Brief Definition of the Epic
Linear B sound “ka”
What are epics, myths, and legends? Epics were originally long narrative poems
dating back to the classical period at least, and often dealing with events significant to a
culture, or with heroic deeds. Myths and legends are both found reworked or embedded
in epics; myths are fictional, while legends are at least partly based on fact. The oldest
epics were a series of shorter texts, produced initially by oral cultures and then
transcribed in early scripts such as Linear A or Linear B, and much later reworked into
lengthier narratives with the advent of more modern systems of writing (e.g., Homer’s
Iliad may have existed as a series of shorter texts during the Bronze Age, in Linear B
script, soon after the Trojan War [c. 1250 B.C.]). Epic characteristics or patterns can
also be found in specific novels, although such texts do not fit the original (genrebased) definition of an epic.
Suggested Reading
Linear B sound “na”
“Linear B.” Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Linear_B>.
Main Points About the Epic
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deal with problems fundamental to man and world (De Vries 141)
not necessary that life of hero contains all motifs characteristic of the role; his life should be,
more or less, reflection of heroic pattern (210)
hero’s life not merely combination of marvelous deeds but also expression of a certain idea (211)
De Vries believes that a heroic pattern is prevalent in most epics, and suggests it is a 10-step
structure:
1. hero is created (one parent is usually a God or animal); 2. hero is born (usually takes place
unnaturally); 3. hero’s youth is threatened (exposed to the elements, etc.); 4. hero’s growth
(usually spectacular, with him revealing strength, courage, etc.); 5. hero’s invulnerability
(introduced as motif in later epics; e.g., Achilles, who can only be wounded in heel); 6. hero fights
with dragon or monster (a typical heroic deed); 7. hero wins a maiden (usually after overcoming
dangers); 8. hero makes expedition to underworld (e.g., Aeneas in Book VI of Virgil’s Aeneid); 9.
hero sometimes banished (usually in youth, but returns and is victorious over enemies); 10. hero
dies (often the death is miraculous, with him ascending into heavens or vanishing into a desert,
etc.)
Works Cited
De Vries, Jan. Heroic Song and Heroic Legend. London: Oxford UP, 1963.
Heroic Myth in Modern Times
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recycling of epic conventions (i.e., characteristics of classical epic) can be seen in more modern
treatments of heroic myth, such as those of western “gunfighter” (e.g., Eastwood’s man-with-noname persona), tribal hero of some postcolonial literature (e.g., Achebe’s character of Okonkwo),
or local hero of some magical realist texts (e.g., Carpentier’s character of Macandal)
all three types take audience into past of relevant culture; in Achebe’s case, pre-colonial African
interior is investigated in relation to characters considered heroic and/or noble in such context; in
the case of mythology of “Wild West,” an often paradoxical heroic/outlaw type is investigated in
relation to both a primitive, lawless frontier and trickle-down effects of Industrial Revolution (e.g.,
the revolver; trains; telegraphs); in Carpentier’s case, Macandal bridges together African
mythology and local history of Haiti within a magical realist context
gunfighter has origins in western European highwayman (i.e., outlaw) and duelist (i.e., honor
code) of period c. 1600ish to 1830ish; also influential, to lesser extent, is bandit/rebel of eastern
Europe that under Ottoman Empire at that time, such as Greek Klepht or Balkan Hajduk (cf. pics.
on next slide)
History of “Wild West” falls into three periods: (a) period after Mexican-American War and before
U.S. Civil War (c. 1848 to 1860); (b) “Golden Age” from Civil War (c. 1861-5) to 1880s; and (c)
1890s to Mexican Revolution (c. 1910-20)
Suggested Reading
“Gunfighter.” Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gunfighter>.
th-cent.
Early 19
Early
19thKlephts
-cent. Duelists
& Hajduks
Dimitrios Makris
Veljko Petrovich
The Trial of Nerves, D.T. Egerton (1824)
Wild West “Gunfighters”
Captain
Black Jonathan
Bart, notorious
R. Davis,
stagecoach
on Dec. robber
19, 1854,
operating
killed 11
inarmed
Northern
outlaws
California
nearand
Sacramento,
southern Oregon
California,
in 1870s
using two
and Colt
80s,revolvers
often left
andpoetic
a Bowie
messages
knife behind, after his robberies
A “Black Bart” Poem
Suggested Links
“Black Bart.” Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_Bart_(outlaw)>.
Rage at Dawn. Dir. Tim Whelan. Starring Randolph Scott and Forrest Tucker. 1955. YouTube.
15 Mar. 2015. <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iwkaWL1k81Y>. [A good example of
pre-Eastwood western movies.]