Classical Studies 1000 Lecture Notes - Lecture 3: Homo Ludens, Parataxis, Shame Society

• School: Western University
• Department: Classical Studies
• Course: Classical Studies 1000
• Professor: Richard Brown

Document Summary

Iliad and odyssey composed in the oral tradition of heroic song. Slide with examples of formulae in homeric lines, such as name-epithet combinations (e. g. phoebus apollo [ phoebus = bright", or maybe exists as an early word for fox"], swift-footed. Name-epithet combinations (or epithet-name) common way to end a line. Formulae are the building blocks" of the language used for oral song. Tradition of oral style shaped over generations (so no homer" in the usual sense of an author). Concern of separators (find the real" homer) and unifiers (it"s all homer) dependant on the concept of a single author; oral theory would make these issues more or less moot. (another traditional epic like this is the anglo-saxon story beowulf). No single authoritative" version, but different for every performance. Homeric poems had collective importance: being shaped over time gave them a cultural significance that spans time. Achieves more than a one-time composition could do (scholar eric.