T.'s Recent Readings, Vol. 2
A most iconic saint and more Greek mythology, both translated and adapted.
Documenting every book or book series I’ve read since I re-adopted reading in my adulthood due to a concussion, however many titles I want to list at a time.
St. Joan of Arc (1959) - John Beevers
I read this not only because I found it in my parents’ bookshelf but also because—given my current kick on classic fantasy and mythology—I feel that Joan of Arc is the saint outside the Bible who’s the most like a classic mythological hero.
This book taught me things I didn’t know about medieval politics, the Hundred Years’ War, and ecclesiastical trials—both proper ones and improper ones. It also disputes historians who’ve tried to refute the supernatural in Joan’s life.
Heck, I didn’t even realize until this book that Joan was executed by the English, and that their trial was completely rigged against her for political reasons. So after the French trial that proved her to be sent from God, I was wondering, “The heck is going to turn the Church against her after this? And then saint her after that?” Goes to show how well I understood the movies about her I’d seen…
Since this is the only book on the saint I’ve ever read, I don’t know if it’s the best one out there, but it is a captivating and well-researched one. It’s also quite fitting that a girl who’d get burned first threw a burn at a man who asked in front of the whole council if she was in a state of grace: “Are you in a state of grace?”
Jason and the Golden Fleece (Argonautica) (2009) - Apollonius / Richard Hunter
I read a direct translation of Beowulf I found in the house, and frankly, it was so short a read that I didn’t feel the need to dedicate a whole entry to it. My brother does have a fuller translation, though, so I may discuss that down the line.
However, this publication of a mythic poem, which I bought myself at a local used bookstore, is my first direct translation of a Greek poem.
The book’s introduction states that the story wouldn’t be an easy read, and indeed, it felt more like something I’d have to read for school than for pleasure. Heck, it starts out naming every single Argonaut along with his lineage!
But, since I didn’t have to try and comprehend every single character and location with an unpronounceable name for the sake of writing an essay on it, I enjoyed the challenge overall! Made my mind feel expanded.
It also helped that I’d seen the Jason and the Argonauts movie from the 60s (and revisited it after this read), so I was able to visualize that as a frame of reference.
The Trojan War (1971) - Bernard Evslin
After The Adventures of Ulysses, I was actually hyped to order this adaptation of The Iliad! Alas, while this story is thrillingly told, it left me a bit cold.
There’s much more of a moral ambiguity at its core, from the emphasis on the gods’ and goddesses’ dysfunctionality (backstabbing each other, incest with each other, starting a war for their own amusement…), to the so-called heroes pillaging and enslaving, to Achilles's pettiness-turned-vengefulness, to Odysseus / Ulysses ordering the torture and execution of a prisoner who begs for his life.
I can respect if the lack of a persuasive representation of good to counterbalance the bloodlust is meant to emphasize the inner destructiveness of war, and that this story is based on one of the most foundational stories ever written.
But, The Adventures of Ulysses convinced me to read The Odyssey, and it does a couple things I actually prefer to Homer’s writing (more on that in a future Recent Readings). The Trojan War puts me on the fence about reading The Iliad.
I read the Odyssey in high school and it was a formative experience for me. When I tried reading the Iliad in college I couldn't finish it. There seemed to be no true heroes I could latch onto.