Batracomiomaquia

by Homer, Rodolfo Pais Nunes Lopes (Tradução e Introdução)

Batracomiomaquia ou A Batalha dos Sapos e Ratos é uma paródia cômica no poema épico Ilíada, comumente atribuído a Homero pelos romanos, mas, de acordo com Plutarco1 foi escrito por Pigres de Halicarnasso, o irmão (ou filho) de Artemísia I de Cária, aliada de Xerxes. Alguns literatos modernos, no entanto, atribuem-no a um poeta anônimo do tempo de Alexandre, o Grande.2

Genres: Poetry, Classics, Ancient History, Fiction, Mythology, Greece, Animals

72 pages

First published January 1, 401

About the author

Homer (Greek: Όμηρος born c. 8th century BC) was a Greek poet who is credited as the author of the Iliad and the Odyssey, two epic poems that are foundational works of ancient Greek literature. Homer is considered one of the most revered and influential authors in history.
Homer's Iliad centers on a quarrel between King Agamemnon and the warrior Achilles during the last year of the Trojan War. The Odyssey chronicles the ten-year journey of Odysseus, king of Ithaca, back to his home after the fall of Troy. The poems are in Homeric Greek, also known as Epic Greek, a literary language which shows a mixture of features of the Ionic and Aeolic dialects from different centuries; the predominant influence is Eastern Ionic. Most researchers believe that the poems were originally transmitted orally. Despite being predominantly known for its tragic and serious themes, the Homeric poems also contain instances of comedy and laughter.
Homer's epic poems shaped aspects of ancient Greek culture and education, fostering ideals of heroism, glory, and honor. To Plato, Homer was simply the one who "has taught Greece" (τὴν Ἑλλάδα πεπαίδευκεν). In Dante Alighieri's Divine Comedy, Virgil refers to Homer as "Poet sovereign", king of all poets; in the preface to his translation of the Iliad, Alexander Pope acknowledges that Homer has always been considered the "greatest of poets". From antiquity to the present day, Homeric epics have inspired many famous works of literature, music, art, and film.
The question of by whom, when, where and under what circumstances the Iliad and Odyssey were composed continues to be debated. Scholars remain divided as to whether the two works are the product of a single author. It is thought that the poems were composed at some point around the late eighth or early seventh century BC. Many accounts of Homer's life circulated in classical antiquity; the most widespread account was that he was a blind bard from Ionia, a region of central coastal Anatolia in present-day Turkey. Modern scholars consider these accounts legendary.

French: Homère, Italian: Omero, Portuguese, Spanish: Homero.

Reviews

[Sara · Rating 3 out of 5]

چون ریویوی فارسی نداره یکم بیشتر راجع بهش بگم:
این کتاب حماسی از یونان باستان، تقریبا همانند ایلیاد و با درگیری خدایان المپی در مبارزه بود؛ فقط یه نکته ریز داشت: بین سپاهیان بزرگ کشورها و سر پرنسس دزدیده شده نیست، بلکه بین موش‌ها و قورباغه هاست.
این رو میشه از اولین نمونه های پارودی یونان باستان در نظر گرفت و جالبه که تا الان دوام آورده و چاپ شده و طبق حرف‌های مقدمه، محبوبیت به نسبت گسترده‌ای هم داشته، این‌قدری که از اولین کتاب‌های یونانی بوده که توسط چاپ مکانیکی چاپ شده. حتی زمانی تصور بر این بوده خود هومر این متن رو نوشته؛ اما تحقیقات بیشتر این اثر رو متعلق به دوران هلنیستی و حوالی قرن دو و سه پیش از میلاد می‌دونند.
کتابی که ازش داشتم برای انتشارات آکسفورد بود و متن یونانی اصلی باقیمانده رو هر صفحه آورده بود و در صفحه بعدی ترجمه انگلیسی با متن تقریبا آهنگین و شاعرانه رو نوشته بود. پیش از شروع متن اصلی حماسه، معرفی و مقدمه‌ای هم راجع به ساختار و منشاش داشت.
من که از همون ابتدای کار که فیزیگناتوس باعث مرگ سیکارپاس میشه جذب داستان شدم تا انتها.
آبان 1404

