The, An American Classical Scholar

Many have deemed Homer and Hesiod the “founding fathers” of Greek epic poetry and philosophical writings. Both writers’ careers flourished around 8th century B.C, and were immense influences in the world of Greek philosophy. Hesiod focuses on more traditional origins of life for his stories and ensures that the creation of the world and its rulers are embodied in his works. Homer has been considered one of the most influential philosophical writers for centuries by recognized philosophers. He wrote about principles in battle, governance, counsel, sports, the home and life in general that the Greeks looked to in praise. While both of the authors were similar in writing style, they differ vastly in the messages of their poems.

HW MONDAY night, 3/19.  INTRODUCTION: Read + take 1-page of Test-Review Notes on lined paper (or type them) for pages 641-646; copy definitions/lists as found on pages: EPIC POEM, EPIC HERO, CONCEPTS/top/p.643.

Since it was originally written in the 8th century, The Odyssey by Homer has served as inspiration to many writers and artists, who tell the story of the lost king of Ithaca, Odysseus. In Book 21 of The Odyssey “The Contest with Odysseus’ Bow”, Penelope, Odysseus’ Wife, decides that her beloved Odysseus will not return and therefore sets up a contest for the suitors to decide who her future husband will be. One portrayal of this contest is in O’Grady’s poem “The Test of the Bow” where the poet describes the act of Odysseus stringing and shooting the bow. Although Book 21 of The Odyssey by Homer and O’Grady’s poem “The Test of the Bow” express similarities in characterization, they differ in diction and tone.

The Odyssey is one of the oldest well known stories to date, and it is believed to be written around 2000 years ago. Its age is not the most fascinating fact though, the epic poem is comprised of 12,000 lines of death-defying, adventurous tales that are separated into different episodes. The Character traits of the might Odysseus, the structure of The Odyssey, the diction within the epic poem will be explained in this essay.

All throughout history, the stories of heroes and their extraordinary accomplishes have been told in various different ways. The Odyssey, an epic poem written by Homer, is one of the best examples. The epithets used throughout the poem show how Penelope’s strength and cleverness that allow her to manipulate the suitors and avoid marriage. Penelope’s bright mind, even though she is mortal, is often represented by rhetorical questions that are posed by various characters throughout the story. The poem is an exultation of man over the glory of the gods because despite man’s limitations his achievements are obtained through the combination of his intelligence, fortitude and skills not supernatural powers.

Homer’s The Odyssey, arguably the best and most well known epic poem there is, is full of literary elements that bring the story it’s fame. With its events being told by Odysseus after he already experienced them, Homer has the opportunity to write with a level of dramatics that isn’t often seen in other literary works. He uses this to his advantage, developing tone and theme and other literary elements in the best possible way. Homer uses diction in The Odyssey to create a tone of anticipation.

Homer’s epic poem The Odyssey follows Odysseus on his long journey home. The Epic also includes the stories of Odysseus’ family left behind: the travels of his son, Telemachus, and how plenty, of what we would now call “home wreckers”, suitors pressured his wife, Penelope, into marrying one of them. The characters are beautifully crafted and the story is truly epic. All the elements presented can bring in any reader from any century, the Cyclops, the Gods, the trickery of Penelope, and the disguises of Odysseus, are all legendary literary hooks . There are many things to learn—about writing, about the world around us, the world ahead of us, and the past behind us—from The Odyssey. (26) It is undeniably evident that this ancient text has

Provide significant details about the author (120-1): HomerThe author, Homer, is said to be from Inonia taking occupation as an oral bard. He is allegorically blind, or he does not have enough acumen. Style\5 conventions (121) - The five conventions are invocation, In media res, epic similes, metrical similes, and stock epithets. Invocations are a demand of help from a muse or deity.

“What of those years of rough adventure, weathered under Zeus?” (953). In The Odyssey, Odysseus must conquer through his challenges to get home to Ithaca. It takes Odysseus a long twenty years to get home, and he must travel through rough paths and complete difficult journeys. The challenges that Odysseus faced represents the qualities of an epic poem by describing the setting, stating the theme, teaching lessons, having mentors such as gods, and having the poem in the middle of things. The setting shows the traits of an epic poem by giving details of where the conflict and action is taking place.

When comparing “The Aeneid” to “The Odyssey”, it is impossible not to notice the similarity between Homer and Virgil 's poems. Both heroes leave Troy, granted one barely escapes and the other leaves victoriously, and both in one sense or the other are trying to reach their home, whether it is the old or future home. The adventures of the two heroes are incredibly similar on a number of accounts with the trip to the underworld being most intriguing.

The stories told in the Iliad and Odyssey are based on stories handed down over several generations, for they preserve (as we have seen) memories of an already quiet far distant past. The two pomes show clear connection in their language and style, in the manner in which their incidents presented, and in the combination of agreement with level, which distinguish their creation.

existence and, in many ways, sets the pattern for the genre, neatly fitting the definition of a primary epic (that is, one that grows out of oral tradition). In The Odyssey, Homer employs most of the literary and poetic devices associated with epics: catalogs, digressions, long speeches, journeys or quests, various trials or tests of the hero, similes, metaphors, and divine intervention. Homer composed The Odyssey in a meter known as dactylic hexameter, which gives the epic its elevated style. Each line has six metrical feet.

Romans’ plagiarizing Greek culture is considered by an increasing number of people, particularly Greeks since both of cultures are so similar to each other. Some people considered that Roman litterateur, especially Virgil, who is the writer of The Aeneid, absorbed Greek culture and diverged from precious compositions by specific way. As far as I am concerned, Virgil diverged from precious depiction of war and heroism by differing plot of his works from Greek writers’ and creating opposite characters’ personalities, such as arrogant and self-sacrificed, ambitious and courageous. To begin with, one way that Virgil used to diverge from previous work was that he created different plot. The plot of The Aeneid consisted of more elements than that of The Ilias, since The Aeneid contains not only description of The Trojan War but also relationship and love

Homer and Ovid are two of the oldest, most influential poets that have ever lived. Although they are both poets, they have several differences in their writings. Homer, a Greek poet, is most famous for his epic poems Iliad and Odyssey. Ovid, a Roman poet, is most famous for Metamorphoses a 15 book poem containing over 250 myths. To compare and contrast these two poets and their writing styles, I will use Achilles’ battle with Hector in Homer’s Iliad book 22 and compare it with Achilles’ battle with Cycnus in Ovid’s Metamorphoses book 12. The comparison of these battles will give us a better understanding of these poets different views on the Trojan War.

Continuing in the epic form, the opening lines of the poem, indeed follow the time-honoured epic tradition of announcing the theme and invoking divine assistance (Ovid). "Metamorphoses'" narrative method involves many of the devices of the epic manner: long extended similes, catalogues, famous heroic figures, quests and journeys, feasts, battles, heroic speeches, councils of war, and a supernatural plane to the action (Ovid). The range and precision of Ovid's references to the classical epic tradition in articulating the program of Metamorphoses establishes the poem's generic alignment with epos (Keith 239).