 There's a lot of controversy about who Homer is or whether Homer is. Was he the genius who began the tale orally, sometime shortly perhaps after 1200 BC? Or was he some towering figure in that 400 year cycle of the oral period who just is so great everybody says okay from now on we're using Homer's version of this tale? Or is he the towering genius who wrote it down in its fixed form that we read in translation today? I can happily tell you I have no idea.