What is the importance of literature and its impact on. The paper argues that while it is easy and desirable to choose a facilitative theory in the analysis of a written work of literature, such a process poses challenges when it comes to the oral type of african literature. A more restricted sense of the term emerged during the romantic period, in which it began to demarcate imaginative writing. An urgent global initiative to document and make accessible endangered oral literatures before they disappear without record. Indeed, some of the oral communication consisted in the repetition of written texts, as when lessons from the bible were preached to an unlettered populace. The significance of performance in oral literature goes beyond a mere matter of definition.
Epic poems narrative poems lyric poems nursery rhymes and nonsense verse puns proverbs kennings riddles hymns and other songs with words folk tales myths legends histories biographies. Associated with these peculiar differences is the impression that the oral style was inferior to the written. Yet, despite the existence of these books on oral literature, the young generation in africa that has grown under the western school system somehow feels estranged with respect to this oral literature. Historical and theoretical perspectives of literature. Its contents were based on their shared understandings of. This adage is perhaps the most appropriate description of the importance of literature in our lives. Orature is a more recent and less widely used term which emphasises the oral character and nature of literary works. Grand in length and scope, an epic provides a portrait of legends, beliefs, valves, laws, arts, and ways of life of a people. Contents online resources illustrations forward by mark turin prefaces acknowledgements abbreviations note on sources. Languages that do not have a written form produce a specific type of literature called oral literature. Interactions and intersections edited by daniela merolla leiden university, the netherlands introduction the studies of oral literature are countless, and the educational function of storytelling is certainly one of recurring topics.
Oral tradition, the first and still most widespread mode of human communication. Learn more about the types and benefits of oral communication, and find out how you can improve your own oral. Oral literature, which is almost always oral poetry, has claim to the great poems in literary history. That did not mean oral literature was uninfluenced by the written word. Oral literature is a performed art which in most cases uses words as a medium of communication. Hussein faculty of education, alemaya university abstract every african society south of the sahara has a long history of transmitting knowledge and human experience through the medium of oral tradition. In the native culture, oral literature is very important, as that is how many of their myths, stories, and legends have been passed on.
Oral literature in english the canadian encyclopedia. It strives for comparative and interdisciplinary consideration of the emergence, passing on and interpretation of all forms of expression in the oral tradition. The social, linguistic, and literary background 51. A valuable book in the genre of african oral literature is ruth finnegans oral literature in africa.
It may be classified according to a variety of systems, including language and genre. Oral literature is a broad term which may include ritual texts, curative chants, epic poems, musical genres, folk tales, creation tales, songs, myths, spells, legends, proverbs, riddles, tonguetwisters, word games, recitations, life histories or historical narratives. An epic is a long story often told in verse involving heroes and gods. Oral literature in africa is part of the world oral literature series published in conjunction with the world oral literature project. It would also bear on the still disputed question whether there are grammatical. Find kenyatta university theory and methods in oral literature previous year question paper. There is no standard definition as folklorists have varying descriptions for oral. Get an answer for how does oral literature affect written literature. Oral literature in africa pdf open book publishers. Orature, oral and written literatures, mixture of genres, performance, comparative literature. In western europe prior to the 18th century, literature denoted all books and writing.
Legends and myths are prime examples of oral literature, crossing the line between fact and fiction, yet strengthened by constant retelling. Reflection definition is an instance of reflecting. It thus forms a generally more fundamental component of culture, but operates in many ways as one might expect literature to do. Epics have often been passed on orally and may have anonymous authors. African literature had been predominantl y oral up to the 19th century when attempts to put some african languages into written forms began considerably ukpai and orji. Further, a good example of a literary text will be written. It is highly valued in africa in general and in igbo in particular mainly because of its didactic nature. In addition, the main types of literary genres will be described, with examples. In this lesson, you will learn what is meant by the term genre. Ect 315 topic 4 teaching oral literature page 1 of 3 topic 4 teaching of oral literature topic objectives by the end of this topic you should be able to. Oral literature is by definition dependent on a performer who formulates it in words on a specific occasionthere is no other way in which it can be realized as a literary product. Far more than just talking, oral tradition refers to a dynamic and highly diverse oralaural medium for evolving, storing, and transmitting knowledge, art, and ideas. At the end of our discussion, i share the slide with the characteristics of oral literature. Oral literature theories makerere university courses.
