Once upon a time…..
When read, this phrase is usually an introduction to a fairytale. Now imagine that you could no longer read this phrase. That there were no written words. This would take you back to the olden days when you only heard words, not read them. This takes us to Oral Tradition.
Oral Tradition
Oral Tradition has many uses. The main one is that it teaches lessons in society, whether moral or religious, that would other wise never be taught. The written and printed “word” were non-existent at this time. If something was not told, or memorized orally it would be lost forever. The stories had to be learned to be recited with complete and unfailing accuracy, with no room for variations. All stories varied little over great periods of time and were well-known by everyone within the society.
Another is that it is stories which people formulate, pick up, and carry along as part of their cultural freight. This was how people taught their culture others and of younger generations. How a lesson was orally transmitted would reflect how that culture would hold the lesson within their standards.
Another is that it is to entertain, but to also teach and inform. Since prehistoric times, lessons, morals, and practical knowledge have been passed from generation to generation through oral tradition. It also was to make sense of the moral changes of the present.
The visual aspect of oral tradition is almost as important as the story itself. String games were used to illustrate characters, whether they are human or animals.
Poet/Narrator, and The Audience
The poet was considered the most important member of the community. They were considered to be this since they knew all of the words, and all of the stories which the words made. There fore, they knew the order in which the society existed. In pre-Christian Ireland, the poet was in a social status right next to the king. In a war, a king could be killed, but killing the poet, was considered to be the worse sacrilege. The poet would know the precise etymology of every word and how to use words for the maximum effect. Practice was the key and had to gain the full attention of the audience. The poet had a duty: a constant act or artistic and priestly performance of speaking the words aloud and thereby reinventing the order of all things through a sympathetic magic which expressed the information that the society existed and believed in.
In a performance, the audience is essential. Present, reacting, often vocally, they are the test of the success of the speaker. They will evaluate his voice and appearance, his rank and city, and the truth, persuasiveness, and entertain value of his tale. Since there were no backup copies, the audience’s memories were the keepers of the scripts.
Types of Oral Tradition
Prose narrative
The Palaestra- when men gathered to exercise, observe the young men, and
Talk
Folklore-
Origin Myth- seek to answer universal and spiritual questions
Storytelling-explaining the creation of the physical and spiritual universes,
Hunting and traveling, used string games
Fairytales-stories that would entertain but also teach a moral
There are more types, but the above are just a few.
Wrap It Up
Oral Tradition is not really used today. A lot of its aspects and qualities have been lost. With it though, we wouldn't know about our past/history, and possibly won't be where we are today. Although Oral Tradition is not really used today, it is still apart of us and our heritage.
Posted by Rachel Howard at February 10, 2004 05:52 PM