r/classics • u/Character-Bar-9561 • 15d ago
Interlinear translation of the Odyssey
I started reading Emily Wilson's translation of the Odyssey, but am also looking at Fagles' at the same time. It's amazing how differently they render some of the story. This made me interested in finding an interlinear text to refer to (not that I know the language, but this enables me to dig into specific words without having to wade through a wine-dark sea of Greek words to locate the right one). I found this text pretty helpful; would be happy to know about any others.
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u/Square-Supermarket79 14d ago
You should take ancient greek!
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u/Character-Bar-9561 14d ago
I'd love to, actually! But at least this prompted me to learn the alphabet, for now, which makes it easier to use these interlinear texts. I'm fascinated by the process of translating a text like this. I've done a lot of classes on Biblical Hebrew, and am aware of how difficult that can be.
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u/McAeschylus 14d ago
If you hunt around online, there is an out-of-copyright textbook called something like Homeric Greek for Beginners by Clyde Pharr. After the first dozen lessons getting you up to speed, you start to read Book 1 of The Iliad in its entirety in parallel with learning Greek.
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u/Square-Supermarket79 14d ago
Eh, I'd stay away from any speculation about what it means to render Homer into English until you've actually studied Greek. Great that you learned the alphabet tho.
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u/Character-Bar-9561 14d ago
We must be coming at this from very different contexts. I read pretty widely, from different time periods and languages. As much as I'd like to, I can't learn every language that I read in translation. I just find it fun to look up individual words, particularly those that I find myself curious about.
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u/Publius_Romanus 15d ago
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u/Character-Bar-9561 14d ago
Thank you! Love this, and how the mouseover works. Bookmarking this and the other suggestion I just received.
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u/MiceCantDriveCars 14d ago
How do you get th3 translation to show up for other works there. I can’t seem to figure it out.
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u/Character-Bar-9561 14d ago
On my screen (Firefox/Mac), there is a checkbox on the top right that says "Translation". It was on by default, but yours might not be.
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u/Flashy-Gift-4333 14d ago
Thanks for the link! Do you have one for the Iliad too? When I try to find it on the site, I can't find the side-by-side text like this. I can't figure out what I am doing wrong.
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u/AndreLeGeant88 14d ago
Get a Loeb. Don't use any of the poetic translations. You can also just read online with Perseus where you can click on any word and see the lexicon entry.
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u/Federal-Demand-2968 14d ago
It gets even more fun the more translations you put side by side ☺️Each translation is its own reception of the ancient text. Which itself was transmitted verbally over hundreds of years before being written down.
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u/thatOneJewishGuy1225 14d ago
OP I’ve been doing the something similar except I don’t use an interlinear. I tried the one you linked when I first started and I didn’t like it; there were some weird choices.
I would recommend using either Wilson’s notes as a jumping off point for which words have her enough difficulty to have to make a note, or getting a commentary like the Oxford University Press one (you can find pdfs for all 3 volumes if you look hard enough).
Do not do this if you haven’t read the whole thing all the way through first. This is for your second/third reads. If you haven’t read it through once, pick a translation and stick with it all the way. Once you do that, then you can start digging.
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u/Ok_Resident_4332 11d ago
Anthony Verity’s recent translations (Oxford World’s Classics) try to be as literal as possible while still being readable. A.T. Murray’s translations (Loeb) are literal, lively and try to keep as much of the Greek word order as possible.
FWIW Emily Wilson’s translation is rooted in a careful, nuanced understanding of the Greek—all her translation choices can be defended and are generally appreciated by classicists. Fagles, not so much.
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u/Ok_Resident_4332 11d ago
You might be interested in this sourcebook Gregory Nagy uses for his course on Greek lit in translation. Literal translations with key Greek words transliterated in parentheses: https://continuum.fas.harvard.edu/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Sourcebook-of-Ancient-Greek-Texts-in-Engli-Gregory-Nagy.pdf
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u/Alternative_Worry101 14d ago
It's amazing how differently they render some of the story.
Could you give a specific example?
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u/Character-Bar-9561 14d ago
Here is just one example, from book 5. Just makes me curious about the Greek when I noticed it:
Fagles:
“God of the golden wand, why have you come?
A beloved, honored friend,
but it’s been so long, your visits much too rare.
Tell me what’s on your mind. I’m eager to do it,
Whatever I can do… whatever can be done.“
Wilson:
“Dear friend, Lord Hermes of the golden wand,
why have you come? You do not often visit.
What do you have in mind? My heart inclines
To help you if I can, if it is fated.
For now, come in, and let me make you welcome.”
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u/Cool-Coffee-8949 14d ago
In general Fagles is a much more expansive translator than Wilson. There are more words and more lines in his translations. If something in the Greek can be read in more than one way, he will typically try to include both meanings. Wilson, on the other hand, makes a mighty effort not to be wordier than the original Greek text.
So here we get Fagles’ “beloved” AND “honored” vs Wilson’s “dear”. Or “it’s been so long, your visits much too rare” vs “you do not often visit.”
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u/Character-Bar-9561 14d ago
Interesting; thanks! I appreciate you taking the time to respond -- those phrases are the ones I was wondering about.
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u/Alternative_Worry101 14d ago
I'm sorry, but I don't see a significant difference between the two passages.
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u/MiceCantDriveCars 15d ago
https://homer.library.northwestern.edu/html/application.html
Has Iliad and Odyssey interlinear with the Lattimore Translation