Overview

One of the initial challenges in reading Omeros is the complexity of its multi-layered plot. The meaning of the epic builds on events that are straightforward within themselves (simple fishermen Achille and Hector fight over Helen, a woman they both desire). Walcott expands these basic facts so that Helen comes to personify an island nation historically coveted by European powers. While his narrative does move toward an end, Walcott is essentially interested in the journey itself. As a matter of fact, the nearer he comes to the final resolution, the more he focuses on the act of writing. Given his conscious emphasis on the text of the poem as one of his subjects, his epic becomes self-reflexive.

Omeros is a story of homecoming comprised of seven books recounting a circular journey that ends where it begins. Books one and two introduce St. Lucia, key sets of characters...