Advice on Reading Homer?
Posted: Wed Sep 24, 2003 5:07 pm
What is the most efficient way to learn to read Homer fluently given a decent knowledge of greek grammar, a lexicon, a grammar, and the Loeb text(& translation) of the Iliad?<br /><br /><br />My goal is to read the entire Iliad. I went through Pharr's book, and now I'm tackling chapter 2 on my own with the LSJ lexicon and the side by side Loeb text. (I'm at line 389) At first, I started writing down each new word I encountered; I soon realized if I did this I would duplicate an entire dictionary (which is not my goal).<br /><br />I would really like to spend some more time looking up things in the grammar, but right now I'm pretty overwhelmed with vocabulary and I'm leaning on the translation for grammar help when needed.<br /><br />Is there a best course of practice on this issue?<br /><br />Would it be better to lean more on the translation for help for the first couple of chapters (just to absorb some vocab and be able to read quicker), and then completely focus on the greek text? Or is it better just to try and focus on understanding the greek in its entirety from the start?<br /><br />(Basically I'm setting the goal of by chapter five or six, I would like to be able to figure out the greek without any help from the translation; and I want to be able to do that as quick as possible.)<br /> <br />Just looking for advice, thanks.