Homer: Not The Simpson
By: Marcos Campos
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Homer, a person rarely talked about nowadays amongst the writing community. You may even be wondering who this “Homer” man is without immediately thinking about Homer Simpson. Homer was an ancient Greek poet, the author of the “Iliad” and the “Odyssey,” two poems that influenced poetry as we know it today.
According to Britannica, if Homer is the presumed author of the two poems, then he’s considered one of the greatest literary artists in the world. But the two poems are one of the only concrete evidence to his existence, as scholars are unsure if he was even real. He claimed to be blind, but would sing and perform, therefore being known as the “Blind Bard.” Along with that, some claim he was completely illiterate, therefore shrouding him in even more mystery.
About one of his two highly influential poems, “Odyssey,”–according to Wikipedia–follows the story of a man named “Odysseus” and his journey after the Trojan War. During his journey, many things happen to and around him, being absent from his wife and child. Aside from the actual story, it’s one of the oldest surviving works of literature in human history, and still remains popular today. It’s divided into 24 books, presumably setting the base for modern day chapter books separated in volumes (Such as books being labeled “volume 1” and it’s sequal/continuation being labeled “volume 2”).
His second poem–Iliad–was similar to “Odyssey,” because both were apart of the “Epic Cycle.” The Epic Cycle was a collection of epic poems back in ancient Greek that usually covered the Trojan War. Like Odyssey, Iliad was written in a dactylic hexameter, which was prominent in poetry back in ancient times. The Iliad revolves around the wrath of Achilles, with the Trojan War also being the subject of the epic. It does have it’s similarities to Homer’s other piece of literature, yet it still manages to tell a compelling story nonetheless.
We may not know too much about Homer, but his presumed works of literature have undoubtedly established and forever shaped literature as we know it today. With pieces such as “Odyssey” and “Iliad,” poetry as we know has been changed and influenced heavily, with researchers and scientists still studying these two epics, as well as still being actively read amongst modern society. Although we may not know much about Homer–even questiontioning his existence–we do know that him himself and his two prominent pieces of ancient literature have provided solid foundations for modern day literature.
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