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The Road to Delphi: Scenes from the History of Oracles
An erudite, eloquent, and wide-ranging examination of oracles by one of our most creative literary critics
For thousands of years, and in many different cultures, cities, and states, individuals have consulted oracles in time of need. In this fascinating exploration of the history and enduring popularity of oracles, Michael Wood examines how they are interpreted and why.
The inherent ambiguity of many oracular pronouncements and the ingenuity and tendentiousness of many readings of them form the basis for Wood’s analyses of oracles, both real and imagined. Using examples from actual oracles at Delphi, Dodona, and in pre-Hispanic America to fictional—but influential—oracles in literature from Oedipus to Macbeth, Wood combines storytelling and commentary to provide an entertaining and concise account of humanity’s persistent faith in signs. He also looks at later instances of oracles, arguing that consultations have evolved in many ways over the years, and that echoes and survivals of old practices in modern literature and popular culture—in the works of Kafka and in the film The Matrix , as well as in astrology columns—continue to exert an important influence over human civilization.
Lively, engaging, and remarkably revealing, The Road to Delphi shows an ancient art at work in many times and places, and invites us to think again about the ways in which we deal with our longing for the certainties we know we can’t have.
For thousands of years, and in many different cultures, cities, and states, individuals have consulted oracles in time of need. In this fascinating exploration of the history and enduring popularity of oracles, Michael Wood examines how they are interpreted and why.
The inherent ambiguity of many oracular pronouncements and the ingenuity and tendentiousness of many readings of them form the basis for Wood’s analyses of oracles, both real and imagined. Using examples from actual oracles at Delphi, Dodona, and in pre-Hispanic America to fictional—but influential—oracles in literature from Oedipus to Macbeth, Wood combines storytelling and commentary to provide an entertaining and concise account of humanity’s persistent faith in signs. He also looks at later instances of oracles, arguing that consultations have evolved in many ways over the years, and that echoes and survivals of old practices in modern literature and popular culture—in the works of Kafka and in the film The Matrix , as well as in astrology columns—continue to exert an important influence over human civilization.
Lively, engaging, and remarkably revealing, The Road to Delphi shows an ancient art at work in many times and places, and invites us to think again about the ways in which we deal with our longing for the certainties we know we can’t have.
- GenresHistoryNonfictionGreece
320 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2003
3 people are currently reading
113 people want to read
About the author
Michael Wood
34 books41 followersLibrarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. See this thread for more information.
Michael Wood born in Lincoln, England, is the Charles Barnwell Straut Class of 1923 Professor of English and Professor of comparative literature at Princeton University. He is an alumnus of St John's College, Cambridge.
Prior to teaching to Princeton, he taught at Columbia University, and at the University of Exeter in Devon, England.
He was Director of the Gauss Seminars in Criticism at Princeton from 1995-2001, and chaired Princeton's English department from 1998 to 2004. He writes regularly for The New York Review of Books and on film for the London Review of Books.
Michael Wood born in Lincoln, England, is the Charles Barnwell Straut Class of 1923 Professor of English and Professor of comparative literature at Princeton University. He is an alumnus of St John's College, Cambridge.
Prior to teaching to Princeton, he taught at Columbia University, and at the University of Exeter in Devon, England.
He was Director of the Gauss Seminars in Criticism at Princeton from 1995-2001, and chaired Princeton's English department from 1998 to 2004. He writes regularly for The New York Review of Books and on film for the London Review of Books.
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
October 6, 2022
An interesting nonfiction that I don't think I would've picked up if it hadn't been for the cover.
Overall, this book wasn't what I expected. I thought it would be about specific oracles and how they came to be, how they died, and what came after. Instead, it was a history of oracles as a whole, their use in stories, and how modern oracles (say, economists, doctors, and modern astrology) may look.
While interesting, I found the text to be dense at certain times, which made getting through difficult.
A perfectly fine nonfiction.
Overall, this book wasn't what I expected. I thought it would be about specific oracles and how they came to be, how they died, and what came after. Instead, it was a history of oracles as a whole, their use in stories, and how modern oracles (say, economists, doctors, and modern astrology) may look.
While interesting, I found the text to be dense at certain times, which made getting through difficult.
A perfectly fine nonfiction.
May 27, 2017
Though there's something irksome about this type of insanely far ranging exploration, I really did end up liking Wood's treatment of certainty, uncertainty, and how we live our lives in the area between. Reading this certainly gave me quite a few items to add to my reading list so if you're looking for a gateway drug to classics, philosophy, and modern literature, dice right in.
January 29, 2023
transfixing. more seance than book. I speedread for my halloween oracle costume and am still haunted. Michael Wood has an ancient heart. shelve under philosophy.
October 31, 2008
I wasn't sure what I was going to get with this book before I began it. Perhaps history, perhaps some discussion of the supernatural?
Not at all. It was squarely a philosophy book, and a study of what's really happening when an oracle (ancient or modern) is asked a question. In particular, the book looks at what's going on in the mind of the person asking, focusing on his/her situation, the types of questions asked, and how the questioner responds to and interprets the oracle's message. The oracles' responses from history, myth, and contemporary culture parallels are also parsed, and the author makes some stabs at what their historical pattern implies.
Not at all. It was squarely a philosophy book, and a study of what's really happening when an oracle (ancient or modern) is asked a question. In particular, the book looks at what's going on in the mind of the person asking, focusing on his/her situation, the types of questions asked, and how the questioner responds to and interprets the oracle's message. The oracles' responses from history, myth, and contemporary culture parallels are also parsed, and the author makes some stabs at what their historical pattern implies.
November 12, 2008
In THE ROAD TO DELPHI: THE LIFE AND AFTERLIFE OF ORACLES, Michael Wood considers the significance of oracles (and attitudes toward them) from Greek antiquity to the present. Wood analyzes a wide range of literary texts and even considers topics like the role of oracles in modern medicine. I recommend this book to anyone interested in the classical legacy or the history of ideas.
April 3, 2017
This is the story of oracles and the greatest of the ancient world was at Delphi. There was some really good stuff in this book and yet parts that I knew so I skimmed. Overall a good read.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews