Dominic Christopher Henry Rieu (26 October 1916 – 29 April 2008) was a classical scholar and the son of the classicist and publisher E. V. Rieu.

Background

After attending Highgate School, he studied English and Classics at

Queen's College, Oxford The Queen's College is a constituent college of the University of Oxford, England. The college was founded in 1341 by Robert de Eglesfield in honour of Philippa of Hainault. It is distinguished by its predominantly neoclassical architecture, ...

. As a member of the West Yorkshire Regiment in 1941, he was injured at Cheren in Eritrea, and subsequently awarded the

Military Cross The Military Cross (MC) is the third-level (second-level pre-1993) military decoration awarded to officers and (since 1993) other ranks of the British Armed Forces, and formerly awarded to officers of other Commonwealth countries. The MC i ...

. Rieu served as headmaster of Simon Langton Grammar School for Boys in

Canterbury Canterbury (, ) is a cathedral city and UNESCO World Heritage Site, situated in the heart of the City of Canterbury local government district of Kent, England. It lies on the River Stour. The Archbishop of Canterbury is the primate of the ...

from 1955 until 1977. Rieu did a translation of the ''Acts of the Apostles'' in the

Penguin Classics Penguin Classics is an imprint of Penguin Books under which classic works of literature are published in English, Spanish, Portuguese, and Korean among other languages. Literary critics see books in this series as important members of the We ...

series and, with Dr Peter Jones, revised his father's translations of ''

The Odyssey The ''Odyssey'' (; grc, Ὀδύσσεια, Odýsseia, ) is one of two major ancient Greek epic poems attributed to Homer. It is one of the oldest extant works of literature still widely read by modern audiences. As with the ''Iliad'', the ...

'' and the ''

Iliad The ''Iliad'' (; grc, Ἰλιάς, Iliás, ; "a poem about Ilium") is one of two major ancient Greek epic poems attributed to Homer. It is one of the oldest extant works of literature still widely read by modern audiences. As with the '' Odys ...

''. While acknowledging his father's "towering skill", Rieu made amendments to some undue embroidery of phrase and Greek manners, disdain for anonymous gods, formulaic abuse and modernistic prose. "Some of his racier colloquialisms, however, I have kept, provided they come in dialogue; the narrative passages call for a degree of formality.

Poseidon Poseidon (; grc-gre, Ποσειδῶν) was one of the Twelve Olympians in ancient Greek religion and myth, god of the sea, storms, earthquakes and horses.Burkert 1985pp. 136–139 In pre-Olympian Bronze Age Greece, he was venerated as a ...

, in his fury with

Odysseus Odysseus ( ; grc-gre, Ὀδυσσεύς, Ὀδυσεύς, OdysseúsOdyseús, ), also known by the Latin variant Ulysses ( , ; lat, UlyssesUlixes), is a legendary Greek king of Ithaca and the hero of Homer's epic poem the '' Odyssey''. Od ...

, says (literal translation): 'I mean to give him his full trouble yet.' EVR's 'bellyful of trouble' is much livelier -- and typical of the irascible Poseidon."DCH Rieu's preface to ''The Odyssey'' (Penguin, 2003), p. ''viii''. When he and Dr Peter Jones took up the task of revising E. V. Rieu's translation of ''The Odyssey'', they determined to retain (and in places even enhance) its charm. "Our alterations were in fact puny," wrote Rieu Junior in the preface. Although keen to maintain Homer's formulaic construction, he revised the archaic preliminaries used prior to speeches. "The patient good Odysseus answering him said: 'Friends .." becomes "'Friends,' replied the patient good Odysseus ... Rieu involved himself in retirement with the

Samaritans Samaritans (; ; he, שומרונים, translit=Šōmrōnīm, lit=; ar, السامريون, translit=as-Sāmiriyyūn) are an ethnoreligious group who originate from the ancient Israelites. They are native to the Levant and adhere to Sama ...

and Cruse Bereavement Counselling. He wrote and edited many books and articles, including ''A Life Within A Life: an Introduction to

Subud Subud (pronounced ), acronym of Susila Budhi Dharma, is an international, interfaith spirituality, spiritual movement that began in Indonesia in the 1920s, founded by Muhammad Subuh Sumohadiwidjojo (1901–1987). The basis of Subud is a spir ...

; Talks by Muhammad Subuh Sumohadiwidjojo, compiled and edited by Dominic C.H. Rieu'' (1983, 2nd edition 2008) and ''The Odyssey, Homer; translated by E. V. Rieu; revised by his son D. C. H. Rieu in consultation with Peter V. Jones'' (1991).

Notes

External links

''Times'' obituary
24 May 2008 English classical scholars 1916 births 2008 deaths People educated at Highgate School Alumni of The Queen's College, Oxford Scholars of ancient Greek literature {{UK-writer-stub