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4.16 AVERAGE
4.16 AVERAGE
What better book to finish off Pride month than the Complete Poems of Sappho, the World's Favourite Greek Lesbian? We should all be reading more Greek literature and poetry, and if we did, the world would be a much more desirable place. Passionate and full of deep love, Sappho's poetry makes you wonder how we ever shifted to a world where gay love was described as unnatural (organised religion, that's how). There is nothing more human than love for another. Probably not For Everyone, but for everyone anyway.
Organisational wise, I would probably have preferred the sections of this book to be rearranged. Having the Greek people and places glossary at the beginning rather at the end would be so much more useful. By reading it before reading any of the poetry, you might actually be able to identify some of the people that Sappho writes about. Of course, there's nothing stopping you from reading it first anyway, but no one jumps to the end of the book and reads that part first. I appreciated the sources, notes, and commentary section a lot, because I am a person that struggles to read older styles of writing, and having little explanations as to who and what is being referenced is immensely helpful in appreciating anything in general. However, I wish that it was intermingled with the poetry itself - having a poem immediately followed by notes and commentary is much easier than flipping back and forth between the beginning and end of the book - especially if you are reading an ebook. As it was, I skipped a lot of the commentary because of this, largely because it felt like I would have to go back and reread the entire poetry section again from start to finish.
Anyway, I'm glad I read this. Ancient Greece and Greek mythology in general is just impossibly cool and relatable, and the world needs it. I could go into so much more detail about how it affects our lives and language and knowledge about pretty much everything. But another time - for now, enjoy the lesbian love poetry.
Organisational wise, I would probably have preferred the sections of this book to be rearranged. Having the Greek people and places glossary at the beginning rather at the end would be so much more useful. By reading it before reading any of the poetry, you might actually be able to identify some of the people that Sappho writes about. Of course, there's nothing stopping you from reading it first anyway, but no one jumps to the end of the book and reads that part first. I appreciated the sources, notes, and commentary section a lot, because I am a person that struggles to read older styles of writing, and having little explanations as to who and what is being referenced is immensely helpful in appreciating anything in general. However, I wish that it was intermingled with the poetry itself - having a poem immediately followed by notes and commentary is much easier than flipping back and forth between the beginning and end of the book - especially if you are reading an ebook. As it was, I skipped a lot of the commentary because of this, largely because it felt like I would have to go back and reread the entire poetry section again from start to finish.
Anyway, I'm glad I read this. Ancient Greece and Greek mythology in general is just impossibly cool and relatable, and the world needs it. I could go into so much more detail about how it affects our lives and language and knowledge about pretty much everything. But another time - for now, enjoy the lesbian love poetry.
fast-paced
The book was in 3 sections: the history of scholarship on Sappho and her poetry, her actual writings, and then things written about her in past times. I didn't know much about her except her legendary bisexuality+ (though that is often erased and she's usually thought of as a lesbian), but after looking at the fragments themselves, we don't really know anything. Her fragments are loving and slightly erotic toward men and women...but what is that proof of? It would be frustrating to be a Sappho scholar when there is so little actual information to work with. Her fragments, even taken out of context of their whole poems, were beautiful and would make good epigraphs and writing prompts. Interesting book, definitely.
The illustrations in this book are simple, elegant, and beautiful. I would to read Sappho in ancient Greek, but I thought the translation was well done. I enjoyed some of her pieces more than others. The ones that told a story or spoke deeply of emotion, I was drawn to and loved. I am interested to see other translations and how they compare.
Sappho is no doubt a great poet, but I unfortunately did not enjoy every one of her poems.
Her poems and their quotes that I have saved:
Moon and Stars:
"When the moon at full on the sill of
heaven
Light her beacon, flooding the
earth with silver,
All the shining stars that about her
cluster
Hide their fair faces;"
The Rose
"Joy and pride of plants, and the gar-
den's glory,
Beauty's blush it brings to the
cheek of meadows;
Draining fire and dew from the
dawn for rarest
Color and odor;"
"Sheathed in fragrant leaves its
tremulous petals
Laugh in the zephyr."
The Reproach
"Now that he is gone and my anger
vanished,
Keen regret and grief for the pain I
gave him
Pierce my heart, and fear of loss
that is anguish
Darkens the daylight."
Long Ago
"Loved one, mine no more, who
lovest another
More than me;"
The Stricken Flower
"Think not to ever look as once of
yore,
Atthis, upon my love; for thou no
more
Wilt find intact upon its stem the
flower
Thy guile left slain and bleeding in
that hour.
