Book, Nékuia: a dialogue with the dead: Canto XI of the Odyssey[LS]

Canto XI, when Odysseus visits the world of the dead, Hades, is undoubtedly one of the most beautiful songs in the Odyssey. He is the object of this translation followed by a critical study by the poet, translator and literary critic Marcelo Tápia based on Homer's Greek text. Coming from the tradition of concrete poetry, the author offers us a very original reading of the work, by incorporating the rhythmic beat of the song's verses. In the end, he tells us in an astute poetic, fictional and didactic parody his own adventure of creating his version of the song, invoking his translator-guides in what he called “Iliadeia” FOURTH COVER Odysseus needs to return to Ithaca, his hometown, But he doesn't know if he can do it. The sorceress Circe advises him to consult Tiresias, who is in the world of the dead, Hades, and teaches him the ritual to invoke the deceased soothsayer. This ritual, νέκυια (nékuia), is reported by Homer in Canto XI of the Odyssey, giving one of the greatest afflictions of a human being, knowing his future, the literary form that has spanned centuries. In addition to the translation of the song – an aesthetic and rhythmic recreation of the original –, presented here in a bilingual version, the poet and Hellenist Marcelo Tápia makes a fascinating journey through the most well-known and recognized interpretations and translations of the passage, and a beautiful reflection on the act of translate. Unlike the troubled journey of the Greek hero, the author combines pleasant fluency with elucidative and concise erudition to present to the reader a new invocation of the genius of the people who conceived the classic work – after all “current times cannot do without the worlds that preceded them”. SIGNOS The Signos collection, conceived and directed by Haroldo de Campos until 2003 and now by Augusto de Campos, brings the most experimental and disruptive poetry to the Brazilian reader, as well as radical translations of classic texts and poets. FROM THE COVER Cover image: from a drawing by an unknown author, Ulysses in Hades. Ulysses descends to the world of the dead to meet Tiresias, the soothsayer, and seek advice about his destiny.