Overview

First published in 1960, Albert B. Lord's The Singer of Tales remains the fundamental study of the distinctive techniques and aesthetics of oral epic poetry. Based upon pathbreaking fieldwork conducted in the 1930s and 1950s among oral epic singers of Bosnia, Croatia, and Serbia, Lord analyzes in impressive detail the techniques of oral composition in performance. He explores the consequences of this analysis for the interpretation of numerous works of traditional verbal art, including-in addition to South Slavic epic songs-the Homeric Iliad and Odyssey, Beowulf, the Chanson de Roland, and the Byzantine epic Digenis Akritas. A cardinal text for the study of oral traditions, The Singer of Tales also represents an exemplary use of the comparative method in literary criticism. This third edition offers a corrected text of the second edition and is supplemented by an open-access website (in lieu of the second edition's CD-ROM), providing all the recordings discussed by Lord, as well as a variety of other multimedia materials.

Full Product Details

Author:   Albert B. Lord ,  David F. Elmer
Publisher:   Harvard University, Center for Hellenic Studies
Imprint:   Harvard University, Center for Hellenic Studies
Edition:   3rd edition
Volume:   76
Dimensions:   Width: 15.20cm , Height: 2.30cm , Length: 22.90cm
Weight:   0.544kg
ISBN:  

9780674975736

ISBN 10:   0674975731
Pages:   350
Publication Date:   01 March 2019
Audience:   Professional and scholarly ,  College/higher education ,  Professional and scholarly ,  Professional & Vocational ,  Tertiary & Higher Education
Format:   Paperback
Publisher's Status:   Active
Availability:   In Print  
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Author Information

David F. Elmer is Eliot Professor of Greek Literature and Curator of the Milman Parry Collection of Oral Literature at Harvard University.

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