Homer the Preclassic [Paperback]

Homer the Preclassicconsiders the development of the Homeric poems-in particular theIliadandOdyssey-during the time when they were still part of the oral tradition. Gregory Nagy traces the evolution of rival Homers and the different versions of Homeric poetry in this pretextual period, reconstructed over a time frame extending back from the sixth century BCE to the Bronze Age. Accurate in their linguistic detail and surprising in their implications, Nagy's insights conjure the Greeks' nostalgia for the imagined epic space of Troy and for the resonances and distortions this mythic past provided to the various Greek constituencies for whom the Homeric poems were so central and definitive.

Gregory Nagyis the Director of the Center for Hellenic Studies and the Francis Jones Professor of Classical Greek Literature and Professor of Comparative Literature at Harvard University. This book is adapted from his 2002 Sather Lectures at the University of California, Berkeley.

Nagys brilliant narrative marks the culmination of a lifetime spent investigating Homeric art, resulting in a highly variegated and hugely pleasurable book, fundamental for those who want to appreciate the beauties of epic.

Richard P. Martin, author ofThe Language of Heroes

List of Illustrations
Abbreviations
Preface
Introduction

Part I. A Preclassical Homer from the Dark Age
1. Homer and the Athenian Empire
The Athenian Empire
Athens as Homer’s Imperial Metropolis
Homer the Ionian
Homer and the Panionian Festivals of Delos and Beyond
The Performance of Epic at the Panathenaia in the Era of the Peisistratidai: The Later Years

2. Homer outside His Poetry
Homer in the Life of Homer Traditions
The Making of Homeric Verse in the Life of Homer Traditions
Homer the Epigrammatist
Homer’s Reception in Performance
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