How did Homer influence Greek Civilization?
The reason why these two stories were so influential for the Greek empire was not simply that they were entertaining. It was that they reflected the “ideals” that every Greek citizen should hold themselves to that were qualities epitomized in his “heroes”. When these stories were implemented, it was ultimately one of the larger reasons for the Greek empire merging from various warring city-states into one large Greek empire; the reasoning that they held the same values as people and shared in these traditions outlined in Homer’s writings. In fact, many famous Greeks have gone as far as to state that one is not a Greek unless they possess these books. It must be mentioned however that most scholars are now in agreement that the stories “The Iliad” and “The Odyssey” were not in fact entirely written by Homer and are more of a mosaic of stories told and passed down through generations.