From Hittite to Homer

This Book Provides A Groundbreaking Reassessment Of The Prehistory Of Homeric Epic. It Argues That In The Early Iron Age Bilingual Poets Transmitted To The Greeks A Set Of Narrative Traditions Closely Related To The One Found At Bronze-Age Hattusa The Hittite Capital. Key Drivers For Near Eastern Influence On The Developing Homeric Tradition Were The Shared Practices Of Supralocal Festivals And Venerating Divinized Ancestors And A Shared Interest In Creating Narratives About A Legendary Past Using A Few Specific Storylines: Theogonies Genealogies Connecting Local Polities Long-Distance Travel Destruction Of A Famous City Because It Refuses To Release Captives And Trying To Overcome Death When Confronted With The Loss Of A Dear Companion. Professor Bachvarova Concludes By Providing A Fresh Explanation Of The Origins And Significance Of The Greco-Anatolian Legend Of Troy Thereby Offering A New Solution To The Long-Debated Question Of The Historicity Of The Trojan War.