Literary Lineage

The lineage of Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone

33 works across 28 centuries, back to Iliad and Odyssey.

  1. c. 725 BCE

    Odyssey

    Homer

    Archaic Greece. Archaic Greece. written in Ancient Greek.

    Epic of Odysseus's ten-year voyage home from Troy among monsters and enchantresses.

    What it handed down

    To Aeneid (19 BCE)

    Structural model, well documented.

    The first six books follow the Odyssey: a storm-tossed hero tells his past at a foreign court, meets monsters such as the Cyclops and descends to the underworld.

    Where it came from

    This is one of the oldest surviving works in its tradition; the line ends here.

    Find “Odyssey” on Amazon

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Preview card: the tree of influence behind Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone