Andrew Ford here addresses, in a manner both engaging and richly
informed, the perennial questions of what poetry is, how it came to
be, and what it is for. Focusing on the critical moment in Western
literature when the heroic tales of the Greek oral tradition began
to be preserved in writing, he examines these questions in the
light of Homeric poetry. Through fresh readings of the Iliad and
the Odyssey, and referring to other early epics as well, Ford
deepens our understanding of what poetry was at a time before
written texts, before a developed sense of authorship, and before
the existence of institutionalized criticism. Placing what is known
about Homer's art in the wider context of Homer's world, Ford
traces the effects of the oral tradition upon the development of
the epic and addresses such issues as the sources of the poet's
inspiration and the generic constraints upon epic composition.
After exploring Homer's poetic vocabulary and his fictional and
mythical representations of the art of singing, Ford reconstructs
an idea of poetry much different from that put forth by previous
interpreters. Arguing that Homer grounds his project in religious
rather than literary or historical terms, he concludes that archaic
poetry claims to give a uniquely transparent and immediate
rendering of the past. Homer: The Poetry of the Past will be
stimulating and enjoyable reading for anyone interested in the
traditions of poetry, as well as for students and scholars in the
fields of classics, literary theory and literary history, and
intellectual history.
General
Imprint: |
Cornell University Press
|
Country of origin: |
United States |
Release date: |
August 2019 |
First published: |
1994 |
Authors: |
Andrew Ford
(Ewing Professor of Greek Language and Literature & Professor of Classics)
|
Dimensions: |
216 x 140mm (L x W) |
Format: |
Paperback - Trade
|
Pages: |
240 |
ISBN-13: |
978-1-5017-4065-7 |
Categories: |
Books
|
LSN: |
1-5017-4065-2 |
Barcode: |
9781501740657 |
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