Odyssey Translator Emily Wilson, Who Slammed Nolan’s Movie, Retranslating Homer’s Epic From Scratch
Emily Wilson, the University of Pennsylvania professor whose 2017 translation of Homer’s Odyssey inspired Christopher Nolan’s recent film adaptation, has publicly criticized the movie as “abysmal” in viral op-eds. Despite the film’s existence, Wilson is undertaking a complete retranslation of the ancient Greek epic from scratch—a project she confirms is not a revision of her previous work but an entirely new translation. She told The Associated Press that she is approximately halfway through the retranslation process.
According to academics interviewed by the AP, such a decision is extraordinarily rare in translation work. Wilson’s original 2017 translation was lauded for its accessibility and innovation in rendering Homer’s work for contemporary readers. The reasons behind her decision to retranslate the entire epic have not been detailed beyond the fact that her new version is a complete reimagining rather than a refinement of her earlier effort. The retranslation project represents a significant undertaking that will likely establish a new standard interpretation of one of Western literature’s foundational texts.