HOMER: The Iliad and The Odyssey (Deluxe Hardbound Edition)

Homer is known to have authored the first known literature of Europe. He is revered as one of the greatest of the ancient Greek epic poets in the Western classical tradition and is credited with the enduring epic tales of the Illiad and the Odyssey, which were an important part of the Greek culture. Though when he lived is not known, it is estimated by Herodotus, a Greek historian, that Homer lived around 400 years before his own time. This places him somewhere around 800-900 BC. While some ancient sources claim that he lived close to the supposed time of the Trojan War, i.e. in the early 12th century BC, most modern researchers place him in the 7th or 8th century BC.
Plato’s the Republic describes Homer’s significance to the ancient Greeks. He was described as the teacher of Greece, for the growing influence of Homeric epics in shaping Greek culture was widely recognized. His works are about fifty per cent speeches and provide models in persuasive writing and speaking.