Rating: 
Summary: Great epic told brillantly
Review: The Illiad is the one of the world's first and greatest epics. It begins in the midst of the Trojan war and focuses largely on Achilles role as first a traitor, then savior of the Greeks, establishing him as one of the most perplexing figures in literature. While the battle on earth procedes, an equally difficult battle is occuring on Mount Olympius with the gods. The epic probes topics such as the right of the individual vs the right of the whole, loyality, and the glory and terror of outright war. Although the book does not end with the fall of Troy--there is no Trojan horse in this story--the ending is quite compeling in its own right. The Illiad is often overshadowed by its sequel, The Odysessy; but in my opinion, the Illiad is a much more engrossing and better characterized tale. It should definately be read before the Odysessy because it adds much insight into events that take place in that book, and features a number of the same characters. Robert Fagles' verse translation is an exceptional read. I can't compare it to any other editions because it is the only version of the Illiad that I have read, but it seemed to be constructed quite well. The verse is so easy to understand that it is like reading a conventional novel but much better. The characters come alive right before your eyes. The battle scences are amazingly precise, making it appear as if you were watching them instead of just reading them. The epic is always a fast paced read and does not suffer from the dryness that can be experienced with other works of literature labeled as "classics." The Illiad would be entertaining to anyone looking for a good adventure.
Rating:
Summary: Great
Review: The Iliad is not only one of the earliest works of literature, it is also one of the greatest. This is a powerful translation of this great poem. While only individuals competent in Classical Greek can really judge the quality of translation, this translation has been praised by many knowledgeable scholars. I have read all three of the popular translations of the Iliad (Lattimore's, Fitzgerald's, and Fagles') and this may be the best. The Iliad is supposedly written in a specific, formal, and somewhat artificial form of Greek and in this sense, the Lattimore translation, which is written in somewhat more "poetic" English, may be a bit more like the original. This translation, however, contains very direct language without sacrificing the intensity of the poetry. Fagles does particularly well in showing how Homer gradually elevates the power of his language as the poem reaches its climax and the piteous scenes that follow the death of Hector.
The Iliad is probably the greatest epic ever written. Many modern readers prefer the Odyssey because of its more varied plot but the Iliad is considerably longer. Maintaining the intensity of language and emotion throughout the poem and in the repetitive battle scenes is a remarkable achievement. A nice aspect of this book is the excellent introduction by Bernard Knox covering the nature of the Iliad, its themes, and the Homeric world.
Rating:
Summary: Does justice to the beginning of Western literature
Review: The Iliad can easily be said to be the origin of the Western literary tradition. Although it was not any kind of scripture for the ancient Greeks, they cherished the Iliad almost as if it were. The ancient Greeks are gone now, but to this day, Homer's voice still rings true. However, is it possible to bring this voice to a modern English-speaking audience, without sacrificing the epic's beauty? Apparently, this is just what Robert Fagles has done. Fagles's translation carries the same lofty, powerful, and grandiose style that may have impressed the Greeks. Not only is the narrative full of poetic strength, but it spares none of the tragedy one would expect to emote from this moving story. It brings about the very cosmic sense that one would expect from a true epic, and thus, it does for modern global people what it did for the Greeks, despite the difference in cultures. Aside from this, not a whole lot can be said about this Iliad or any Iliad. You must read it to believe it. Rage, Goddess, Rage!