The oral artists agenda joseph muleka 87 p a g e the oral text naturally text is a crucial component in communicating messages. Most simply, oral literature refers to any form of verbal art which is transmitted orally or delivered by word of mouth. We are debarred from classification and definition. Characteristics of oral tradition in world literature video. Oral literature in africa is part of our world oral literature series in conjunction with the world oral literature project. For many communities around the world, the transmission of oral literature from one generation to the next lies at the heart of cultural practice. Asl was originally captured on film in 19 by the national association of the deaf nad. The are encouraged to add this information to their notes using any type of shorthand that they are comfortable with. There is no standard definition as folklorists have varying descriptions for oral literature or folk literature but a broad conceptualization refers to it as literature characterized by oral transmission and the absence of any fixed form. Another important difference between traditional african oral art and modern african literature involves the identity and social standing of their respective practitioners. Stories, songs, proverbs, riddles and jokes in oral literature use colorful words and vivid images to describe human beings, their feelings and their behavior towards one another. Think the iliad, the odyssey, beowulf, the poetic or elder eddas, and poems from ancient india written in sanskrit about which i know very litt.
Five components of effective oral language instruction. Oral interpretation, or the study of literature through its performance, can be defined as a combination of analysis, performance and communication skills. Dissertation help services we understand the hassle that can be involved in dissertation writing. Theory and methods in oral literature question papers 2155. Orature as a characteristic of the literatures of werewereliking. Historical and theoretical perspectives of literature anders pettersson encyclopedia of life support systems eolss in an oral culture, there will not only be spontaneous, oneoff utterances, but also more durable, repeatable verbal compositions that could be called texts. Even though the student has no difficulty in understanding what is meant, it is a poor descriptor. Oral literature in africa world oral literature by ruth finnegan is a comprehensive study guide with a wellresearched look into the history of oral folklore and. Because of this, works of literature that started in the oral tradition often have heavy elements of rhythm and repetition, which can vary from the alliteration of beowulf to the heavy rhythm of. Mar 20, 20 these clips, together with original photographs taken during her research, will be an invaluable resource to scholars of african literature and culture. While obtaining my degree in traditional english, i found it. Only when it is clear how the text stands to the performance and the other to the tradition can an analysis of the contents of the message begin, vansina, 1985.
Unlike written literary genres, oral literature is conveyed or passed down to future generations by word of mouth, typically through memorization and recitation. Tylor s definition of culture given above is a holdall one in which he included. Devices for rapid composition of the praises are discussed. Characteristics of oral tradition in world literature.
Theory and methods in oral literature unit description the unit is an introduction to the theoretical approaches to the study of oral literature. It presents the most comprehensive survey of the field of oral literature in africa. U directorate of general studies, federal university of technology, owerri amadi, a. Swbat analyze the main ideas and supporting details presented in diverse media and formats by watching an example of and taking notes on the characteristics of oral literature. Yet, despite the existence of these books on oral literature, the young generation in africa that has. The two met at the university of iowa in the late 1930s, and by 1940 had begun writing the book.
The name has traditionally been applied to those imaginative works of poetry and prose distinguished by the intentions of their authors and the perceived aesthetic excellence of their execution. This literature through narrative, poetry, song, dance, myths and fables, and texts for religious rituals provides a portrait of the meaning of life as experienced by the society at its. African oral genres tales, proverbs, riddles, and lullabies. It includes a new introduction, additional images and an updated bibliography, as well as its original chapters on poetry, prose, drum language and drama, and an overview of the social, linguistic and historical background of oral literature in africa. Thus even where no phrase in local language which exactly translates oral literature is used, what constitutes oral literature as understood today is already understood to be part or all of. It is defined as the body of written works of a language, period or culture, produced by scholars and researchers, specialized in a. Oral literature, the standard forms or genres of literature found in societies without writing. One example of this would be american sign language, or asl. Theory and methods in oral literature unit description. Oral literature or folk literature corresponds in the sphere of the spoken oral word to literature as literature operates in the domain of the written word. The problems of translating african oral literary texts into 78 issn 20572611print, issn 2057262xonline their western equivalents nnamani, f. Literature reminds us of stories, epics, sacred scriptures, and classical works of the old and modern times. This paper grapples with the question of choice of theory in the study of african oral literature. Oral literature can include myths, legends, songs and chants, and even speeches.
