Free Example of Homers Characters Essay

Homer is a noticeable name in the history of heroic poetry that stands high as the William Shakespeare drama work does (Homer & Chapman, 1956).  Homer was a truly an enigmatic poet of heroic proportions. There are numerous countless discrepancies and incongruities concerning the history of this renowned poet. He is the man believed to be responsible for the first written literature. Furthermore, many people perceive homer to be the first recorder of former oral, the classic verses that were used to entertain the ancient Greeks. He is usually famous for the two poems he actually composed; the Iliad and the Odyssey.

These poems usually coincide with each other and form a prequel and a sequel duo that are normally thought by many as being the backbone of the ancient Greek youth's education. The Iliad poem normally begins like its counterpart, the odyssey (Philbrick, 2009). This is because it initiates in a flair known as “in media res”. This is a phrase from Latin that means in the middle of things. This phrase is normally used to define how homer begins his two epic poems. This means he starts in the middle of the story that he along the way proceeds to fill in fine points.

The central incongruity in homer’s history is his place of birth, the time he lived and the lacking of any all-inclusive concrete theories. The Homeric question in homer's history deals with the much broader-based investigation into whether homer actually existed, and the possible persons that were eventually grouped by his title. So far, this is the largest distinct mystery of all historians, readers of homer and the literary critic.

Homer’s ancestry can be traced from odyssey. He was born around the 8th to 9th century BC. Some of the character possessed by homer made him a great poet in ancient Greece. He was known to have been a court singer and a story teller. His survival in one way or another have been doubted but all the same, most people acknowledge his existence and ascertain to the fact that he was a great poet who have continued to influence many writers today.

Although little is known about Homer, much of his characters are evident in his written works. Homer is thought to have collected and composed his works between700 and 800 BC. This has been determined by the historic, linguistic and geographical evidence that have been compiled by some historians. In the Iliad and odyssey taken collectively, they explains that a person is not a senseless body who is supposed to be, like a beast, act blindly on his instincts or emotions; nor is he a magical soul who should turn away from this world and try to find an escape in this life. This message shows that homer was an intelligent person who took and looked at things critically. His ways of thought propose that human is a creature of both body and mind and that given this fact, humans have to do something in a definite way; man must live up to his environment and not disappear from it. Specifically, man must have external power and internal strength.

According to him, inner strength means that human being must use their brainpower and assess their intelligence; they must also have the ability to keep their blind inner emotions or passions in check to avoid recklessness. External power means that man must be in position to use his brainpower and be capable of successfully fighting so as to accomplish or defend his principles. This thinking of homer suggests that he was a man who believed in his abilities and that there was nothing that could ever stop him from achieving or realizing his goals in life.

Despite Homer’s work being highly influential in the ancient Greece, it was never observed as disclosure from a supernatural source that is of holy writings. They were considered to be secular or worldly literature, and that the Greeks regarded them as such; homers writings were never taken by the Greeks beyond disapproval.

His worldview, however, is not without considerable error. For example, the vulnerability and fatalism he expresses that an individual only succeeds if and when forces largely outside his control would become held responsible, in ancient Greece and Rome which at the end of it all, cause much cultural harm. This shows that homer believed in external forces that curtailed or enhanced one success in life and therefore, it can be concluded that Homer was religious to a certain extent.

The Greeks cherished Homer’s epics more than their entertainment value. The heroes of the Iliad and the Odyssey personified the personality traits that shaped the foundation of male uniqueness in ancient Greece. One of these was the conception of arête: or the strength of the fighter. To display arête, a man had to effectively meet a bodily confront and come out victorious. This shows that homer was somebody who was admired by many and therefore, it can be concluded that he was courageous in his endeavors.

Homer was known to be a blind man. He was very creative as seen in his writings. One ancient Greek literally critic the different styles used by Homer who wrote the two epics, the Iliad and the Odyssey. There is also some dispute of whether Homer composed such enormous poems, since people now memorize such extensive stanzas makes it impossible for a blind man to have composed them. This shows that homer was talented as also evidenced by his other writings such as the Homeric hymns. The styles used in the Homeric hymns are almost similar to the styles used in Iliad and the Odyssey.

Homer and Civilization

The renowned Greek poet Homer had many influence on the Greek society and culture. Although numerous historians today dispute whether the Iliad and the odyssey were written by him and if he was in charge for influencing Greek art, Religion, philosophy, family values and ethics of that time; it is however evident enough that through his works, there was the birth and grand progress in the fields of science, drama, medicine, art, philosophy and history. Today, these advances have formed the basis of western advanced civilization. For many decades he has been considered a spiritual figure in the primordial Greece though not much more about him is identified today. Philosophers and poets have considered him as the novelist of the supreme epic poems of European civilization, the odyssey and the Iliad. This only makes Homer the greatest poet to have ever lived.

