The Odyssey by Homer

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kcondo
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Re: The Odyssey by Homer

Post by kcondo »

I have to admit I am an Odyssey geek I have read it over and over again because there are so many layers. I truly believe that it needs to be on anyone's list of classics.
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Kotabear18
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Post by Kotabear18 »

The Odyssey while at sometimes confusing to me great to read. It is full of adventure and heroism and a man trying to make it back to his family after not seeing them for 10 years while being held captive. This is a great book based on mythology and Ancient Greece I would strongly recommend this book.
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Post by Wreade1872 »

I read the Alexander Pope translation recently, it was pretty bad. Can't speak to the other versions doubt i'll ever bother checking if they're any better.
Most of the other poetry epics i've read are better than this, Faierie Queene, Orlando Furioso, Song of Roland, Sigurd the Volsung and the Fall of the Niblungs, Idylls of the King etc.
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Post by Acwoolet »

The Odyssey is definitely a must read! I have to admit though, I first got interested in it when I read the Wishbone version of the story. I've been hooked ever since.
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Rattusv
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Post by Rattusv »

Great read. By far one of the best oral traditions put to print. I grew up believing I had Greek heritage so I dove into classical Greek literature and history only to be told decades later that Grandpa Shukas was not our biological grandpa. Oh well. Greek heritage or not I AM STILL GREEK AT HEART! Read the Iliad then the Odyssey even though they can be read as stand alone stories.
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Post by Storygamer88 »

I always liked the play on words Odysseus used on the Cyclops, saying his name was "Nobody". Then when injured, Cyclops says "Nobody hurt me", so no one comes to his aid. Really clever, especially for the time period it was told in.

I dont like most aspects of the Odyssey or Illiad otherwise - so much death and deus ex machina from gods.
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Post by jemgirl202 »

I love reading The Iliad and the Odyssey. I recommend reading The Trojan Way by Barry Strauss. He has been on documentaries such as Engineering an Empire. It is quite an exciting non fiction read to accompany these stories.
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Post by RegularGuy3 »

It's a great story that gets borrowed from to this day. Read the original if you haven't.
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erjonas
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Post by erjonas »

This is one of the books that I highly recommend that people listen to, rather than read. It is not the most exciting story. However, it is one of the oldest books in the Western literary tradition. I'd argue that people should at least read or listen to it once in their life if they are interested in literature from a historical perspective. But as a story to read for pleasure...I'm not sure I'd recommend it in that regard.
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Post by uyky »

I loved The Odyssey when I was in high school. For some reason, I was never able to read The Illiad. I knew both stories from before so I never bothered forcing myself through it.
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Post by DesireeRose »

I had to read the Odyssey for school, but I wish I could have just read it on my own. I think I would have enjoyed it more. School sucks the fun out of learning 😩
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Post by GabbiV »

erjonas wrote: 22 Sep 2017, 03:21 This is one of the books that I highly recommend that people listen to, rather than read. It is not the most exciting story. However, it is one of the oldest books in the Western literary tradition. I'd argue that people should at least read or listen to it once in their life if they are interested in literature from a historical perspective. But as a story to read for pleasure...I'm not sure I'd recommend it in that regard.
I definitely want to listen to The Odyssey, I think it would be a wonderful experience, but I'd love for it to be a live reading for the authenticity
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Post by Elizabeth Pass »

I read this in school and then again when I was older. It was necessary in school and a good idea to introduce young readers to this but I got a lot more out of it when I was older. I highly recommend people read this at different times in their lives.
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Post by Tbunde5 »

I always have to remind myself that Homer was considered the leading historian of his day. What to us seem fanciful tales were, to the Greeks, a dressed up form of history. Maybe modern historians could take a lesson! It would be so much more fun to learn!
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Mallory Porshnev
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Post by Mallory Porshnev »

I have read this numerous times, usually for school. The older I get, the more I appreciate it, but I still don't think it's an amazing story. I can see how being told as an oral tale it would have a lot more impact.
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