It deals with the role of theory in the study of oral literature. A written epic, as was the case with the hindu vedas or the works of homer. Reflection definition of reflection by merriamwebster. Literature definition, writings in which expression and form, in connection with ideas of permanent and universal interest, are characteristic or essential features, as poetry, novels, history, biography, and essays. Seventh grade lesson introduction to oral literature. Oral literature has no transcription due to the language not being a written language. These are some of the devices of oral traditional poetics that are different from the poetics of written literature and stem from the method of oral composition by formula and theme. This revised edition makes finnegans groundbreaking research available to the next generation of scholars. Songs oral narratives oral poetryriddlestongue twisters 3. Amongst the topics covered are translation problems, understanding proverbs, oral narrative as discourse, the use of audio visual aids in teaching, general and the politics of control, images of women in african oral literature, the relationship with material culture, and oral literature as part of oral traditions. Understanding language and literature asghar ali ansari university college, ummalquara university, makkah, saudi arabia. The theories will then be applied in the analysis of oral literature material.
To some people, oral literature is only but a mirage. Oral communication is the process of expressing information or ideas by word of mouth. This is the significance of the actual performance. Information and translations of oral literature in the most comprehensive dictionary definitions resource on the web. Oral literature is an aspect of literature preserved not in written form but in oral form. The scholar examines literary issues which relate to the performance of folktales in traditional africa. Preliterate societies, by definition, have no written literature, but may possess rich and varied oral traditionssuch as folk epics, folklore, proverbs and folksongthat effectively constitute an oral literature. Oral literature is the repository of the critical knowledge, philosophy, and wisdom for nonliterate societies. Literature by definition is written and intended to be read. Theory of literature is a book on literary scholarship by rene wellek, of the structuralist prague school, and austin warren, a selfdescribed old new critic. This literature through narrative, poetry, song, dance, myths and fables, and texts for religious rituals provides a portrait of the meaning of life as experienced by the society at its particular time and place with its unique existential challenges. Topics include role and functions of oral literature, genre studies. The definition of oral literature would be literature or story telling that uses the spoken work or word of mouth.
In this broad definition, the stylistic features may be called the. In an attempt to preserve this oral literature, several individual authors have collected tales, proverbs, riddles and published them in books. The book is available as a free pdf and ebook download thanks to the generous support of interested readers and organisations, who made donations using the crowdfunding website unglue. Apr 26, 2018 oral literature in english the term oral literature is sometimes used interchangeably with folklore, but it usually has a broader focus. Oral literature in africa world oral literature by ruth finnegan is an interesting perspective and study on the tradition of oral storytelling, especially in african countries. Next, i share the slide with the different literary genres derived from oral literature. The term oral literature is also used to describe the tradition in written civilizations in which certain genres are transmitted by word of mouth or are confined to the socalled folk i. The various categories of african folktales are analyzed. Techniques differ between poets and according to time, place and occasion. The oral tradition journal, established in 1986, publishes articles on oral traditions and oral literature as well as related research. This is true of asl, the tradition of passing on stories in the deaf community relies on the act of live storytelling. Oral literature makes us aware of ourselves, other human beings, our environment and our history. The most basic characteristic of literature, it seems to me, is that a literary work is a verbal text. Myths are stories that explain objects or events in the natural world as resulting from some.
Recent trends in african studies and the revival of interest in oral literature. It means spoken literature, or literature by word of mouth, which makes it a controversial term. Feel free to use the past paper as you prepare for your upcoming examinations. After decades of outstanding research, for which she was awarded an order of the british empire, oral literature in africa remains the book closest to finnegans heart. Jan 01, 2000 amongst the topics covered are translation problems, understanding proverbs, oral narrative as discourse, the use of audio visual aids in teaching, general and the politics of control, images of women in african oral literature, the relationship with material culture, and oral literature as part of oral traditions. I directorate of general studies, federal university of technology, owerri. The perception of african oral literature 29 nineteenthcentury approaches and collections. Ong argue that it is a contradiction in terms since the conservative view is that literature should. When the western researchers discovered our oral genres, that is, tales, proverbs, riddles, lullabies, legends, and epics, they called them oral literature as they found that they were the equivalent of their literature transmitted in the form of novels, poetry, and drama. Oral literature, in creative writing, transcription and translation, oral literature and contemporary reality, and research methodology in oral literature. Oral interpretation focuses on literature in performance. How does oral literature affect written literature.