Essay on The Mysterious Homer, Author of The Odyssey and The Iliad

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.

Homer’s Iliad has been a European myth for many millennia , the long poetic narrative written in the 8th century B.C. recounts a fearsome war fought over a beautiful woman. The reliability of Homers Iliad as a true historical document has been challenged for hundreds of years and only through archaeological studies can the truth be deciphered. The Iliad was written five centuries after the war, where the stories had been passed down through the oral tradition, therefore the type of society reflected within the poems resemble much more the time of Homer . The fact and fiction of the Iliad has been uncovered through archaeology. Archaeologist found a site in which they thought to have been ‘Troy’ destroyed by the powerful country of Mycenae

Homer’s epic poem, “The Odyssey” reveals many aspects of ancient Greek life and culture through character and plot. Through each of the tales circling the life of Odysseus and the Greek people, Homer depicts the history, legends, values, and merits of the ancient Greeks. Greek culture is known to be one of the most flavored and thorough in history, and each facet of it—from religion to ideology to mentalities and beliefs.

Homer’s epic poem, the Iliad, first started as an oral storytelling tradition dating from about 1100 BC, after the Trojan war.

Homer is believed to have lived around 8th century B.C. Ironically, Homer’s life coincides with the earliest known manuscript of the Holy Bible, the Codex Amiatinus. Although Homer possibly lived during the rise of very significant biblical prophets such as Amos, Hosea, Zachariah, Isaiah and Jonah, Homer writes his epic poem, The Odyssey, in a strictly pagan method. Both The Odyssey and the Holy Bible praise the virtue of hospitality; however, it is evident that the Ancient Greeks and the Hebrews have contrasting motivations for hospitality. Therefore, it is no surprise that Odysseus’ voyage home was epically arduous.

Within the epic poem "The Odyssey", Homer presents the story of Odysseus's quest to find his home and his identity. According to Homer's account, with its origin in oral tradition, the two quests are interchangeable, as a mortal defines himself with his home, his geographic origin, his ancestors, his offspring, etc. But in addition to this Homer illustrates the other aspect of human identity, shaped by the individual and his actions so that he may be recognized in the outside world. Through this Homer presents Odysseus in two ways: the first his internally given identity as ruler and native of Ithaca, son of Laertes, father of Telemachos; the second the definition of the external world

of Homer’s literary skill and of the impressions he intends to leave with us. This is clear even in the

Little can be definitively said about Homer, however Ancient Greek tradition places him to have lived and wrote sometime in the eighth or ninth centuries B.C. Early Greeks insist that there was a single individual named Homer, to whom they accredit the Illiad, Odyssey, and several other minor works. The Illiad begins in media res, Homer recounts an episode near the end of the war between the Trojans, ruled over by King Priam, and the attacking Greeks, led by King Agamemnon of Mycenae. The Greeks, or Achaeans, that Homer writes about, were not people of a unified

Homer, The Iliad and the Odyssey. Homer was born in the Ionian region of Asia Minor, at

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.

Bloom and Anderson. Typically, scholars break down Homer’s writing style to examine his work. Homer’s formulaic writing is one proof of the epic’s influence and quality. In his book Homer, Barry B. Powell writes one segment one how Homer uses plot formulas in both the Iliad and Odyssey to create a tripartite structure (59).

Homer is a poet that was born sometime between the 12th and 8th century B.C. in Asia Minor. He wrote the Iliad and the Odyssey.Very little is known about Homer as this Biography states“Although very little

Date of Publication: According to https://www.insidescience.org/content/geneticists-estimate-publication-date-iliad/946, The Iliad was made in 762 B.C. Investigators found Homer’s work about after 50 years.

      The Iliad is a story of rages of Achilles and the War of Troy. Thanks to the techniques of the author, Homer, The Iliad is very colorful, romantic, and it makes the readers imagine the ancient Greeks and their times of war. Homer is believed to be the author of epics other than the Iliad, although their authorship remains uncertain. Historian believes that Homer probably lived in the eighth century, B.C.1 (Discovering World History). However, there are very few things that we know about him. Some historians think Homer's birthplace may have been on an island on the eastern edge of the Aegean Sea, or perhaps in a city on the nearby coast, but they don't have evidence to

The ancient Greeks and Romans contributed to western civilization in many different forms of literature and architecture. Both of these cultures produced a variety of literary works which are still studied today. One of the biggest contributions to literature was from the author known as Homer. Homer was known for two of ancient Greece’s most epic poems, The lliad and The Odyssey. Both of these poems have had a profound impact on western literature and continue to influence teachers and authors today. “The lliad and The Odyssey have provided not only seeds but fertilizer for almost all the other arts and sciences in