The Iliad

By Homer

Book Overview

The Iliad is one of the oldest works of Western literature, dating back to classical antiquity. Homer's epic poem belongs in a collection called the Epic Cycle, which includes the Odyssey. It was originally written in ancient Greek and utilized a dactylic hexameter rhyme scheme. Although this rhyme scheme sounds beautiful in its native language, in modern English it can sound awkward and, as Eric McMillan humorously describes it, resembles "pumpkins rolling on a barn floor." William Cullen Bryant avoided this problem by converting his translation into blank verse.This epic poem begins with the Achaean army sacking the city of Chryse and capturing two maidens as prizes of war. One of the maidens, Chryseis, is given to Agamemnon, the leader of the Achaeans, and the other maiden, Briseis, was given to the army's best warrior, Achilles. Chryseis' father, the city's priest, prays to the god Apollo and asks for a plague on the Achaean army. To stop this plague, Agamemnon returns Chryseis to her father, but then orders Achilles to give him Briseis as compensation. Achilles refuses.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: B0GR1ZL2J7
• ISBN13: 9791043137617
• Release Date: March 2026
• Publisher: Les Prairies Numeriques
• Length: 674 Pages
• Weight: 1.96 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.5" x 6.0" x 9.0"

Customer Reviews

Richmond Lattimore's Translations are the Best on Offer.

The Iliad of Homer is a classic of Western poetry, and Richmond Lattimore's translations of the Homeric work are impeccable. The "Introduction to the Iliad" included by Lattimore adds a LOT of incredibly insightful context to the work. It provides a framework for other would-be scholars to better understand the history behind the legends and the history of Homer himself, although a general audience could skip past the Introduction and dive right into the story of Achilles and the Achaeans, I'd still highly recommend reading the Introduction. The Iliad itself is a story of Achilles during the Battle of Troy, and begins with Achilles leaving the battle in a fit of rage. What follows is a wonderful back-and-forth where the Acheans still lose, but each hero has a chance to shine before Achilles is brought back to the fighting to save his brothers-in-arms. The Iliad does not cover the whole of the Trojan conflict, only a small part, ending with the death of the Trojan Hektor. The Epic Cycle (featuring multiple authors and multiple different works) follows the chronology of the Trojan War, and the Aeneid by Virgil is a sort of "sequel" that ties in later Roman mythos. The Odyssey is an obvious must-read as well (so much so that it is required reading in some U.S. schools) if you enjoyed the Iliad, and I cannot recommend enough that you should try and find a translation by Richmond Lattimore, as he is almost unanimously considered to have the best translations of Homer's work.

The ground is dark with blood.

With many books, translations are negligible, with two obvious exceptions: one is the Bible, and surprisingly, the other is The Iliad. Each translation can give a different insight and feel to the story. Everyone will have a favorite. I have several. There are partial translations that are worth reading, but as with any abridgment or incomplete Iliad, you will never know what is missing. Our story takes place in the ninth year of the ongoing war. We get some introduction to the first nine years, but they are just a background to this tale of pride, sorrow, and revenge. The story will also end abruptly before the end of the war. We have a wide conflict between the Trojans and Achaeans over a matter of pride; the gods get to take sides and many times direct spears and shields. Although the more focused conflict is the power struggle between two different types of power. That of Achilles, son of Peleus and the greatest individual warrior, and that of Agamemnon, lord of men, whose power comes from his position. We are treated to a blow-by-blow inside story as to what each is thinking and an unvarnished description of the perils of war and the search for Arête (to be more like Aries, God of War). Next, before reading the Odyssey, you will want to bridge the gap with “The War at Troy: What Homer Didn't Tell” by Quintus of Smyrna.

The best Iliad for the general reader

The Iliad is one of the greatest treasures of Western Civilization-and not just because a teacher told you it was. On the surface, it offers raw emotions, visceral action sequences and colorful characters you admire and hate, often at the same time. But it is much, much deeper than that. The scene where Hector bids his young wife good-bye and holds up his infant son to the gods, praying that the boy will one day be a better man than ever he himself was, has never been equaled as a statement of what it means to be a man, husband or father. The debates about honor and duty are still the same we face every day. The humanity, insight and profound philosophy are remarkable-especially for a work now 3,000 years old. The problem? How do you convey all that power? How do you do so in a way that captures the feel of original? Iliad translations have started to come fast and furious, as every ten years or so someone tries to tackle the monumental task of bringing the poem to modern readers. The process isn't helped by the fact that the text was already 300 years old to the classical Greeks like Aristotle, Sophocles and Euripides-making it as vaguely old-fashioned as Shakespeare is to us. Should it sound antiquated to us, too? If you really want a line by line translation, one that has some kind of meter that approaches the Greek original, the obvious choice is Lattimore's classic translation. It has the side benefit now of being somewhat dated in its English usage too. That said, for just a good ol' read of the Iliad, Lattimore isn't even my third choice. For all its accuracy, I've always felt I was reading a textbook, written by a classics scholar rather than an honest-to-goodness writer. Lombardo, on the other hand, is my preferred translation for sitting back and reading what is still a rip-roaring adventure (with enough deep thoughts to give it extra weight). Lombardo confesses there really is no way to adequately convey the "musicality" of the original, and goes on to re-cast it in freer poetry, based on natural speech. He's built up his translation thru multiple performances of the poems, with drum accompaniment, in public places, and his Iliad is honed to a razor sharp edge. The musty old poem students rolled their eyes at becomes a terrifying, beautiful beast that grabs you by the throat and doesn't let go. It is so immediate, trilling and relevant. Lombardo's translation is an Iliad you will feel, not just respect. Pick up the Lombardo translation and you will understand immediately why this work is still called the cornerstone of Western culture.