Freedom or Death is Kazantzakis's modern Iliad. The context is Crete in the late 19th century, the epic struggle between Greeks & Turks, between Chrisianity & Islam. A new uprising takes place to rival those of 1854, 1866 & 1878, & the island is thrown into confusion yet again. In the village of Megalokastro a Cretan resistance fighter, Captain Michales, is matched by the Turkish bey, his blood-brother. The life of the local community continues shakily, but is disrupted by explosions of violence.
Freedom or Death is Kazantzakis's modern Iliad. The context is Crete in the late 19th century, the epic struggle between Greeks & Turks, between Chrisianity & Islam. A new uprising takes place to rival those of 1854, 1866 & 1878, & the island is thrown into confusion yet again. In the village of Megalokastro a Cretan resistance fighter, Captain Michales, is matched by the Turkish bey, his blood-brother. The life of the local community continues shakily, but is disrupted by explosions of violence.