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Winner of the 2001 Los Angeles Times Book Prize in Poetry.
A New York Times Book Review Notable Book of 2000.
The first warning passing through Thebes—
As small a sound
As a housefly alighting from Persia And stamping its foot on a mound
Where the palace once was;
As small a moth chewing thread
In the tyrant's robe;
As small as the cresting of red
In the rim of an injured eye; as small As the sound of a human conceived
A compelling, lyric telling of the story of Oedipus, and of "what happens outside the play," in the experience of the god who is its presiding oracle: Apollo, the god of poetry, music, and healing. Given the task of setting the Sophocles text to music, the god is woven reluctantly into its world of riddles, unanswered questions, partially disclosed objects, and ambiguous second-hand reports—a world where the gods, as much as humans, are subject to the binding claims of fate and necessity.
Gjertrud Schnackenberg draws upon ancient fragments and allusions to Oedipus and upon folk-tales about the origin of the Greek alphabet to present a vision of the tragedy's essential unknowableness, where the destinies of gods and humans secretly mingle in the unfolding of time, and where Zeus's laws, which suffuse the great tragedy's world, are as invisible and as inviolable as physical laws.
| Price | Condition | Delivery | Seller | Action |
| $99.99 | Digital |
| WonderClub |
Michelle Plataslipson
reviewed The Throne of Labdacus: A Poem on June 11, 2007
The Throne of Labdacus: A Poem
This is a poetic re-telling of the story of Oedipus. The god Apollo is given the task of putting the story to music, and you see the events happening through the god's eyes- even the gods are unable to stop Fate or Necessity. The book is simple sometimes, a bit obtuse at others; it might not make sense to you unless you have a good understanding of the myth and Greek culture in general. She gives a lengthy introduction in the back of the book though, which could be helpful.
Certain portions of the poem are breath-taking, some are genius. She does a fantastic job of preserving the feeling of the original myth; she re-tells the story in great detail, but she doesn't add too much, or make it too elaborate. I'd recommend this book to anyone interested in or familiar with Greek tragedies. I read it twice through just to make sure I didn't miss anything.
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Add The Throne of Labdacus: A Poem, Winner of the 2001 Los Angeles Times Book Prize in Poetry. A New York Times Book Review Notable Book of 2000. The first warning passing through Thebes— As small a sound As a housefly alighting from Persia And stamping its foot on, The Throne of Labdacus: A Poem to the inventory that you are selling on WonderClubX
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Add The Throne of Labdacus: A Poem, Winner of the 2001 Los Angeles Times Book Prize in Poetry. A New York Times Book Review Notable Book of 2000. The first warning passing through Thebes— As small a sound As a housefly alighting from Persia And stamping its foot on, The Throne of Labdacus: A Poem to your collection on WonderClub |
