Though he wrote a few of the most famous texts in our literary history, very little is know about: Who he was Where he lived, and How he came to write The Odyssey and The Iliad HOWEVER…

 Was blind  Composed The Odyssey in the late eighth or early seventh century B.C.  He lived in Ionia, located in eastern Aegean.  Wrote the poems to be sung/performed, but that he did write them down.

 A long narrative poem in elevated style presenting characters of high position in adventures forming an organic whole through their relation to a central heroic figure and through their development of episodes important to the history of a nation or race. Examples:  The Divine Comedy  Beowulf  The Iliad  The Odyssey  Epic of Gilgamesh  The Aeneid

 A larger than life main character (demigods, heroes, etc.) that embodies the ideals of a particular culture or nation—epic struggle/goal  The Gods/Goddesses intervene in the events/mortal lives  Setting of upheaval/change. Ex. End of Trojan War.  “Epic” in length. Often it is broken down into books.  Wide setting—travel spans countries, the time can span decades

 Long speeches in elevated/courtly language to recount events and stories in the fashion of bards—written for performance/song  In-medias-res opening (often)  Repetition: epithets—help in both meter form and establishing character “grey eyed Athena”  Epic similes—extended, ornate comparisons using like or as  The invocation of the muses at the start

 Zeus and Mnemosyne (goddess of Memory)  9 nights=9 muses  Sing of the gods and their deeds—”sing” of the past deeds of a culture  Uphold the arts and sciences  Inspire and summon the memory in the arts  Authors call for inspiration—epic poetry  Homer calls “the muse” and the “muses

 Calliope—epic poetry  Clio—history  Erato—love poetry  Euterpe—music  Melpomen—tragedy  Polyhymnia—hymns  Terpsichore—dance  Thaleia—comedy  Urania--astronomy

 Favorite of Homer  Muse of Epic Poetry  Eldest

 Calls to the muse to aid the author  Establishes plot  Establishes characters  Establishes theme  Calls to culture/history  Employs literary devices like: epithet and epic simile