The Odyssey wasn't originally written down. It's an epic poem that was part of an oral tradition passed down through memorization and would sort of be sung or recited to the audience in a rhythm (dactylic hexameter) that made it easier to remember.
A typical full traditional performance of the epic took about 20 hours, usually broken up over several days.
I mean, this individual learned something that'll stick. I just usually upvote and move on. Sometimes it's not about reaching everyone, but just reaching a few that want the info.
In this regard, considering I’ve read and memorized large parts of the Iliad and Odyssey in Ancient Greek, I’m not. It’s nice that people are getting excited about it but I check my desire for others’ historical understanding at the door because otherwise these convos are aggravating.
It's poem 7 of 8, but we only have surviving copies of the Iliad and the Odyssey. We know about the other 6 because we have surviving references to them (including in the surviving copies of the 2 we do have).
It’s pretty much understood that the story we know of today was not what Homer had created because it was added to and adjusted for the times it was told.
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u/Auggie_Otter 5h ago
The Odyssey wasn't originally written down. It's an epic poem that was part of an oral tradition passed down through memorization and would sort of be sung or recited to the audience in a rhythm (dactylic hexameter) that made it easier to remember.
A typical full traditional performance of the epic took about 20 hours, usually broken up over several days.