[Savasandir · Rating 5 out of 5]

Divertentissima quest'antica parodia dei poemi omerici in cui i topi, per vendicar la morte di Rubabriciole, figlio di Rodipane loro re, si scontrano contro le rane guidate dal fiero principe Gonfiagote, dando il via ad un cimento sanguinolento quanto quelli narrati nell'Iliade.
Menzione speciale alla stizza di Atena nel conciliabolo che gli dèi tengono mentre infuria la battaglia per decidere se intervenire o meno.

[Marquise · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the most hilarious animal fables to come from Ancient Greece, this short comic epic poem spoofs the traditional Greek epics, so fond of grand and dramatic battles between superb warriors and with gods thrown in for maximum grandeur. In this case, the plot parodies the Iliad and the Titanomachia, the battle between the Olympians and the Titans, using frogs and mice instead, with the gods playing a side role. The names of the froggy and mousey "heroes" are a parody of classic heroes all by themselves, too, and even the ending is a parody of the infamous last-minute-win-by-a-hair's-breadth resolution of good old Hellene epic and tragedy.

[Jesús De la Jara · Rating 4 out of 5]

Los himnos, se trata de un género muy puntual en la literatura griega.
Digamos que Homero cumple este papel de manera buena, mencionando varios relatos a destacar como el de Atenea y Afrodita. El de Démeter es uno de los himnos más largos y ahí describe de manera magistral el rapto de su hija Proserpina por Hades y las protestas de Démeter. Otra pieza interesante es la de Afrodita pues ahí narra algo no muy conocido, los amoríos con Anquises, padre de Eneas.

[Deni · Rating 4 out of 5]

Vamos por partes.
Este libro recopila, con traducción del honorable Alberto Bernabé, los Himnos Homéricos, por un lado, y la Batracomiomaquia, por otro.

Himnos Homéricos:

Son 33 himnos más uno de yapa que agrega Bernabé porque es un hombre generoso. Son especies de plegarias o cantos dedicados a los dioses (e inclusive semidioses) de la mitología griega. Algunos destacan más que otros pero más que nada son documentos que sirven para conocer un poco de el origen o dar testimonio de algunas de estas llamativas deidades de la increíble cultura griega. Es muy lindo leer el libro gracias al estudio del traductor que es muy completo y nos introduce a cada uno de los poemas con datos sobre la divinidad de la que trata, su datación y cuestiones estructurales de los mismos.
A nivel de escritura no son tan llamativos, son más bien rimbombantes y la mayoría muy cortos como para llegar a producir alguna emoción particular en el lector. Yo creo que más que nada son un agradable documento para el estudio de ciertas particularidades de la literatura griega entre los siglos VII y V a.C., y más propiamente del fenómeno de los aedos.

Es distinto el caso de la Batracomiomaquia, de imposible pronunciación, ya que es un pequeño y simpático poema paródico de la Ilíada en la que transcurre una batalla de un día entre las ranas y los ratones. Es muy interesante sobre todo porque es uno de los primeros documentos del archivisitado género de la parodia y está muy bien logrado debido a una escritura límpida e ingeniosos recursos retóricos.

El hecho de que ambos estén juntos en esta más que amable edición es debido a que ambos cuerpos de poemas fueron atribuidos en la antigüedad a Homero, el Gran Maestro ciego de Quíos, cosa que el traductor tiende más que nada a descartar.

[Annika Unterberger · Rating 3 out of 5]

Apparently, when studying Classical and Ancient Studies one is expected to have already read the basic works of Latin and Greek literature. I would have appreciated getting the memo, but as it is:

Let’s play Catch-Up: Uni edition!!!

