The Iliad of Homer [The Great Courses]

Elizabeth Vandiver, Classics Professor at the University of Maryland, provides an outstanding in-depth analysis of Homer's Iliad in this Great Courses lecture series. She clearly illustrates what the epic says about the human condition. However, while acknowledging the poem's significance through the ages, Vandiver cautions against interpreting Homer from a contemporary perspective. Her lectures provide insight into the epic's historical context and the cultural meaning of the ancient Greek concepts of kleos and time, which undergird the characters' actions.

Vandiver's analysis helped me to navigate the fine line between the universal and the particular when reading the epic. It is the second time I have read a translation of the show more original Iliad, and I felt that I enjoyed it more because I read it in conjunction with her course. I highly recommend it to anyone interested in Homer. show less

If there is anything that could persuade me to listen to a translation of the entire Iliad it is this series of lectures by Elizabeth Vandiver.

Vandiver gets four stars because she does very well within the (limited) context of these Great Courses. Overall it's very light stuff, but she makes it interesting, captures a lot and adds in several interesting details. She has lectures on the Odyssey, the Aeneid and on Greek Mythology and I may just try them all.

2016
https://www.librarything.com/topic/209547#5508683

Excellent within the limitations of the Great Courses lecture series. Would have preferred less plot summary, and more context and analysis. Professor Vandiver knows her stuff, and I would bet that her lectures IRL are more challenging and insightful.

Listening to these lectures is a good way to get ready for a discussion about The Iliad. The group, Great Books Kansas City, is planning to discuss The Iliad later this month, and I'm trying to get myself into the ancient Greek state of mind. Visit this link for info on the group. http://www.goodreads.com/group/show/9...

Also, the link to our blog:
http://greatbookskc.blogspot.com/

These lectures are the equivalent of reading the commentary that comes with some written versions of the Iliad. Professor Vandiver provides an insightful analysis of selected episodes in the Iliad. Her lectures make the Iliad much more understandable. She explains the cultural assumptions that lie behind Homer's lines. She repeatedly visits the Iliad's show more overriding theme of what it means to be human and what the Iliad has to say about the human condition. She probes the relationship of this great epic to the tradition of orally transmitted poetry.

The Iliad is one book that is very appropriately listened to in the audio format because originally it was presented orally to a listening audience. That was in the days before iPods. But interestingly, it is the iPod that makes the epic readily available in its original medium, the human voice.

These recorded lectures provide access to one of the best lecturers, and payment of college tuition is not required. What a bargain! show less

Just excellent. She knows her stuff.