Romantic poet’s elegy to Keats, ‘Adonais,’ now available in Greek
According to one version of the myth, «Adonais» (or Adonis, as he is called in Greek) was the son of Cinyras, King of Cyprus and his daughter Myrra. He was very handsome, loved by Aphrodite and cherished as a god. When he was killed while hunting wild boar, Aphrodite’s sorrow was so great that the gods permitted Adonais to live with her on earth for six months every year. In spring and summer, feasts known as the Adonia were held in his honor. This explanation comes from Irini Vris, who translated Shelley’s poem «Adonais: An Elegy of the Death of John Keats,» into Greek. Published by Odos Panos, her book contains the English original with the translation on facing pages.
