Customer Reviews

The Homeric Hymn to Demeter

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This is the best translation ever. I found this specific Homeric Hymn to be the one that you must absolutely must read.

Foley provides us with an excellent new translation of one of the best known homeraic hymns in both the ancient and the modern world. Her commentary is insightful though at times the evidence could be stronger and the wording clearer. Definately not for the layperson in terms of analysis but an interesting read for new scholars and specialists alike.

First, a word must be said about the translation of the hymn itself. It is readable, accessible, even captivating, and is presented in facing page format so advanced students can read the original Greek for themselves. Excellent.

This book is far more than the translation of the hymn, however. It includes commentary by Foley and others with the intent that this be used as a centerpiece for women's studies regarding the ancient world. Because my interest was largely the hymn as such, I have not deducted any points for the criticisms I am offering on this part.

I found the commentary to be less impressive than the translation per se. There were useful points, but more often they involved discussions of word plays which really should have been framed in terms of poetics rather than simple plays on words, and I found myself asking several times why given works were included in the third section. In particular Chodorow's essay "Family Structure and Feminine Personality" seemed to have little relevance to the hymn itself. I could only conclude that the goal was to present a larger work of women's studies rather than an essay primarily focusing on this particularly important work.

The quality and clarity of translation of the hymn itself, however, makes up for these shortcomings and more. I'd still highly recommend the work.