What do you think?
Rate this book
The Power of Thetis: Allusion and Interpretation in the Iliad
In The Power of Thetis, Laura M. Slatkin reveals the full importance of mythic allusion in Homeric composition and in the experience of Homer's audience.
- GenresNonfiction
137 pages, Paperback
First published January 15, 1992
2 people are currently reading
51 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
November 5, 2021
“The task of hearing as Homer’s audience did requires the apparently paradoxical task of listening for what is unspoken.”
Originally published in 1992 and reprinted in 2011 with six essays, “The Power of Thetis” explores the ways the Iliad engages, via the relationship between Thetis, Achilles, and Zeus, a traditional motif—goddesses who seek immortality for their mortal sons or lovers—to explore a theme of human mortality. Slatkin pulls at the threads of allusion woven throughout the poem to reveal Thetis’ cosmic significance in the Iliad.
Brilliantly argued, intricately constructed, and accessibly written, the book and essays helped me think about:
—the social nature of subjectivity in the Iliad
—The Iliad as a time loop in which macro- and microcosms are continuously, paradoxically collapsing and expanding into and against each other
—Tradition as multiverse that we, the Iliad’s modern readers, have very partial access to (rather like how the mortals in the poem lack access to the immortals’ plans and intentions…).
I highly recommend this book and would love to hear your thoughts if you have read or are interested in reading it.
Originally published in 1992 and reprinted in 2011 with six essays, “The Power of Thetis” explores the ways the Iliad engages, via the relationship between Thetis, Achilles, and Zeus, a traditional motif—goddesses who seek immortality for their mortal sons or lovers—to explore a theme of human mortality. Slatkin pulls at the threads of allusion woven throughout the poem to reveal Thetis’ cosmic significance in the Iliad.
Brilliantly argued, intricately constructed, and accessibly written, the book and essays helped me think about:
—the social nature of subjectivity in the Iliad
—The Iliad as a time loop in which macro- and microcosms are continuously, paradoxically collapsing and expanding into and against each other
—Tradition as multiverse that we, the Iliad’s modern readers, have very partial access to (rather like how the mortals in the poem lack access to the immortals’ plans and intentions…).
I highly recommend this book and would love to hear your thoughts if you have read or are interested in reading it.
January 9, 2019
This is also available online, at no cost:
Slatkin, Laura M. The Power of Thetis: Allusion and Interpretation in the Iliad. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1991. http://ark.cdlib.org/ark:/13030/ft0z0...
Slatkin, Laura M. The Power of Thetis: Allusion and Interpretation in the Iliad. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1991. http://ark.cdlib.org/ark:/13030/ft0z0...
October 4, 2023
“Mama Told Me Not to Come” - Achilles…. Oops Randy Newman
I stumbled on to this work by Laura M. Slatin as part of a bibliography in the book “The War That Killed Achilles” by Caroline Alexander. In Caroline’s book, she compares Thetis to today’s mother in the context of war. A mother’s love can make a difference in a short life.
In this book, “The Power of Thetis”, even though the title would have you think that it’s just a reinterpretation of the Iliad, Laura M. Slatin goes out of her way to compare and contrast stories of Thetis with stories of Eos; in doing so she weaves in out of the Iliad, the Odyssey, the Aethiopis, and related works to the Trojan cycle.
The book itself is a very quick read but it leaves you with new insights as to who Thetis is and leaves you wanting more.
Unlike many other books on the subject, she also includes the original Greek. Now it looks like ongoing to have to learn Greek because I want to have a feel for the original writing that was probably lost in interpretation.
Oh no, this book also has an extended bibliography!
I stumbled on to this work by Laura M. Slatin as part of a bibliography in the book “The War That Killed Achilles” by Caroline Alexander. In Caroline’s book, she compares Thetis to today’s mother in the context of war. A mother’s love can make a difference in a short life.
In this book, “The Power of Thetis”, even though the title would have you think that it’s just a reinterpretation of the Iliad, Laura M. Slatin goes out of her way to compare and contrast stories of Thetis with stories of Eos; in doing so she weaves in out of the Iliad, the Odyssey, the Aethiopis, and related works to the Trojan cycle.
The book itself is a very quick read but it leaves you with new insights as to who Thetis is and leaves you wanting more.
Unlike many other books on the subject, she also includes the original Greek. Now it looks like ongoing to have to learn Greek because I want to have a feel for the original writing that was probably lost in interpretation.
Oh no, this book also has an extended bibliography!
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews