Rieu writes prose, so his sentences follow English speech rhythms rather than any fixed metrical pattern. The result reads like a novel from the mid-twentieth century: clear, moderately formal, occasionally colloquial. His Book 21 rendering gives Achilles "why make such a song about it," which is casual enough to feel slightly out of period. Merrill uses dactylic hexameter, the meter of the Greek, and his lines are long and end-stopped in a way that keeps the formal weight of the original audible. In the leaves passage, Rieu writes "the wind scatters them on the ground," while Merrill gives "a wind pours some leaves groundward" — the difference is not just diction but lineation, since Merrill's phrase must fit a metrical slot that shapes word choice throughout. Rieu's register is contemporary and accessible; Merrill's is elevated and slightly archaic, with inversions like "a man far better than you are" preserving Greek word-order habits. Rieu prioritises readability for a general audience and cuts freely. In Book 1 he removes the invocation's second verb (the Greek asks the goddess to sing "from the time when first..."), and in Book 5 he drops Athena's full speech opening and several epithets, getting straight to the action. The prose format lets him do this without visible strain. Merrill prioritises formal correspondence: he retains epithets ("silvery feet," "bright-eyed Athena"), repeats the Homeric speech-introduction formulas ("Speaking to him then answered"), and reproduces the line count closely. What Rieu gains is pace; what he removes is the texture of the oral tradition. What Merrill gains is that texture; his lines ask more patience from the reader but keep the repeated formulas that are structural to how Homer actually works.
Anger — sing, goddess, the anger of Achilles son of Peleus, that accursed anger, which brought the Greeks endless sufferings and sent the mighty souls of many warriors to Hades, leaving their bodies as carrion for the dogs and a feast for the birds; and Zeus' purpose was fulfilled. It all began when Agamemnon lord of men and godlike Achilles quarrelled and parted.
Sing now, goddess, the wrath of Achilles the scion of Peleus,
ruinous rage which brought the Achaians uncounted afflictions;
many the powerful souls it sent to the dwelling of Hades,
those of the heroes, and spoil for the dogs it made of their bodies,
plunder for all of the birds, and the purpose of Zeus was accomplished—
sing from the time when first stood hostile, starting the conflict,
Atreus' scion, the lord of the people, and noble Achilles.