In this first episode of the Instant Classics Book Club, Mary and
Charlotte explain why The Odyssey is such a pleasure, as well as
historically significant, and provide the basic facts necessary to
get going. Sign up here:
https://instantclassics.supportingcast.fm/ Pick a translation - any
translation - and get reading with us. The Odyssey, along with its
sister text, The Iliad, is often considered the bedrock of western
literature. In it are the seeds of the road movie, the family
drama, fantasy fiction, the Western, and any number of genres. It’s
also being adapted in a soon to be released film starring Matt
Damon as the wily hero, Odysseus. So what better choice of text for
the inaugural Instant Classics Book Club? The Odyssey tells
the story of Odysseus, King of Ithaca, and his (literally) epic
journey home after the Greek war againstTroy. He encounters the
man-eating cyclops, the dangerously alluring sirens (the original
femmes fatales) – and he stops in the land of the lotus eaters, the
land of blissful forgetfulness. But there is so much more to the
story than a series of adventures. It’s also a story of what’s
going on at home while he is away: his wife Penelope is trying to
avoid being married off to one of a horde of ghastly “suitors” and
his young son Telemachus learns how to be a man. The end is both
happy and a grisly bloodbath. Over the coming months, Mary
and Charlotte are taking a deep dive into this greatest of all
stories - and inviting you to read along with them. They’ll be
sharing their lifetime’s enjoyment of it, putting it in context,
and unpicking some occasionally tricky bits! And send your
thoughts to instantclassicspod@gmail.com @instaclassicpod for
Insta, TikTok and YouTube @insta_classics for X +email:
instantclassicspod@gmail.com (We hope you enjoy this introduction
to The Odyssey. To continue the journey, please join the Instant
Classics Book Club at https://instantclassics.supportingcast.fm/
New episodes will be published every other Tuesday, and available
exclusively for members beginning 30th September. Sign up now with
the promo code EARLYBIRD25 to receive a 25% discount on
membership). Mary and Charlotte’s recommended reads: The
translation we will be quoting from is that of Emily Wilson. But
really any will do (there is another even more recent version by
Daniel Mendelsohn, which we will be keeping an eye on too). There
are also plenty available free online. Most of those are rather old
(and sometimes sound a bit stilted), but you can find a more up to
date version here:
https://johnstoniatexts.x10host.com/homer/odysseytofc.html Both
Wilson and Mendelsohn start with very useful introductions to the
poem. But try also: Barbara Graziosi, Homer: a very short
introduction (OUP paperback, 2016) Edith Hall, The Return of
Ulysses (IB Tauris paperback, 2012) (you can download the
whole book here:
https://edithhall.co.uk/product/the-return-of-ulysses-a-cultural-history-of-homers-odyssey/)
The Open University has a useful website (“free course”) on the
Odyssey, with links all kinds of articles (including one by
Charlotte on the theme of “warrior home-comings”):
https://www.open.edu/openlearn/history-the-arts/exploring-homers-odyssey/content-section-3
Instant Classics handmade by Vespucci Producer: Jonty
Claypole Executive Producer: Jo Meek Senior Producer:
Natalia Rodriguez Ford Video Editor: Jak Ford Theme music: Casey
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