New here, need help...

[Okie]

My dd14 is starting 9th grade in August and we're just starting classical schooling (at least solely, we've been doing Sonlight). We're starting with creation to fall of Rome.

 

My question- I want her to read the Iliad, the Odyssey, and the Aeneid, but is she supposed to read the WHOLE book?? :ack2:These are HUGE! Is there a way to read just the major parts? and still get the benefits of a classic? I mean, really, there are other books to read, too.

 

I have a schedule and book list all worked out, but the logistics are bothering me. ANY help would be great.

 

Reese

[Jill- OK]

My question- I want her to read the Iliad, the Odyssey, and the Aeneid, but is she supposed to read the WHOLE book?? :ack2:These are HUGE! Is there a way to read just the major parts? and still get the benefits of a classic? I mean, really, there are other books to read, too.

 

I don't think that reading parts is the same as reading the entire thing, talking/writing about it in context, etc. Reading an adaptation in its entirety, and then portions of the 'real thing', alongside, might be better for getting both the general idea, and the poetic language of the original if you can't do all of them, as they are.

 

My personal take is that doing just one of these three, and really getting into it, would be better than scanning all of them, and not really being impacted by it, as a classic. (Again, just opinion, but my definition includes taking your time reading it, taking the history around it into account, and discussing it to pieces; others might have differing definitions of how you 'get the benefit from' a classic).

 

I'm staying firm about the Iliad, and giving them a choice about the Odyssey and the Aeneid. (Either one, or both, or not at all).

 

The Iliad is the most important to me, academically, and (I believe) has the most 'bang for buck' from an early Greek classic (so much of what else we're going to read--Euripides, et al-- relies on at least a cursory knowledge of it, and it really was a staple of Greek understanding).

 

But I really, really want to cover the Aeneid, too, and so that's probably the one that will take second place precedence. But I know that someone (I have two 9th graders) is bound to want to follow the story of Odysseyus, so I'm leaving that open, as well.

 

There's only so much time, and my kids are not deep scholars, lol. It's going to be a big undertaking to read classics, period, especially alongside all of the other reading we have scheduled, this year, so I'm trying to make it as gentle as possible, and allow plenty of time.

 

The more 'long-haired' the book, as Foghorn Leghorn would say, the more I'm planning on reading aloud. (We all have copies of the Iliad, and I envision much of this happening with us, as a group, rather than them reading alone, on their own). That's one way to control both the time it will take, and the comprehension issue. (We'll take turns, but I can read faster and clearer aloud than either of them).

 

When it comes time for the Aeneid, I'm so serious about it, so passionate in my desire for them to hear it, that I might just tell them I'll read it out loud, with no requirement of them but to let me. :)

 

So...that's my plan. We'll see how it shakes out, but I, for one, would advocate that you prioritize your list, and get comfortable with a reality that might only include one or two. I like to shoot for the stars...but real life has taught me not to be cruelly disappointed when real life falls a little short. :-)

[Liza Q]

I want to encourage you here...

 

My 9th and 11th graders just finished the Ancients. I was worried that my younger daughter would not be able to handle the reading but she had absolutely no problem! We used Smarr Ancient Lit, which included the Iliad, Odyssey and Aeneid with several shorter works. Smarr had a schedule and she was able to keep up with it. She still had plenty of time for a few fun Rosemary Sutcliff books, other History reading (textbook, biographies, some non-fiction) and whatever she was reading in her free time.

 

Really - unless your daughter is a particularly slow reader, I expect that she will do fine. Now, she may not LIKE every book she reads (the Iliad was a real bomb here!) but that is another story ;)

[MIch elle]

or listen to them on audio.

 

http://www.amazon.com/Essential-Homer-Selections-Iliad-Odyssey/dp/0872205401

 

http://www.audible.com/adbl/site/products/ProductDetail.jsp?productID=BK_PARM_000001&BV_UseBVCookie=Yes

[Jean in Wisc]

We used the Rouse edition of the Odyssey--it is the complete story but it is in prose. Easy to read, and allows you to move on.

 

We have not done the Illiad. It is going to have to wait for college years. LOL! No recommendations there.

 

If I do the Aeneid with my son next year, we will listen to it.

[Alphabetika]

I also have a dd, 14, who just started 9th grade. Last year she read The Iliad and The Odyssey. I, too, was a bit intimidated by the length of the books, but I didn't need to be. You can do it!

 

We found that once we got into the rhythm of the reading, it was not as difficult as I thought it would be. Since I had never read these books, I assumed they were much harder than they were. Once we got into it (sometimes we read it aloud to each other, which is why I keep saying "we") we had a great time. We used the Robert Fagles translations, which I believe are known for being one of the more "modern" translations, and we loved them. I also listened to the audio of the Fagles' Odyssey, read fabulously by Sir Ian McKellan, so I could keep up with dd in her reading. Honestly, we didn't even use a study guide, just discussed as we went along. We were already doing a lot of worldview discussion about the ancient Greeks, and I felt that these two works perfectly illustrated so much of what she had learned about the Greek worldview in her other readings.

 

Her good friend who goes to public school read only portions of The Odyssey in her world history class, and my dd said, "You didn't read The Iliad?! How could they skip it!" This was like music to my ears, because it told me how much she had truly enjoyed it. I had my doubts at first, I'll admit it, and I wasn't even sure about myself. Hundreds and hundreds of pages about ancient war?! That's what I thought it would be. Really, though, there is such fascinating study of human nature in both of these works.

 

One thing I appreciated about the particular versions we read was that they were annotated, with a glossary in the back with line references to explain many of the unfamiliar words or concepts. That was a great help.

 

My daughter, who had previously not even wanted to study ancient history, fell in love with the study of ancient Greece. She even took two online workshops this summer from Lukeion Project (Lukeion.org), which I highly recommend!

 

This is long-winded, but we've both developed a passion for these works over the last year, so I wanted to encourage you!

 

HTH!