So ruthless shepherds crush
beneath their feet
The hill flower blooming in the
summer heat;
The hyacinth whose purple heart is
found
Left bruised and dead, to darken on
the ground."
Death
"Death is an evil; so the Gods
decree,
So they have judged, and such must
rightly be
Our mortal view; for they who
dwell on high
Had never lived, had it been good
to die."
"No hint of grief should mar the fea-
tures of
Our dreams of endless beauty, last-
ing love;
For they reflect the joy inviolate,
Eternal calm that fronts whatever
fate."
Persephone
"The cloud had vanished, bearing
her away
To underlands beyond the smiling
day."
Maidenhood
"Maidenhood, O maidenhood,
Wither hast thou flown?
To a land beyond the sea
Thou hast never known.
Maidenhood, O maidenood,
Wilt return to me?
Never will my bloom again
Give its grace to thee."
Ever Maiden
"I shall be ever maiden,
Ever the little child,
In my passionate quest for the love-
ly,
By earth's glad wonder beguiled.
I shall be ever maiden,
Standing in soul apart,
For the Gods give the secret of
beauty
Alone to the virgin heart."
Aspiration
"I do not think with my two arms to
touch the sky,
I do not dream to do almighty
things;
So small a singing bird may never
soar so high,
To beat the sapphire fire with baf-
fled wings.
I do not think with my two arms to
touch the sky,
I do not dream by any chance to
share
With deathless Gods the bliss of
Paphos they deny
To men behind the azure veil of air."
Gnomics
II
"Who from my hands what I can
spare
Of gifts accept the largest share,
Those are the very ones who boast
No gratitude and wrong me most."
Pride
"Pride not thyself upon a ring,
Or any trinket thing
Of fleeting value, dross or gold.
"Wealth, lacking worth, is no safe
friend,
Though both to life may lend,
In just proportion, joy untold."
The Love of Selene
"Across the still sea's moonlit wave
Selene came
Softly to seek the Latmian cave,
Her breast aflame
With secret passion's ruthless
throe,
Her scruples done,
And burning with desire to know
Endymion."
Prelude
"Maiden fair, companions
Of the Muses, never
Toward you shall my feelings
Undergo a change.
Chanted in a plaintive
Old Ionic measure,
All the songs i give you
Are the songs of love."
The Cliff of Leucas
"And I shall rise
Indifferent forever to love's dream,
Or find below
The sea's eternal voice,
Eternal peace."
The Dust of Timas
"This is the dust of Timas! Here
inurned
Rest the dear ashed where so late
had burned
Her spirit's flame. She perished,
gentle maid,
Before her bridal day and now a
shade,
Silent and sad, she evermore must
be
In the dark chamber of Persephone.
When life had faded with the flower
and leaf,
Each girl friend sweet, in token of
her grief,
Resigned her severed locks with
bended head,
Beauty's fair tribute to the lovely
dead."
Finis.
Her poems and their quotes that I have saved:
Moon and Stars:
"When the moon at full on the sill of
heaven
Light her beacon, flooding the
earth with silver,
All the shining stars that about her
cluster
Hide their fair faces;"
The Rose
"Joy and pride of plants, and the gar-
den's glory,
Beauty's blush it brings to the
cheek of meadows;
Draining fire and dew from the
dawn for rarest
Color and odor;"
"Sheathed in fragrant leaves its
tremulous petals
Laugh in the zephyr."
The Reproach
"Now that he is gone and my anger
vanished,
Keen regret and grief for the pain I
gave him
Pierce my heart, and fear of loss
that is anguish
Darkens the daylight."
Long Ago
"Loved one, mine no more, who
lovest another
More than me;"
The Stricken Flower
"Think not to ever look as once of
yore,
Atthis, upon my love; for thou no
more
Wilt find intact upon its stem the
flower
Thy guile left slain and bleeding in
that hour.
So ruthless shepherds crush
beneath their feet
The hill flower blooming in the
summer heat;
The hyacinth whose purple heart is
found
Left bruised and dead, to darken on
the ground."
Death
"Death is an evil; so the Gods
decree,
So they have judged, and such must
rightly be
Our mortal view; for they who
dwell on high
Had never lived, had it been good
to die."
"No hint of grief should mar the fea-
tures of
Our dreams of endless beauty, last-
ing love;
For they reflect the joy inviolate,
Eternal calm that fronts whatever
fate."
Persephone
"The cloud had vanished, bearing
her away
To underlands beyond the smiling
day."
Maidenhood
"Maidenhood, O maidenhood,
Wither hast thou flown?
To a land beyond the sea
Thou hast never known.
Maidenhood, O maidenood,
Wilt return to me?
Never will my bloom again
Give its grace to thee."
