The Aeneid of Virgil

Hard as hell to translate

As is true with most people, I liked the first half better than the second half, in the same way I liked the Odyssey better than the Iliad. I just don't like long battle descriptions with all their dismembered bodies and oozing brain matter. But lost guys sailing ships around the Mediterranean and meeting up with strange mythical creatures and love-sick women (with a side trip to...more

As is true with most people, I liked the first half better than the second half, in the same way I liked the Odyssey better than the Iliad. I just don't like long battle descriptions with all their dismembered bodies and oozing brain matter. But lost guys sailing ships around the Mediterranean and meeting up with strange mythical creatures and love-sick women (with a side trip to Hades) -- now that's a good story.   hide

Pure goodness... this translation perhaps is a not as readable as others and a little to straight forward. But I read the story in Latin, and Virgil's Aeneid surely belongs next to Dante's Inferno and Shakespeares... everything... on any bookshelf. The first six books are better than the latter six.

Virgil's story telling is fascinating and so poetic. This is, actually, a historic account of 11th to 9th century bc events in Mediterranean. Troy was a prosperous Turanian (non-Greek) city. Greeks invaded and ramsacked it. Greeks, who still had the memories of Arcadia alive, had only recently settled from their nomadic lives. At that time, the main trading nation was the Phoenicians....more

Virgil's story telling is fascinating and so poetic. This is, actually, a historic account of 11th to 9th century bc events in Mediterranean. Troy was a prosperous Turanian (non-Greek) city. Greeks invaded and ramsacked it. Greeks, who still had the memories of Arcadia alive, had only recently settled from their nomadic lives. At that time, the main trading nation was the Phoenicians. Cartaghe was was found by a Phoenician princess. The survivors first sought asylum with the Phoenicians. From there, they moved on to Italy, where they fought with the local tribes and established themselves as Etruscans. They found Rome in 750 BC and started our modern calendar. The local Italic tribes ousted them and found the Roman republic which later became the Roman Empire. Etruscan name still remains as modern Tuscany. The lessons I learned from Virgil: When your world is destroyed by the invaders, don't despair. Start a new one. One day it may become the world empire. Follow your destiny. Don't be distracted. I feel sorry for Didot. Not really a happy ending. Storytelling at its best! The translation is faithful AND beautiful.Troy's story told not by the winners but by the losers. It is no surprise then Fatih Mehmet's famous words after conquering Istanbul (was Constantinople then) in 1453: "(By conquering Istanbul) I have finally settled the account we received by losing Troy."I also admired the defiance shown by the Troyans who were then started to be called the Etruscans in fulfilling their destiny and founding Rome on the axis mundi.Did you know that both Rome and Istanbul are founded on seven hills and Istanbul was once called the Eastern Rome?   hide