Son of Odysseus
Telegonos: A Tragedy in Verse by Jonathan Golding
Odysseus is one of the most fascinating figures from ancient literature. Rather than embody a single, fixed meaning—as Achilles does wrath unleashed and reconciled, or Antigone unswerving devotion to family, or Aeneas duty over personal happiness—Odysseus's signification as a legendary warrior of the Trojan War shifts considerably from Homer to the Greek tragedians, and again from the tragedians to Dante.
In the Odyssey, Odysseus is a noble, if crafty survivor who just wants to get home. He uses his wits to protect himself, his men, and his family, but he is essentially pious and honorable. He represents the ideal Homeric hero who balances prowess on the battlefield with the gift of persuasion, strength of arm with suppleness of tongue, able equally to manipulate weapons and words to achieve his goals.
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Louis Markos , Professor in English and Scholar in Residence at Houston Baptist University, holds the Robert H. Ray Chair in Humanities. His 19 books include Lewis Agonistes; Restoring Beauty: The Good, the True, and the Beautiful in the Writings of C. S. Lewis; On the Shoulders of Hobbits: The Road to Virtue with Tolkien and Lewis; and From A to Z to Narnia with C. S. Lewis.
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