And what better way to start than with a work of the one person mentioned in every lecture, Homer!
(I’m not kidding when I say every lecture, by the way; one of my courses even focuses solely on the question if he even lived (the answer: nobody knows))

However, if you expected to see the Iliad or Odyssey, it’s not their turn quite yet.
They’re scary, ok? I have to work my way up to them.

Which is why I decided to go with Batrachomachia: The Battle of the Frogs and the Mice.
Now, if you have no idea what that is, don’t worry I felt the same.

But honestly, it’s awesome!

We have the people of the frogs and the mice who, after the heir to the mice kingdom gets accidentally killed by the frog prince, begin an all-consuming war.

Sounds somewhat familiar coming from Homer? Well hopefully, as it’s a parody of the Iliad.

And come on, if there ever was a story perfect to be parodied, it most definitely is the Iliad.
I mean, you have the childish stubbornness of Achill and Agamemnon who would rather lose the war (which at that point they have worked 9 years to win) than admit they’re wrong.
Then there are the exaggerated descriptions of war and its heroes who take themselves way to seriously.
And to top it all off, Homer’s writing in itself with its countless epithets gives many a chance for parody.

Batrachomachia takes all that and overdoes it once more. But in a way where you just can’t stop either shaking your head or simply laughing at the silliness of it all.

Nevertheless, the moral side of things doesn’t come short either:
Revenge only leads to more misery!
(And if you’re not careful the king of the gods might destroy you all… just saying)

—> 3,5 stars

[Kai · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ancient puns and tiny vegetable armour 🥺 10/10, never froget

[თემო გერაძე · Rating 4 out of 5]

მე როგორც სამტრედიელი, ცხადია, ბაყაყებისკენ ვიყავი. ძალიან მაგარი რამეა, აშკარა პაროდიაა ყველაზე ცნობილი ომის, რაღაც არ მგონია ჰომეროსის რომ იყოს, არ იზამდა და არც დიდად წააგავს.

[Francesca · Rating 4 out of 5]

Paghi del buon desio restate intanto,
E finisca qui l'ottavo canto.

XD

O Giacomo, Giacomo, perché sei tu Giacomo? Rinnega la poesia e rifiuta la parola. Ovvero, se proprio non lo vuoi fare, giurami soltanto che l'ami, ed io smetterò d'essere lettrice (di altri).

XD

[Illiterate · Rating 4 out of 5]

A delightful Homeric parody of the Iliad.

[actuallymynamesssantiago · Rating 5 out of 5]

[Esta review es para los Himnos homéricos, edición de Losada]

Bellísimo.
El canto a Démeter es mi favorito, pues narra la historia de Perséfone, y los de Afrodita también son muy cool (suripanta). Hay tanta pureza, acción y emoción en cómo se expresa. Not mis pensamientos sobre Homero limitándose a ser una enumeración de emociones. Es que formalmente es muy fiel a sí, pero creo que logra algo musical —una onda expansiva— a la hora de narrar, es como ese poder sanador —en el sentido de que es un lenguaje distinto, liberador, not as in LADY GAGA YOU SAVED MY LIFE— que tiene la música, que se organiza y sigue y sigue hasta eventualmente terminarse, y que por ejemplo otros libros de invocación como L4 B1bl14 no logran porque son muy cuadrados y están más enfocados en castigar que en explorar human behavior; amo que censuré La Bword, Sinead O'Connor, verdad?
También es el cumpleaños de Elizabeth Bishop.
Pasé de tener de fondo en la cocina los programas de los curas brasileros a los de tasaciones de joyas en el jardín, glow up. Leiva joyas. El valor de tus joyas. Night midnight lose my mind. The show was ending and I had started to crack

[Evie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Los nombres 😭

[kate]

man FUCK puffjawe

[Stefan Detrez · Rating 2 out of 5]

Slap verhaal over een verdrinking die een gewapend conflict uitlokt tussen muizen en kikkers. Hier en daar geestig, zoals de muggen die met grote trompetten bazuinden [199], maar niks opzienbarends. Een epische parodie, heet het, een 'mock heroic' avant la lettre.

