Story of the Odyssey , livre ebook

The Floating Press - John Church Alfred

Découvre YouScribe en t'inscrivant gratuitement

Je m'inscris

Obtenez un accès à la bibliothèque pour le consulter en ligne
En savoir plus

92 pages

English

Vous pourrez modifier la taille du texte de cet ouvrage

Obtenez un accès à la bibliothèque pour le consulter en ligne
En savoir plus

A propos
Informations
Extrait

Description

Homer's epic poem The Odyssey is one of the greatest and most influential literary works ever produced. However, its complex language and dense web of allusions and metaphors can be difficult for some readers to untangle. In The Story of the Odyssey, author Alfred John Church presents a more straightforward rendering of the events related in Homer's version. It's a great introduction to the poem for younger readers or those just starting to get acquainted with ancient Greek literature.

Informations

Publié par	The Floating Press
Date de parution	01 mai 2015
Nombre de lectures	0
EAN13	9781776587995
Langue	English

Informations légales : prix de location à la page 0,0134€. Cette information est donnée uniquement à titre indicatif conformément à la législation en vigueur.

Extrait

THE STORY OF THE ODYSSEY
* * *
ALFRED JOHN CHURCH

*
The Story of the Odyssey First published in 1892 Epub ISBN 978-1-77658-799-5 Also available: PDF ISBN 978-1-77658-800-8 © 2014 The Floating Press and its licensors. All rights reserved. While every effort has been used to ensure the accuracy and reliability of the information contained in The Floating Press edition of this book, The Floating Press does not assume liability or responsibility for any errors or omissions in this book. The Floating Press does not accept responsibility for loss suffered as a result of reliance upon the accuracy or currency of information contained in this book. Do not use while operating a motor vehicle or heavy equipment. Many suitcases look alike. Visit www.thefloatingpress.com
Contents
*
Introduction Chapter I - The Counsel ofAthene Chapter II - The Assembly Chapter III - Nestor Chapter IV - In Sparta Chapter V - Menelaus's Tale Chapter VI - Ulysses on His Raft Chapter VII - Nausicaa Chapter VIII - Alcinous Chapter IX - The Phaeacians Chapter X - The Cyclops(The Tale of Ulysses) Chapter XI - Æolus; The Laestrygons; Circe (The Tale of Ulysses) Chapter XII - The Dwellings of the Dead(The Tale of Ulysses) Chapter XIII - The Sirens; Scylla; The Oxen of the Sun(The Tale of Ulysses) Chapter XIV - Ithaca Chapter XV - Eumaeus, the Swineherd Chapter XVI - The Return of Telemachus Chapter XVII - Ulysses and Telemachus Chapter XVIII - Ulysses in His Home Chapter XIX - Ulysses in His Home (Continued) Chapter XX - Ulysses is Discovered by His Nurse Chapter XXI - The Trial of the Bow Chapter XXII - The Slaying of the Suitors Chapter XXIII - The End of the Wandering Chapter XXIV - The Triumph of Ulysses Pronunciation of Proper Names Endnotes
Introduction
*
Three thousand years ago the world was still young. The westerncontinent was a huge wilderness, and the greater part of Europewas inhabited by savage and wandering tribes. Only a few nationsat the eastern end of the Mediterranean and in the neighbouringparts of Asia had learned to dwell in cities, to use a writtenlanguage, to make laws for themselves, and to live in a moreorderly fashion. Of these nations the most brilliant was that ofthe Greeks, who were destined in war, in learning, in government,and in the arts, to play a great part in the world, and to be thereal founders of our modern civilization. While they were still arude people, they had noble ideals of beauty and bravery, of dutyand justice. Even before they had a written language, theirsingers had made songs about their heroes and their great deeds;and later these songs, which fathers had taught to children, andthese children to their children, were brought together into twolong and wonderful poems, which have ever since been the delightof the world, the Iliad and the Odyssey .
The Iliad is the story of the siege of Ilium, or Troy, onthe western coast of Asia Minor. Paris, son of the king of Troy,had enticed Helen, the most beautiful of Grecian women, and thewife of a Grecian king, to leave her husband's home with him; andthe kings and princes of the Greeks had gathered an army and afleet and sailed across the Aegean Sea to rescue her. For tenyears they strove to capture the city. According to the fine oldlegends, the gods themselves took a part in the war, some sidingwith the Greeks, and some with the Trojans. It was finally throughUlysses, a famous Greek warrior, brave and fierce as well as wiseand crafty, that the Greeks captured the city.
The second poem, the Odyssey , tells what befell Ulysses, orOdysseus, as the Greeks called him, on his homeward way. Sailingfrom Troy with his little fleet of ships, which were so small thatthey used oars as well as sails, he was destined to wander for tenyears longer before he could return to his rocky island of Ithaca,on the west shore of Greece, and to his faithful wife, Penelope.
He had marvellous adventures, for the gods who had opposed theGreeks at Troy had plotted to bring him ill-fortune. Just as hisships were safely rounding the southern cape of Greece, a fiercestorm took them out of their course, and bore them to many strangelands—lands of giants, man-eating monsters, and wondrousenchantments of which you will delight to read. Through countlessperils the resolute wanderer forced his way, losing ship aftership from his little fleet, and companion after companion from hisown band, until he reached home friendless and alone, and foundhis palace, his property, and his family all in the power of aband of greedy princes. These he overcame by his cunning and hisstrength, and his long trials were ended.
