Oral Tradition In Literature: Interpretation In Context

As scholars discover the extent to which oral composition and transmis­ sion lie behind such works as the Bible, Homer’s Ilia d and Odyssey, the AngloSaxon Beowulf, the medieval Spanish Poem o f the Cid, the Old French Song o f R o la n d , the Middle English S ir G a w a in a n d the Green Knight, and many others, it has become crucial that we develop methods for reinterpreting these works. In this ground-breaking collection of essays, a group of eminent scholars, including Walter Ong and Albert Lord, takes up the challenge of reinterpreting these and other works in the light of what has lately been learned about their origins in oral tradition, ponder­ ing question s that are becom ing increasingly important to the study of world literature. How do we “read” works of literature whose roots are firmly planted in oral tradition? What difference does a work’s orality make to its effective criticism, explanation, and study? By exploring these questions, the six essays included in this volume recap­ ture essential meaning in our most cherished religious and literary works, looking at them in contexts that have been lost for centuries, reinvigorating the works with their original verbal energy. ORAL TRADITION IN LITERATURE ORAL TRADITION IN LITERATURE Interpretation in Context Edited by Joh n Miles Foley University o f Missouri Press Colum bia, 1986 Copyright © 1986 by The Curators of the University of Missouri University of Missouri Press, Columbia, Missouri 65211 Printed and bound in the United States of America All rights reserved Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Main entry under title: Oral tradition in literature. Bibliography: p. Includes index. 1. Oral tradition—Addresses, essays, lectures. 2. Folk literature—History and criticism—Addresses, essays, lectures. 3- Oral-formulaic analysis— Addresses, essays, lectures. I. Foley, John Miles. GR72.069 1986 398.2 85-20680 ISBN 0-8262-0490-2 (alk. paper) 00 This paper meets the minimum requirements of the American National Standard for Permanence of Paper for Printed Library Materials, Z39-48, 1984. For th e gla u k ô p is Lizzie, who understands as w ell as anyone the m eaning o f orality ACKNOWLEDGMENTS A n editor of a volume such as this one must always be grateful primarily to the authors whose essays make it up, and so I thank first Robert P. Creed, Albert B. Lord, Gregory Nagy, Walter J. Ong, Alain Renoir, and Ruth H. Web­ ber. All these fine scholars, leaders in their respective fields, wrote first versions of these essays for the presentation at the Missouri Oral Literature Symposium, which