Ever Maiden
"I shall be ever maiden,
Ever the little child,
In my passionate quest for the love-
ly,
By earth's glad wonder beguiled.
I shall be ever maiden,
Standing in soul apart,
For the Gods give the secret of
beauty
Alone to the virgin heart."
Aspiration
"I do not think with my two arms to
touch the sky,
I do not dream to do almighty
things;
So small a singing bird may never
soar so high,
To beat the sapphire fire with baf-
fled wings.
I do not think with my two arms to
touch the sky,
I do not dream by any chance to
share
With deathless Gods the bliss of
Paphos they deny
To men behind the azure veil of air."
Gnomics
II
"Who from my hands what I can
spare
Of gifts accept the largest share,
Those are the very ones who boast
No gratitude and wrong me most."
Pride
"Pride not thyself upon a ring,
Or any trinket thing
Of fleeting value, dross or gold.
"Wealth, lacking worth, is no safe
friend,
Though both to life may lend,
In just proportion, joy untold."
The Love of Selene
"Across the still sea's moonlit wave
Selene came
Softly to seek the Latmian cave,
Her breast aflame
With secret passion's ruthless
throe,
Her scruples done,
And burning with desire to know
Endymion."
Prelude
"Maiden fair, companions
Of the Muses, never
Toward you shall my feelings
Undergo a change.
Chanted in a plaintive
Old Ionic measure,
All the songs i give you
Are the songs of love."
The Cliff of Leucas
"And I shall rise
Indifferent forever to love's dream,
Or find below
The sea's eternal voice,
Eternal peace."
The Dust of Timas
"This is the dust of Timas! Here
inurned
Rest the dear ashed where so late
had burned
Her spirit's flame. She perished,
gentle maid,
Before her bridal day and now a
shade,
Silent and sad, she evermore must
be
In the dark chamber of Persephone.
When life had faded with the flower
and leaf,
Each girl friend sweet, in token of
her grief,
Resigned her severed locks with
bended head,
Beauty's fair tribute to the lovely
dead."
Finis.
reflective
fast-paced
This was a stunning collection of poems that will make you want to fall in love
Even the fragments we have of Sappho's poetry are incredibly beautiful. She was considered the 10th Muse in the ancient world, and even studied and learned for hundreds of years after her death.
This book offers the "complete poems" as far as evidence at the time is available. Hopefully someday this book with be outdated with more discoveries being made at Oxyrhynchus in Egypt.
Still, if you enjoy poetry, classical studies, or ancient Greece, this volume will delight you. I found it useful to divide the book into three parts. The poetry, the sources/notes/commentary; and the Glossary. I book marked those three sections, so I could look up the sources and glossary for each entry I was reading.
One other part of this book that was interesting to read: there was a section of references of Sappho in Greek and Latin antiquity. Writers who wrote about Sappho. All in all, I enjoyed this volume, and hope to read it again.
This book offers the "complete poems" as far as evidence at the time is available. Hopefully someday this book with be outdated with more discoveries being made at Oxyrhynchus in Egypt.
Still, if you enjoy poetry, classical studies, or ancient Greece, this volume will delight you. I found it useful to divide the book into three parts. The poetry, the sources/notes/commentary; and the Glossary. I book marked those three sections, so I could look up the sources and glossary for each entry I was reading.
One other part of this book that was interesting to read: there was a section of references of Sappho in Greek and Latin antiquity. Writers who wrote about Sappho. All in all, I enjoyed this volume, and hope to read it again.
Thrill my heart that throbs with unwonted fervor,
Chasten mouth and throat with immortal kisses,
Till I yield on maddening heights the very
Breath of my body
Goddamn, Sappho could write. This collection is beautiful. It is full of gorgeous devotionals to Aphrodite, the goddess of love, and passionate poetry dedicated to her lady lovers. I adored this, though judging by the reactions of people below I don't think this is necessarily the "complete" works of Sappho. Now that I've read this relatively cheap collection, though, I know that it will be worth it to spring for a more comprehensive collection.
Chasten mouth and throat with immortal kisses,
Till I yield on maddening heights the very
Breath of my body
Goddamn, Sappho could write. This collection is beautiful. It is full of gorgeous devotionals to Aphrodite, the goddess of love, and passionate poetry dedicated to her lady lovers. I adored this, though judging by the reactions of people below I don't think this is necessarily the "complete" works of Sappho. Now that I've read this relatively cheap collection, though, I know that it will be worth it to spring for a more comprehensive collection.
reflective
slow-paced
the edition I had removed a bunch of the gay stuff which sucked but overall this left me almost crying so ..