The Illiad/Odyssey and Dante's Inferno.

[MrEcko]

I tried reading all of these books one time. I reached a problem with the fact of how heavy they are. I couldn't get very far because the writing was just so thick that the books seemed to plod along at a very slow pace and I had a bit of trouble understanding what was going on half the time.

My question is: Does anybody know of a more simplified version of these that would be easier to understand?

[Mike L]

For the Iliad and the Odyssey, I would strongly recommend the prose translations by E.V. Rieu, if you can get hold of them. They were originally published by Penguin in the 1950s.

They are very lightly written, using relatively modern language - but without detracting from the imagery of the more classical translations. I'm sure you'll enjoy reading them.

Prof. Rieu died around 1972, so there's no question of these works being in the public domain.

Can't help you with Dante, unfortunately.

[Mike L]

MrEcko,

Did you see my reply to your question? I was wondering if you had a chance to look at the version I recommended.

I was reminded of it by another post today, on a similar topic: https://www.mobileread.com/forums/sho...d.php?t=108931

[Xanthe]

I just cannot get into the Iliad. I always get bogged down at the listing of the black ships. I think the Rieu translation of the Odyssey was the one that I read; that was a very readable version of it.

[SensualPoet]

For Dante, I stand by Dorothy L Sayers edition ... not just the translated prose, but for the notes along the way.

[Mike L]

With the Iliad, the trick is not to try to remember all the minor players: the foot soldiers, most of whom get bumped off in the battle scenes. I'm thinking of the likes of Oïleus, Polybus, Acamas, Phaestus, Megus, Euryplyus, and a hundred others. You'll go crazy trying to sort them all out.

Instead, focus on the key characters: Agamemnon, Achilles, Diomedes, Paris and the like.

And I agree that the Odyssey is more readable, and easier to follow. But they're both great storeis.

[GERGE]

I think Homes is best enjoyed as an audiobook. It was meant to be listened anyway.

[DixieGal]

It is OK to skip past the lists and roll calls that come up again and again. It is a 10 year war, but only a few interesting things happen. The roll calls of warriors were probably meant to flatter the listeners who imagined themselves descended from heroes.

So skip along until you get past the many mind-numbing lists. You will not miss much. Then take a break and read something light and modern before going on to the Odessy. It is a much more interesting book... With no boring lists to make you want tot gouge your eyes out!

[BenG]

Originally Posted by DixieGal

It is OK to skip past the lists and roll calls that come up again and again. It is a 10 year war, but only a few interesting things happen. The roll calls of warriors were probably meant to flatter the listeners who imagined themselves descended from heroes.

So skip along until you get past the many mind-numbing lists. You will not miss much. Then take a break and read something light and modern before going on to the Odessy. It is a much more interesting book... With no boring lists to make you want tot gouge your eyes out!

Yeah, the lists are like the "begats" in the Bible. You just skim right over them.

[nyrath]

Originally Posted by SensualPoet

For Dante, I stand by Dorothy L Sayers edition ... not just the translated prose, but for the notes along the way.

I also like the John Ciardi translation and notes.

Also fun is the science fiction novel based on Dante: INFERNO by Larry Niven and Jerry Pournelle

[rkomar]

Originally Posted by nyrath

I also like the John Ciardi translation and notes.

Seconded!

[rkomar]

Originally Posted by GERGE

I think Homes is best enjoyed as an audiobook. It was meant to be listened anyway.

I had read that the reason Homer's works are so repetitive in their use of phrases is that it makes them much easier to memorize that way. They were originally passed down verbally, so versions that could be remembered would be the only ones to survive. The repetition did make it fairly tedious for me to read. So Mike L for the E.V. Rieu tip.

[MrEcko]

Thank you for the help everyone.

[Xanthe]

I'll have to give the Iliad another try, then. At the age I tried to read it, I was of the mindset that "if it was printed in the book, then it must be read in sequence" - lol. I realize now that I'm way beyond that and will, on occasion, skip ahead in my reading if the reading starts to bog down (e.g. overly indulgent landscape descriptions, and most sex scenes in romance novels that go on for more than couple pages - been there, done that, got the T-shirt ).

[HarryT]

Originally Posted by DixieGal

It is OK to skip past the lists and roll calls that come up again and again. It is a 10 year war, but only a few interesting things happen. The roll calls of warriors were probably meant to flatter the listeners who imagined themselves descended from heroes.

It's a 10 year war, but the Iliad only describes a few days of it. It both starts and finishes in mid story, so to speak. There were other epics, now mostly lost, which describe the other events of the war. We only know of them via third-hand descriptions.

The Odyssey is a lot more readable.