Jason and the Golden Fleece: (The Argonautica)

I no longer doubt Green's skills as a classics editor. All of his seem a pleasure to read. The introduction to this translation is specially well-written, and that's to say nothing of the poem itself--a memorable experience. However, this translation does have one major snag. The book uses end notes instead of a footnotes (these are very extensive, I might add).

Homer mentioned the voyage of the Argo as a well-known story, and bits and pieces appear in surviving Greek lyrics and dramas of the Classical period. Jason's later life with Medea is a well-known subject of tragedy. Our oldest comprehensive account of the journey, however, comes from Hellenistic times, in a work by Apollonius, at one time associated with the Library of Alexandria, commonly known as "of Rhodes," supposedly from his favorable reception by the islanders. The Jason of this version, from the third century BC, is a good deal less than an Homeric hero, overshadowed both by his companions (and who would not seem inadequate beside Hercules?) and by the goddesses who intervene on his behalf. He is not unattractive -- indeed, some may find him more appealing than the all-competent heroes of other epics. He has emotions one can recognize, including fear and despair. Still, one can see him later being both callous enough and stupid enough to dump the witch-princess of Colchis for a "better" (socially acceptable and politically advantageous) marriage in Greece. That was the tragic plot which Apollonius avoids, but it was well-known in his day, and which has survived to our own in Euripides' version. He certainly had it in mind, and knew that those who read, or more likely heard the reading of, his epic, would as well. (Seneca's Latin tragedy "Medea," and Ovid's treatment of the character, of great importance in later European views of the story, were still in the future.) This prose translation, first published in 1959 and reissued with some revisions and new apparatus in 1971, was the first new English version since 1912 (the Loeb Classical Library bilingual edition), and remained the only popular version for several decades. It has since been joined by others, in verse as well as prose. They represent more recent scholarship in both the Greek text and critical views of the poet and the epic. Two of them, at least, are considerably more ambitious as works of art. Barbara Hughes Fowler's "Hellenistic Poetry: An Anthology" not only contains the complete epic, but much of its cultural context. The hardcover edition of Peter Green's "The Argonautika: The Story of Jason and the Quest for the Golden Fleece" contained extensive commentary (abridged in the paperback edition). These are both in verse. There is also a prose version by Richard L. Hunter, "Jason and the Golden Fleece," published in the Oxford World's Classics. Can the good old Penguin Classics standby still compete? For those looking for high poetry, or for elaborate notes, or sophisticated critical positions, probably not. But, despite the comments of at least one competitor, Rieu's treatment is not without its merits. Although Rieu's English is now a little antiquated, it remains readable. His English version is helped as well as hindered by a tendency to reduce the relatively ornate style of a learned Alexandrian poet to something more approachable to an *intelligent* school-

The ancient Greek story, 'The Voyage of Argo - the Argonautica', also known as 'Jason and the Argonauts' is generally best known as a classic '60's film. The Apollonius' version was very popular in its day, the middle of the third century BC. This is the Penguin Classic translation by E.V. Rieu (1959), and it still reads well. There is a handy glossary for the obscure names of the heroes and gods that populate the pages.This makes a good book for high school assignments as the story makes a short novel in four 'books' or sections, full of the dangers of a sea voyage from Greece to the far east of the Black Sea, which was the ends of the earth to the Greeks in ages past. (Anyone in a serious hurry to just get the good bits can speed through the first and fourth sections, with my apologies to Apollonius.) The intrepid Jason and his crew are sailors who are part buccaneers, part questing heroes in search of fame, fortune, and adventure. They are set the task of obtaining the famed Golden Fleece by a Greek king who wants to permanently rid himself of the dangerously ambitious Jason and his powerful allies, who include the superhuman Hercules, and the twin sons of Boreas the North Wind, who have the power of flight. With natural cunning, the powerful aid of prophets, the magical music of Orpheus, and the good favour gained by skilful diplomacy they seemingly must succeed. But of course the seers never tell the whole story, there are as many enemies as friends, and the kings of the lands they must travel through are descended from the gods too. Jason himself has no magic, but he is bold and resolute, and gains the favour of many of the gods who know how to tip things in his favour. Some of the scenes are genuinely frightening, so all considered, the story does not make good bedtime reading.The dangers of the Clashing Rocks, the horror of the flying Harpies, the lure of the Sirens, dragons and deadly snakes, and the sometimes brutal and unpredictable inhabitants of distant lands and islands, and the hand of Fate all take their toll on the Argonauts. But Jason's charm and charmed life always seem equal to the tasks he is set, and the description of princess Medea falling in love with him (with a small help from the winged arrows of the boy Eros), is the archetype for love stories of next two thousand years. Although he could never have succeeded without the beautiful Medea, who is destined to become his wife, neither Jason or Medea can forsee their own future or escape without paying the price of guilt and shame for their deeds which often succeed by deception and foul means.Although not such a genius as Homer, Apollonius is clearly a product of that developmental line, and he tells a good story well. He is often quite modern in his knowing asides to the Muses, who inspire all poetry and art, then as now.

I liked it. The translation was well done and quite readable. I was surprised, however when I ran out of translation and hit the extensive commentary at the back. As I am not a scholar of Greek or Roman writings or mythology the depth of the commentary was generally too much for me. I would have preferred the split page method, where the text and commentary relevant to it appear on the same page. The glossary at the back was helpful to identify which god, goddess or hero was referred to. Some of them are obscure and some unfamiliar names and spellings are used in place of more familiar ones (Kirke = Circe for example).

215 pages long. This is the only complete tale of Jason and the Argonauts quest for the Golden Fleece. The story is certainly a classic through curiously not as widely read as Homer. Especially since this work is shorter and easier to read than the Illiad and Odyssey, yet also provides a good prelude to these epics too. My only prior knowledge of the story was the 1963 movie, which has the flavor of a jaunty adventure, compared to the more dramatic strains of this particular telling. I was most impressed by the map that shows the most likely route given the details of the story (although other known versions can differ quite dramatically sometimes). The book also contains a Glossary of names that came in useful. This is a very good book that places you in the middle of greek thought and legend.