/lit/ - Literature

>>20819997
>robert FAGLES

>>20820001
I read Martin Hammond translation

>>20819997
Holy shid retard it was written like 2500 years ago refering to events 500 years before that. They were literally still in the iron age and you're complaining about too much boring family and tradition. Be thankful you can lay eyes on the first surviving example of sublime literary beauty- oh wait. You read it in translation. I bet you don't even know it's a fucking poem.

>>20820083
>t. monolingual

>>20819997
For me, it's the Peter Green translation.

I get what you mean. I found it intrusive at the start, then I became accustomed and sometimes interested by the personal histories. It wouldn't be the same without them - understand that the Iliad is only detailing the final days of a long and arduous war. All of the men involved have known each other for a long time, and the constant tangential reminders of that are necessary to underscoring the tragedy of war as well as the honour and costs involved.
In saying this I'm reminded of a section of the text where it's made clear that, in war, a man either achieves glory through killing others or provides glory to whoever kills him.
Fuck Achilles.

>>20819997
>complains about one of the most important books ever written that had huge influence on the Western world

>>20819997
>unnecessary tangents into people’s family histories.
That's what makes it grounded which makes it interesting.

>>20819997
you're "anayzing" it like you would a contemporary novel, which means you're unwilling or unable to change your perspective and you look at everything from the same vantage point of (your) contemporary life which means you're, quite unfortunately, a midwit

>>20820083
>it’s old therefore must be flawless
>>20820133
Yeah Achilleus was a piece of shit. His only redeeming quality is the love he held for his friend Patroklos. I agree it adds to the tragedy of war sometimes but it was way overdone.
>>20820206
Beauty is objective. Who cares if it’s old and influential? Look at what’s “influential” in our culture today. Pop music, garbage rap, marvel films. Influence, antiquity, historical importance etc. are irrelevant.
>>20820296
The Iliad didn’t drop out of heaven. It was composed by a man like you and I, who shat and ate and pissed and fucked and lived a human life. He made mistakes in his composition, which made the story boring at times. Nobody is perfect.

>>20820472
it's okay anon, most people get filtered every now and then