The Odyssey: The Fitzgerald Translation

I read this translation for a college class--and it was surprisingly entertaining. Fitzgerald makes peculiar, often hilarious choices for this translation. A particular favorite:

You now, for instance, with your fine physique--
a god's, indeed--you have an empty noddle.

Case closed. Hilarious translation. Some bits and phrases, though, seem too modern-language-colloquial, and it threw me off a bit in some parts, especially when it came down to analysis. However, this is a very good translation for the typical ok-well-I'm-trying-to-read-the-classics reader.

homer! what flow-gush resides in you! what scintillata and mercury! what cinder and tumult! he to me is our globe's greatest author not because he has created the greatest work nor because his copious flux of ideas fill shelves of bookcases but because he completely glostounded his contemporaries and remained the most formidable author perhaps for 24 centuries and still is newly translated with each generation every now and again gracing the bestseller lists! who among us in the year 4400 will still capture audiences consistently? who among us will be translated more than a thousand times? who among us can step out of time so effortlessly the all cultures can identify with our predicament. perhaps only a handful of works, le recherche, paradise lost, faust and ulysses surpass this seminal work yet who knows if those works' arch-supremican complexica will prove too burdensome for readers two millenia hence.
homer strikes that importance balance between trivium and import, rather than glostound as joyce has with his unmasking of enigmas that few can understand he instead macro-intrigues us by focusing on a struggle more universal in its scope than any other: the struggle to return home and establish one's self in the safe womb of stability! and the last third of that great work devotes itself exclusively to that moment when odysseus sets foot on ithaca and confronts the suitors in the disguise of a beggar. how we cannot help but root for this titano-hero! how we adore watching him outwit the slaves to vice and concupiscence! how symphio-marvalo is his cleansing of his home from serpèntum! we all strive to secure for ourselves a safe corner on this chattering, infinitely morphing and unstable world yet odysseus' struggle is layered with so much more storms of nails than the common man, even contending with the curse of the sea-god poseidon!

author of Lorelei Pursued and Wrestles with God

"The Odyssey", as with other Greek poetry, was poetry intended to be recited orally as opposed to being read. Fitzgerald's backgroung in poetry brings out the lyrical passion of the Odyssey so prized by the Greeks as no other translation has done.

The sequel to "The Iliad", it represents the last phase of what is known as Greece's Heroic Age in which human events are governed by gods, demi-gods, and heroes. The mortal heroes are endowed with godlike gifts and are mostly tragic. They interact with emissaries from the gods who aid them to their destinies and forewarn them of the fates. Tales such as Jason and the Argonauts, the labors of Hercules, Perseus, Thesseus, etc., are also of that period. The uncertainties in Fate, glory, and mortality are always the dominant themes in these tales. The setting of "The Odyssey" is c. 1200 B.C. at the close of the Bronze Age. The Greeks are actually Myceneans, a Greek-speaking group that dominated Greece prior to the Doric invasions several centuries later. The story poetically recites a time of Myceanean geopolitical expansion across the Mediterranean and its coasts and encounters with hitherto unknown civilizations after the fall of legendary Troy.

"The Odyssey" starts many years after the Trojan war where, after many ordeals, Odysseus is reciting his travels to Princess Nausica: the young heiress of a kingdom upon which Odysseus washed ashore after being shipwrecked. He recites his departure from Troy after its sacking and how, having angered Poseidon, the god of the sea, he has been condemned to wander across the Mediterranean away from his wife and son, Penelope and Telemachus. Odysseus goes on to recite his encounters with various peoples and mythical beasts during his travels such as the lotus eaters, the sirens, the cyclopse, Scylla and Charibdis, etc. Odysseus is also held captive by powerful demi-godesses and witches such as Calypso and Circe. In Odysseus' absence, Penelope is constantly courted by unwelcome suitors who are wasting her estate. Now a young man and fed up with the suitors, Telemachus travels to mainland Greece to inquire about his father. Odysseus eventually returns to his home of Ithaca to reunite with his family and to dispose of the suitors.

There have been many disputes as to whether "The Odyssey" was really written by Homer and there's substantial evidence that it was not. Many scholars believe that a good portion of the Odyssey was written by a woman: probably a princess named Nausica whose court was in the Greek colony of Syracuse in Sicily and who cleverly inserted herself into the story. There's probably truth to that conclusion as the book is, first of all, a novel as opposed to a epic poetic recital such as "The Iliad" in which there is really no 1st person narrative. The main characters are also primarily women. The narrative seems to have a keen understanding of the female gender in terms of expectations, emotions, and behavior whereas the men are mostly faceless caricatures. This is completely inapposite to Homer's "Iliad" where the development of the male characters is rich and complex in contrast to those of women who are stereotypical representations without much depth (e.g. the women weep, moan, and are continuously reminded that their place is either in the bed or at the loom.) If one follows "The Odyssey" carefully, they will notice a distinct change in narrative style every time scenes are illustrated with nature or in various scenes involving the Gods which are very similar to the narrative style of "The Iliad." Another indication that Homer was not the main writer is that, unlike "The Iliad", the writer has no clue as to ships, navigation, or wind patterns.

Regardless of its true authorship, "The Odyssey" has been hailed as a literary jewel for the past 2900 years and there's a reason for it: it's a timeless look into the human condition as recited by a poet of immense talent. Although the characters may have lived over 3000 years ago, the epic drama has much relevance for humanity today. Fitzgerald provides a good translation that isn't weighed down as earlier ones with your "thys", "thees", "shalts", "doths", etc. Although some his word choices can be awkward such as 'wily-nily' and such, his translation is more fluid than those of many other writers and allows the reader to appreciate the meter much more without it being weighed down or diluted with either archaic or overly modern English. So enjoy this masterpiece of literature in one of the best translations available to date: your money will be well spent.

This is a magical book. I read it to my son and he asked me to read it to him over and over. He loved the part about about Polyphemus the Cyclops. It is a book full of stories rich with the ages. If you look into the Heavens on a starry night many of the constellations are from this dynamic book written in the pre-Christian era filled with all the Greek Gods running amok with the emotions and fates of man. This too is a favorite book of mine.

I just recieved this book yesturday and I must say that it is a wonderful epic poem. Im taking a Classical Humanities Course in college and im reading The Iliad which is also another wonderful epic poem by Homer. The Copy of The Iliad that i have is also translated by Robert Fitzgerald, and its truely amazing and wonderful. Since i'm almost done with The Iliad I figured that i should know the 2nd part which is The Odyssey. So last night I read the first book in the odyssey and i absolutely fell in love with it just like i did with The Iliad. As I was telling a friend of mine, there is a reason for these wonderful pieces of literature to still be around today. These two epic poems (The Iliad & The Odyssey) are timeless and will never fade. Anyways back to my review of The Odyssey. This is a wonderful epic poem, and it is a wonderful conclusion to The Iliad. Robert Fitzgerald is a master of his craft and his translation is simplely wonderful. The words flow nicely together and the scenes, setting, and conversations between the Gods & Goddesses makes it seem like your there with them. The Imagrey used is wonderful and the poem is such a delight to read. If anyone is interested in Greek Mythology or a wonderful timeless epic poem than you should read The odyssey. If you want to know the full story of how everything got started than you should also read The Iliad. Also if you just want something nice to read than you should read The Odyssey. This is a wonderful epic poem and there's a reason why it is still around today, the reason is that it's a wonderful piece of work along with The Iliad.