso and then to Scheria. He begins with his trip to the Land of the Lotus Eaters, followed by the trip and battle of wits with Polyphemus, Poseidon’s Cyclops son. He describes the time he spent with Circe and their love affair as well as the journey past the Sirens and their tempting call. He continues to describe how he traveled to the underworld to speak with Tiresias the prophet and the fight with Scylla, the sea monster. Finally, after his tale is complete, Odysseus returns to Ithaca.



Odysseus arrives at the palace as a beggar and is immediately treated poorly. His nurse, Eurycleia recognizes him but does not reveal that she knows. Penelope also notes the beggar’s appearance and believes he might be her long lost husband. However, she is not sure, so she puts together an archery contest, the winner of which will be allowed to marry her. Whoever can string Odysseus’s bow and fire an arrow through twelve axes will be declared the winner. Only Odysseus was ever able to do so in the past. The suitors all fail before Odysseus is able to accomplish the feat. He then turns the bow on the suitors and kills every one of them.

Finally, Odysseus reveals his identity and reunites with his family. He then visits his father Laertes and after successfully repelling the angered families of the suitors he killed, Athena arrives and peace is restored to Ithaca with the epic coming to a close. (This summary by wikisummaries: http://www.wikisummaries.org/wiki/The_Odyssey



#TheOdysseysofHomer   #Mythology    #AUDIOBOOK

#LITERATURE  #ANTIQUITY  #GEORGECHAPMAN

#shortStories  #Homer   #GreekMythology