Emily Wilson

Emily Wilson is professor of Classical Studies and graduate chair of the Program in Comparative Literature & Literary Theory at the University of Pennsylvania. Wilson attended Oxford University, earning a Bachelor of Arts from Balliol College and a Master of Philosophy from Corpus Christi College, and completed her doctorate at Yale University. She was named a Fellow of the American Academy in Rome in Renaissance and Early Modern scholarship.

Wilson became the first woman to translate the "Odyssey" into English. Her translation is recognized for its contemporary approach and significant changes to the presentation of the story.

Wilson’s translation of the "Iliad" is noted for its clarity and accessibility, reinforcing her reputation as a leading translator of classical texts. She is a MacArthur Fellow, acknowledged for her work in making ancient literature accessible to modern audiences. Wilson frequently delivers keynote addresses at literary festivals and academic conferences, and her public lectures and media appearances have contributed to renewed interest in classical literature and translation studies.

Wyatt Mason profiled Wilson in The New York Times Magazine. Mason wrote, "When I first read these lines early this summer in The Paris Review, which published an excerpt, I was floored. I’d never read an 'Odyssey' that sounded like this. It had such directness, the lines feeling not as if they were being fed into iambic pentameter because of some strategic decision but because the meter was a natural mode for its speaker."