The Ancient World ...
... of Greece, and the Modern
Quotes of the week
"The only true wisdom is in knowing you know nothing."
Socrates
“The Greeks had invented democracy, built the Acropolis and called it a day.”
David Sedaris, Naked
“Greece is the home of the gods; they may have died but their presence still makes itself felt. The gods were of human proportion: they were created out of the human spirit.”
Henry Miller, The Colossus of Maroussi
“You have to make allowances for all other arts; it is only Greek art that leaves you forever in its debt.”
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, Maxims and Reflections
Hello,
We are planning a trip to Greece in September and October, so I thought it would be a good thing to take a closer look. I think we are all thinking of the fires that so devastatingly sweeps over, mostly, the islands, and the people affected by them. A terrible thing, and I only hope they will soon be under control. We are planning to drive from Austria, via Croatia and Albania and enter Greece in the north. A first visit to Pella, where Alexander the Great was born, further down south to Meteora and Delphi and over to the Peloponnese region.
The Greek Myths
I read an interesting article on Book Riot, (full article under link) on the subject In a wave of Greek Mythology retellings, where are the Greek writers? by Lyndsie Manusos. If you are a reader you might have noticed lately, how many books are published on the old Greek myths? Either as a nonfiction, or more commonly as historical fiction, using the Greek myths, often regarding women, to weave a free story based on what we know of the myths. Madeleine Miller (The Song of Achilles, Circe, Galatea, Heracle’s Bow and Persephone), Jennifer Saint (Ariadne, Elektra, Atalanta, Arianna) Nathalie Hayes (A Thousand Ships, Stone Blind, Pandora’s Jar) just to mention a few. Then we have Mary Renault (1905-1983) who wrote several books about Greece, here a few: The King Must Die/The Bull from the Sea (Theseus), and probably her most famous, the three books about Alexander the Great (Fire from Heaven, The Persian Boy and Funeral Games). Of these four authors three are English and one is American. It seems authors from the English speaking countries are more likely to get their books spread across the globe (and through social media) than Greek authors, writing about their own myths.
Books, films and tv-series about mythology and Ancient times are very popular today. Just look at all the films and tv-series about the Vikings and the Norse myths. It might be because the gods of the Norse and Greek myths seem to be more like human beings than an unattainable God in more recent religions. I lived in Athens in 1989-90 and made some trips around the country. The landscape is so exceptional that you can almost see Zeus coming down the hills on his wagon. The same when we recently visited the north of Norway. The landscape is so close to how you imagine the Norse gods living, travelling and fighting, that you expect them to stand in front of you behind the next curve. There is something there that make these mythological gods come alive.
Luckily there are several Greek authors also writing about the myths and ancient times. It brings more diversity into the description of the world and its inhabitants. In the article you find a list of Greek authors writing about the myths. On top of this we do have the famous ancient authors who, through philosophy, literature or science, gave us the base for the civilisation that we have today in the west.
Homer
The most famous of them all is Homer who gave us The Iliad and The Odyssey. The Iliad is the famous story of the Trojan war and the fight between Achilles and Hector. The writing seems very fresh considering it was put to paper so many years ago. There are a lot of fighting scenes which I find somewhat dreary, but the story itself is great. Easier to read is The Odyssey. It is the story of one of the heros of the war, Odysseus, king of Ithaka, and his 10 year long ordeal to travel back home to his kingdom, his wife Penelope and son Telemachus. One could say it is a trip with many obstacles of different kinds, but quite enjoyable to read.
Sappho
I would also like to mention Sappho of Lesbos (c. 630-c.570 BC). She was from a wealthy family from Lesbos, but was exiled to Sicily around 600 BC. According to legend, she killed herself by leaping from the Leucadian cliffs (on the island of Lefkada in the Ionian Sea). The reason should be her unrequited love for Phaon, the ferryman. Well, one wonders. She is know for her lyric poetry, which should be accompanied by music, and was regarded as one of the greatest poets even during her life time. Unfortunately most of her poems are lost, or exist only in fragments. Still beautiful to read, and her most famous work is Fragment 31.
"That man seems to me to be equal to the gods
who is sitting opposite you
and hears you nearby
speaking sweetly
and laughing delightfully, which indeed
makes my heart flutter in my breast;
for when I look at you even for a short time,
it is no longer possible for me to speak
but it is as if my tongue is broken
and immediately a subtle fire has run over my skin,
I cannot see anything with my eyes,
and my ears are buzzing
a cold sweat comes over me, trembling
seizes me all over, I am paler
than grass, and I seem nearly
to have died.
but everything must be dared/endured, since (?even a poor man) ..."
Our trip
I think there will be no lack of literature to read about Greece, ancient or modern, fiction or nonfiction. Maybe we can even visit Sappho’s cliffs on Lefkada, which is more or less on our way home. If anyone has a good book to recommend, please let me know.
But, first we will spend a couple of weeks in Austria. We have booked tickets to two operettas in Bad Ischl, a spa town close to Salzburg. I have never seen an operetta so looking forward to that experience. This is also the place where Emperor Franz Joseph spent his summers and first caught eye on Sisi. On 19 August 1853 they announced their engagement. Must be a few museums and spas to have a look at.