Writing Homer
Minna Skafte JensenThe oral-formulaic theory formed by Milman Parry and Albert B.
Lord not only revolutionised Homeric studies but also had an impact
on anthropology and folklore. It led to increased interest in
oral epic traditions, and fieldworkers changed their methods towards
a focus on composition in performance. The individual singer
and his handling of the tradition gained importance. When possible,
more than one performance of the “same” song was recorded,
by the same singer on different occasions or by different singers,
and interaction with the audience was documented. By now, a
wealth of editions and studies of oral epics from various parts of the
world is accessible and is used in the present study as an inspiration
for achieving a deeper understanding of the methods at work in
oral epic, for building a social framework for the Iliad and the Odyssey,
and especially for speculating on the circumstances of the writing
of the two great poems. Long oral narratives are flexible, and
accordingly, the dictation to scribes that must be at the origin of the
texts that have been preserved in writing to this day, was a process
of the utmost importance as the composition in performance of the
Iliad and the Odyssey.