Sappho
Books by Sappho
“It is so ancient that all that remains are a collection of fragments of lyric poetry which were composed to be sung to the lyre. I think there’s actually only one complete poem in there, Ode to Aphrodite, but the fragments in themselves are just beautiful – reflections on everything from marriage to old age, bees and chickpeas. It covers a lot of ground. I find it an absolute feast. It appeals to our senses and is so evocative. Even when you’ve got a fragment – some are barely even fragments, they’re tiny shards, just a word or two – they are full of bare feet and tongues and desire and gold and all these things which just make your senses go crazy. They make mine go crazy. You’ve got all this sun and salt and sweat in the Aegean Sea and brides and bridegrooms and blossom of nectar and flowers and colours. I just think it’s extraordinary.” Read more...
“Well, she was admired in antiquity for the delicacy and elegance of her verse, and this is quite right – it’s just pitch-perfect. She talks about love as being bittersweet – such a cliché but she was almost certainly the first person to coin this expression that everyone can understand…..In classical antiquity and later she was massively valued as a poet. In the Great Library in Alexandria there were nine volumes of her poems. We now have 200 tiny fragments and only two complete poems. So it’s a minuscule proportion of what she produced.” Read more...
The Greats of Classical Literature
Charlotte Higgins, Journalist
Interviews where books by Sappho were recommended
The Greats of Classical Literature, recommended by Charlotte Higgins
The Guardian’s chief arts writer, Charlotte Higgins, believes that the contemporary value of the Classics is incalculable – here, she tells us why, via her selection of the great and good of classical literature.
The best books on Synaesthesia, recommended by Lydia Ruffles
How does someone with synaesthesia see the world? How does it contribute to creativity and expression? Author Lydia Ruffles recommends books and suggests an intriguing list of artists who may have been synaesthetes.
The best books on Divine Women, recommended by Bettany Hughes
Ancient history was a man’s world – but women were considered closer to the gods. The historian and TV presenter Bettany Hughes reveals the secrets of Athenian priestesses, Byzantine empresses and Stone Age fertility goddesses.
