Kostas Myrsiades (dir.), Reading Homer: Film and Text, Madison/Teaneck: Fairleigh Dickinson University Press, 2009. Pp. 258.
- ISBN 9780838642191.
- $56.50.
Recension par Robert J. Rabel (University of Kentucky) dans Bryn Mawr Classical Review 2010.03.12.
Présentation de l'éditeur:
These nine new essays on Homer's epics deal notonly with major Homeric themes of time (honor), kleos (fame), geras(rewards), the psychology of Homeric warriors, and the re-evaluation oftype scenes, but also with Homer's influence on contemporary film.Following the introduction and an essay which sets the historicalbackground for the epics, four essays are devoted to fresh analysis ofkey passages and themes while another four turn to a discussion of thefilm "Troy" and Homer's influence on two other genres of Americancinema.
The background essay by Shawn Ross, "Homer as History:Greeks and Others in the Early Iron Age," argues that understandingHomeric epic as the product of a longstanding oral traditionfacilitates its use as a source for early Greek history. The next fouressays delve into Homer's texts themselves focusing on a number offresh approaches to the epics. Rick Newton's "Geras and Guest Gifts inHomer" draws parallels between xeineia (hospitality and guest-gifts) in the Odyssey and geras (gifts from plunder) in the Iliad. JOhn B. Vlahos's "Homer's Odyssey,Books 19 and 23: Early Recognition: A Solution to the Enigmas of Ivoryand Horns, and the Test of the Bed: tackles certain aspects of the Odyssey that have created problems for Homerists since the epics were composed. Scott Richardson's "Conversation in the Odyssey" focuses on character conversation while Joel Christensen in "The End of Speeches and Speech's End: Nestor, Diomedes and the telos muthon" turns back to the Iliad and offers a close reading of a crucial passage in Iliad 9 concerning the phrase telos muthon.
The second set of four essays turn to film beginning with two contributions on Wolfgang Petersen's Troy. Jonathan S. Burgess's "Achilles Heel: The Historicism of the Film Troy"finds the film's weakness in its trying to portray a factual Trojan Warrather than concentrating on the myth of the Trojan War while CharlesC. Chiasson in "Redefining Homeric Heroism in Wolfgang Petersen's Troy," observes that the film intertwines the spheres of love and battle, which he finds irreconcilable in the Iliad.
In the last two essays on American genre film, Bruce Louden's "The Odyssey and Frank Capra's It's a Wonderful Life", emphasizes motifs the film shares with the Odyssey, and Kostas Myrsiades' reading of the 1950s' classic western in "Reading The Gunfighteras Homeric Epic" examines the progress of the warrior through hispursuit of glory and his homecoming by comparing Henry King's The Gunfighter with Homer's two epics.
Table des matières:
Introduction : why read Homer? / Kostas Myrsiades
Homer as history :Greeks and others in a dark age / Shawn Ross
Geras and guest giftsin Homer / Rick M. Newton
Homer's Odyssey, Books 19 and 23 : earlyrecognition, a solution to the enigmas of ivory and horns, and the testof the bed / John B. Vlahos
Conversation in the Odyssey / ScottRichardson
The end of speeches and a speech's end : Nestor,Diomedes, and the telos muthôn / Joel Christensen
Achilles' heel :the historicism of the film Troy / Jonathan S. Burgess
RedefiningHomeric heroism in Wolfgang Petersen's Troy / Charles C. Chiasson
The Odyssey and Frank Capra's It's a wonderful life / Bruce Louden
Reading The gunfighter as Homeric epic / Kostas Myrsiades.