im listening to the musical epic which is a retelling of the odyssey and i really want to read it but there are so many editions and i was wondering if there’s a newer more modern translation of it thats more digestible i guess?
if you have read any of them, what did you think about it and was it a fun read?
and how different are retellings from each each orher?
by fckdevii
7 Comments
Only read one version as a teenager but cannot remember the exact edition or translator. It was direct translation from the poem and my memory of it was it being a fucking slog. Might be easier to read again now.
If I were to read again I would likely go for a version that just tells the story unless you really enjoy the poetry style telling of the story. Would advise just looking around online for sample chapters and pick one you like the look off.
I share the belief that it’s impossible to convey the original poetry in another language without a significant loss of meaning
Like someone else said, go for the story without anything else added to it.
Also depends a lot on what you are aiming to get out of the text: An academic study? A translation study? An in depth analysis? A simple evening reading?
The older, the better. Expand your vocabulary. Have self-discipline. Get smarter.
my ap latin class translated it together and tbh i really enjoyed it 😂😂😂 that’s actually the only time i read it tho
I read the Penguin edition translated by Robert Fagles. I thought it was a pretty easy read. There are tons of notes to it at the back – mostly about the gods & rituals, I believe, but you could skip those if you don’t want to be flipping back & forth. There’s also a translation by Emily Wilson from a few years ago that got a lot of praise, but I haven’t read it yet.
Emily Wilson. Her translation is absolutely beautiful
There are three main modern translations of the Odyssey.
1. Lattimore. This translation aims to give you a **relatively raw look** at Homer’s writing. Each line is pretty equivalent to the corresponding line in the Greek version. It foreignises the text, which means it sees the foreign feeling of the original text as a good thing which should be conveyed to the reader rather than counteracted by domestication. Having said that, Lattimore still put tonnes of effort into recreating the poetic effects Homer used, like using lots of “sss” sounds when Homer uses lots of “sss” sounds. This is my personal favourite translation because I like foreignisation.
2. Fitzgerald. This translation aims to **recreate the beauty** of Homer’s poetry using the English language. It is not as directly faithful to the Odyssey as Lattimore’s translation and it does not revel in conveying the foreignness of Homer’s poetry. Instead, it wants to let you feel the same kind of feelings of beauty that an ancient Greek would have had when listening to the poem in their own time. I want to emphasise that it is still very faithful to the original text.
3. Fagles. This is **something of a midpoint** between the other two. Personally, I think Fagles’ poetry is actually better than Fitzgerald’s even though Fitzgerald was trying to lean into the poetry, but that’s just my taste. Fagles’ translation is known for being easy to digest.
You wanted modern, easy-to-digest translations, so I recommend one of the above three (probably Fagles, maybe Fitzgerald, and probably not Lattimore). Just for reference, however, there are two main old translations of the Odyssey:
1. George Chapman. He translated the Odyssey into 17th century English poetry. It’s genuinely pretty good, both on a translation and especially poetic level, but it’s definitely not in favour academically when compared to the other three I’ve mentioned.
2. Alexander Pope. His translation is a stunningly beautiful example of 18th century English poetry. It’s genuinely up there with the best examples of poetry in the English language. It’s also not super faithful. **Great poetry, but mediocre translation**.