Rating:
Summary: Hurling down to the House of Death so many sturdy souls
Review: Although the facts remain in doubt, Robert Fagles brings a vigor to Homer's 2,700-year-old story of the Trojan War. This translation is read by Derek Jacobi and narrated by Maria Tucci. This story begins with an explanation by Maria Tucci which tells of a time when a sea nymph married a mortal and all the gods and goddesses attended the wedding. The "Goddess Strife" threw a golden apple among the guests declaring it as a prize for the most beautiful goddess on Olympus. Three goddesses claimed the apple. Zeus then instructed Paris to make the choice. Aphrodite offered him the love of Helen, the mortal daughter of Zeus, therefore, he gave her the apple. The other two goddesses were angered and went to plot the destruction of Troy. I have always been interested in why men would give up their lives to save a woman. Is the woman worth saving or giving your life for? This is not really answered in the Iliad. If you are interested in Greek Mythology, this is a good introduction to various gods and goddesses. There are many descriptions of absolute cruelty and brutality that if viewed onscreen would probably be a bit intense. However, it is helpful to remember when this was written and how men viewed war at this time. Have things changed? Are we more civilized now? Perhaps we respect life and death more now and while warriors saw their death as the ultimate sacrifice then, perhaps warriors of today wish to not only defeat the enemy, but also to preserve their lives and the lives of as many as possible on the way to peace. It does seem that today, in war, we try to find ways to not kill as many people. Here the brutality explodes and there is a passionate energy to kill. It is very primal. Here in the scenes presented, it seems like death is the only objective at times. The savage fighting hand to hand is almost enjoyment for the gods. Woman are also seen as "war prizes." I was surprised by how lyrical the translation is. This is not about war. It is also about he observation and there are magnificent metaphors to be had. I was surprised by the sensual images like when the dawn has red fingers and rises from bed or the goddesses and food are described. While I can't say I love goat cheese, you will probably want to go have a barbecue. Savory smoke swirling up towards the skies and an endless ocean with salt green depths and churning surf add depth and color to the story. There is also humor to be had. Derek Jacobi's voice is adorably cute when he changes and reads the "goddess" parts. I can't explain why it is funny, just listen and you will see. It is as if the goddesses are the ultimate in femininity. They do present themselves as the most delicate of woman, while the gods are ferocious and seem to represent the ultimate in male behavior. Be that good or bad. Zeus is not especially interested in saving life. His "sport" seems to be to watch humans in battle. He commands the storm clouds and has a wife that nags him. Sounds like any normal human relationship to me. And I thought the gods would be above this. However, they seem to have the same desires as humans, yet seem detached from the pain of human suffering. There is a huge difference in the Pope vs. Fagles translation. For example, in the Alexander Pope's translation it reads: Achilles' wrath, to Greece the direful spring
Of woes unnumber'd, heavenly goddess, sing!
That wrath which hurl'd to Pluto's gloomy reign The souls of might chiefs untimely slain;
Whose limbs unburied on the naked shore,
Devouring dogs and hungry vultures tore:
Since great Achilles and Atrides strove,
Such was the sovereign doom, and such the will of Jove! Robert Fagles: Rage -- Goddess, sing the rage of Peleus' son Achilles,
murderous, doomed, that cost the Achaeans countless losses,
hurling down to the House of Death so many sturdy souls,
great fighters' souls, but made their bodies carrion
feasts for the dogs and birds,
and the will of Zeus was moving toward its end.
Begin, Muse, when the two first broke and clashed,
Agamemnon lord of men and brilliant Achilles. What a contrast! You can definitely appreciate the majesty of the second version. It sings, it shouts beauty even in death. It doesn't try to fit into a "poem" format. It flows and drives along like a story should. You wait for each word with almost an anticipation in the Fagles version. In Alexander Pope's translation, you stop, start and are more concerned with the rhyme than the story. I'm pleased to know I picked the best translation to listen to. If you are going to spend this much time (9 hours) then it is well worth buying the "Robert Fagles" version. A wonderful introduction to Homer and it sure beats reading this all in bed for days. I'd rather listen to The Iliad than pour over pages for hours. I think listening gives an added benefit that reading alone can never hope to achieve. I'm now completely "in love" with audiobooks! I can't wait to hear how the Odyssey is read. That has always been my favorite because of the "sirens" and travels. Now, I won't be able to decide my favorite until I listen to the Odyssey audiobook version.
Rating: 
Summary: The Iliad
Review: The Iliad was a very powerful book. The storyline is kind of hard to follow, at first, but once you know the characters, it's a much smoother read. Bernard Knox's introduction was very informative and interesting. If you like stories about war, or if you're into Greek Mythology, The Iliad is a must read.
