Homeric Moments

Whether readers are tackling the Odyssey and the Iliad for the first time or are already well acquainted with the works of Homer, they will uncover the connections and layers of meaning that have made the epics ''the marvel of the ages'' in this scholarly and encouraging resource. The inexhaustible pleasures of Homer are highlighted by focusing on a number of ''Homeric moments'' -- crucial scenes from the epics that cast a vivid or hilarious or poignant light on the narratives: Penelope and Odysseus, faithful wife and returning husband, sit face to face in private over the hearth for the first time in 20 years; young Telemachus, with his father Odysseus at his side, boldly faces the angry suitors; Achilles kills Hector, his mirror image, on the battlefield. Whatever the ''clues to delight'', these leads take the reader behind the story to reveal hidden treasures in the poetry.