Emily Wilson's Five Books That Shaped Her Odyssey Translation
Emily Wilson, a groundbreaking translator, became the first woman to put Homer's Odyssey into English verse while working at the University of Pennsylvania in 2017. As she prepares for the release of her third nonfiction book, "Crossing the Wine-Dark Sea: Journeys Through Ancient Literature," set for September, Wilson highlighted five influential works that shaped her translation during an interview with Vogue. These include texts by Lillian E. Doherty, Matthew Arnold, Ursula K. LeGuin, Christopher Logue, and Lawrence Venuti. Her translation has also generated discussions surrounding the forthcoming film adaptation by Christopher Nolan, which she has openly critiqued.
Key facts
- Emily Wilson became the first woman to translate Homer's Odyssey into English verse in 2017.
- She is a British classicist and professor of classical studies at the University of Pennsylvania.
- Her third nonfiction book, Crossing the Wine-Dark Sea: Journeys Through Ancient Literature, will be released in September.
- Wilson shared five books with Vogue that aided her translation.
- The books include works by Lillian E. Doherty, Matthew Arnold, Ursula K. LeGuin, Christopher Logue, and Lawrence Venuti.
- Wilson praised the work of Irene de Jong on Homeric narrative perspective.
- Her translation has been part of the discourse around Christopher Nolan's The Odyssey film adaptation.
- Wilson has spoken about weak points in Nolan's adaptation.
Entities
Artists
- Emily Wilson
- Lillian E. Doherty
- Matthew Arnold
- Francis Newman
- Ursula K. LeGuin
- Christopher Logue
- Lawrence Venuti
- Irene de Jong
- Christopher Nolan
- Homer
Institutions
- University of Pennsylvania
- Vogue
Locations
- United Kingdom
- United States