Inventing Homer

Explores the ancient reception of the Homeric poems and its relation to modern approaches.

How was the poet Homer imagined by ancient Greeks? This book examines stories about this elusive figure that circulated between the sixth and fourth centuries BC, and attempts to explore the ancient reception of the Homeric poems and to look at it in relation to modern conceptions and approaches.How was the poet Homer imagined by ancient Greeks? This book examines stories circulating between the sixth and fourth centuries BC about his birth, place of origin and name; the circumstances of his life - such as the story of his blindness - his relation to other poets, and his heirs. The aim is to explore the ancient reception of the Homeric poems, and to look at it in relation to modern representations of Homer, ancient and modern conceptions of authorship, and the 'Homeric Question'. The book's engaging and accessible style should make it attractive to a wide range of readers, including non-classicists, and all quotations from Greek are provided with an English translation.