The Algorithmic Epic: Homer as Data in the Age of Artificial Intelligence and Cultural Analytics

Abstract

This paper examines the transformation of Homeric epics The Iliad and The Odyssey from foundational literary texts into analyzable datasets within the framework of artificial intelligence (AI) and cultural analytics. Traditionally revered as oral-poetic masterpieces embodying myth, heroism and collective memory, the Homeric corpus is increasingly subjected to computational methods such as stylometry, network analysis and machine learning. This study argues that AI-driven literary analysis reconfigures Homer from a singular epic voice into a distributed system of narrative patterns, formulaic repetitions and thematic structures. While such algorithmic approaches challenge romantic notions of authorship and orality, they simultaneously open new interpretive possibilities that enrich classical studies rather than diminish them.