How this little gem has been so completely overlooked I simply do not understand. I have to confess that I am as guilty as the next person. As an inveterate reader of the Iliad in translation and of everything I can get my hands on about the Iliad, I had somehow missed this. I first saw it obliquely referenced in the New York Review of Books. I can not even remember what the book being reviewed was. But i Do recall that Griffin's book was mentioned in a footnote.

It took me a couple of weeks to read it -- though it clocks in at barely over 200 pages. Not because it it tough slogging, but because the ideas are so startling and so ingenious that you have to sit back, savour them, re-read them, and then press on. I kept my favorite translation of the Iliad to hand (Fagles) and spent hours cross-referencing Griffin and Fagles texts in their respective margins. Now when I pick up the Iliad in search of a memorable passage I have a note that takes me straight to Griffin's lucid, limip analysis.

As a society we do not understand death very well -- and we are not prepared for it. I first confronted this when my mother died. I ralized then that nothing I had learned, nothing I had ever read, prepared me properly for the event. I wish I had read Griffin on the subject before that fateful day. At one point he writes, "...the Iliad is a poem of death rather than of fighting. The subject of the poem is life and death, constrasted with the greatest possible sharpness."

He writes passionately at all times -- and, on ocassion, almost polemically. But his opinions are always founded on the most careful analysis of the text.

Here he is on the value of Greek myth:

"Greek myth is distinguished from others above all by the dominant position within it of myths about heroes....They illuminate...the potential and limitations of man in the world. In the noble speeches and tragic insights of a Sarpedon, a Hector, an Achilles, we see both the terrible and unalterable laws of life and death, and also the greatness which man can achieve in facing them. The loyalty of Penelope, the endurance of Odysseus, the self-sacrifice of Patroclus, even the tragic dignity of the guilty Helen: all show us that amid suffering and disaster human nature can remain noble and almost god-like."

Griffin also translates EVERYTHING. Many of his era, including the magisterial Syme, would hardly have deigned to do this -- assuming that even the lay reader should have a knowledge of Latin or Greek. But not Jasper Griffin. Thank you Jasper.....

If you love the Iliad, you will LOVE Griffin. I also discovered a reference to this book at the end of "Who Killed Homer". Now, depending upon your view of Hanson (I love him) that may either damn or exalt Griffin in your eyes. But for what it is worth, Hanson listed this little book as one of the ten books on antiquity that MUST be read. And he is right!!

This book does an excellent job of serving as a primer for studies of the ancient Greeks.

This is the Oxford Book of Snobs, and displays the erudition that one has come to expect from that press. Utilizing quotations from a variety of sources (many literary, of the highest quality), it presents a sophisticated view of snobbery that transcends more simplistic sociological and anecdotal books.

While the appeal of the 'oxford' name and the attractive price/page ratio make this book seem like a good deal, I found it extremely difficult to get any useful information out of this book. The authors give their opinions on subjects, before (or in many cases, in place of) giving any coherent summary of it. Just for example, try to figure out who Draco was. If you don't already know, this book is not going to tell you. The writing style is not especially clear, either. If this is one of the best texts available, I can see why nobody learns classical history anymore.

The best aspect of this book on Greek history is its comprehensive treatment of all aspects of Greek life. Literature, politics, religion, etc. are all covered in this book. My favorite sections dealt with how the Greeks socialized through organizations such as the Gymnasion and the Prytany. It really showed how the Greeks were devoted to the polis and how they were required to be very social creatures from cradle to grave. A serious problem of the book is tendencies by some of the authors to write in a style that is not user friendly. Also, a background in Greek history is required to recognize names and places. Without that you will be lost. Don't buy it unless you are really interested in Greek culture.

This is a very good work on classical Europe.

There are many virtues of this complete book, I would like to stress though its most important: its fresh look at ancient world (eg the first chapter by Mr G.Forrest is a good example), and although one might not agree with all points in the book (e.g the hindoeuropen idea at which Mr Griffin is attached is at best weak), but certainly one agrees that the concept of the book is on the right track.

I especially enjoyed the very good chapters in a not well known part of hellenic history, that of the hellenistic times, at which the Macedonian hellenes, made Greece a Universal culture. Buy this book and study it, you can only gain!

The Roman World is an overview of Roman art and history (alot to cover in one book). Without a solid background in Roman history it is very hard to keep up with this book. Lots of gaps that a scholar might be able to fill in but I had a very difficult time piecing everything together. Not for the casual reader.