George Chapman Book order (chronological)

This reprint of a classic work from 1857 offers readers a chance to explore the themes and ideas that shaped its time. The book retains the original text, providing an authentic glimpse into the historical context and cultural nuances of the era. It serves as a valuable resource for those interested in literature's evolution and the societal issues reflected in 19th-century writings.

The abduction of the beautiful Helen, wife of the King of Sparta, caused the ten-year Trojan War. Homer, who lived in Greece in the eighth century BCE, describes the thrilling events of the last year of the war. The Iliad and The Odyssey are the first European works of literature.

George Chapman's translations of Homer are among the most famous in the English language. Keats immortalized the work of the Renaissance dramatist and poet in the sonnet "On First Looking into Chapman's Homer." Swinburne praised the translations for their "romantic and sometimes barbaric grandeur," their "freshness, strength, and inextinguishable fire." The great critic George Saintsbury (1845-1933) wrote: "For more than two centuries they were the resort of all who, unable to read Greek, wished to know what Greek was. Chapman is far nearer Homer than any modern translator in any modern language." This volume presents the original text of Chapman's translation of the Odyssey (1614-15), making only a small number of modifications to punctuation and wording where they might confuse the modern reader. The editor, Allardyce Nicoll, provides an introduction, textual notes, a glossary, and a commentary. Garry Wills's preface to the Odyssey explores how Chapman's less strained meter lets him achieve more delicate poetic effects as compared to the Iliad. Wills also examines Chapman's "fine touch" in translating "the warm and human sense of comedy" in the Odyssey. Oft of one wide expanse had I been told That deep-browed Homer ruled as his demesne; Yet did I never breathe its pure serene Till I heard Chapman speak out loud and bold. --John Keats

This is an account of how the author, facing possible blindness, consulted the medium, George Chapman. Chapman was purported to be controlled by a famous consultant surgeon, Willliam Lang, who died in 1937. To Hutton's astonishment, he was cured, and Hutton decided to investigate further.