Rating:
Summary: A Heroic and Human Tragedy
Review: The Iliad is a story of passion. In its sweep lies war and death, honor and pettiness, mortality, domesticity, gods and men. In his excellent introduction to this edition, Bernard Knox tells us that the Iliad probably was written down between 725 and 675 B.C. It tells a story that was archaic even for its time that is set around 1200 B.C. The story of the Iliad covers a matter of days in the tenth and final year of the Trojan War. It is allusive to the entire mythology of that ancient struggle. The tale is deliberately mythical, with characters and emotions that, Homer tells us many times, are larger than those of men today. For too many, the Iliad comes encrusted as a "classic". People read it, or portions of it, in high school or college and inevitably miss much of the grandeur and wisdom of the work. When I came back to the Iliad recently (after not having read the work in many years) in Fagles' translation, I was swept away. I accompanied my reading of the Iliad with an excellent series of lecture tapes on the poem and its background. I thought the translation, written in a modern colloquial free verse helped me to understand and read the poem. The translation, for me, gives the reader a sense of the repetitions, formulas and phraseology of the original. It has a sweep to it, and the style and translation does not get in the way of understanding the work. This is important in a modern translation of an ancient work. The translation was easy to follow and got me involved in the tale. I am sure the poem works differently in the ancient Greek than in this translation. But this is largely irrelevant to the virtue of Fagles's work which makes the Iliad come alive and roar in a manner which encourages the nonclassicist modern reader to approach it. There are a mulitude of themes in the Iliad. At the beginning of the work, Homer invokes his muse and announces that the work will deal with the "rage of Achilles." The work is about human anger and rage on a grand scale and about the waste, but strange grandeur of war. In his introduction, Bernard Knox quotes approvingly from Simone Weil, writing in France during World War II, who described the Iliad as the West's leading work on the use and nature of Force. The Iliad speaks deeply about the human condition, about the tragedy and heroism that human mortality makes possible, and about how people may learn to change and to understand others. I found Bernard Knox' introduction and notes helpful in understanding the controversies surrounding the writing of the Iliad and in giving the reader some of the basic tools to think about the work. Whether the reader is approaching the Iliad for the first time or after many times, there is much to be gained from reading this basic text of the West. Fagles translation will help bring the reader to the Iliad.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent translation and good introduction to the Greeks
Review: This is one of my favorite translations of the Iliad with Fitzgerald's being my other favorite. It will function as a great introduction to the Greeks, and even beyond that, morality. The book repeatedly contrasts mortal men and those blissful pagan gods. Achilles learns that the war is futile and even learns to have compassion on his most hated enemy's father. Through his story, and the contradistinction between men and gods, we see that our short life span does not give us cause to live it up while we can, but rather, to live as nobly as we can. One can learn civic duty from Hector. He fights to save hearth and home. Knowing that he most likely will die and the city will most likely be sacked, he fights anyway to try and find anyway to salvage his city's, wife's, and child's happiness anyway he can. Even if he can only do it for a short while and will ultimately lose, he will still gain them a small amount of happiness before bitter slavery. These are human leasons we can learn from a foundational book for our society. One can even learn the emptiness of the pagan gods from it, for without being suffering gods, one inevitably has a cold impersonal diety or deities or these licentuous monsters, for the Zeus of the Odyessy simply does not seem as realistic as the one of the Iliad. One can see why Christianity with its suffering and dying God appealed to so many. After this, if a person desires to, go on to the other great Greek classics, the Odyessy, Plato, Aristotle, Demosthenes, or the like. The Romans offer an equally palatable suite of authors and books. It may even light a blaze within, and cause one to seek out and learn the original, for this is only the Homer's story. A translation does not have his choice of words and balance of phrases, and the original is far more powerful than this.
Rating: 
Summary: Fagles Translation
Review: Fagles has chosen an utterly inappropriate tone; the text is over-dramatized, sensationalized, and has all the flash of an action movie. I don't read Greek, but his diction just felt off, and seemed contrived. Rhythmically, it has grace, tautness and the feeling of a TWENTIETH CENTURY POEM, which this is not. Any attempts at chanting the poem aloud reveal the folly of the "elastic line" he purports to have used. Finally, the major flaw is that this translation throws Homer into your face, conveying the image of a precocious child relating a school-yard tumble, rather than someone re-creating an epic battle. Yes, he has some dazzling metaphors, and superb poetic language, and stark, confrontational imagery.....but really, this isn't Homer. Lattimore captures an authentic cadence, and has real subtlety; a line for line comparison might make Lattimore appear slightly flat, but over time, one appreciates the inner spirit that Fagles obviously lacks. More importantly, Lattimore captures Homer (or a damn convincing immitation) and this is the most important thing. But, if you prefer (as many readers and supposed scholars do) something closer to "Clash of the Titans", then so be it.
Rating:
Summary: I mean, you HAVE to read it...
Review: What's there to say? It's the Iliad. The most important war novel, nay, the most imporant NOVEL, of all time. Timeless characters, amazing story, and a thousand and one side plots [used] by every hackeneyed fantasy author in the last 3000 years. There is no substitute for Fagles translation. He makes verse read like prose without sacraficing the rhthym and flow of Homer. Simply put, any intelligent (or pseudo-intelligent, like me) person MUST read this at some point, and Fagles book is the best out there.
Rating:
Summary: If only...
Review: I actually enjoyed reading it. I hated reading this in college. The translation I read in college was pure torture, with a stiffness/stuffyness/fussiness that could not have possibly reflected the original epic. It must have been something like this translation, how else would it survive all these milennia if it did not at some time hold one's interest? I gave it 4 stars because there are only so many descriptions of how many ships, countries, how many troops and how many animals were cut up and burned that I can read before I start skipping when I see them starting and repeating over and over again (and skipping did not detract if you are not interested in Greek sacrifice techniques or who was who's brother or the son of which minor god). It is a true novel of war. It is very violent. Just because it is old doesn't mean it is florid and sweet - just the opposite!
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