![]() Seven different places claimed in antiquity to be the birthplace of Homer. ![]() Rhapsodes performed in competition at festivals and were probably also hired out to perform for the wealthy. Was this person Homer? One famous saying claims, "either Homer or someone of the same name." Homer likely made his living as a rhapsode, a professional singer of verses, also known as a bard. More recently scholars have once again begun to entertain the idea that the Homeric texts were composed by a single person, based mainly on the intricacy and consistency of the plot and character construction. This theory arose because of the huge success of a similar theory in biblical criticism, and because scholars were able to hear distinctive voices within the Homeric texts. In earlier centuries, many scholars argued that Homer was not one person, but a traditional name attached to works that were really collectively composed. ![]() Though there is still disagreement, most people suspect his epics were written down around 750 B.C.E. Homer was the composer of the Iliad and the Odyssey, the two oldest and most important works of Greek literature. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |