Versification : Metrics in Practice

Versification describes the marriage of language and poetic form through which poetry is produced. Formal principles, such as metre, alliteration, rhyme, or parallelism, take precedence over syntax and prosody, resulting in expressions becoming organised as verse rather than prose. The aesthetic appeal of poetry is often linked to the potential for this process to seem mysterious or almost magical, not to mention the interplay of particular expressions with forms and expectations. The dynamics of versification thus draw a general interest for everyone, from enthusiasts of poetry or forms of verbal art to researchers of folklore, ethnomusicology, linguistics, literature, philology, and more. The authors of the works in the present volume explore versification from a variety of angles and in diverse cultural milieus. The focus is on metrics in practice, meaning that the authors concentrate not so much on the analysis of the metrical systems per se as on the ways that metres are used and varied in performance by individual poets and in relationship to language.Peer reviewe

Versification

Versification describes the marriage of language and poetic form through which poetry is produced. Formal principles, such as metre, alliteration, rhyme, or parallelism, take precedence over syntax and prosody, resulting in expressions becoming organised as verse rather than prose. The aesthetic appeal of poetry is often linked to the potential for this process to seem mysterious or almost magical, not to mention the interplay of particular expressions with forms and expectations. The dynamics of versification thus draw a general interest for everyone, from enthusiasts of poetry or forms of verbal art to researchers of folklore, ethnomusicology, linguistics, literature, philology, and more. The authors of the works in the present volume explore versification from a variety of angles and in diverse cultural milieus. The focus is on metrics in practice, meaning that the authors concentrate not so much on the analysis of the metrical systems per se as on the ways that metres are used and varied in performance by individual poets and in relationship to language

Oral Poetry and the Germanic Heldenlied

Paper by Edward R. Hayme

Weathered Words : Formulaic Language and Verbal Art

Formulaic phraseology presents the epitome of words worn and weathered by trial and the tests of time. Scholarship on weathered words is exceptionally diverse and interdisciplinary. This volume focuses on verbal art, which makes Oral-Formulaic Theory (OFT) a major point of reference. Yet weathered words are but a part of OFT, and OFT is only a part of scholarship on weathered words. Each of the eighteen essays gathered here brings particular aspects of formulaic language into focus. No volume on such a diverse topic can be all-encompassing, but the essays highlight aspects of the phenomenon that may be eclipsed elsewhere: they diverge not only in style, but sometimes even in how they choose to define “formula.” As such, they offer overlapping frames that complement one another both in their convergences and their contrasts. While they view formulaicity from multifarious angles, they unite in a Picasso of perspectives on which the reader can reflect and draw insight.Peer reviewe

Versification

Versification describes the marriage of language and poetic form through which poetry is produced. Formal principles, such as metre, alliteration, rhyme, or parallelism, take precedence over syntax and prosody, resulting in expressions becoming organised as verse rather than prose. The aesthetic appeal of poetry is often linked to the potential for this process to seem mysterious or almost magical, not to mention the interplay of particular expressions with forms and expectations. The dynamics of versification thus draw a general interest for everyone, from enthusiasts of poetry or forms of verbal art to researchers of folklore, ethnomusicology, linguistics, literature, philology, and more. The authors of the works in the present volume explore versification from a variety of angles and in diverse cultural milieus. The focus is on metrics in practice, meaning that the authors concentrate not so much on the analysis of the metrical systems per se as on the ways that metres are used and varied in performance by individual poets and in relationship to language

Forgotten Laxdæla poetry : a study and an edition of Tyrfingur Finnsson's Vísur uppá Laxdæla sögu

The paper discusses the metre and the diction of a previously unpublished small poem about characters of Laxdæla saga, composed in 18th century. The stanzas are ostensibly in skaldic dróttkvætt; the analysis shows it to be an imitation of the classical metre, yet a remarkably successful one, implying an extraordinarily good grasp of dróttkvætt poetics on the part of a poet composing several hundred years after the end of the classical dróttkvætt period

Judith Weir\u27s King Harald\u27s Saga: innovations of character and virtuosity in contemporary opera

In 1979, Scottish-born composer Judith Weir wrote King Harald’s Saga for the soprano Jane Manning. Although an opera in three acts, the cast consists of one performer unaccompanied, interpreting various characters, including the protagonist, King Harald, two of his wives, and the entire Norwegian Army. The opera presented in its entirety is ten minutes in duration. The scope of this paper is intended to assist the performer as well as those who are interested in contemporary opera. I have provided a brief overview of Weir’s compositional style in opera, chamber opera and song. As King Harald’s Saga was Weir’s first opera, I have also observed ways in which it influenced these subsequent vocal works. After my interview with Weir, she provided two inspirations for King Harald’s Saga: Grand Opera of Verdi and Wagner, and Icelandic Saga. Although disparate in nature, further investigations in my analysis show many striking similarities. Both evoke a detached aesthetic stance, as in telling a story, and both are filled with grandiose characterizations. This analysis also discusses how the format of the literature influenced the format of the operatic structure. Background information regarding Icelandic Saga is provided to clarify the explanations and observations of the composer. In addition, I have also provided a thorough analysis of the musical score, including many musical examples to clarify my observations. As each character is given one movement or number in the score (except for Harald), the overall format of the analysis is organized by character. Issues of tonality are addressed with reference to the intentions of the composer, and information as to pitch center, meter, and vocal expression are derived solely from composer’s notes and the vocal line itself

Annotated Bibliography to 1985

Processing note: review needed SoR: With the assistance of Sarah FeenyAbstractNot

Christian culture and Germanic tradition in Old English literature : a syncretic approach to reconciling faith and culture.

Many conservative or 'traditional' Christians today contend that some modern churches, in an effort to engage with contemporary culture, adapt the values and practices of the secular world to too great a degree in order to seem relevant to contemporary audiences. We do, however, live in a particular place and time, one defined by a multitude of interlocking cultural contexts, and a degree of application or contextualization of Christian scripture, theology, and worship style may be inevitable to promote a greater understanding or awareness of faith. This thesis proposes that this debate constitutes a particularly significant point of intersection between Old English literature and today's culture. Many Old English texts engage Anglo-Saxon culture by combining a Germanic heroic vernacular tradition with the Christian tradition. This thesis analyzes the strategies by which Old English authors engage in syncretism, and it discusses its implications for and effects on Anglo-Saxon readers. Special attention is paid to the ways in which Anglo-Saxon writers voice, integrate, and fuse their religious ideas with the specific culture around them in order to demonstrate that the syncretic practices of the first English Christians, in a culture still filled with pre-Christian beliefs, practices, and images, anticipate (and might in fact have something to contribute to) the responses, equally syncretic but expressed using different materials, of contemporary Christian authors to an increasingly post-Christian cultural milieu

Performing Gender in the Icelandic Ballads

Page range: 301-31