Emily Wilson reflects on the power of language to evolve our understanding of the past

''Brilliant ... enthralling and profoundly relevant'' Salman Rushdie ''Joyful, illuminating and engaging ... required reading for anyone interested in translation'' Madeline Miller How do we give old words new voices? What must a translator lose - and might she gain - when she moves between languages, bringing ancient stories to modern life? Reflecting on the inspiration, interpretation and (mis)appropriation of words from Antiquity to today, Emily Wilson invites us to explore the translator''s art and mind - and gives a wholly fresh insight into the joys and quandaries of her own work. From Athenian comedy and Rome''s love of Greek culture to Han Kang''s novels, Cardi B''s lyrics and the discoveries she made whilst translating Homer, this is a playful and fascinating voyage into the promise, possibility and constant renewal of our founding classical culture.

Autorentext

Emily Wilson is Professor of Classical Studies at the University of Pennsylvania. Her translations of The Odyssey and The Iliad were critically acclaimed across the globe, and she is a regular contributor to the London Review of Books, the New York Times, the New Statesman and the Nation.

Klappentext

'Enthralling and profoundly relevant' Salman Rushdie

'Joyful, illuminating and engaging ' Madeline Miller

**'A masterclass in translation' Blake Morrison, Guardian
**
How do we give old words new voices? What must a translator lose - and what might she gain - when she moves between languages, bringing ancient stories to modern life?

Emily Wilson has spent a lifetime wrestling with these questions: here, she invites us to consider the meaning and messages of translators from antiquity to today - and gives a wholly fresh insight into her own work on Homer.

From shifting depictions of Helen of Troy to Cardi B and Athenian comedy, Han Kang's novels and Rome's love of Greek culture, Crossing the Wine-Dark Sea is a playful and fascinating voyage into the promise, possibility and constant renewal of classical literature.