Oral Poetry: Its Nature, Significance and Social Context
by Ruth Finnegan
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Description
This book offers a comprehensive introduction to the vast field of 'oral poetry, ' encompassing everything from American folksongs, contemporary pop songs, and Inuit lyrics, to the heroic epics of Homer, biblical psalms, and epic traditions in Asia and the Pacific. Taking a broad comparative approach, it explores oral poetry across Africa, Asia, Oceania, Europe, and the Americas. Drawing on global research, Ruth Finnegan, the author of the seminal Oral Literature in Africa, sheds light on show more key debates such as the nature of oral tradition, the relationship between poetry and society, the differences between oral and written forms, and the role of poets in predominantly non-literate contexts. Written from a primarily anthropological and literary perspective, this study contributes to the socio-cultural aspects of verbal art while also engaging with the literary dimensions of poetry which happens at any given moment to be unwritten. Finnegan's clear, non-technical language and extensive use of translated examples make this work accessible to a wide audience, appealing not only to sociologists and anthropologists but also to those with an interest in poetry, in comparative literature, and in global folk traditions. The re-issue of this classic study is now augmented by further illustrations and a newly written Introduction and Conclusion, situating it in the context of the contemporary study of literature. show lessTags
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Author Information
29+ Works 294 Members
Ruth Finnegan OBE, FBA, Emeritus Professor Open University. Her work has mainly been on oral performance, narrative, the ethnography of music, and communicating (including extra-sensory perception). Her publications include Oral Literature in Africa, The Hidden Musicians, Communicating: the Multiple Modes of Human Communication, Why Do We Quote? show more and, most recently, the novels Black Inked Pearl, Voyage of Pearl of the Seas, and The Helix Pearl Born in Ireland, she now lives in Old Bletchley, southern England. show less
Classifications
- Genres
- Nonfiction, Literature Studies and Criticism, Music, Poetry, Fiction and Literature, History
- DDC/MDS
- 398.2 — Society, government, & culture Customs, etiquette & folklore Folklore & Folktales Folk literature
- LCC
- PN1341 .F46 — Language and Literature Literature (General) Literature (General) Poetry Folk poetry
- BISAC
Statistics
- Members
- 37
- Popularity
- 781,116
- Rating
- (5.00)
- Languages
- English, German
- Media
- Paper, Ebook
- ISBNs
- 9
- ASINs
- 1
