THE ILIAD

A stunning Penguin clothbound edition of Homers great epic in E. V. Rieus classic translation.i stylefontfamily: arial: fontsize: 14px: backgroundcolor: rgb(255 255 255):The Iliad is the first and the greatest literary achievement of Greek civilization an epic poem without rival in the literature of the world and the cornerstone of Western culture. The story centres on the critical events in the last year of the Trojan War which lead to Achilleus killing of Hektor and determine the fate of Troy. But Homers theme is not simply war or heroism. With compassion and humanity he presents a universal and tragic view of the world of human life lived under the shadow of suffering and death set against a vast and largely unpitying divine background.. Seven Greek cities claim the honour of being the birthplace of Homer (c. 8th7th century BC) the poet to whom the composition of the i stylebackgroundcolor: rgb(255 255 255):Iliadand i stylefontfamily: arial: fontsize: 14px: backgroundcolor: rgb(255 255 255):Odyssey are attributed. The i stylefontfamily: arial: fontsize: 14px: backgroundcolor: rgb(255 255 255):Iliad is the oldest surviving work of Western literature but the identity or even the existence of Homer himself is a complete mystery with no reliable biographical information having survived.E. V. Rieu initiated Penguin Classics with Allen Lane and his famous translation of thei stylebackgroundcolor: rgb(255 255 255): Odyssey was the first book published in the series in 1947. i stylebackgroundcolor: rgb(255 255 255):The Iliad followed in 1950.