University of Pennsylvania classical studies professor Emily Wilson received considerable critical praise and popular attention for her translations of Homer's Iliad and Odyssey (and her criticism of Christopher Nolan's film). In the 13 erudite and lively essays that compose Crossing the Wine-Dark Sea, she reveals the complexities of the translator's art while simultaneously conducting a stimulating tour of Greek and Roman literature.
Starting from "The Pleasures of Translation," Wilson makes clear that literary translation involves much more than simply rendering ancient Greek or Latin into serviceable English prose. One recurring theme is the decision facing the translator about whether to preserve a work's poetic meter. The collection's most technical piece is its last, "Translating the Odyssey." In it, Wilson takes readers inside the translator's workshop to reveal how "we dance different ways along the tightrope." She selects several brief passages from Homer's work and then analyzes the strikingly different ways translators from the 17th century to the present have delivered them to English-language readers. Wilson's essays also travel deeply into the works of writers such as Sappho, Catullus, and Aeschylus, exploring subjects that include female sexuality, Roman humor, and slavery in the ancient world.
Wilson concludes with a brief but helpful afterword containing 20 principles that direct her own practice as well as her evaluation of the translations of others. For her, "the project--of devoting your life to these great texts, of bringing them to life in new ways for new generations--is always worth it." Anyone who's been exposed to Wilson's work will learn much from the insights of these essays and will hope her journey as a trusted guide through this distant world continues. --Harvey Freedenberg, freelance reviewer