GRST 103 - Homer’s Iliad in Modern Adaptations

1 unit(s)

Homer’s Iliad, dating from over 2 millennia ago, continues to inspire poets, playwrights and novelists working today. In this class we study contemporary responses to the poem, all of them composed in English within the past five to ten years. The adaptations include poetry, drama and novelistic responses. Among the questions we consider are: Why does the poem, which offers an account of the last year of the mythological war between the Greeks and the Trojans, continue to capture our imagination? What is it about our current cultural moment that has drawn so many artists to the ancient poem? How can we consider the role that the Homer’s poem plays in these modern works while also taking these modern receptions seriously on their own terms? After a close reading of the Iliad, among the modern adaptations we consider are Simon Armitage’s The Story of the Iliad (2015), Madeline Miller’s The Song of Achilles (2012), David Malouf’s Ransom (2011) and Alice Oswald’s Memorial (2013).

Open only to first-year students; satisfies the college requirement for a First-Year Writing Seminar.

Two 75-minute periods.

Not offered in 2023/24.

Course Format: CLS