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Loading... Jason and the Argonautsby Apollonius of Rhodes
   None No current Talk conversations about this book.  lestermay | Feb 17, 2024 |   But really, this epic isn't just about Jason, it spends a lot of time with the other Argonauts. Many of them have great heroic or tragic moments in the play that are as fun to read as Jason's. Then there's Medea. She basically just steals the show in the second half, and her plight is even more devastating to read knowing what eventually happens to her in her own tragedy. The most interesting thing to me about her story is that the gods barely intervene directly in this epic (compared to Homer) Medea getting hit with Eros' (Cupid) arrow eventually leads to her betraying and killing her family, Jason's future bridesmaid, and her own children. Would she have had a better life without the intervention of the gods? I liked this translation (although I can't say I can compare it to anything else). It was understandable, had good notes, and I always like a good alliteration which the translator likes to use. (  ) jmoravec09 | Sep 14, 2020 | This was a Penguin 60s classic, so only an extract of the full book. It's the prose of the opening verses detailing the start of the quest. If you like greek classics (I do, I've read the Illiad and Odyssey, plus the Latin classic The Aeneid... the latter in Latin a looooong time ago), then you'll love this. If not, then avoid. (  ) Cassandra2020 | Jan 24, 2016 | no reviews | add a review
Is contained inIs an abridged version of
Now in a riveting new verse translation Jason and the Argonauts (also known as the Argonautica), is the only surviving full account of Jason's voyage on the Argo in quest of the Golden Fleece aided by the sorceress princess Medea. Written in third century B.C., this epic story of one of the most beloved heroes of Greek mythology, with its combination of the fantastical and the real, its engagement with traditions of science, astronomy and medicine, winged heroes, and a magical vessel that speaks, is truly without exact parallel in classical or contemporary Greek literature and is now available in an accessible and engaging translation. Apollonius of Rhodes published his first version of the Argonautica sometime in the middle of the third century B.C. At the end of his life he was director of the famous Library of Alexandria, which was the principal storehouse of all literature and learning at the time. Aaron Poochigian, born in 1973, is a poet and an associated lecturer in Classics at The Ohio State University and has translated the Penguin Classics edition of Stung with Love: Poems and Fragments by Sappho, as well as works by Aeschylus and Aratus. He lives in New York City. Benjamin Acosta-Hughes is Professor of Greek and Latin at The Ohio State University. He is the author of several works of nonfiction, including Arion's Lyre: Archaic Lyric into Hellenistic Poetry. No library descriptions found. |
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 Google Books — Loading...GenresMelvil Decimal System (DDC)398Social sciences Customs, Etiquette, Folklore FolkloreLC ClassificationRatingAverage: (3.53)
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I found this selection a bit heavy going at first but feel guilty writing this, some 2300 years after it was written! The second of these small pages starts the setting out of the names and lineage of her noble crew and it went on, small page after small page, until page 10 when my head was filled with names - too many names, too much information! See my tags above, most of which come from the first ten pages of this little book, and that's only all of the names up to page six - I was rather more selective after that!
Still, I am glad I read this introduction to Jason and the Argonauts. As a naval officer, with an interest in maritime history, I should have read it many decades ago. I am glad I have read this short introduction and probably don't need to read the full book, The Voyage of Argo. (