Homer's Cultural Children: The Myth of Troy and European Identity

Abstract

This article seeks to demonstrate how the myth of Troy is still relevant to modern-day European culture and identity, drawing on Gregor Feindt et al.'s concept of "entangled memory" as a theoretical foundation. In order to support this claim, it discusses Wolfgang Petersen's movie Troy (2004), the successful exhibition Troy—Dream and Reality that opened in Germany in 2001; the heated debate sparked by this exhibition among German scholars; and the political discussion about Turkey's unsuccessful application for membership in the European Union, in which references to Troy played a surprising role.