Homers influence has inspired many authors and changed daily life for ancient and modern people.

by rosebishop333 (student)

Rose Bishop 2/2/10

Homer Essay ELA 3 SS 8

Literature is one of the few things that can transport a person out of their daily life and into a whole new world. One of the most famous and influential writers was Homer. He was one of the only writers in the dark ages of Greece. He wrote two of the greatest poems in history “The Iliad” and “The Odyssey”. Many argue that ancient Greek literature is dead, but I think it is very much alive considering how many modern authors and readers are still influenced and touched by it today.

The people of the Mycenaean empire lived in a time where heroes were produced and were later worshiped as gods and the subject of many stories. A great deal of what we know about the Mycenaean people came from Homer. That is why we call this age Homers Greece (Edmonds, 7). The empire stretched from the plains of the Argos to the coast of Turkey (7). The only real records of the Mycenaean’s were myths and Homers poems (8). The Mycenaean’s were as much a mystery to the classical Greeks as they are to us (9). They were thought to be fierce and advanced Indo-European conquerors from the north (Powell, 12). Some believe that Perseus, slayer of Medusa and son of Zeus founded the capitol city Mycenae. Many famous heroes from myths, like Heracles and Atalanta lived in the Mycenaean empire (Edmonds, 8). Also many of Homers characters like Achilles and Odysseus lived in the Mycenaean age.

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“The Iliad” and “The Odyssey” by Homer were some of the greatest stories ever written. Homer only wrote two poems that we know of in his lifetime (Ancient History). Both the Iliad and the Odyssey were written in an Illionic dialect (Ancient History). He wrote in a dactylic hexameter, a meter of six feet long containing one long syllable and either two long syllables or two short syllables, which suggest that they were, performed orally (Ancient History). These poems had thousands upon thousands of lines and probably took a couple nights to perform (Ancient History). Homers first poem was the Iliad. The Iliad was about the war between the Mycenaean’s and the Trojans over the beautiful Helen “The face who launched one thousand ships” (Chismol, 110). It was a battle for glory and revenge fought between the bravest warriors of all time (Ancient History). Archeologists have found proof that Troy and the Trojan War existed (Ancient History). They have also found items like the golden cup of King Priam, which was described accurately with great detail in “The Iliad”. The strangest thing was that Homer lived at least two hundred years after Troy along with the lost cup (Ancient History). It is almost unimaginable that an author could write with such precision with out being there (Ancient History). Homers other poem was “The Odyssey”. “The Odyssey” follows Odysseus, a warrior who fought in the Trojan War, back home to Ithaca (World Book M-O, 675). On his journey he battled countless monsters and magical forces (Powell, 64). It is one of the few Greek stories to combine comedy and tragedy. “The Odyssey” is a template for many modern adventure stories (World Book M-O, 675)

Homer was one of the most accomplished writers and inspired many epic poems to come. An epic poem is a long poem that narrates the heroic exploits of an individual in ways relating to the current beliefs of his or her society (Epic Poetry). Usually the hero of the story would do super human things (Epic Poetry). Homer wrote epic poems. They were often a mix of myths and history (Edmonds, 18). Homer was a bard, a poet who sang or spoke his poetry. Homer was one of the only bards who wrote his work down. He was heavily influenced by early oral poetry (Chismol, 113). It is also said that he was influenced by Calliope, the muse of epic poems, and was often depicted by artists with a tablet, the sign of Calliope (Epic poetry).

Little is known about Homer and much is still a mystery. He lived sometime in between the seventh and eighth century B.C, but it is mysterious how uncanny his details in “The Iliad” and “The Odyssey” were about the Mycenaean’s considering their civilization collapsed 200 years before he was born (The Homeric Question). One myth about Homers origin was that he was captured from Babylon by the Greeks (Home). When the Emperor asked the oracle who Homer was she said that he was the son of Telemachus and grandson of Odysseus two characters in “The Odyssey” (Homer). His full name was thought to be Homophonous, which roughly translates into blind hostage (Homer). Homer was in fact blind and hostage would support the Telemachus theory (Homer). Others say his full name was Melesigenes from Mele an ancient city state in Turkey, which would explain his superior knowledge of Asia Minor (Homer). Semonides cited a famous line from “The Iliad” as “From the man from Chrios” (Homer). The islands of Ephesus and Smyrm also claim Homer was born and raised there (Homer). Over many years homers original words have been distorted. Form 300 B.C to 100 B.C Egyptian scholars of Alexandria tried to restore them to their original state but the study eventually stopped (World Book H, 340). During the renaissance the study was revived (Homer). In 1775 a German scholar named Friedrich August Wolf came up with the idea that Homer never existed or “The Iliad” and “The Odyssey” were written by multiple authors. He and his many followers called them selves the Analysts (World Book M-O, 304). A second group of people called the Unitarians said that one or possibly two persons wrote them. This debate between the Analysts and the Unitarians was called the Homeric question (World Book M-O, 304). Many conclusions about the author of “The Iliad” and “The Odyssey” have been made. One states that one author wrote both “The Iliad” and “The Odyssey” (Lombardi). Another is that the man that wrote “The Iliad” inspired another author to write “The Odyssey” (Lombardi). Some think that a single man wrote both poems but wrote them over a period of time, which explains the slight change of dialects and maturing of style (Lombardi).

Homer’s influence has inspired many authors and changed daily life for ancient and modern people. Plato, a famous philosopher said that Homer was “The educator of Greece” (Ancient History). Homer influenced many Roman poets like Virgil and Ovid (Lombardi). He also inspired Greek playwrights like Aeschylus, Euripides, and Sophocles (World Book H, 304). “The Iliad” and “The Odyssey” are almost like the bible to ancient Greeks and Romans (Lombardi). Hero cults that sprung up during the Hellenistic age worshiped Homer as if he were a god (Homer). The major curriculum in many Greek schools was “The Iliad” and “The Odyssey” (World Book H, 304). Today a main part of our English curriculum is about Homer. Homer influenced many authors. Shakespeare, John Keats, and Walt Whitman were some of the many who were inspired by Homer (Lombardi). James Joyce wrote “Ulysses”, which was based on “The Odyssey”. It was the greatest epic of the 20th century (Lombardi). Also various movies have been made of “The Iliad” and “The Odyssey”.

Today Homers impact can be seen everywhere, in books, movies, and school. His works of art are thriving in modern society. Without Homer western literature would not be the same. Ancient Greece might be long gone but its legacy lives on.