The Myths of Greece and Rome
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3.0 • 4 Ratings
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- $10.99
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- $10.99
Publisher Description
This generously illustrated book of classical myths has become a classic itself, long prized for its simple, graphic, accurate retelling of the principal myths of Greece and Rome, and for its commentary on their origins and significance. The myths, as H. A. Guerber observes in her preface, "have inspired so much of the best thought in English literature that a knowledge of them is often essential to the understanding of what we need."
But we have also come to love these stories of Pandora, of Echo and Narcissus, Orpheus and Eurydice, Jason, Hercules, Circe, Helen of Troy, and countless others for their own rich aesthetic qualities, and for their power to stir our imaginations. And today we are learning to look more closely at all mythologies for what they reveal to us of basic human nature and human aspiration.
Beginning with myths involving the gods — Jupiter, Juno, Minerva, Apollo, Diana, Venus, Mercury, Mars, and others — and ending with the adventures of Ulysses and Aeneas, this rich assembly offers hours of compelling reading and abundant insight into one of the fundamental mythologies underlying Western culture. Sixty-four illustrations by such masters as Michelangelo, Raphael, Titian, Rubens, Canova, and Bernini add further classic touches to this time-honored work, which also includes an invaluable genealogical table and a map showing the location of the myths.
Customer Reviews
Disrespectful and Lazy
This book is just kind of a disgrace. I got maybe 8 pages in before I couldn’t read it anymore. The format is confusing and seems more like a text book than anything, and the so very obviously Christian author writes this like she was given a week to summarize all of greek mythology. The names used are not the original Greek versions, but the Roman. I was willing to get past that but there were inconsistencies with even that. If all the names are in the Roman vernacular, shouldn’t Eros (Greek) be called Cupid (Roman)? This honestly feels as though someone watched one of the Percy Jackson movies (yes, movies) and tried to summarize what they learned from memory. An 8th grader could do better.
“The Greeks and Romans...lacking the definite knowledge which we obtain from the scriptures,” is a real line in the beginning of this book, and if you don’t see anything wrong with that, please take a class on religion. To say that the author didn’t respect the ancient traditions is a gross understatement as her rhetoric and diction is particularly distasteful as she talks about certain traditions which happen to mean a lot to some people. I will be finding a book that takes the time to respect this beautiful culture and that actually put some thought into the content (or at least edited it. This feels like a second draft).
I read the introduction again and she literally says that she left out some stories she didn’t find “suitable”