Translated by Gregory Nagy Muse, tell me the things done by golden Aphrodite, the one from Cyprus, who arouses sweet desire for gods and who subdues the populations of mortal humans, and birds as well, who fly in the sky, as well as all beasts 5 —all those that grow on both dry land and the sea [pontos]. They all know the things done by the one… Read more
Translated by Gregory Nagy I begin to sing of Demeter, the holy goddess with the beautiful hair. And her daughter [Persephone] too. The one with the delicate ankles, whom Hādēs1 seized. She was given away by Zeus, the loud-thunderer, the one who sees far and wide. Demeter did not take part in this, she of the golden double-axe, she who glories in the harvest. 5 She [Persephone]… Read more
Translated by Gregory Nagy 1Muses of Pieria, you who make glory [kleos] with your songs, 2come and tell of Zeus, making a song about your father, 3on account of whom there are mortals both unworthy of talk and worthy,… Read more
1–115: Translated by Gregory Nagy 116–1022: Translated by J. Banks Adapted by Gregory Nagy Invocation Let me begin to sing of the Muses of Helikon, who abide on the great and holy Mount Helikon. Around the deep-blue spring, with dainty feet, they dance, and around the altar of the mighty son of Kronos. 5 Washing their tender skin in the waters of the Permessos or of the Horse’s… Read more
The Epic Cycle Translated by Gregory Nagy Revised by Eugenia Lao Proclus’ Summary of the Cypria, attributed to Stasinus of Cyprus {p.102} 13 Zeus, together with Themis, plans the Trojan 14 War. For Eris, while attending a feast of the gods 15 at the wedding of Peleus, instigates a feud [neikos] among Athena, 16 Hera, and Aphrodite about beauty. Read more
Translated by Samuel Butler Revised by Soo-Young Kim, Kelly McCray, Gregory Nagy, and Timothy Power [Go to Rhapsody 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23,… Read more
Translated by Samuel Butler Revised by Soo-Young Kim, Kelly McCray, Gregory Nagy, and Timothy Power [Go to Rhapsody 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20,… Read more
Nagy challenges the widely held view that the development of lyric poetry in Greece represents the rise of individual innovation over collective tradition. Arguing that Greek lyric represents a tradition in its own right, Nagy shows how the form of Greek epic is in fact a differentiation of forms found in Greek lyric. Throughout, he progressively broadens the definition of lyric to the point where it becomes the basis for… Read more
Online edition of Hellenic Studies 58, published in print in 2013 by the Center for Hellenic Studies. Copyright, Center for Hellenic Studies. The print version is available for purchase via Harvard University Press here. To download an e-book version of this book in epub format, click here. Read more
