What is secondary epic?

What is secondary epic?

Secondary epic–poetry which may deal with heroic legend or with more abstract themes than the type available to primary epic, and which is composed, not as an historical record of the past, but as the poet’s artistic interpretation or recreation of legend or theme.

What is primary and secondary epic?

Basically there are two kinds of epic – a) Primary – also known as Oral or Primitive Folk epics and b) Secondary – also known as literary. The first belongs to the oral tradition and is thus composed orally and recited. The secondary epic is a literary work of art.

What are the 2 types of epics?

Types of Epic. There are two main types of epic: folk and literary. Folk epic is an old form of epic poem that was originally told in oral form. Over time authors tried to preserve them by writing them down in hard copies.

Are epic primary or secondary source?

Although an epic may be either a folk original (primary), passed on for centuries through the oral tradition, or imitative and literary (secondary, it must be unified in plot and action, and not episodic like Dante’s Commedia.

Is the Odyssey a secondary epic?

The secondary epic is a literary work of art. Other example of the primary epic are the Homeric epics, Iliad and Odyssey (1000 B.C.) whose heroes are Achilles and Odysseus respectively. Beowulf, the earliest extant English epic, also falls in this category.

Is Iliad a secondary epic?

The Iliad is a primary epic. It was originally composed orally and after centuries of oral transmission it was finally written down.In all orally composed epic poems, we have certain features in common. First of all, they are partly based on some historical events.

What are 3 epic conventions?

Epic Conventions

  • In medias res. “In medias res” is Latin for “in the middle of things”; it means that a narrative begins in the middle of a story’s action, rather than at the beginning.
  • Invocation.
  • Statement of theme.
  • Stock epithets.
  • Cataloguing.
  • Long, formal speeches.
  • Divine Intervention.
  • Epic Digressions.

What is folk epic?

Folk epics are long heroic narratives in verse which recount the adventures of tribal heroes and in the process express the customs, beliefs, and ideals of the people who sing them.

What kind of leader is Agamemnon?

Agamemnon (also called “Atrides”) King of Mycenae and leader of the Achaean army; brother of King Menelaus of Sparta. Arrogant and often selfish, Agamemnon provides the Achaeans with strong but sometimes reckless and self-serving leadership. Like Achilles, he lacks consideration and forethought.