Homer is the name traditionally given to the author of two ancient Greek epic poems, The Iliad and The Odyssey . Details of Homer's life are practically non-existent: seven Greek cities claim to be his birthplace and his birth date is placed anywhere between 1050 and 850BC. Legend has it that Homer was poor, and blind in his later years, and this may be reflected in the character of the blind poet Demodokos in The Odyssey .
Homer's work is said to have had more influence on Western literature than that of any other writer. It inspired The Aeneid of the Roman writer Virgil, and James Joyce's Ulysses is based on The Odyssey . The work of Homer has been praised by, among others, Aristotle and Dante.
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