[B-Greek] Iliad, anyone?

David Schultz philosopher at creighton.edu
Fri Apr 22 19:06:18 EDT 2005


On Apr 22, 2005, at 1:18 PM, Keith Saare wrote:

> My resources for studying classical are very scarce. I am relying upon
> Liddell & Scott (L&S) and my NT grammars.

Beware the dual (see line 6) - this isn't in NT Greek. : ) A couple of 
Homeric lexicons would be good.

Other than the standard lexicons in Homeric Greek and grammar, 
Autenrieth, Pharr., I like "Iliad Book 1" by Draper, "Homer, Iliad I" 
by Pulleyn to get you into the language, meter, and its peculiarities.

> * OULOMENHN - L&S lexical form: OULOMENOS (Aor. Mid. Part. Acc. Fem.
> Sg.), modifies MHNIN and used as adjective, "destructive."

Remember this is poetry with meter and rules about meter, the words per 
line is important unlike the NT; a different kind of syntax is at work. 
  OULOMENHN is an example of enjambment - the grammatical sense of the 
line and the line overrun to the next line. The wrath of Achilles  is 
so destructive it overruns the hexameter meter of the line, one could 
say.  In a way he is using the same word in the first two lines as 
emphasis. "Wrath" is the first word for a reason - it's the theme of 
the poem.

Wrath sing, O goddess, of Achilles, Son of Peleus,
the hellish [wrath] that...

...is my translation. OULOMENHN = "that by which one says 'go to 
blazes!'", so my "hellish."  It's terrible and awful and Homer wants to 
show that.

David Schultz
------
	"...if the unexamined life is not worth living, the unlived life is 
	not worth examining..."
    	 ("Continental Philosophy" (Oxford UP)).
-----
Philosopher, and University Educator
And a lot of things I don't get paid for.




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