Homer’s Iliad
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C h a p te r s ( h tt p s : //co l o r s t a te .g r l co n te n t .co m /we s te r n c i v p re m o d e r n /pa g e /c h a p te r s ) C h a p te r 3 : A rc h a i c a n d C l a s s i c a l G re e ce ( h tt p s : //co l o r s t a te .g r l co n te n t .co m /we s te r n c i v p re m o d e r n /pa g e /c h 3 ) C h a p te r 3 : H o m e r A n d H o m e r i c S o c i e ty ( h tt p s : //co l o r s t a te .g r l co n te n t .co m /we s te r n c i v p re m o d e r n /pa g e /c h 3 p g 2 )
HOMER AND HOMERIC SOCIETY
The Iliad ( h t t p : // w w w. p o e t r y i n t ra n s l a t i o n . c o m / P I T B R /G r e e k / I l h o m e . h t m ) and
Odyssey ( h t t p : // w w w. p o e t r y i n t ra n s l a t i o n . c o m / P I T B R /G r e e k /O d h o m e . h t m )
are the �rst epic masterpieces of ancient Greek society. These poems were based on oral
traditions which had been passed down from generation to generation throughout the
Dark Ages. Not only is the date of the composition of these poems debated, the exact
author of the works is not agreed upon by scholars. It is generally assumed that Homer
used the oral traditions available to him and solidi�ed the stories in the forms of the Iliad
and Odyssey, as we have them now. Although Homer is the author of these epics, it must
be remembered that the stories date back generations and were transmitted orally.
The Iliad relates the epic story of the Trojan War, sparked by the kidnapping of Helen, the
queen of Sparta, by Paris, the prince of Troy. The Spartan king, Menelaus, desired to
reclaim his wife and commissioned the help of his brother, Agamemnon, the king of
Mycenae, for help.
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Th e Supposed Mask of Agam emn on. Thinkstockphotos.com
Agamemnon led Greek troops and
attacked Troy for ten years, �nally
sacking the city and winning a victory.
The clever warrior, Odysseus, comes up
with the idea of the Trojan Horse which
ultimately leads to a Greek victory over
the Tr o j a n s
( h t t p s : // w w w.yo u t u b e . c o m / w a t c h ?
v = Y b i R 6 I M f 5 KQ) . The Odyssey tells
the tale of Odysseus in the aftermath of
the war, who takes an additional ten
years to return to his wife and his home
in Ithaca. The Iliad and Odyssey are not
simply an adventurous tale of war, but also gives us clues into the values of Greek society
and universal human values. As an oral tradition spanning generations to the Mycenaean
period, but solidi�ed at the end of the Dark Ages, the poems demonstrate cultural values
of both Mycenaean civilization and Dark Age Greece.
Achilles plays the lead role in the Iliad and demonstrates the desired quality of men—
courage, bravery, strength in battle, and honor, while at the same time warning the
audience of the trouble with wrath, lack of emotional control, and violence. Likewise,
Odysseus, the eponymous hero of the Odyssey, demonstrates the qualities of craft, wile,
and cunning. Women in the poems are depicted either as good, chaste wives such as
Penelope who waits twenty years for her husband despite the constant pestering of
suitors; or as Helen, the queen who abandoned her husband and king thereby starting a
ten-year war. One of the greatest ideals the elites of the Dark Ages were concerned with
was arête, or excellence. Many characters in these stories demonstrate the attainment or
lack of arête. These values inherent in the poems help to explain the enduring importance
of Homer throughout the rest of Greek history.
Review Question
How was the Iliad and Odyssey transmitted before Homer?
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The Polis The eighth century BC saw the end of the Greek Dark Ages and the beginning of what
historians refer to as the Archaic Age of Greece. Two major features of this period will be
covered, that is the emergence of the polis (plural, poleis) and the colonization and spread
of Greek culture throughout the Mediterranean.
The polis, or Greek city-state, is an independent community of citizens who reside in a
city and its surrounding country side. The natural geographic boundaries of Greece
promoted the creation of dozens of different, autonomous city-states because of its
mountainous regions and numerous island territories, which allowed for independent
growth. Each polis would be the cornerstone of religious, social, and political life of its
citizens and also fostered a sense of shared group identity. They all varied in size and
power, but over time the larger, more powerful ones would absorb the smaller
neighboring poleis. For example, Athens and its surrounding countryside, Attica, were
originally twelve poleis but were united into a single polis.
One characteristic of the polis was political and military defense. As the polis system
developed, so too did a new Archaic military system based on hoplites. These heavily
armed infantrymen wore bronze and leather armor and carried a large, round shield
called a hoplon, hence the name. These individual hoplites would march into battle in the
phalanx formation—a rectangle formation, usually about eight men deep and tightly
organized. The goal of the hoplite phalanx was to push a hole into their enemies’ line; if
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Greek Hoplite. Image © Shutterstock, Inc.
e
: //www.youtube.com/watch? wmRQUTfKk)
they held the line, their formation would
not be broken and usually led to a
successful battle. This Archaic military
was essential in preserving the freedom
and safety of each polis.
From these original poleis, Greeks took
their native customs, language, law, and
literature throughout the
Mediterranean in a regionwide
colonization effort. The colonists
brought with them Greek identity—
language, literature, philosophy, religion,
and culture. Between 750 and 500 BC,
the Greeks established hundreds of
colonies. One of the main driving forces
for this effort was the search for fertile
land with which to make a living. Many
of these new poleis were originally trading posts or colonists were sent there due to
environmental or other concerns in the mother polis (metropolis). Eventually, many of
these new city-states became independent, while maintaining cultural ties to the mother
polis, and in turn settled throughout the Aegean, into the Black Sea and eventually west
through the Mediterranean.
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Image © Shutterstock, Inc.
Greek Colonization.
Many important Greek colonies were founded in Southern Italy—Tarentum (Taranto),
Neapolis (Naples), and Syracuse—so that the term Magna Graecia was coined. The
establishment of so many colonies over such a vast area had important effects. The
spread of Greek culture throughout the Mediterranean was one of the major
signi�cances, bringing culture to the new areas, as well as mixing with native populations.
Also, colonization led to a diffusion of trade and industry; Greek goods were sent abroad,
and new commodities were brought back to Greece.
Review Question
Chief features of the polis include all of the following except:
Independent
Own Military defense
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