I just began my course at uni of Language and on the first semester, on the disciplin of Classic Studies, we read Homer's Illiad and Odyssey (translation to Portuguese by Carlos Alberto Nunes), I really enjoyed both of them (plan on reading the English translations as well) and since then I've grown a thing for epics... I'm currently reading Faust (don't think it'd count as an Epic, but it's a huge poem as well) and my next readings will be Dante's Divine Comedy and Milton's Paradise Lost, with the Aeneid on next semester.

I was wondering what's the people's opinion around here about them.

(Wow, it's been a looong time I haven't posted anything around here, wonder if people still remember me.)

dude, Dante's Diving Comedy was awsome! i read that like millions of years ago, so dont remember much. but it was incredible!

as for epics, i really wanted to read illiad, and the odyssey, but meh. but if you do get the chance, try reading 'The Epic Of Gilgamesh'. its supposedly the first story man told. and there are tons of connections between that epic, and the biblical stuff. like the noahs ark and stuff. umm, and that epic is about a king named gilgamesh, and how he lost a friend in endiku, and then he later on dies, and leaves his whole civilization to become dust and bones.

Written by Soliloquy on 26.06.2006 at 05:50

dude, Dante's Diving Comedy was awsome! i read that like millions of years ago, so dont remember much. but it was incredible!

as for epics, i really wanted to read illiad, and the odyssey, but meh. but if you do get the chance, try reading 'The Epic Of Gilgamesh'. its supposedly the first story man told. and there are tons of connections between that epic, and the biblical stuff. like the noahs ark and stuff. umm, and that epic is about a king named gilgamesh, and how he lost a friend in endiku, and then he later on dies, and leaves his whole civilization to become dust and bones.

Yeah, our Classic Studies professor told us about the Epic of Gilgamesh.. it sure sounds awesome... according to what he said, it's about a king - a tyrant, maybe - who dreams of immortality... and there are many versions of the story, as I remember... on one of them Noah (the only man that had reached immortality) tells him about an herb (stabilishing a parallel then, with the Odyssey, where plants and herbs with magical effects are a rather common theme. Our professor told us that there are plenty of parallels among the Epic of Gilgamesh, the Illiad/Odyssey and the Bible) that lies in the bottom of the ocean and can make whoever eats it immortal. Another version says that Noah told Gilgamesh that for him to defeat Death, he'd then have to defeat Sleep (again, stabilishing a parallel to Greek culture, where Death and Sleep are brothers). On all cases, it seems that he fails, however. Either way, I'll certainly search for it.

If you want to read Homer's stuff, you can find the English translations on wikisource on wikipedia: http://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Author:Homer.

here is a translation of the epic of gilgamesh. well its only the first 14 lines, and its translated word to word:



A version from Nibru
Segment A

unknown no. of lines missing

1-14. ?? hero ?? has lain down and is never to rise again. ?? has lain down and is never to rise again. He of well-proportioned limbs ?? has lain down and is never to rise again. ?? has lain down and is never to rise again. He who ?? wickedness has lain down and is never to rise again. The young man ?? has lain down and is never to rise again. He who was perfect in ?? and feats of strength has lain down and is never to rise again. ?? has lain down and is never to rise again. The lord of Kulaba has lain down and is never to rise again. He who spoke most wisely has lain down and is never to rise again. The plunderer (?) of many countries has lain down and is never to rise again. He who climbed the mountains has lain down and is never to rise again. He has lain down on his death-bed and is never to rise again. He has lain down on a couch of sighs and is never to rise again.





you can see how deperate these people were after the death of gilgamesh. the entire city laied in runis after he died. and for a king to be loved that much to write a freaken epic after him, it sure means alot.

and give me a day or two before i hit that link you sent me

i'm a very big fan of epic poems. i read paradise lost by john milton for a school project and i'm currently reading the divine comedy. Faust is on my list too and i'm going to read the oddyssey in greek in a few months (i study latin-greek at school). i already read Caesar, Plinius, Petronius, Xenophon and herodotos in their original languages. But Petronius' Satyricon is a satire and the rest are more reports about an event