What Emily Wilson has said about Iambic pentameter

1 quote · 1 episode · Jul 12, 2026

Emily Wilson, Classicist and translator, the first woman to translate Homer's Odyssey into English, has been quoted on Iambic pentameter once in 1 episode of The Daily, most recently on July 12, 2026. Each quote below is verbatim and links to the moment it was said.

In their words

  • Wilson says she translated the Odyssey into traditional English meter because existing translations failed to activate the poem's rhythm and oral performance quality.

    “it seemed to me that I needed to use traditional poetic form, the meter of Shakespeare and Milton, in order to activate for an English listener or English reader some elements of what did Homer sound like”

    The Daily: What’s Epic About the ‘Odyssey’? Everything. (Jul 12, 2026) · Listen from 7:53

Episodes

Emily Wilson on other topics