Customer Reviews

The Nature of Greek Myths

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4 star:		(1)
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Although I've not read this book, after reading the vituperative attack above I feel I must mention that no less a critic than classics scholar Bernard Knox (himself as enjoyable to read as he is informative) has compared Kirk's book to Dodds' "epic-making" _Greeks and the Irrational_, saying of Kirk's work in myth that it "presents the same stimulating combination of professional expertise and new perspectives." Coming from Knox, this is high praise indeed.

If you're looking for a quick "who did what to whom," you'd best go with Edith Hamilton. But if you want an insightful and informed adult journey into the character and substance of myth, perhaps this is the book you seek.

I shopped for this book on Amazon because it is included in the "Essential Reading" part of the bibliography for "Classical Mythology", one of the Teaching Company's courses. The lecturer, Professor Elizabeth Vandiver, U. of Maryland, describes the work as follows: "A clear, concise introduction for the general reader. Contains chapters on definitions of myth, approaches to myth, the appearances of Greek myths in literature, and the nature of Greek heroes. An excellent place to begin any study of classical myth or of theories about myth in general." Professor Vandiver's course, by the way, is excellent.

As a doctoral student, I would not recommend anything written by Kirk to anybody but an academic. What Kirk does is to deconstruct, in the technical sense, theories of myth in the agora that is the Greek pantheon, explaining how no theory can completely map upon the confusing state of Greek religious thought and text. It is not perfect but nevertheless sufficient. The reader would do himself well to reread Derrida prior to attempting Kirk's formulation of Greek myth.

I found this book highly unenjoyable. It was written well, if you are taking a doctorate level course, otherwise good luck. If you expect to learn what a Greek Myth is, Kirk will confuse the hell out of you!!! He does an excellent job of never giving his own opinions, but would rather belittle the thoughts of previous authors on the nature and beliefs of Greek Myths. Sorry Kirk, but I would have to give you two thumbs down for ease of reading, comprehension, and explanations on the Greek Myths.