By Noah Apter
The opening lines of the Iliad could not capture the essence of the text more. The imagery of Apollo storming down from Olympus, the rattling of the arrows on his back, and the audible twang of the silver bow all give rise to immense feelings of dread, fear, and despair.
Tag: Noah Apter
An Emotional, Brutal Translation of Iliad 5.1–29: The Beginning of Diomedes’ Aristeia
An Emotional, Brutal Translation of Iliad 5.1–29: The Beginning of Diomedes’ Aristeia
By Noah Apter
Through my word choice and overall translation of the text, I want to preserve the vivid imagery and raw emotions we feel while reading Homer (examples include intense feelings of awe, glory, and dread). When reading any original narrative Greek text, I feel like I can produce a realistic and precise painting of what is happening in the passage inside my head…
History of the Peloponnesian War
History of the Peloponnesian War
By Noah Apter
Pericles’s Funeral Oration comes down the centuries as one of the most difficult pieces of ancient Greek literature to properly translate. To us classicists, it seems that Thucydides wishes to help us sharpen our teeth on his grammar. Why? It is in the nature of speeches to differ from narrative texts, the former tending to be “live,” while narratives deliver recollections of events past…
Pericles’s Funeral Oration
Pericles’s Funeral Oration: A Partial Translation of The History of the Peloponnesian War 2.37-41
By Noah Apter
Pericles’s funeral oration comes down the centuries as one of the most difficult pieces of ancient Greek literature to properly translate. As classicists, it seems that Thucydides wishes to help us sharpen our teeth on his grammar. Why? It is in the nature of speeches to differ from narrative texts, the former tending to be “live” while narratives…
The Burden of Snow on Struggling Trees
The Burden of Snow on Struggling Trees
By Noah Apter
Do you see how Mount Soracte stands, pure white with deep snow, and how the struggling trees can no longer bear the burden of snow, and how the rivers have frozen over with biting frost? Ward away the cold by generously tossing…
Dialogues of the Dead 23
Dialogues of the Dead 23
By Noah Apter
Lucian’s Dialogues of the Dead contains thirty largely comedic miniature dialogues between deceased Greek figures. The 23rd dialogue, which is notably more somber than the others, occurs…