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The Greek Myths: Complete Edition Paperback – April 6, 1993

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Robert Graves (Author)
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Robert Graves (Author)
4.3 out of 5 stars 75 customer reviews
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There is a newer edition of this item:

The Greek Myths: The Complete And Definitive Edition
The Greek Myths: The Complete And Definitive Edition
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Product Details

  • Paperback: 784 pages
  • Publisher: Penguin Books; Cmb Rep edition (April 6, 1993)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0140171991
  • ISBN-13: 978-0140171990
  • Product Dimensions: 5.5 x 1.2 x 8.5 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds
  • Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (75 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #268,961 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Top Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 starsAn Exhaustive Text For Advanced Students of Greek Mythology
By Gary F. Taylor HALL OF FAMETOP 500 REVIEWERVINE VOICE on April 13, 2003
Format: Paperback
Robert Graves' THE GREEK MYTHS falls between the Victorian bombast of Bulfinch and the popular style of Edith Hamilton, less stylistically intimidating than the former and more scholarly than the latter. Originally published as a two volume set in 1955 with author revisions in 1957 and 1960, this single volume text does not abridge the original text but merely confines it to a single binding.

One's reaction to THE GREEK MYTHS will depend to some extent on one's purpose in acquiring it. This is an exhaustive collection of Greek mythology that far outstrips any other modern anthology that I have encountered, including myths both better known and extremely obscure. Each myth is presented in concise, graceful prose, and where possible Graves includes genealogies of the characters and major variations of each myth; an interpretive essay also follows each myth.

While Graves' retelling of the myths themselves have been widely praised, his interpretations of the myths have been somewhat criticized--and justly so. Graves tends to see incarnations of the "White Goddess" and the "Sacrificial King" in every third story; more dangerously, he tends to tie the myths to historical events in a highly speculative way. While this does not undercut the interest of his interpretations, it does hold a number of traps for the casual reader, who may assume that Graves' essays offer standard, scholastically unbiased interpretations based on proven historical events.

For myself, I use Graves' THE GREEK MYTHS as both reference and pleasure-reading, and I enjoy it a great deal; it is an indispensable purchase for any one with a serious interest in Greek mythology for any one who must frequently reference the same for scholarly purposes, and I strongly recommend it to them.Read more ›
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4.0 out of 5 starsThe White Goddess strikes again
By Kelly (Fantasy Literature) VINE VOICE on March 12, 2003
Format: Paperback
I could make a hobby out of "Graves-izing" popular stories. How about Cinderella? If Robert Graves got hold of that story, he'd say something like this: "Cinderella's name means Ash-lady, which denotes her as the ash-pale Death-goddess of winter. She and her two stepsisters form the classic Triple Goddess. Originally, the sisters' names were probably Destruction and Pestilence. Cinderella's transformation at the hands of the Fairy Godmother was really a late patriarchal addition; no doubt the original goddess transformed herself, showing her Love-goddess face rather than her more spectral one. Her dance with the Prince is an example of the White Goddess's choice of the King of the Waxing Year as her consort. In the version that has come down to us, she loses her shoe, but certainly in the uncorrupted, original myth, it was the Prince who lost his shoe, as the sacrificial king was often marked by a limp. This can be seen in the Welsh story of Math ap Mathonwy, and Dionysos's epithets also hinted at lameness. At the hour of midnight, that is to say, the witching hour, Cinderella reveals her terrible, ravening face by turning back into the ragged Death-goddess. Undoubtedly, the story ended with Cinderella's murder of the Prince, and her mourning for him by painting her face with the ashes of his funeral pyre, as the Welsh women mourned for Llew Llaw Gyffes. The happy ending we are familiar with is actually the record of the patriarchal takeover, when the White Goddess was forcibly married to the Year-King who had become the supreme god of the new mythology." Hey, that was fun!
Graves wrote in a poem once, "There is one story and one story only.Read more ›
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3.0 out of 5 starsProcrustes and Rorschach's Myths
By L. E. Cantrell on October 18, 2005
Format: Paperback
Procrustes was a gentleman who made travel upon the byways of ancient Greece interestingly hazardous. He had an iron bed onto which he placed any traveler who fell into his hands. If the traveler was too long for the bed, jolly old Procrustes lopped off the excess. It the traveler was too short, Procrustes stretched him to fit. One day Theseus appeared before Procrustes' door and allowed the old bandit the opportunity to measure himself on his bed.

Robert Graves wrote with the intention of expounding and explaining Greek myths. Unstated but implicit in this intention were two ideas: that there is a more or less self-consistent thing called the Greek myths and that they have a more or less consistent meaning. Neither of these things is necessarily true.

The influence of Thomas Bullfinch is so all-pervasive that we are almost blind to it. He provided the English-speaking world with a convenient handbook of myths that made it appear that the Greek (and derivative Roman) world had a central core of beliefs as definable as the Bible, the Qur'an or, for that matter, the Book of Mormon. Admittedly, Graves offers some variant versions, but then, so does Genesis. Years later, Edith Hamilton, with more scholarship and a lot less charm, re-emphasized the lesson.

Was it Bullfinch's intention to assemble a handbook of Greek myths? Not really. In his preface, he makes his intention clear. He was a teacher whose students were unable to understand allusions made by great poets of the English language, Shelley, Byron, Wordsworth and their ilk. His handbook is not of Greek myths but of English poetical allusions to Greek myths.Read more ›
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Most Recent Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 starsThrilled w evryth = happy 4 simple knot designs thats exactly wat l...

Thrilled w evryth = happy 4 simple knot designs thats exactly wat l wantd but thers 2 pics on ea pg SO ODDS R 2 B DAFE THAT COLOR OR MARKS DONT COME THRU UR BEST OFF PICKING 1 of... Read more

Published 8 months ago by Amazon Customer
5.0 out of 5 starsI like these books

I like these books. Well written by Ken Graves, each chapter is accompanied with a historic or factual essay that explains the roots of the story. Useful index. Yes.

Published 9 months ago by Golf18
5.0 out of 5 starsRobert Graves' Greek Myths a Total Joy.

A beautiful book, perfect for my Classics course, but read also for sheer enjoyment. You can not look past Robert Graves as the definitive author on Greek myths.

Published 9 months ago by Amazon Customer
5.0 out of 5 starsGraves

This is the third time I have bought this book. The other two were read to shreds. Graves' scholarship is stupendous. Read more

Published 12 months ago by reader
5.0 out of 5 starsFive Stars

GREAT

Published 12 months ago by Will Doyle
4.0 out of 5 starsWork in progress

Still reading but entertained so far.

Published 12 months ago by Katherine
5.0 out of 5 starsGreat Present to give also

Very interesting read. Great Present to give also!

Published 13 months ago by Candy
5.0 out of 5 starsA must read book

All reviews I have come accross on this great book come from those super clever personalities who hate Robert Graves. Why ? Read more

Published 13 months ago by Georg Blomeyer
4.0 out of 5 starsClassic Folio Society

Received as a gift and loved it. Well written - though a little wordy at times. Good, overall synopsis of the Greek myths. Beautiful binding in a slipcase. Set of two volumes. Read more

Published 14 months ago by Simply Elegant
4.0 out of 5 starsGreek myths and their underlying interpretive levels

Faithful recordings of ancient Greek myths so that their interpretation can be carried out at various levels - social, anthropological, historical, evolutionary - depicting the... Read more

Published 15 months ago by A K Bhattacharyya(India)

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