The Iliad

Before Greece had tragedy, comedy, history, or even formal schools, there was Homer. Greeks, young and old, learned about the realities of life by hearing separate episodes from Homer sung at public festivals, and then remembering the stories through the power of song. What they remembered was what mattered most.

These epics offered bluntly honest views of life. Think of that as you are listening to Stanley Lombardo. When he performs Homer, we feel what Bob Dylan calls the 'inner substance' of great folk songs, their 'pulse and vibration and rumbling force'. We grasp the power words had before books, movies and iPods™. Homer taught the ancient Greeks about life, death, love and war. Now in Lombardo's words and voice, Homer teaches us, too.

"This gave me the opportunity to participate in a project featuring two great and important works, Homer's Iliad and Odyssey, and to further support the revival of Greek History and the Classics."

-Susan Sarandon, Narrator of Synopses and Introductions