In all his works there have been elements of reason, worldliness, courage, honor, integrity, restraint and intelligence.  The two epics had an immense impact on the development of European civilization. They formed ancient Greek culture and influenced European civilization of the following centuries through numerous translations. For example, the Latin translation of the odyssey by Livius Andronicus became a regular textbook for young Romans, and both the Iliad and the odyssey were exceedingly valued 2000 years afterward during the Italian revitalization (Homer & Knox, 1990).

Homers work has also been used as a source of historical information. A clear example is the Iliad which have an explanation of the shield of Achilles which could be understood to mean cosmological map or atlas. Strabo, who refers to Homer as the founding figure in the field of geography, said about the authors of the various interpretations. In his knowledge and writings, the Greeks looked at them as a decree of thumb for they sought to live their lives. People of the olden Greece strived to take traits that were represented in the well-known epics. The immense influence Homer had is nothing but unquestionable; the depictions given by him could with no doubt be labeled as the most significant writings in the Greek culture, and they are still used in the current schooling today.

Just like other well-known Greeks, Homer can be accredited with inventing drama, competitive athletics, democracy, rhetoric, biology and oratory all which constitute today’s civilization. His writings have also been used as a key element in the renaissance, and in the ideological wars of the Victorian era.

His writing, Iliad and odyssey, have been considered also as the greatest epics as they have been closely connected with the ancient Greek mythology of which had a profound impact on the western civilization. The people always looked up to the characters in Homer’s writings, and from them, they got inspirations and hope at times of immense losses.

The profound poetic, work of the homers played a vital role in civilization; the western culture holds a central position in the two poems; the Odyssey and the Iliad. The Ancient Greeks considered the two homer’s epics as their uppermost cultural accomplishment of their people, and they provide an exceptional defining moment in the entire Greek culture. In both Rome and Greece, all work was usually compared to the two works of homer’s. For instance, the national poem of Rome, the Aeneid, is entirely based on the Odyssey, and it actually links the founding of Rome with the fall of Troy.

During the era of around 1400 B.C, It was the period where Mycenae, which was a traditional home for the Agamemnon, the brother of the Menelaus and the spearhead of the Greek fighters in Troy (Butcher, 1950). A golden era of brilliance aroused during this period, it is during this time that the social and spiritual civilizations of the renowned classical Greece actually began to take form. This is the Homeric or the Heroic age that is commonly called Mycenaean. This is because the philosophy and ethics of this final period are actually those perpetually personified in the Homeric poems; the Iliad and the Odyssey. This breakdown of this age is normally credited to the Dorian incursion, which is actually believed to have occurred at around 1100 B.C. This time also became a conclusive death blow to the Minoan civilization.

The two Homer’s poems played a prominent role in defining moments of Greek ancient culture. Although it is unlikely that Trojan and Greek wars occurred, there is substantial evidence that the Illians and Mycenaean’s certainly clashed and the city of Troy was totally destroyed, But the Achilles, Odysseus, Paris and the horse are all the fabrications of the ancient writer’s mind.

As the unequal states of the prehistoric Greece came together to repel Persian incursion, the two homer’s poem seem to take different sense ,they are not actually viewed as simply depicting some historical myth about the brave combatants, but actually as the defining personification of the Greek  characters. The story of the Greeks setting aside contentions in order to take on an extensive nationwide mission reverberated with the Spartans and the Athenians who were actually facing down their eastern opponents.

The existing poems of homer, the Iliad and the Odyssey are actually much more than ordinary military mythologies (Homer & Palmer, 1884). The olden Greeks acknowledged the immense poetry contained within the tiers and the imperative thoughts within these two epics. There was actually no sense that these writings were sacred works, but they were actually acknowledged for their wisdom and their profound contribution in civilization.

It is evident that the increased commerce and communication have been favored by the Greek substantial leap from myth to symbols as well as swift growth in knowledge. In fact, I assume that presocratikers may need to thank homer and his distinguishable legendary work, because of their vocabulary, verbal concepts and richness in language, and more importantly because it served as the medium of communication and self-identification.

The Iliad did not necessary have to be the best selling literal work after the publication of the official edition; there were still enthusiasts who actually brought homer from home to home, city to city. This actually made homer be not merely a unifying, cultural identity informing, or an Pan-Hellenic-communal-ego-creating agent or even an databank of history and faith but a language itself, with such encyclopedic clout that actually ranged from Olympia, to the interminable city of Troy, and which was a prerequisite and indispensable to the quantum jump of the Greek from the myths to logos civilization.

