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Information about Epic Poetry

For other meanings of epic, see .
Literature
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Epic • Romance • Novel • Tragedy
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The epic is long, exalted narrative poetry, generally concerning a serious subject and details the heroic deeds and events important to a culture or nation.[1] A work need not be written to qualify as an epic, although even the works of such great poets as Homer, Dante Alighieri, and John Milton would be unlikely to have survived without being written down. The first epics are known as primary, or original, epics. Epics that attempt to imitate these like Virgil's The Aenied and John Milton's Paradise Lost are known as literary, or secondary, epics.[2] Another word for epic poetry is (plural: epyllia) which is a brief narrative poem with a romantic or mythological theme. The term, which means 'little ', came in use in the Nineteenth Century. It refers primarily to the type of erotic and mythological long elegy of which Ovid remains the master; to a lesser degree, the term includes some poems of the English Renaissance, particularly those influenced by Ovid. One suggested example of classical epyllion may be seen in the story of Nisus and Euryalus in Book IX of The Aeneid.

Oral epics or world folk epics

The first epics were products of preliterate societies and oral poetic traditions. In these traditions, poetry is transmitted to the audience and from performer to performer by purely oral means.

Early twentieth-century studies of living oral epic traditions in the Balkans by Milman Parry and Albert Lord demonstrated the paratactic model used for composing these poems. What they demonstrated was that oral epics tend to be constructed in short episodes, each of equal status, interest and importance. This facilitates memorization, as the poet is recalling each episode in turn and using the completed episodes to recreate the entire epic as he performs it.

Parry and Lord also showed that the most likely source for written texts of the epics of Homer was dictation from an oral performance.

Epic: a long narrative poem in elevated stature presenting characters of high position in adventures forming an organic whole through their relation to a central heroic figure and through their development of episodes important to the history of a nation or race.


Epics have 6 main characteristics:
  1. the hero is of imposing stature, of national or international importance, and of great historical or legendary significance
  2. the setting is vast, covering many nations, the worlds or the universe
  3. the action consists of deeds of great valor or requiring superhuman courage
  4. supernatural forces--gods, angels, demons--interest themselves in the action
  5. a style of sustained elevation is used
  6. the poet retains a measure of objectivity


The hero generally participates in a cyclical journey or quest, faces adversaries that try to defeat him in his journey, and returns home significantly transformed by his journey. The epic hero illustrates traits, performs deeds, and exemplifies certain morals that are valued by the society from which the epic originates. Many epic heroes are recurring characters in the legends of their native culture.

Conventions of Epics:
  1. Opens by stating the theme or subject matter of the epic
  2. Writer invokes a Muse, one of the nine daughters of Zeus. The poet prays to the Muses to provide him with divine inspiration to tell the story of a great hero. (This convention is obviously restricted to cultures which were influenced by Classical culture: the Epic of Gilgamesh, for example, or the Bhagavata Purana would obviously not contain this element)
  3. Narrative opens in medias res, or in the middle of things, usually with the hero at his lowest point. Usually flashbacks show earlier portions of the story.
  4. Catalogues and genealogies are given. These long lists of objects, places, and people place the finite action of the epic within a broader, universal context. Oftentimes, the poet is also paying homage to the ancestors of audience members.
  5. Main characters give extended formal speeches.
  6. Use of the epic simile
  7. Heavy use of repetition or stock phrases.


Literate societies have often copied the epic format; the earliest European examples of which the text survives are the Argonautica of Apollonius of Rhodes and Virgil's Aeneid, which follow both the style and subject matter of Homer. Other obvious examples are Nonnus' Dionysiaca, Tulsidas' Sri Ramacharit Manas, Invocation (prayer to the inspiring muse [of the epic]), praepositio (introduction of the epic's theme), enumeratio (counting the fighting heroes and their armies), the principles termed "in medias res"

Notable epic poems

This list can be compared with two others, National epic and List of world folk-epics.[3]

Ancient epics (to 500)

Medieval Epics (500-1500)

Modern Epics (from 1500)

Other "Epics"

See also

Notes

1. ^ Michael Meyer, The Bedford Introduction to Literature, Bedford/St. Martin's, 2005, p2128. ISBN 0-312-41242-8
2. ^ "epic". The Columbia Encyclopedia (6). (2004). New York: Columbia University Press. Retrieved on 2007-09-25. 
3. ^ According to that article, world folk epics are those which are not just literary masterpieces but also an integral part of the world view of a people, originally oral, later written down by one or several authors.

External links

Bibliography

  • Jan de Vries: Heroic Song and Heroic Legend ISBN 0-405-10566-5
  • Cornel Heinsdorff: Christus, Nikodemus und die Samaritanerin bei Juvencus. Mit einem Anhang zur lateinischen Evangelienvorlage, Untersuchungen zur antiken Literatur und Geschichte 67, Berlin/New York 2003, ISBN 3-11-017851-6
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Literature literally "acquaintance with letters" (from Latin littera letter) as in the first sense given in the Oxford English Dictionary, or works of art, which in Western culture are mainly prose, both fiction and non-fiction, drama and poetry.
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romance or chivalric romance refers to a style of heroic prose and verse narrative current in Europe from the Middle Ages to the Renaissance.

