Homer - Real or Non-existent?

 

Homer: Author of The Iliad and The Odyssey

          Homer is remembered as one of the most significant and legendary figures of ancient Greek literature, having written two epic poems, The Iliad and The Odyssey. Homer’s works are highly impactful, providing the foundation for Western literature and influencing many literary techniques such as epithets, dactylic hexameter and epic similes to be more widely known and used. However, whether he actually existed is highly controversial, with no historical evidence that provides a conclusive answer to the question of his existence. It also raises the question of whether his existence actually matters or if it’s relevant in any way. It is not certain whether or not Homer existed, but I believe that is significant because it may shape the way we view and approach his literature.

           Some references that suggest that Homer was real are themselves ancient historical figures and their written work. For example, Herodotus, often referred to as “the Father of History,” is one of the earliest ones to mention Homer in records. He believed that Homer lived around the 9th or 8th century BCE, and although he does not provide further personal details about Homer, he acknowledged Homer as a historical poet. This proposes that by the 5th century, which was when Herodotus was alive, Homer was widely known as someone who existed. Another person that recorded Homer’s existence is Strabo, who was a geographer that lived sometime during the period from the 1st century BCE to the 1st century CE. He frequently mentioned Homer in his writing Geographica. Strabo studied his birthplace and wrote that Homer was a poet who traveled broadly. Although these references do not prove his existence completely, given that it is extremely difficult to determine the accuracy of ancient writings, we do know that ancient Greeks indeed believed that he was a historical figure and treated him like one. 

         However, most do not believe that  Homer was existent not only because of lack of historical evidence but also because there is a lack in modern evidence. Earliest records of Homer in ancient Greek references come centuries after when scholars think he actually lived, leaving a large gap in time and countless questions for historians. Even until now, there has been no discovery of basic information about Homer, like his gender and when and where he was born. This led many to go as far as to question his authorship of the two epic Greek poems. 

On the other hand, some believe that Homer was a symbolic name, not a person, for a series of Greek poems that have been passed down. Others may also believe that Homer was a group of poets that contributed to parts of the poems as they were passed down orally through generations. Still, because of possibilities of finding sound evidence of his existence in the future, we cannot come to a conclusion yet of whether or not Homer was real.

        Despite the fact that whether Homer was real is still a mystery, I believe that it matters tremendously, especially for our perspectives towards his work and how we interpret it. Currently, Homer’s works are mainly just viewed as renowned pieces of literature that provided a foundation for the western literature. However, knowing if he was real or not would provide deeper insights to these works. Firstly, if he was real, these would all be stories that originated from one mind, highlighting the creative and genius-like mind of Homer. If not, it would instead shine the spotlight on how different people contributed to the poems so that it became epic pieces of literature after evolving over generations. Additionally, if Homer was real and he wrote the poems, we would be given some historical context when reading his works and would be able to understand them in a deeper context. Therefore, knowing whether or not Homer was real would be highly significant to know.

        In conclusion, knowing whether or not Homer was real matters to a great extent as it provides us with deeper contexts and aspects on how to approach his works. While we do not know yet if he actually existed, we should still appreciate and enjoy the literature that is credited to him.