Homer was a woman !!??

Wow, I never even considered the thought that Homer was a woman.

It wouldn't surprise me, but I'd be willing to give women the credit for just about anything I'm fairly ignorent of. ;)

I do like it, though, when men speak scientifically about women and women's nature. It always make me laugh, even if it is true. When they say a female author would've been bored to tears writing Illad... How can you not laugh? Firstly, today, it would probably be true - I couldn't even be bothered to read it.

But back in those days, I would expect women could've written about such things as easily and with as much passion and interest as they could today write about their own soldiers, their own breadwinners. If I felt even the slightest connection with the men involved in such "masculine" activities, I could easily write from the heart about them.

Interesting opinion!
But i hope there is some scientific evidence,and it s not just a way for the writer to make noise around hiis/her name..

Originally posted by akritas Why then all the statues (Roman and Greeks)  that estimated since  4th cent show a male ?   I think this is a just  arbitrary theory as many propagation common hypothesis.

I agree...However, if he was a woman would any of his works change because of that? I don't think so.

Did this revered professor plan to sell as much as dan brown, or is he planning to break another record.

Kind of makes one wonder... where will the revisiosist "just for kicks and publicity" crap end? I mean everybody is trying to build reputation and (if lucky) a fortune, by screwing history in random ways...

Originally posted by Maziar Komnenos welcome back from your WM trip.   I have a question, granted that Homer were a woman, what was the reason for the historians to tell us she was a man?

Nuh,i think it's false and funny.

I have red the Illiad and the Odyssey several times, since I was a kid greek mythology, and eppical poems attracted me mre than anything. Now, it is true, Homer might have been only a bard, or only a scribe. It is very probable that he didnt create this tales. In my opinion the tales, the epics, always have to pass through an oral phase, which gives to simply narrated story the shape of a magnificent poem. So in my opinion the Illiad and the Odyssey cannot be attributed to a single man (bard). They were created orally from generation to the other, and from a bard to the other. It could be true, maybe some of the bards could have been women. But it is not likely. The poems are Warriors' Songs and Wandering Man's Songs. The poems imply a good knowledge of the military techniques, of the battle field, of the naval science etc. And the style, the shape, the colour of the words, the inside, in my opinion is very Virile and Heroic. It is strange to think about sexism, the songs are inspired by a (feminine) muse. Read the poems, and you 'll understand the virility of the many bards (narrators), as well as that of the protagonists.

Originally posted by Pantagathus Originally posted by Arb�r Z So in my opinion the Illiad and the Odyssey cannot be attributed to a single man (bard).   To paraphrase Mr. Dalby (liberally), it's probably best not to use that term in this case because 'Bard' specifically refers to a Celtic vagabond minstrel who sucked up to chieftains & heroes for a free meal.   If you love the epics then it is worth your while to read the book. If you disagree with the main hypothesis in the end, it doesn't mean that there is no new insight in the book to glean in regards to the mystery surrounding Homer.   I've only just begun the book but it seems clear to me that Mr. Dalby has done extensive research on the subject and is not just out to make an extra buck based on a tag line about Homer being a woman...