Scholarly articles/book chapters/essays
Individual articles/chapters/essays on the Iliad:
- Snell, Bruno, “Homer’s View of ManSnell, Bruno, “Homer’s View of Man” 1st chapter of The Discovery of the Mind in Greek Philosophy and Literature, translated from the German version of 1948. Argues for an essentially primitive conception of human nature. On-line reserve
- Simone Weil, (French essayist, 1909-43) “The Iliad or The Poem of Force.”Simone Weil, (French essayist, 1909-43) “The Iliad or The Poem of Force.” Passionate and provocative essay by a pacifist during WWII, something of a classic in its own right Translation from the French by Mary McCarthy available in Critical Essays on Homer, Atchity (ed.).
Individual articles/chapters on the Odyssey
- Erich Auerbach, "Odysseus' Scar"Erich Auerbach, "Odysseus' Scar," chapter 1 of Mimesis: The Representation of Reality in Western Literature, translated from the German version of 1946. Contrasts Homeric way of representing reality to Biblical.
- Charles Segal, "Kleos and Its Ironies,"Charles Segal, "Kleos and Its Ironies," pp. 201-221 in Reading the Odyssey: Selected Interpretive Essays
- John J. Winkler, "Penelope's Cunning and Homer's,"John J. Winkler, "Penelope's Cunning and Homer's," chapter 5 of The Constraints of Desire: The Anthropology of Sex and Gender in Ancient Greece
Books you might look at. You can choose a chapter or two to report on or give a broad overview (Most are in Prof. Pratt's office)
- Merit and responsibility : a study in Greek values. byCall Number: BJ171 .R4 A3Publication Date: 1st 4 chapters of Merit and Responsibility: A Study in Greek Values (1960). Discusses Homeric value system in contrast to later value systems. On 3-day reserve.
- The Greeks and the irrational byPublication Date: Dodds, E.R., 1st 2 chapters of The Greeks and the Irrational (1951). On-line reserve.
The world of Odysseus by ISBN: 9780701122447Publication Date: Finley, M.I., The World of Odysseus, 2nd edition, (1954). Study of Homeric society from an historian’s point of view. Offers important accounts of basic social institutions, particularly xenia. On 3-day reserve.
The Singer of Tales by ISBN: 0674002830Lord, Albert B, The Singer of Tales (1960). One of the earliest and best explanations of oral theory. Highly accessible. Explains oral composition of Homeric poems by comparison to the living oral traditions in Yugoslavia. On 3-day reserve
The Best of the Achaeans by ISBN: 0801822009• Nagy, Gregory, The Best of the Achaians: Concepts of the Hero in Archaic Greek Poetry (1979). On 3-day reserve. Nagy, a professor at Harvard, is probably the most prominent contemporary American scholar of Homer. His work is controversial and stimulating, but the argument can be hard to follow. It is often rather more associative than logical and hence a certain amount of caution needs to be used. His book, Homeric Questions, also is worth looking at, if you’re interested in issues surrounding oral theory.
Nature and Culture in the Iliad by ISBN: 9780822314226• Redfield, James, Nature and Culture in the Iliad: the Tragedy of Hector (1975). Applies anthropological and literary theory to the Iliad to produce sensitive, interesting reading of the poem. On 3-day reserve. Woodruff Circulation Desk.
The Mortal Hero by ISBN: 0520056264• Schein, Seth, The Mortal Hero: An Introduction to Homer’s Iliad (1984). Sensitive, thoughtful reading of the poem. Not highly original but very accessible. On 3-day reserve. Woodruff Circulation Desk.
Achilles in Vietnam by ISBN: 1439124922• Shay, Jonathan, Achilles in Vietnam (1994). Shay is a psychologist who works with Vietnam vets. Offers very interesting comparisons/contrast between the Iliad and the accounts of his patients suffering from posttraumatic stress syndrome. Offers provocative reflections on similarities and differences of the war experience over time. On 3-day reserve. Woodruff Circulation Desk.
Homer and the Heroic Tradition by ISBN: 067486283X• Whitman, Cedric, Homer and the Heroic Tradition (1958). Eloquent literary reading of the poem. Many insights.
Books on the Odyssey:
The Odyssey Re-Formed by Call Number: Robert W. Woodruff Library Book Stacks PA4167 .A37 1996ISBN: 0801432219
Archery at the Dark of the Moon by ISBN: 9780520027138Norman Austin, Archery at the Dark of the Moon: Poetic Problems in Homer’s Odyssey (1975). On 3-day reserve.- The authoress of the Odyssey : where and when she wrote, who she was, the use she made of the Iliad, & how the poem grew under her hands bySamuel Butler, The Authoress of the Odyssey (1897). Quirky!
The Distaff Side by ISBN: 019508683X• Beth Cohen (ed.), The Distaff Side: Representing the Female in Homer’s Odyssey (1995): a collection of essays by different scholars discussing On 3-day reserve.
Siren Songs by ISBN: 9780472105977Lilian Doherty, Siren Songs: Gender, Audiences, and Narrators in the Odyssey (1995). Offers a well-articulated, strongly feminist approach to the poem.
Regarding Penelope by Call Number: Robert W. Woodruff Library Book Stacks PA4170 .P46 F45 1994ISBN: 9780691032283Nancy Felson Rubin, Regarding Penelope: From Character to Plot (1994).
Disguise and recognition in the Odyssey by ISBN: 1461734029• Sheila Murnaghan, Disguise and Recognition in the Odyssey (1987). An excellent overall reading of the poem with particular attention to (surprise!) disguise and recognition, important themes of the poem. On 3-day reserve.
In Search Of The Trojan WarCall Number: DVD 25932. OR DF221 .T8 W66 1998ISBN: 9780790790565Michael Woods, PBS series, “In Search of the Trojan War” (book also available)
O Brother, Where Art Thou? by Call Number: DVD 898 OR PN1997 .O16 C64 2000ISBN: 9780571205189“O Brother, Where Art Thou?” (movie, 2001)
Databases
For more databases related to classics, see the Databases @ Emory page
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L’Année philologique L'Année philologique on the Internet is an international bibliography that contains citations for Greek and Roman studies. The database covers all aspects of classical languages, literatures, history, philosophy, art, religion, music, mythology, science, numismatics, and other subjects. |
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JSTOR JSTOR, the Journal Storage Project, provides access to digitized versions to complete runs of scholarly journals related to classics and the ancient Mediterranean world. There are dozens of journal titles related to classical studies, including American Journal of Archaeology, The American Journal of Philology, Classical Philology, The Classical Review, The Journal of Roman Studies, and Transactions of the American Philological Association. Being able to browse or search across these titles and many more in a single database makes JSTOR a good resource for classical study. |
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The Dyabola Projekt Projekt Dyabola is a repository of multiple databases that indexes books, journals, collected essays, and book reviews dealing with Classics, art history, archaeology, and other fields related to the ancient Mediterranean. It covers Greek, Roman, Cretan-Mycenean, Etruscan, Egyptian, and early Christian and Byzantine history, art, culture, and religion. |