Homer's Iliad and Odyssey were central to the educational system of Byzantium, yet the religion and culture of the Homeric epics-even the ancient Greek language itself-had become almost unrecognizable to Byzantine Greek readers coming to the texts nearly two millennia later. The scholar, poet, and teacher John Tzetzes (ca. 1110-1180) joined the extensive tradition of interpreting Homer by producing his Allegories of the Iliad, dedicated to the foreign-born empress Eirene. Tzetzes later composed the Allegories of the Odyssey, a more advanced verse commentary, to explain Odysseus's journey and the pagan gods and marvels he encountered. Through historical allegory, the gods become ancient kings deified by the pagan poet; through astrological interpretation, they become planets whose positions and movements affect human life; through moral allegory Athena represents wisdom, Aphrodite desire. This edition presents the first translation of the Allegories of the Odyssey into any language.
| ISBN: | 9780674238374 |
| Publication date: | 29th November 2019 |
| Author: | John Tzetzes, John Tzetzes |
| Publisher: | Harvard University Press |
| Format: | Hardback |
| Pagination: | 384 pages |
| Series: | Dumbarton Oaks Medieval Library |
| Genres: |
Literary studies: ancient, classical and medieval Ancient history |