Knap hoe de vertaling is gebeurd. Die moet moeilijk zijn gegaan, gezien de Griekse meters.

[Emmy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'll be honest, I'm not entirely sure what I was expecting from this, but it was a fun and very interesting little story about a war that erupted between the frogs and the mice over a gross misunderstanding and a tragic accident. I enjoyed reading Homer in college, but had never read this story, so it was a nice little treat for a Friday afternoon.

[Les75 · Rating 5 out of 5]

Eccellente divertissement leopardiano, che qui si diverte a immaginare un seguito alla celebre batracomiomachia di pseudo-Omero. Si legge con grande piacere e una punta di allegria (praticamente un "apax legomenon" della produzione leopardiana).

[Anders Holbæk · Rating 5 out of 5]

Once Upon a time, a mouse, beside the water's brink
Dropped in his furry face to taste the sweetness of a drink:
He was feeling very thirsty, 'cause he'd just escaped a stoat.
He was spotted by a pond-lover, who bellowed forth (I quote):

"Tell me, stranger, tell the truth, now, tell me how you came.
Don't let me catch you lying - who's your father? What's your name?
For if I find you worthy I shall bring you to my house
And I'll give you all the lovely gifts a Frog should give a Mouse.
And I'm King Physignatos, and all throughout this pool
My Puffy Cheeks are honoured by the froggies whom I rule.
My father - Peleus! - reared me, my mum Hydromedousa -
On the banks of the Eridanus he managed to sedousa.
And you, I see, are handsome, and more marked than most for might,
A noble sceptre-bearing kind, a fighter in the fight.
But come (the frog said) quickly now and tell me your descent."
Psicharpax gave his answer, and this is how it went.

Historien om dengang musene og frøerne gik i krig med hinanden, eller Batrachomyomachia: The Battle of the Frogs and the Mice, er en vidunderlig lille, komisk epik, en slags parodi af Illiaden, der i lang tid (op gennem romerriget) blev tilskrevet Homer. Mere realistisk i dag, mener moderne forskere, er det, at miniepikken er (ned)skrevet af en anonym poet på Alexander den Stores tid.

Fortællingen er en enormt charerende blanding af homerisk vold og Vinden i piletræerne-agtig smådyrshygge. Ligesom hos Homer bliver der her brugt mange vers på at beskrive krigernes rustninger og våben, her er det bare hjelme lavet af kikærteskaller og skjolde af salatblade. Men den er ikke uden blod og død! "He took a mighty boulder and he smashed the Mouse's head; His brains gushed out his nostrils, and the earth was splashed with red." Brutalt!

Jeg læste den her i en storrimende, rytmisk imponerende oversættelse af Fintan O'Higgins, der er en fornøjelse at læse! Lad os afslutte med lidt mere af den. Her, hvor en udsending fra Musene melder til frøer erklærer frøerne krig:

"You Frogs! I have been sent here as a herald for the Mice,
To threaten you with battle and to give you this advice:
Arm yourselves for battle, Frogs and let alarums ring -
The Mice have seen Psicharpax sinking, murdered by your king.
So come on, if you think you're hard!" (or words to that effect).
He cleared up the confusion, but the Froggies' head were wrecked.
They were blaming Physignathos, who stood up and said "They're lying -
I didn't kill no Mouse, my friends, and I didn't see none dying.
He must have drowned while messing 'round beside the waterside,
Mimicking the swimming of us Frogs - that's how he died!

[Litterae Dependens · Rating 3 out of 5]

Como se trata de dos obras en un único tomo, haré una reseña dividida en dos partes.

