A Companion to Ancient Epic (Blackwell Companions to the Ancient World) [Hardcover]

John Miles Foley (Editor)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 1405105240 | ISBN-13: 978-1405105248 | Publication Date: September 26, 2005 | Edition: 1

A Companion to Ancient Epic presents for the first time a comprehensive, up-to-date overview of ancient Near Eastern, Greek and Roman epic. It offers a multi-disciplinary discussion of both longstanding ideas and newer perspectives.

• A Companion to the Near Eastern, Greek, and Roman epic traditions
• Considers the interrelation between these different traditions
• Provides a balanced overview of longstanding ideas and newer perspectives in the study of epic
• Shows how scholarship over the last forty years has transformed the ways that we conceive of and understand the genre
• Covers recently introduced topics, such as the role of women, the history of reception, and comparison with living analogues from oral tradition
• The editor and contributors are leading scholars in the field
• Includes a detailed index of poems, poets, technical terms, and important figures and events

Editorial Reviews

Review

"For those who are interested in Greek and Roman epic, the book is a treasure-house of splendid variety.... The editor and the publisher both deserve praise for a very fine volume." (Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society)

"Blackwell's Companion to Ancient Epic does just what the title suggests: it accompanies readers on journeys of exploration in this huge (in every sense) field. Just as importantly, the Companion will show new readers why they might want to immerse themselves in these poems.... The many highlights in this Companion demonstrate the value of asking scholars to write for non-specialists. That endeavor provides a stimulus for new levels of focus and clarity; even ideas and materials that may be familiar become fresh again when they are presented in such succinct distillations." (Bryn Mawr Classical Review)

Book Description

Epic was the master-genre of the ancient world: it was central to group identity, education, literature, and culture. Yet modern understanding of ancient epic is not static, and scholarship over the last few decades has transformed the ways that we conceive of and understand the genre, introducing topics such as the role of women, the history of reception, and comparison with living analogues from oral tradition. A Companion to Ancient Epic presents for the first time a comprehensive, up-to-date overview of ancient Near Eastern, Greek, and Roman epic. It offers a multidisciplinary discussion of both long-standing ideas and newer perspectives. A key feature of the volume, designed to make the book as useful as possible, is the index of poems, poets, technical terms, important figures, and other relevant literary and artistic works. The Companion will be required reading for all students of ancient literature.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 696 pages
• Publisher: Wiley-Blackwell; 1 edition (September 26, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1405105240
• ISBN-13: 978-1405105248
• Product Dimensions: 9.9 x 6.8 x 1.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,109,168 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars EXCELLENT Resource, March 16, 2008

By 

Ashley C. Judge - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: A Companion to Ancient Epic (Blackwell Companions to the Ancient World) (Hardcover)

For any scholar of epic literature-- or even those who are curious and may need some extra critical thinking help-- this compilation is unparalleled in comprehensiveness. After laboriously searching for reference resources for epic poetry, I hit the jackpot with this book. I HIGHLY recommend it to students, professors, and enthusiasts alike.

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This is a great collection of essays...., September 21, 2009

By 

brian "brian" (Mass., USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: A Companion to Ancient Epic (Blackwell Companions to the Ancient World) (Paperback)

This is a very, very useful book; the essay on "The Epic Hero" by Greg Nagy is worth the price of the volume. Having wasted a lot of money over the past 10 years on overly specific studies of this or that topic, I have now turned to volumes like this--which give you an excellent, basic run-down of topics, and then provide a sometimes extensive bibliography at the end of each essay guiding readers who want to go to the next level.

This collections contains wonderful pieces on important (but under-explored) topics such as: defining "epic," the relationship between "epic" and "myth," and ancient Near Eastern epic. The summaries of the Iliad, Odyssey, Roman epic, and Israelite epic are as good as you'll find for one-stop-shopping. One criticism is that I wish they would have had a longer, single essay on the Mahabharata and other ancient Indic traditions--and it would have been nice if there would have been a bit more uniformity (regarding structure, contents, rigor of treatment, etc.) between the individual essays.

But overall: Highly recommended--actually, required--for all students of ancient epic.