Homer and Hesiod: The Foundations of Ancient Greek Literature

Homer and Hesiod: The Foundations of Ancient Greek Literature PDF Author: Gilbert Murray
Publisher: Good Press
ISBN:
Category : Literary Criticism
Languages : en
Pages : 729

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Book Description
In 'Homer and Hesiod: The Foundations of Ancient Greek Literature,' readers are invited to explore the vast expanse of ancient Greek literary tradition through the foundational texts of Homer and Hesiod. The collection encapsulates the epic narrative style, the enlightening didactic poetry, and the overarching themes of heroism, divinity, and human nature that have left an indelible mark on the tapestry of Western literature. The works selected underscore the diversity and depth of ancient Greek literature, offering a comprehensive insight into its enduring legacy. The contributing figures, Gilbert Murray, alongside the ancient poets Homer and Hesiod, present a rare synthesis of scholarly analysis and primary epic poetry. Murray, a renowned classical scholar, provides context and commentary that bridge the historical and cultural distances, enriching the reader's appreciation of these texts. Together, these authors embody the intellectual and creative vigor of an era that laid the groundwork for much of Western thought, including philosophy, politics, and literary theory, thereby aligning the collection with key cultural and literary movements of the ancient world. This anthology is a scholarly feast for those eager to immerse themselves in the origins of Western literature. It presents a unique opportunity to engage with the works of ancient Greece through a dual lens of direct literary engagement and scholarly commentary. Readers will find themselves on a journey through time, where the echoing voices of Homer and Hesiod provide rich material for understanding not only the ancient world but also the foundations of literary art. 'Homer and Hesiod: The Foundations of Ancient Greek Literature' is an essential volume for students, scholars, and anyone with a keen interest in the roots of literary tradition.

Homer and Hesiod: The Foundations of Ancient Greek Literature

Homer and Hesiod: The Foundations of Ancient Greek Literature PDF Author: Gilbert Murray
Publisher: Good Press
ISBN:
Category : Literary Criticism
Languages : en
Pages : 729

Get Book Here

Book Description
In 'Homer and Hesiod: The Foundations of Ancient Greek Literature,' readers are invited to explore the vast expanse of ancient Greek literary tradition through the foundational texts of Homer and Hesiod. The collection encapsulates the epic narrative style, the enlightening didactic poetry, and the overarching themes of heroism, divinity, and human nature that have left an indelible mark on the tapestry of Western literature. The works selected underscore the diversity and depth of ancient Greek literature, offering a comprehensive insight into its enduring legacy. The contributing figures, Gilbert Murray, alongside the ancient poets Homer and Hesiod, present a rare synthesis of scholarly analysis and primary epic poetry. Murray, a renowned classical scholar, provides context and commentary that bridge the historical and cultural distances, enriching the reader's appreciation of these texts. Together, these authors embody the intellectual and creative vigor of an era that laid the groundwork for much of Western thought, including philosophy, politics, and literary theory, thereby aligning the collection with key cultural and literary movements of the ancient world. This anthology is a scholarly feast for those eager to immerse themselves in the origins of Western literature. It presents a unique opportunity to engage with the works of ancient Greece through a dual lens of direct literary engagement and scholarly commentary. Readers will find themselves on a journey through time, where the echoing voices of Homer and Hesiod provide rich material for understanding not only the ancient world but also the foundations of literary art. 'Homer and Hesiod: The Foundations of Ancient Greek Literature' is an essential volume for students, scholars, and anyone with a keen interest in the roots of literary tradition.

Homer & Hesiod

Homer & Hesiod PDF Author: Homer
Publisher: e-artnow
ISBN:
Category : Poetry
Languages : en
Pages : 691

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Book Description
The Iliad and the Odyssey, along with the two poems of Hesiod, Theogony and Works and Days, comprised the major foundations of the Greek literary tradition that would continue into the Classical, Hellenistic, and Roman periods. The Iliad is set during the Trojan War, the ten-year siege of the city of Troy by a coalition of Greek kingdoms. It focuses on a quarrel between King Agamemnon and the warrior Achilles lasting a few weeks during the last year of the war. The Odyssey focuses on the ten-year journey home of Odysseus, king of Ithaca, after the fall of Troy. The Theogony is commonly considered Hesiod's earliest work. It concerns the origins of the world (cosmogony) and of the gods (theogony), beginning with Chaos, Gaia, Tartarus and Eros, and shows a special interest in genealogy. The Works and Days is a poem of over 800 lines which revolves around two general truths: labour is the universal lot of Man, but he who is willing to work will get by.

A History of Ancient Greek Literature

A History of Ancient Greek Literature PDF Author: Gilbert Murray
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Greek literature
Languages : en
Pages : 454

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Book Description


The Ancient Greek Hero in 24 Hours

The Ancient Greek Hero in 24 Hours PDF Author: Gregory Nagy
Publisher: Harvard University Press
ISBN: 0674244192
Category : Literary Criticism
Languages : en
Pages : 657

