A Note on the Translation

The text of the Odyssey found in this edition is substantially George Herbert Palmer’s esteemed 1921 translation, one of the first to dispense with the archaisms, the “thees” and “thous,” dear to earlier translators, in favor of a closer approximation to Homer’s often colloquial tone. English itself, however, has continued to change since 1921, and usages that bordered on the everyday in Palmer’s time now themselves sound antiquated. I have updated such language while doing my best to preserve the rhythmic force of Palmer’s cadenced prose.

—Robert Squillace