Translation by George Chapman, with introductions by Jan Parker. Scenes from Homer, such as Hector bidding farewell to his wife and son, Odysseus tied to the mast listening to the Sirens, Penelope at the loom, and Achilles dragging Hector's body around the walls of Troy, have been re-presented in every generation. The questions about mortality and identity raised by Homer's heroes, the bonds of love, respect, and brotherhood that drive them, have occupied audiences for three millennia. Chapman's "Iliad" and "Odyssey" are great English epic poems, but they are also the liveliest and most readable translations of Homer. Chapman's freshness brings the everyday world of nature and the craftsman to life as vividly as the battlefield and Olympus. His poetry moves from the excitement of the Renaissance for the discovery of classical culture as something both vital and distant, and is enriched by the perspectives of humanistic thought.

• Pages: 976
• Dimensions: 12.9x12.9cm