Hi, new to /lit/, been lurking for a while but never really got into reading so why not start now? Has anyone not read the Greeks yet? Just picked these up and I'm eager to get started and want to see if any other anons want to get a "start with the Greeks" group to read 5-10 chapters a week then we can come back here and discuss what we've read. Just a thought. I want to follow the list (will post) that /lit/ has so starting with the trojan war would be best imo, there are pdfs out there of it..what do you guys say?
>>7824335
i hate to be the one to break it to you anon but no one here actually reads.
>>7824344
I thought all the non-reading shitters left for /his/I did, anyways.
>>7824376
Some of the reading c/lit/s actually flocked to /his/ for the humanities threads.
>>7824376
shit, did /lit/ start reading again? fuck, im in the wrong board. off to /his/ i go.
I'm on book 6 of the odyssey. Catch up anon and I'll discuss it with you.
>>7824335
Why not just watch the movie instead?
>>7824335
Just about to finish Mythology. I have the Lattimore translations
>>7824431
Just catch up; actually when I read the Odyssey I skipped the first 4 chapters and went straight to Odysseus, then read them after Odysseus finishes explaining his travels. Made it go quicker.
Oh yea, spoilers.
>>7824431
I'm going through all the Greeks anon. Catch up. I can't decide between metamorphoses or some of the greek plays next. I've already read mythology as well. I can even take a break and read start getting through more of the bible if you're serious. I'd love to see a group of newbs get through the Greeks together. I'm just too lazy to organize it.
>>7824453
Epics are too long and grindy.
You guys should set up a group with a focus (philosophy, drama, history) pick a bunch of important pieces, and then do it.
>>7824453
how was mythology? the Edith Hamilton one right? is it a must read? i was just planning to start with the Trojan war by Strauss but ill read that first if i have to.
>>7824464
>Epics are too long and grindy.
well that's kind of why i want to do it as a group, so that we can all get through it together, i want to try and make it fun somehow. maybe do some cool writing assignments or like another anon said, we could watch some films together, there are websites where people can watch YouTube videos together. People don't have to do that, they could just read with us, just an idea. shit like that. This isn't meant to be something rushed, but i doubt people are willing to commit time to it, thats why im asking if people would like to do something like this, maybe come up with things for other anons who want to start with the greeks in the future.
>>7824464
They are grindy if you mean you have to take your time with them. But it's been very enjoyable.
>>7824480
I'm thinking either reading Ovid or some of the famous plays. I was also thinking of jumping ahead to the Aeneid briefly and then going back.
>>7824488
Mythology is pretty great if you read it as a resource. It makes jumping into the epics a little easier since you become familiar with the main actors.
>>7824464
>long and grindy
Literally none of the major epics should take more than 2 days to read. Metamorphoses and Dionysiaca may take 3, but that's it.
>>7824502
Ovid is Roman and is literally hundreds of years after Homer. With that leap you miss all of Greek history, drama, and philosophy.
>>7824335
Excellent taste in translation OP, you'll go far kid.
>>7824344
this.
a year ago i joined a lit reading club and we were supposed to read plague by albert camus. it was decided by a poll. anyway, it became a fun group that died in 2 weeks without any actual reading or critique.
damn rats, sneaky cunts
>>7824560
>i want to read with people who want to learn the greeks.
Just start reading. Nobody is going to hold your hand every step of the way, but the more you get under your belt, the more opportunities you have to participate in the constant hum of Greek threads here.
Also not everyone is just starting. I started with the Greeks about 10 months ago, and I'm sure plenty of others started before then. If you're dependent on a reading club to keep you accountable, you'll probably have a tough time.
>>7824560
Book clubs in the discord group, idk how it's going.
https://discord.gg/0ssJKGTbo2sTTMk9
You can ask the mods to set up a channel for the greeks.
>>7824583
yeah you're probably right...this advice applies to to other parts of my life too, thanks anon...i'll start reading now.
>>7824335
I've already read Iliad, Odyssey, three tragedies of Sophocles, and an Oxford textbook on mythology (so much better compared to Hamilton. She is way too brief)
Not sure what to read after that for non-philosophy/history.
>>7824604
>and an Oxford textbook on mythology
which one? link?
>>7824608
http://global.oup.com/us/companion.websites/9780195397703/
It has the same problem Hamilton has which is it doesn't go by chronology. Besides that though, holy fuck. Very nice.
>>7824606
I'm a philosophy major, I've already read the philosophy. Not too interested in the history pieces.
Give me one specific next writer/work to go to that is Greek. Not feeling comedy either.
>>7824541
/lit/
>everyone should be able to read 500 pages in 2 days
/sci/
>everyone should know university-level calculus
/fit/
>everyone should be able to deadlift 200kgs
/g/
>everyone should be able to write code
/ck/
>everyone should be able to cook duck à l'orange
Never change, 4chan!