Although the Greek genius were indisputably involved in this major transition and the adding of vowels to the Phoenician writings which was an indispensable prerequisite, the impact would be less if it was not for likes  of Homer, Aristotle and Plato who actually accelerated  the rapid growth of literacy in the Greece (In Steiner & In Fagles, 1962). The Homer in particular played a highly significant role in enhancing civilization in the world of literacy.

There is a substantial possibility that if it was not for the Iliad and the Odyssey, the Greeks could have squandered their remarkable culture either at the Olympia or at the Delphi. They actually had not much else in mutual excepting bitter strife, even at the times of Pericles and the inordinate alliance of Delos. If this actually happened there could be no Thales, Euclid, Solon, and Socrates. Lastly, none of the most prominent teachers of mankind Plato and his student Aristotle would be in existence. The inventors and the prominent on whose shoulders Isaac Newton stood and the western and now the worldwide civilization and sophistication seems to be standing.

The beliefs and views of many societies during specific era are usually portrayed in the literature art. The Homer’s Iliad together with its companion literature work; the Odyssey was actually acknowledged by the ancient Greeks as the foundation of their civilization. This is because the impacts of homer’s epic works are believed to have been felt even in the education sector. A close study of homer’s work indicates that it shaped the future of Greek since the two epics formed the basis of the Greek education. This outlines the outstanding contribution of homer toward modern civilization.

The Iliad and the Odyssey are normally regarded as an authoritative source of morals and model, and the staple of the literary education. This greatly contributed toward the civilization of the Greeks. Many people believe that the Iliad and the Odyssey marks the commencement of the western literature and also exemplifies its earliest surviving works. They also acknowledged the Homer’s ancient time as a great piece of art work that still retains its place in the western culture. Furthermore, the lessons outlined in these two poems are remarkably relevant as they were when they were being written.

The strength and prestige of the Iliad, normally outlines standards for the definition of the word epic: relating to a long expressive work that is usually centered upon a hero, through a series of impressive achievements that are normally described in a preeminent style. These verses were actually meant to arouse a sense of marvel and wonder to those who heard them. Homer portrays his views on heroes, war, and villain in the Iliad. He actually portrays villains as having evil qualities and heroes as having positive qualities. This is a criterion that is normally employed in the most civilized societies even in the modern world.

Homer also show that heroes have wicked qualities, he reveals that everyone normally have a choice between a life of peace and the life of war. In this epic, he portrays many actors as having remarkable wicked and heroic qualities. Homer also show that wars and conflict normally brings out the worst and the best people, he reveals that the soldiers can battle in the war font and still lives a life of friendship and peace. The epic also brings out a sense of loyalty, pettiness, love, Murder and disloyalty. All these aspect portrayed in this epic has sharped the civilization of the Greek people and the Western culture.

The Homer’s Iliad and Odyssey have been respected by the Greek themselves because they have played a remarkable role in their civilization. These poems that are extensive and enormous in scope, were actually composed in an archaic and superbly prominent language, they usually refer to the astounding deeds of heroes. These deeds are actually meant to trigger a sense of spectacle that is difficult for the modern mind to understand, especially at this period when the words such as spectacular and magnificent have already lost much of their evocative power.

In the Homeric society, hospitality was an important theme in the Odyssey (Homer & In Scott, 1961). It used to reflect both social and religious concerns. This was essential especially at that time when the survival of the people solely depended on the grain harvest and the livestock. The homer reveals that the concern and respect of the property was extremely important. Hospitality to the stranger was looked on as a principle of a civilized society.  Furthermore, Hospitality also had religious importance; suppliants were believed to be sacred   to the Zeus himself. This was highly upheld because Greek never knew when a visitor might turn to be a god in disguise.

Conclusion

Best known as the author of the Odyssey and Iliad, Homer has been known as the greatest epic poet in Greek history. In the Iliad, commonly described as the tale of Achilles or the Trojan wars and in the Odyssey which talks about the travels of Odysseus have been described as books which have left some landmarks in human writing world.  Homer has consequently been cited as the initial origin of the western literary and historic tradition. The details of Homers life is a mystery as most scholars today though people have not been able to supply the finest historic details of homer due to lack of up to date historical record of his life, much can be realized from his great works of poetry. For example his place of residence

The background of the Iliad is the plain of Troy and its direct setting. Topographical details are set forward with such accuracy that it is not viable to assume that their narrator created them out of his thoughts without personal contact with the locality. It have been recognized that both epics, the Iliad and the Odyssey were formed with no recourse to writing. Homer’s works will remain to be great poems and elementary works in the field of religious scripture and art for later classical Greeks.