Much of what I’ve written about previously has dealt with Homer: was he the individual who composed the Iliad; did he write it; why is the Iliad so different from the Cyclic poems, and were the Iliad and the Odyssey composed by the same person (accepting the conclusion they were both produced by individuals, not a long-term process within an oral tradition)? I’ve mentioned before that it’s generally believed neither the poet of the Iliad or the Odyssey were named Homer, so where did that name come from and, if they were two separate individuals, why do we know both of them by that name? As I’ve also said, the confusion created by the name Homer being attached to both poems has affected how the poems are perceived, and obscured the history behind them. Keep reading…
