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Who Is America's Homer?

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111–120 of 261 posts

Re: Who Is America's Homer?

#111

I think it is somewhat weird that nobody put Twain in. I could also see someone suggesting Hemingway, although I don't buy it. Hart Crane at this point in time seems somewhat secondary, so that was surprising. The Tracy Chapman thing seemed seriously like a troll, I could definitely agree to a black Homer, but then I guess it would be Langston Hughes or James Baldwin as my choices. To suggest someone though who has t…

It’s obviously Twain.

Re: Who Is America's Homer?

#112

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Hmm Wheres the evidence that Homer work ed for the mythology of Dark Age Greece? If you say its his popularity.. (I would cite the Cyclics as counter evidence) For filmmaker: itd have to be someone whom you can imagine (unironically) reconstructing Adams or other actual American heroes So.. Tom Hanks

> Tom Hanks Recency bias? Why not Jimmy Stewart? Gregory Peck? Humphrey Bogart? Paul Newman, Robert Redford?

Not really. He was executive producer of

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Adams_(miniseries)

And will be playing and producing Dodd.

https://variety.com/2019/film/news/joe-wright-in-the-garden-...

Theme of his oevre is not-so-immortal American heroes and heroism through and through

Except for Redford, the others don't have their own voice

Edit: but Tom Hanks is really only barely getting by from Hollywood getting less repressive over time

Re: Who Is America's Homer?

#114

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Twain is a good choice, but he also works against the mythology of America. His whole thing was popping bubbles and making grounded stories that work against the backdrop of Americana. Tracy Chapman is a pretty trolly answer, but I suspect the real answer might very well be a musician or filmmaker, not a writer.

> the real answer might very well be a musician or filmmaker, not a writer. Walter Disney, obviously. Well, it will probably take at least another century for the fact to hit.

I think that’s correct. One way to look at it: when the Greek world expanded geographically, the new people tried to connect themselves with the Homeric stories (as did the Romans). Whose stories serve that function today? Disney.

Re: Who Is America's Homer?

#116
Longfellow springs to mind. Not my personal favourite, but wrote epics in meter.

Some other suggestions are in the wrong genre.

Likely there are some native American bards who were nearer to Homer in spirit.

Re: Who Is America's Homer?

#117
post #86

I think of Herman Melville's 'Moby-Dick' as representing America.

How so? Serious question, hoping to see you make a point that will get downvoted because it's right :)

Aside: I have been somewhat busy and maybe even too emotionally preoccupied with other stuff to help people here listen to their anger

The teaching-by-jesting is a difficult calling and I don't practise enough! At least not in fields outside my main interests :)

If you don't mind me asking, what are the topics that you do think deeply about? I'm not sure you write about these in the blogs?

Maybe my second interest can be codified as the study of

   Making breakthroughs for humanity every man-week of doing, not "breakthroughs" for a few men every thirty man-decades of "thinking"
HN sometimes help, but it's been mostly monologue interspersed with some .. interesting moments such as these

Re: Who Is America's Homer?

#118
Homer is America's Homer. Homer is western civilization's Homer. Thousands of Americans have composed epics, but Homer is still the one with primacy. All succeeding epics defer to Homer, including the American ones.

Re: Who Is America's Homer?

#119
An odd question. America's "founding myths" are the Declaration of Independence and The Constitution.

These are the Holy Scriptures, and - like the Homeric ones - have multiple authors but lack the obscurity of ancient history to allow that latter fact to be subsumed into the story as a single, blind bard.

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