As you read these ancient tales, you must forget what knowledgeyou have of the world, and think of it as the Greeks did. It wasonly a little part of the world that they knew at all,—theeastern end of the Mediterranean,—but even that seemed to them agreat and marvellous region. Beyond its borders were strange andmysterious lands, in which wonders of all kinds were found, andround all ran the great world-river, the encircling stream ofOcean.
In the mountains of Olympus, to the northward, lived the gods.There was Zeus, greatest of all, the god of thunder and the wideheavens; Hera, his wife; Apollo, the archer god; Athene, the wiseand clever goddess; Poseidon, who ruled the sea; Aphrodite, thegoddess of love; Hephaestus, the cunning workman; Ares, the god ofwar; Hermes, the swift messenger; and others still, whom you willlearn to know as you read. All these were worshipped by men withprayer and sacrifice; and, as in the early legends of many races,the gods often took the shape of men and women; they had theirfavourites and those whom they hated; and they ruled the fate ofmortals as they chose.
If you let yourselves be beguiled into this old, simple way ofregarding earth and heaven, you will not only love these ancienttales yourself, but you will see why, for century after century,they have been the longest loved and the best loved of all tales—beloved by old and young, by men and women and children. For theyare hero-tales,—tales of war and adventure, tales of bravery andnobility, tales of the heroes that mankind, almost since thebeginning of time, have looked to as ideals of wisdom and strengthand beauty.
Chapter I - The Counsel [1] ofAthene [2]
*
When the great city of Troy had been taken, all the chiefs who hadfought against it set sail for their homes. But there was wrath inheaven against them, so that they did not find a safe and happyreturn. For one was shipwrecked, and another was shamefully slainby his false wife in his palace, and others found all things athome troubled and changed, and were driven to seek new dwellingselsewhere; and some were driven far and wide about the worldbefore they saw their native land again. Of all, the wise Ulysses [3] was he that wandered farthest and sufferedmost, for when ten years had well-nigh passed, he was still faraway from Ithaca [4] , his kingdom.
The gods were gathered in council in the hall of Olympus [5] , all but Poseidon, [6] the god of thesea, for he had gone to feast with the Ethiopians. Now Poseidon was hewho most hated Ulysses, and kept him from his home.
Then spake Athene among the immortal gods: "My heart is rent forUlysses. Sore affliction doth he suffer in an island of the sea,where the daughter of Atlas keepeth him, seeking to make himforget his native land. And he yearns to see even the smoke risingup from the land of his birth, and is fain [7] to die. And thou regardest it not at all. Did he notoffer thee many sacrifices in the land of Troy? Wherefore hastthou such wrath against him?" To her Zeus, the father of the gods,made reply: "What is this that thou sayest, my daughter? It isPoseidon that hath great wrath against Ulysses, because he blindedhis son Polyphemus [8] the Cyclops. [9] But come, let us take counsel together thathe may return to his home, for Poseidon will not be able to contendagainst us all."
Then said Athene: "If this be thy will, then let us speed Hermes [10] the messenger to the island of Calypso [11] , and let him declare to the goddess ourpurpose that Ulysses shall return to his home. And I will go toIthaca, and stir up the spirit of his son Telemachus [12] , that first he speak out his mind to the suitorsof his mother who waste his substance, [13] and next that he go to Sparta and to Pylos [14] , seeking tidings of his father. So shall the youth wingood report among men."
So she went to Ithaca, and there she took upon her the form ofMentes [15] , who was chief of the Taphians. [16]
Now there were gathered in the house of Ulysses many princes fromthe islands, suitors of the Queen Penelope [17] , for they said that Ulysses was dead, and that she shouldchoose another husband. These were gathered together, and weresitting playing draughts [18] andfeasting. And Telemachus sat among them, vexed at heart, for theywasted his substance; neither was he master in his house. But whenhe saw the guest at the door, he rose from his place, and welcomedhim, and made him sit down, and commanded that they should givehim food and wine. And when he had ended his meal, Telemachusasked him his business.
Thereupon the false Mentes said: "My name is Mentes, and I am Kingof the Taphians, and I am sailing to Cyprus for copper, takingiron in exchange. Now I have been long time the friend of thishouse, of thy father and thy father's father, and I came trustingto see thy father, for they told me that he was here. But now Isee that some god hath hindered his return, for that he is yetalive I know full well. But tell me, who are these that I see? Isthis the gathering of a clan, or a wedding feast?"
Telemachus made answer: "O sir, while my father was yet alive, ourhouse was rich and honoured; but now that he is gone, things arenot well with me. I would not grieve so much had he fallen inbattle before Troy; for then the Greeks would have builded a greatburial mound for him, and he would thus have won great renown,ev