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Book Description
What does it mean to be a hero? The ancient Greeks who gave us Achilles and Odysseus had a very different understanding of the term than we do today. Based on the legendary Harvard course that Gregory Nagy has taught for well over thirty years, The Ancient Greek Hero in 24 Hours explores the roots of Western civilization and offers a masterclass in classical Greek literature. We meet the epic heroes of Homer’s Iliad and Odyssey, but Nagy also considers the tragedies of Aeschylus, Sophocles, and Euripides, the songs of Sappho and Pindar, and the dialogues of Plato. Herodotus once said that to read Homer was to be a civilized person. To discover Nagy’s Homer is to be twice civilized. “Fascinating, often ingenious... A valuable synthesis of research finessed over thirty years.” —Times Literary Supplement “Nagy exuberantly reminds his readers that heroes—mortal strivers against fate, against monsters, and...against death itself—form the heart of Greek literature... [He brings] in every variation on the Greek hero, from the wily Theseus to the brawny Hercules to the ‘monolithic’ Achilles to the valiantly conflicted Oedipus.” —Steve Donoghue, Open Letters Monthly

Homer and Hesiod

Homer and Hesiod PDF Author: Richard Gotshalk
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Drama
Languages : en
Pages : 400

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Book Description
Homer and Hesiod, Myth and Philosophy is a study of the nature and function of the poetry of Homer and Hesiod when their work is considered in historical context as the initial significant developments of poetry as a distinctive voice for truth beyond religion and myth. To understand their innovations properly, this work begins with the presentation of an account of the nature of religion and myth and in particular of the disclosure of truth achieved in myth. Then it takes up the Homeric and Hesiodic innovations which transform the bardic poetry that was heritage from at least Mycenaean times and that make the inspired poet an educative voice for truth. After giving an account of the four major poems in which this transformation is embodied: Illiad and Odyssey, Theogony and Works and Days, the work concludes with a discussion of how these creations shaped the matrix within which philosophy arose. In this way it points to why the distinctive realization of philosophy in Greece (as contrasted with that in China and India) involved what the Platonic Socrates can speak of as "an ancient quarrel between poetry and philosophy."

The Cambridge Guide to Homer

The Cambridge Guide to Homer PDF Author: Corinne Ondine Pache
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 1108663621
Category : Literary Collections
Languages : en
Pages : 985

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Book Description
From its ancient incarnation as a song to recent translations in modern languages, Homeric epic remains an abiding source of inspiration for both scholars and artists that transcends temporal and linguistic boundaries. The Cambridge Guide to Homer examines the influence and meaning of Homeric poetry from its earliest form as ancient Greek song to its current status in world literature, presenting the information in a synthetic manner that allows the reader to gain an understanding of the different strands of Homeric studies. The volume is structured around three main themes: Homeric Song and Text; the Homeric World, and Homer in the World. Each section starts with a series of 'macropedia' essays arranged thematically that are accompanied by shorter complementary 'micropedia' articles. The Cambridge Guide to Homer thus traces the many routes taken by Homeric epic in the ancient world and its continuing relevance in different periods and cultures.

Oedipus the King and Antigone

Oedipus the King and Antigone PDF Author: Sophocles
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons
ISBN: 1118818644
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 107

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Book Description
Translated and edited by Peter D. Arnott, this classic and highly popular edition contains two essential plays in the development of Greek tragedy-Oedipus the King and Antigone-for performance and study. The editor's introduction contains a brief biography of the playwright and a description of Greek theater. Also included are a list of principal dates in the life of Sophocles and a bibliography.

Playing Hesiod

Playing Hesiod PDF Author: Helen Van Noorden
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 052176081X
Category : Literary Collections
Languages : en
Pages : 361

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Book Description
This book analyzes important ancient responses to Hesiod's five-part narrative of human history as keys to their broader revisions of 'Hesiod'.

Homer on the Gods and Human Virtue

Homer on the Gods and Human Virtue PDF Author: Peter J. Ahrensdorf
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 1316165094
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 289

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Book Description
This book seeks to restore Homer to his rightful place among the principal figures in the history of political and moral philosophy. Through this fresh and provocative analysis of the Iliad and the Odyssey, Peter J. Ahrensdorf examines Homer's understanding of the best life, the nature of the divine, and the nature of human excellence. According to Ahrensdorf, Homer teaches that human greatness eclipses that of the gods, that the contemplative and compassionate singer ultimately surpasses the heroic warrior in grandeur, and that it is the courageously questioning Achilles, not the loyal Hector or even the wily Odysseus, who comes closest to the humane wisdom of Homer himself. Thanks to Homer, two of the distinctive features of Greek civilization are its extraordinary celebration of human excellence, as can be seen in Greek athletics, sculpture, and nudity, and its singular questioning of the divine, as can be seen in Greek philosophy.

The Family in Greek History

The Family in Greek History PDF Author: Cynthia B. Patterson
Publisher: Harvard University Press
ISBN: 0674041925
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 296

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Book Description
The family, Cynthia Patterson demonstrates, played a key role in the political changes that mark the history of ancient Greece. From the archaic society portrayed in Homer and Hesiod to the Hellenistic age, the private world of the family and household was integral with and essential to the civic realm. Early Greek society was rooted not in clans but in individual households, and a man's or woman's place in the larger community was determined by relationships within those households. The development of the city-state did not result in loss of the family's power and authority, Patterson argues; rather, the protection of household relationships was an important element of early public law. The interaction of civic and family concerns in classical Athens is neatly articulated by the examples of marriage and adultery laws. In law courts and in theater performances, violation of marital relationships was presented as a public danger, the adulterer as a sexual thief. This is an understanding that fits the Athenian concept of the city as the highest form of family. The suppression of the cities with the ascendancy of Alexander's empire led to a new resolution of the relationship between public and private authority: the concept of a community of households, which is clearly exemplified in Menander's plays. Undercutting common interpretations of Greek experience as evolving from clan to patriarchal state, Patterson's insightful analysis sheds new light on the role of men and women in Greek culture.