Tales of Dionysus : the Dionysiaca of Nonnus of Panopolis : a group translation

Tales of Dionysus is the first English verse translation of one of the most extraordinary poems of the Greek literary tradition, the Dionysiaca of Nonnus of Panopolis. By any standard, the Dionysiaca is a formidable work. It is by far the longest poem surviving from the classical world, a massive mythological epic stretching to over 20,000 lines, written in the tradition of Homer, using Homer’s verse, Homer’s language, his narrative turns and motifs, and invoking his ancient Muses. But it is also the last ancient epic to follow a Homeric model, composed so late in fact that it stands as close in time to the Renaissance as it does to archaic Greece. Like its titular hero, Dionysus, with his fluidity of forms, names, and divine incarnations, the poem itself is continually shifting shape. Out of its formal epic frame spills a tumult of ancient literary types: tragedy, elegy, didactic, panegyric, pastoral idyll, and the novel are all parts of this gigantic enterprise, each genre coming to the fore one after the other. Tales of Dionysus brings together forty-two translators from a wide range of backgrounds, with different experiences and different potential relationships to the text of Nonnus’ poem. All work in their own styles and with their own individual approaches to the poem, to translation, and to poetic form. This variety turns Tales of Dionysus into a showcase of the multiple possibilities open to classical translation in the contemporary world. Contents 8 Editors’ Preface | William Levitan and Stanley Lombardo 14 Acknowledgments 18 Introduction | Gordon Braden 20 Summary of the Poem 38 The Poem 58 Book 1 | Douglass Parker 60 Book 2 | Douglass Parker 84 Book 2 (continued) | William Levitan 93 Book 3 | Joseph Harrington 109 Book 4 | Judith Roitman 125 Book 5 | Rob Turner 143 Book 6 | Brian Walters 159 Book 7 | Christian Teresi 179 Book 8 | Frederick Ahl 190 Book 9 | Anne Shaw 204 Book 10 | Michael Shaw 214 Book 11 | Darwin Michener-Rutledge 227 Book 12 | John L. Gronbeck-Tedesco 245 Book 13 | Mike Lala 254 Book 14 | Michael B. Lippman 271 Book 15 | John L. Gronbeck-Tedesco 284 Book 16 | Rachel Hadas 296 Book 17 | Catherine Anderson 308 Book 18 | Tessa Cavagnero 319 Book 19 | Sheila H. Murnaghan 331 Book 20 | Andrew W. Barrett 342 Book 21 | Zachary Puckett 365 Book 22 | Richard Jenkyns 375 Book 23 | Anne Carson 389 Book 24 | Gordon Braden 398 Book 25 | Alex Dressler 409 Book 26 | Darwin Michener-Rutledge 433 Book 27 | Melina McClure 444 Book 28 | Denise Low and Eileen R. Tabios 458 Book 29 | Adrienne Atkins 464 Book 30 | Alison R. Parker 476 Book 31 | David Fredrick and Rachel Murray 489 Book 32 | Joseph Harrington 499 Book 33 | Adrienne Atkins 511 Book 34 | Anna Mayersohn 523 Book 35 | Maryrose Larkin 535 Book 36 | Rebekah Curry 542 Book 37 | Jonathan Mayhew 553 Book 38 | Denise Low 581 Book 39 | Anthony Corbeill 592 Book 40 | Deborah H. Roberts 604 Book 41 | Diane Arnson Svarlien 622 Book 42 | Charles-Elizabeth Boyles 636 Book 43 | Bethany Christiansen 654 Book 44 | Tessa Cavagnero 665 Book 45 | Anna Mayersohn 675 Book 46 | Melina McClure 686 Book 47 | Cyrus Console 701 Book 48 | Stanley Lombardo 713 On Translating Nonnus 744 Notes on Contributors 772 Suggestions for Further Reading 780 Glossary of Personal Names 788 Geographical Index 814 Provides the first English verse translation of one of the most extraordinary poems of the Greek literary tradition, the Dionysiaca of Nonnus of Panopolis. The Dionysiaca is by far the longest poem surviving from the classical world, a massive mythological epic stretching to over 20,000 lines, written in the tradition of Homer.