En primer lugar, espero que se me entienda cuando digo que muchos himnos homéricos tienen "poco valor literario" si nos atenemos a lo que queda de ellos. De los 35 que recoge el libro, 30 no superan los 20 versos, y algunos ni siquiera los 5. Son interesantes de leer y hay algunos muy curiosos (como el primero de Apolo, el de Hermes, el de la Madre Tierra, o el de los Huéspedes); ahora bien, los hay que son simples cantos que recrean las características básicas de los dioses. Como digo, su valor literario contextualizado a su época debió ser notable, sobre todo con el texto completo; pero quedando tan pocos versos, creo que lo más sensato es resaltar su valor antropológico y cultural.

Sobre la Batracomiomaquia: se ha convertido en un auténtico descubrimiento. Primero porque desconocía que hubiera parodias de la épica griega; y luego porque es un texto sublime, muy divertido y curioso de leer, que se hace tremendamente ameno. Las constantes referencias a los textos homéricos hacen que el disfrute del texto aumente si conoces la Ilíada y la Odisea. Así pues, la brevedad del texto es un gran aliado, pues permite recrear y releer los versos en varias ocasiones. Sin duda alguna una obra fantástica que seguramente relea en estos días.

Por último, hacer mención a Bernabé Pajares, editor y traductor del tomo, quién hace un estudio sublime y bien documentado (al menos para su fecha), de todos los manuscritos. Un placer deleitarse con su sapiencia y conocimiento, pues se aprende mucho de las introducciones.

[Olivia McQuaid · Rating 4 out of 5]

ok sorry i do have to say i think this has been the weirdest day of my degree so far but i'm gonna paste in my fav line from this

'So then said the son of Cronos. Athena answered him: "I would never go to help the Mice when they are hard pressed, for they have done me much mischief, spoiling my garlands and my lamps too, to get the oil. And this thing that they have done vexes my heart exceedingly: they have eaten holes in my sacred robe, which I wove painfully spinning a fine woof on a fine warp, and made it full of holes. And now the money-lender is at me and charges me interest which is a bitter thing for immortals. For I borrowed to do my weaving, and have nothing with which to repay. Yet even so I will not help the Frogs; for they also are not considerate: once, when I was returning early from war, I was very tired, and though I wanted to sleep, they would not let me even doze a little for their outcry; and so I lay sleepless with a headache until cock-crow. No, gods, let us refrain from helping these hosts, or one of us may get wounded with a sharp spear; for they fight hand to hand, even if a god comes against them. Let us rather all amuse ourselves watching the fight from heaven." So said Athena.'

[Angelica · Rating 5 out of 5]

La Batracomiomachia è un poemetto esilarante che prende in giro le grandi epopee classiche come l'Iliade e l'Odissea: invece di eroi muscolosi e battaglie epiche, abbiamo rane e topi che si azzuffano per motivi ridicoli!
L'autore (che forse era Omero o forse no) è un genio nel creare un'atmosfera epica per una storia così assurda. Usa un linguaggio umoristico e descrizioni dettagliate, proprio come nei poemi seri, ma applicati a situazioni comiche.
I personaggi sono delle macchiette divertenti: rane vanitose, topi codardi, divinità capricciose che si intromettono nelle vicende... un vero spasso! Le battaglie sono descritte con dovizia di particolari, con tanto di nomi altisonanti per le armi e le tattiche di combattimento, il tutto così esagerato e fuori luogo.
La Batracomiomachia è una lettura perfetta per chi ama l'umorismo e la satira. È un modo divertente per avvicinarsi ai classici, senza prendersi troppo sul serio.

[IceSea · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's a funny thing to put as a context to the Iliad.
listened to recently as an audiobook

✶ Rating 5/10
What is there to say, really. These brutal descriptions of random squeaks or ribbits being demolished is kind of hilarious, sorry. The accompanying pictures are phenomenal, AI could never replicate the mastery of them. It's a fairly straightforward piece, definitely made me realise that comedies were big in Greece, since this 'comedy machia' trope has at least a bunch of iterations. I won't read the rest, but c'mon.. make them important please!!

