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A review by byindie
Theogony and Works and Days by Hesiod
2.0
Theogony
The muses appeared to Hesiod and, snickering, handed him a genealogy and told him to "go wild." This is the result.
Reviewing ancient texts is hard for me because, on the one hand, if I like that text/think it's slightly less painfully sexist than I expected/or am literally just reading a specific translation, I'll judge it based on that, but this is not one of those texts. I've not read any other translations (other than, perhaps, seeing the phrase 'decorated arse cheeks' on Tumblr--here it's 'arse-rigged.') I don't particularly like the text for anything other than the practical information that it provides on the Theoi (and even then, those snippets are rather few.)
But this one, lads, sucked. The two stars are for the readability of the translation and nothing else.
Hesiod is full of shit. Poetic shit, sure, but shit nonetheless. Call me a modern woman, but I'm rather going to enjoy tearing this text apart by calling myself a 'plague upon mortals' (it's better than being a 'fertile wife,' anyhow.) I am coming to this text as a pagan, and I am reading it, and I am looking and the words that Hesiod has put on the page, suitably honouring, perfectly respectful, and somehow I still can't seem to bring myself to like what he's written.
The story is all over the place, repetitive and give you whiplash as you read, but at least it's short and West did a phenomenal job of making it readable.
But, y'know, at least Hecate is a badass.
Works and Days
Capitalism, the poem.
Hesiod rags on this guy for not working hard enough and having unrealistic expectations, while simultaneously advising him on how best to live his life. It reminds me a lot of modern American capitalism. Also, for some reason, Hesiod thinks it's possible to control when someone gives birth. Top tip! The only good day to give birth to a girl is the 9th of the month! Who knew?
We also get some Pandora for the second time, because woman-hating is what we're about and Pandora is just the ideal scapegoat. Women, creating all strife, lazing off of men, and stealing from granaries, am I right?
Holy fucking dick, Hesiod.
(At least I can say this was really fun to make fun of.)
The muses appeared to Hesiod and, snickering, handed him a genealogy and told him to "go wild." This is the result.
Reviewing ancient texts is hard for me because, on the one hand, if I like that text/think it's slightly less painfully sexist than I expected/or am literally just reading a specific translation, I'll judge it based on that, but this is not one of those texts. I've not read any other translations (other than, perhaps, seeing the phrase 'decorated arse cheeks' on Tumblr--here it's 'arse-rigged.') I don't particularly like the text for anything other than the practical information that it provides on the Theoi (and even then, those snippets are rather few.)
But this one, lads, sucked. The two stars are for the readability of the translation and nothing else.
Hesiod is full of shit. Poetic shit, sure, but shit nonetheless. Call me a modern woman, but I'm rather going to enjoy tearing this text apart by calling myself a 'plague upon mortals' (it's better than being a 'fertile wife,' anyhow.) I am coming to this text as a pagan, and I am reading it, and I am looking and the words that Hesiod has put on the page, suitably honouring, perfectly respectful, and somehow I still can't seem to bring myself to like what he's written.
The story is all over the place, repetitive and give you whiplash as you read, but at least it's short and West did a phenomenal job of making it readable.
But, y'know, at least Hecate is a badass.
Works and Days
Capitalism, the poem.
Hesiod rags on this guy for not working hard enough and having unrealistic expectations, while simultaneously advising him on how best to live his life. It reminds me a lot of modern American capitalism. Also, for some reason, Hesiod thinks it's possible to control when someone gives birth. Top tip! The only good day to give birth to a girl is the 9th of the month! Who knew?
We also get some Pandora for the second time, because woman-hating is what we're about and Pandora is just the ideal scapegoat. Women, creating all strife, lazing off of men, and stealing from granaries, am I right?
Holy fucking dick, Hesiod.
(At least I can say this was really fun to make fun of.)