How should one start with the Greeks? Let's settle this once and for all. As someone looking to start, and tired of missing allusions to Greek mythology, I've got myself the Iliad. But I want to ensure I know enough about the culture I'm reading to understand the significance.
Here are two charts that have been posted on this board. Both have been submitted as accurate, and both have been criticized by others. We're going to decide in this thread what you truly need to read to start with the Greeks.
pick something and read it instead of pussyfooting around like a faggot and making excuses not to read shit
>not starting with the Epic of Gilgamesh
ISHYGDDT
>>8971378
I don't see what you're confused about OP. Both charts are really similar in general. Just do what you feel and stop it with the fucking hand holding.
If you want to start with the greeks, read up on Greek mythology, culture and society of the bronze age up until the archaic age. After reading a couple books on that, you can proceed to Homer. From there, just read every single piece of greek literature in chronological order until you give up.
>>8971424
Essentially I'm asking this because I've heard different things. The lengthier chart on the left is unnecessary, any prior reading is unnecessary, just reading Wikipedia is necessary. No one can seem to agree. I want to start, but I don't want to approach the book with an incomplete understanding, and leave the book behind not knowing that I missed a ton of important things due to my lack of knowledge. I'm sure many people have the same feeling since you see threads about ways to start with the Greeks posted so often.
>>8971439
No matter what, you will miss a lot of important things the first time you read a good book. People dedicate their entire careers to Homer.
Even with all the pre-reading in the world, we have lost the Cypria and the Aethiopis and the Little Iliad and all the others.
Read the Iliad and the Odyssey to start with. If you have absolutely no idea of who the Greek Gods are, read Hamilton's Mythology or Graves's Greek Myths.
>>8971461
Both of those charts have other books to read before the Iliad besides Mythology. Why do you think that they're unnecessary?
>>8971479
>The Trojan War - A New History
Retells the Iliad in the light of modern research. Read if you want to know how "true" the poem is after you've read the book
>Ancient Greece/A Short History of Ancient Greece
Read along side the entire chart, don't just cram all of greek history at the start.
>First Poets
Read their poetry, not their lives. You don't really need a history of lyric poetry before reading the main epic poem that's still survived. And, again, probably improved by reading Homer before you read about him.
>>8971378
You should start with the Sumerians.
how's this
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1y8_RRaZW5X3xwztjZ4p0XeRplqebYwpmuNNpaN_TkgM/pub
>>8971493
Thanks. At the very least, this will allow me to start on the Iliad after reading Mythology.
>>8972730
>allow me
You were waiting for special permission from 4chan? Just read. You're wasting time trying to "settle things once and for all".