I have no clue why Homer would parody himself though?? His entire bibliography is two epic poems and then people decided to throw in this. It would've been really strange and also pretty funny. Even the greatest can have a sense of humor!! Diogenes lead the way.

[Adam · Rating 5 out of 5]

Još kada sam počinjao učiti grčki jezik kao mlada osoba, profesor je spomenuo kako Homer osim Ilijade i Odiseje ima još jedan ep - Boj žaba i miševa. Tako sam se sada nakanio pročitati ga i nisam požalio.

Nadmiguša me razočaro ko čovjeka, ali djelomično je i Mravograb kriv što mu je vjerovao. Nastavak priče je zanimljiv uz dozu defabularizacije kada se spominje tko je koga ubio, ono likovi se spomenu jednom u djelu da se kaže tko ih je ubio. Mislim da bi bilo bolje da se Zeus nije miješao u ovo jer ovako su miševi ispali kao krivci umjesto onog lažova Nadmiguše.

[Lucas Cadenas · Rating 4 out of 5]

la edición de gredos es buenísima, lástima que en prosa

los himnos son muy chulos (salvo el segundo a Dioniso), y hay algunos que están MUY bien hechos (como los largos de Deméter, Hermes, Afrodita y Apolo, sobre todo la primera mitad de éste). el editor, además, da mucha información sobre la religión griega, que es algo que se nos escapa cuando pensamos en mitología.
la Batracomiomaquia es graciosísima, una maravilla de parodia épica

[GDM · Rating 3 out of 5]

Buena obra de Homero, me gustó especialmente la forma en que presenta a los personajes, el trato que los dioses le dan a la batalla entre ranas y ratones es comedido, y las referencias a "La Iliada" que se detectan, no desentocan con la tonalidad surrelaista que envuelve el combate de un solo día. Además, el hecho de destacar a los "héroes" de ambos bandos, me parece una genialidad.

[Tomás · Rating 5 out of 5]

só mete piada pra quem já leu a ilíada
tem intervenção divina (mas os deuses estão claramente só a gozar), os teus típicos heróis aristocratas em guerra, aqueles segmentos enquanto os bichinhos se equipam, descrições de luta e gore que imitam os de Homero, os "iguais a Ares", até o atirar de pedras, é tudo igual 10/10

[Hashem · Rating 5 out of 5]

نبرد غوکها و موشها هجو، یا نوعی پارودی بر حماسه های پهلوانی یونان باستان است که در ادبیات یونان به چشم میخورد. این اثر، نوشته پیگرس برادرزن یکی از سرداران جنگ سالامیس است که در زمانی نه چندان دور از هومر سعنی در سال 480 پ م نوشته شده است.

[Veronika||Antiqua.mente · Rating 4 out of 5]

Una rilettura estremamente piacevole e come sempre divertentissima. Un’ottima parodia dei poemi omerici, ricca di interessanti riferimenti alla contemporaneità di Leopardi. L’edizione, però, non delle migliori a mio parere.

[Nick H · Rating 3 out of 5]

[Evelyn-White Translation] Short but fun ILIAD-inspired ancient comedy. It doesn’t really have a chance to delve much into its themes, but it’s a nice insight into the satirical powers of the old world.

短くて面白いイラアスっぽい物語

[Blake Williams · Rating 4 out of 5]

after months of browsing through super-serious mythology, the scene where Athena backs out of the war because she owes people money was hilarious. why the hell didn't more ancient comedy survive, ancient librarians sound like dorks

[Les75 · Rating 5 out of 5]

Meraviglioso poemetto di Pseudo-Omero, che, in stile e lingua omerici, fa il verso alla celebre Iliade. È il primo assaggio del gusto del comico in greco antico ed è un vero e proprio archetipo.