Prolegomena ad Homerum: Sive, de operum Homericorum prisca et genuina forma variisque mutationibus et probabili ratione emendandi

The German classical philologist Friedrich August Wolf (1759–1824) developed a holistic approach which deeply influenced modern classical studies. In this 1795 treatise, he argues that the poems attributed to Homer were composed orally and that, prior to their transcription, they were altered by editors and performers in order to appeal to contemporary audiences, only coming together in their apparent artistic unity once they had been written down. Like many scholars of his day, seeking to ...