Singers, Heroes, and Gods in the "Odyssey"
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Charles Segal
About this book
One of the special charms of the Odyssey, according to Charles Segal, is the way it transports readers to fascinating places. Yet despite the appeal of its narrative, the Odyssey is fully understood only when its style, design, and mythical patterns are taken into account as well. Bringing a new richness to interpretation of this epic, Segal looks closely at key forms of social and personal organization which Odysseus encounters in his voyages. Segal also considers such topics as the relationship between bard and audience, the implications of the Odyssey's self-consciousness about its own poetics, and Homer's treatment of the nature of poetry.
Author / Editor information
Charles Segal (1936–2002) taught classics at the University of Pennsylvania, Brown University, Princeton University, and Harvard University, where he was Walter C. Klein Professor of the Classics. Among his many books are, as author, Interpreting Greek Tragedy: Myth, Poetry, Text and Singers, Heroes, and Gods in the "Odyssey", both published by Cornell University Press.
Reviews
The essays in this book furnish very astute, unswervingly literary interpretations of key themes in the Odyssey.... Refreshingly straightforward criticism of a consistently high order.
---Charles Segal offers an insightful and literate commentary that will enable readers to enjoy a fresh and informed appreciation for this classic Hellenic adventure tale.... A welcome addition to the growing body of erudite commentary on the enduringly popular epic poetry of Homer.
Topics
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Frontmatter
i -
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Contents
vii -
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Foreword
ix -
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Preface
xi - PART ONE: THE MYTHICAL JOURNEY AND THE HERO
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1. Introduction: The Landscape of Imagination
1 -
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2. The Phaeacians and Odysseus' Return: Part 1, Suspension and Reintegration
12 -
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3. The Phaeacians and Odysseus' Return: Part 2, Death and Renewal
37 -
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4. Transition and Ritual in Odysseus' Return
65 -
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5. Kleos and Its Ironies
85 - PART TWO: POETICS: SINGERS, LIARS, AND BEGGARS
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6. Bard and Audience in Homer
113 -
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7. Bard, Hero, Beggar: Poetics and Exchange
142 -
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8. The King and the Swineherd: Rags, Lies, and Poetry
164 - PART THREE: GODS AND PROPHETS
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9. Teiresias in the Yukon: On Folktale and Epic
187 -
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10. Divine Justice: Poseidon, Cyclops, and Helios
195 -
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References
229 -
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Index
239
