Homer

Odysseen er det ene av de to homeriske heltediktene og et av verdenslitteraturens store mesterverker. Både Iliaden og Odysseen henter sitt materiale fra fortellingene om grekernes krig med Troja. Mens Iliaden konsentrer seg om en enkelt episode under selve beleiringen av Troja – historien om Akillevs' vrede, følger Odysseen en av heltene, Odyssevs, på hans vidløftige hjemreise, en tilbaketur som skal vise seg å ta flere år. For farene og fallgruvene er mange: Odyssevs må kjempe mot enøyde kykloper, mot trollkvinner som vil forvandle mannskapet hans til griser, mot de uimotståelige sirenenes sang, mot nymfen Kalypso, som holder ham i fangenskap på sin øy, mot uhyrer og sjømonstre og andre hindre på veien. I mellomtiden løper hans kone Penelope en annen risiko hjemme på gården i Ithaka: Hun må stå imot presset fra de sleske frierne, som bruker alle midler nå som Odyssevs er ute av bildet. Odysseen er kort sagt en mangslungen røverhistorie på versemål, et heltedikt som inneholder et vell av kulturhistoriske referanser og litterære perler. P. Østbyes gjendiktning har for ettertiden blitt stående som en filologisk bragd.

Literature's grandest evocation of life's journey, at once an ageless human story and an individual test of moral endurance, Homer's ancient Greek epic The Odyssey is translated by Robert Fagles with an introduction and notes by Bernard Knox in Penguin Classics. When Robert Fagles' translation of The Iliad was published in 1990, critics and scholars alike hailed it as a masterpiece. Here, one of the great modern translators presents us with The Odyssey, Homer's best-loved poem, recounting Odysseus' wanderings after the Trojan War. With wit and wile, the 'man of twists and turns' meets the challenges of the sea-god Poseidon, and monsters ranging from the many-headed Scylla to the cannibalistic Cyclops Polyphemus - only to return after twenty years to a home besieged by his wife Penelope's suitors. In the myths and legends retold in this immortal poem, Fagles has captured the energy of Homer's original in a bold, contemporary idiom. Seven greek cities claim the honour of being the birthplace of Homer (c. 8th-7th century BC), the poet to whom the composition of the Iliad and Odyssey are attributed. The Iliad is the oldest surviving work of Western literature, but the identity - or even the existence - of Homer himself is a complete mystery, with no reliable biographical information having survived. If you enjoyed The Odyssey, you might like Robert Fagles' translation of The Iliad, also available in Penguin Classics.'Wonderfully readable ... Just the right blend of roughness and sophistication'Ted Hughes'A memorable achievement ... Mr Fagles has been remarkably successful in finding a style that is of our time and yet timeless'Richard Jenkyns, The New York Times Book Review'His translation of The Odyssey is his best work yet'Garry Wills, New Yorker

Med Otto Steen Dues nyoversættelser af Homer er der endelig kommet en udgave af verdenslitteraturen, som både er mundret og tro over for originalen. Odysseen fortæller om helten Odysseus’ besværlige hjemfærd fra krigen mod Troja. Undervejs støder han bl.a. på Kyklopen og må navigere mellem Skylla og Charybdis, inden han efter tyve år kan vende hjem til Ithaka og blodigt genvinde sin kongemagt. Både Iliaden og Odysseen tilskrives en Homer, som vi intet ellers ved om, ikke engang om navnet betegner den samme person eller er en slags varemærke for flere ophavsmænd. Digtene bygger på en lang mundtlig tradition og er nok nedskrevet i Grækenland omkring år 700 fvt., med Odysseen som det yngste. Med dem begynder den europæiske litteratur – i form af to fuldbårne mesterværker. I Otto Steen Dues oversættelser kan vi læse de klassiske fortællinger på et nutidigt og let tilgængeligt dansk. Efter selve teksten følger en ledsager, der hjælper med forståelsen af både den historiske, arkæologiske og kulturelle baggrund for de gamle heltedigte. ”En rejseroman fyldt med gode eventyr og oplevelser i en blanding af fantasi og virkelighed …” - Jørgen Mejer, Weekendavisen

"Tell us, Goddess, daughter of Zeus, start in your own place: when all the rest at Troy had fled from that steep doom and gone back home, away from war and the salt sea, only this man longed for his wife and a way home." Homer's Odyssey, at once an exciting epic of strife and subterfuge and a deeply felt tale of love and devotion, stands at the very beginning of the Western literary tradition. From ancient Greece to the present day its influence on later literature has been unsurpassed, and for centuries translators have approached the meter, tone, and pace of Homer's poetry with a variety of strategies. Chapman and Pope paid keen attention to color, drama, and vivacity of style, rendering the Greek verse loosely and inventively. In the twentieth century, translators such as Lattimore kept rigorously close to the sense of each word in the original; others, including Fitzgerald and Fagles, have departed further from the language of the original, employing their own inventive modern style. Poet and translator Edward McCrorie now opens new territory in this striking rendition, which captures the spare, powerful tone of Homer's epic while engaging contemporary readers with its brisk pace, idiomatic language, and lively characterization. McCrorie closely reproduces the Greek metrical patterns and employs a diction and syntax that reflects the plain, at times stark, quality of Homer's lines, rather than later English poetic styles. Avoiding both the stiffness of word-for-word literalism and the exaggeration and distortion of free adaptation, this translation dramatically evokes the ancient sound and sense of the poem. McCrorie's is truly an Odyssey for the twenty-first century. To accompany this innovative translation, noted classical scholar Richard Martin has written an accessible and wide-ranging introduction explaining the historical and literary context of the Odyssey, its theological and cultural underpinnings, Homer's poetic strategies and narrative techniques, and his cast of characters. In addition, Martin provides detailed notes-far more extensive than those in other editions-addressing key themes and concepts; the histories of persons, gods, events, and myths; literary motifs and devices; and plot development. Also included is a pronunciation glossary and character index.

The rage of Achilles (played by Brad Pitt in the movie Troy) provides the basis for one of the most powerful war stories ever told. Anger. Jealousy. Betrayal. Revenge. The original is far more poetic and complex than the new film version. This elegantly designed new edition is taken from the 1898 translation by Samuel Butler. The electronic text is available free through Project Gutenberg: www.promo.net/pg/