Characteristics of the romance


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novel (from, Italian novella, Spanish novela, French nouvelle for "new", "news", or "short story of something new") is today a long prose narrative set out in writing.
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In a figurative sense a tragedy (from Classical Greek τραγωδία, "song for the goat", see below) is any event with a sad and unfortunate outcome, but the term also applies specifically in Western culture to a form of drama defined by
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performance, in performing arts, generally comprises an event in which one group of people (the performer or performers) behave in a particular way for another group of people (the audience).
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A book is a set or collection of written, printed, illustrated, or blank sheets, made of paper, parchment, or other material, usually fastened together to hinge at one side. A single sheet within a book is called a leaf, and each side of a sheet is called a page.
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Prose is writing distinguished from poetry by its greater variety of rhythm and its closer resemblance to the patterns of everyday speech. The word prose comes from the Latin prosa, meaning straightforward, hence the term "prosaic," which is often seen as pejorative.
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Poetry (from the Greek "ποίησις", poiesis, a "making" or "creating") is a form of art in which language is used for its aesthetic and evocative qualities in addition to, or in lieu of, its ostensible
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The history of literature is the historical development of writings in prose or poetry which attempt to provide entertainment, enlightenment, or instruction to the reader/hearer/observer, as well as the development of the literary techniques used in the communication of
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For the first part of this article, see .

Modern Literature, 19th century

The 19th century was perhaps the most literary of all centuries, because not only were the forms of novel, short story and magazine serial all in existence side-by-side with
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Literature is prose, written or oral, including fiction and non-fiction, drama and poetry. See also the list of basic poetry topics. Basic topics in literature include:

Nature of literature

Main article: Literature

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The following is a list of literary terms; that is, those words used in discussion, classification, criticism, and analysis of literature.

See also: Glossary of poetry terms, Literary criticism, Literary theory



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Literary criticism is the study, discussion, evaluation, and interpretation of literature. Modern literary criticism is often informed by literary theory, which is the philosophical discussion of its methods and goals.
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Literary theory is the theory (or the philosophy) of the interpretation of literature and literary criticism. Its history begins with classical Greek poetics and rhetoric and includes, since the 18th century, aesthetics and hermeneutics.
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A literary magazine is a periodical devoted to literature in a broad sense. Literary magazines usually publish short stories, poetry and essays along with literary criticism, book reviews, biographical profiles of authors, interviews and letters.
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Narrative poetry is poetry that tells a story. The poems may be short or long, and the story it relates to may be simple or complex. It is usually nondramatic, with objective verse and regular rhyme scheme and meter.
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Homer is the name given to the purported author of the early Greek poems the Iliad and the Odyssey. It is now generally believed that they were composed by illiterate aoidoi (rhapsodes) in an oral tradition in the 8th or 7th century BC.
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Dante Alighieri

Dante Aligheri
Born: 14 May 1265(1265--)
Florence
Died: 13 November 1321

Occupation: Statesman, Poet, language theorist
Nationality:  Italy

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John Milton

Born: November 9 1608(1608--)
Bread Street, Cheapside, London, England
Died: November 8 1674 (aged 67)
Bunhill, London, England
Occupation: Poet, Prose Polemicist, Civil Servant
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Publius Vergilius Maro

A bust of Virgil, from the entrance to his tomb in Naples, Italy.
Born: October 15, 70 BC
Andes, North Italy
Died: September 21, 19 BC
Brundisium
Occupation: Poet
Nationality: Roman
Genres: Epic poetry
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John Milton

Born: November 9 1608(1608--)
Bread Street, Cheapside, London, England
Died: November 8 1674 (aged 67)
Bunhill, London, England
Occupation: Poet, Prose Polemicist, Civil Servant
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A narrative is a concept, composed and delivered in any medium, which describes a sequence of real or unreal events. It derives from the Latin verb narrare, which means "to recount" and is related to the adjective gnarus, meaning "knowing" or "skilled".
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Poetry (from the Greek "ποίησις", poiesis, a "making" or "creating") is a form of art in which language is used for its aesthetic and evocative qualities in addition to, or in lieu of, its ostensible
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The word mythology (from the Greek μύθολογία mythología, from μυθολογείν mythologein
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In literature, a theme is a broad idea in a story, or a message or lesson conveyed by a work. This message is usually about life, society or human nature. Themes are the fundamental and often universal ideas explored in a literary work.
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For the periodical, see .
The 19th Century (also written XIX century) lasted from 1801 through 1900 in the Gregorian calendar. It is often referred to as the "1800s.
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