>>7824658
Frankly you're kind of SOL with Greek content. You can try some Aeschylus (Oresteia), but at that point you're reading stuff that is more "useful" than it is interesting; it's good background to have, but isn't very fun. Same goes for minor poets like Hesiod.
>>7824671
The Homeric epics are like 400 pages each, with half of each page totally blank because they're poems. Aeneid is the same. Argonautica, Pharsalia, etc., are all even shorter. If it's taking you weeks to read them, sorry, but you're retarded.
I'm on Book III of The Republic, my first "Greek" text of any kind. How should I proceed? I'd like to study Western philosophy from its nascence to the present. Are the pre-Socratics really important or can I skip them?
>>7824671
>not being a 4chan renaissance man
>>7824671
you forgot r9k
>everyone should not have a job
>everyone should not know how to drive
>everyone should be over 21 and a virgin
>everyone should live with parents
>everyone should prefer anime characters to real GFs
>>7824671
/ck/ is just threads about alcohol and fast food, nobody expects you to be able to cook
>>7824671
The /lit/ one's different in that it's purely a question of time.
>>7824335
whats the best translations for homer anyway?
I've only read the penguin editions of Iliad and odyssey
I just started too on those books, join the /lit/ discord server, OP
>>7824715
Mine is translated by Allen Mandelbaum
Did I fuck up?
>>7824691
how do they not understand they're idealizing infantilization?
>>7824723
I'm not him, nor have I read either of those
But I know Mandelbaum's translations of The Divine Comedy and Ovid are great, so you're probably good
>>7824723
>Allen Mandelbaum
I thought his was supposed to be one of the best?
>>7824745
>I also got The Divine Comedy, and it's translated by him too, huh.
If its the Everyman edition then yeah
>>7824756
Uhhh, I don't see anything that says that. Whatever, at least I got 'em all.
>>7824699
I don't live on this board, mate. I'm going to finish The Republic anyway. Please overlook this lapse of judgement and tell me what I should pick up after it? Which pre-Socratic philosopher? What by Plato?
>>7824823
this is what people are going to tell you to read
>>7824832
Thank you.
>>7824836
No problem. Just about to start reading Mythology myself. If you want to discuss anything I'm gonna be hanging around in the discord channel and I think there's a couple of other people reading the greeks.
>>7824724
>how do they not understand they're idealizing infantilization?
They understand they just can't deal with responsibility.
>>7824724
no they just don't want fucking normies to pretend they're one of them
I'm just audio booking it so reading Ulysses becomes a more grounded experience.
would recommend the audio books because it's very dry
>>7824832
Can someone post the other "start with greeks" infographic?
>>7824745
What translation of Les Miserable are you reading right now?
>>7825100
>>7825157
This post mentions a 'well annotated' edition of Plato's books, does anyone know of any suggestions? Is the 'Complete Works of Plato' in the pic good in this sense?
>>7824679
Page length doesn't matter. You have to read the epics slowly, even sound out a lot of it. It's an oral tradition. Plus it's important to read supporting material to get the most out of it. The point of starting with the Greeks is to develop an appreciation for history, past thought and alternate world-views, poetry, and the way this mythology permeates every aspect of our modern culture. Speeding through them is like trying to speed through sex.
>>7824715
Fagels, Fitzgerald, Lattimore are pretty solid. You'll get something a little different from each one. Fagles is considered the best to start with, Fitzgerald is very poetic, and Lattimore is literal and used in university study.
>>7825398
Jokes on you I'm a virgin
>>7825403
>Fitzgerald is very poetic
That's the point. The Iliad and the Odyssey are poetry and that's certainly why Robert Fitzgerald is best and definite for Homer.
>>7824823
The presocratics only exist in fragments, so you can quickly power through them.
The problem with reading the republic first is that it's one of the more challenging dialogues, and can easily put noobs off; if you're enjoying it, more power to you.
>tfw I fell for the STEM meme
>tfw I would rather learn Greek, major in Classics, then go to postgrad for linguistics
Starting my job as a mechanical engineer this May. I'll be working in a plant that manufactures O-rings.
>>7825795
At least you have a useful STEM degree. I got mine in biochemistry. Useless. If I would have know I would have just done something in linguistics or English lit.
>>7824823
My bad, I'm used to /lit/ users having the normal Greek order pounded into them. Wrap up Republic if you're managing it, then start from the beginning with one of the Greek charts like >>7824832, with mythology and Homer basically as necessities if you want to read Plato. The other stuff is fun but not a huge deal if you're just going for philosophy.
>>7825795
>this fucking feel
I have no desire to use my "useful" degree to get a "good job" and "be successful."
