HOMER, THE ILLIAD, AND
THE ODYSSEYBy:
Joey Seitz, Clarke Jones, Steven Buckley, and Evylynn Gallo
Homers Backround Who is Homer?
Greek poet Author of The Illiad
and The Odyssey
What’s interesting about Homer?
His birthplace is doubtfully believed to be somewhere in Asia Minor
No one knows much of the true Homer
What is a Minstrel?
A minstrel is a medeivel storyteller
They recite their stories by singing them
Other names for Minstrels are Troubadour
and Versifier
They borrowed stories from old myths
The Illiad An epic written by homer Takes place during the Trojan was and
Seige of Troy Also includes battles during the fight
between King Agamemnon and Achilles
The Trojan War
War between Troy and Mycenae
Started when Paris of Troy kidnapped
Helen from the King of Sparta
The war lasted 10 years
The Trojan War (cont.) Mycenae won the war by building a giant
wooden horse and leaving it outside the gates of Troy. The Trojans thought this was a peace offering and brought it inside the city walls, but they didn’t know there was soldiers inside the horse. When the Trojans went to sleep, the soldiers came out of the horse and slaughtered them.
The Face That Launched A Thousand Ships
It’s a reference to events in the Trojan War
> Helen (women captured to start the war)
> And the place where Greek troops and ships were launched
The Odyssey? Epic by Homer Explains Odysseus’ journey home from
Troy Odysseus was helped by Circe, Hermes,
and Athena
Greek Gods Used the Odyssey to teach Greek culture
and values Gods ate ambrosia and drank necter
Muse and invocation Invocation – the summoning of a deity or
the supernatural A muse is the source of inspiration for a
creative work The muse of epic poetry is Calliope
Xenia Xenia is the respect of host to guest and
has three rules > Host must be hospitable > Provide food, drink, and bath > Its not polite to ask questions until the
guest states their needs The exchange between bard and host is a
gift to the guest upon leaving to show honor