Alexander Pope’s translation of Homer’s Iliad was published in six volumes between 1715 and 1720. His version of the Odyssey, for which he enlisted the assistance of William Broome and Elijah Fenton, followed in 1725–6. The two translations occupied Pope for sixteen years in the prime of his creative life. They gave him financial independence, and consolidated his status as the foremost English poet of his time.
Pope’s Iliad (the main focus of the present entry) was described by Samuel Johnson as “a poetical wonder … a performance which no age or nation can pretend to equal” and as “the noblest version of poetry which the world has ever seen”. In …
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Citation: Hopkins, David William. "Iliad". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 11 January 2022 [https://staging.litencyc.com/php/sworks.php?rec=true&UID=4534, accessed 08 September 2024.]