The epigram in English. Hewitt, J. Ph.D. Thesis, University of California, Irvine, 1981. abstract bibtex Concept: 1. A vicious circle has developed: the epigram in English is neglected because it is improperly defined, and it is improperly defined because it is neglected. Critics' long inattention has resulted in (1) popularizing an inaccurately narrow definition and (2) dissociating the important lyrical element of the genre. The current concept of epigram is split into two major positions: a broad definition which includes brief poems, and prose, of many types; and a narrow definition which includes primarily snappy cleverness. Confusion is added to conflict when writers (including authors of standard reference works and introductory poetry texts) use the term to mean various things between the two major positions. Consequently, epigram–outside the classical field–has lost its essential function of clear, reasonably accurate communication. Even more dangerously, many are not aware of the term's ambiguity. The conflict is not among specialists, most of whom are massed on one side. The conflict is between the broad, specialists' definition and the narrow, non-authoritative one, including only a few of the epigram's many types, which has somehow become established through neglect. Poets, however, have ignored the critical error and kept the epigram vigorous ever since it appeared in early Greece as the oldest written form in our culture. Both the need for reliable definition and the current surge of the lyrical epigram make re-examination and reintegration of the form urgent. Concept: 2. In my view, from a perspective newly available in this century (during which no general book on the epigram has been published), the epigram in English does not have its ultimate source in Greek inscriptions. The epigram, both in English and in Greek, is part of a worldwide form which precedes writing. The epigram's essential characteristic is brevity; the epigram expresses the author's conception as briefly and well as possible. In the epigram, man tries to organize the bewildering multiplicity of human experience into the shortest, most effective expressions he can achieve. An epigram is a brief literary work, usually a poem; its many types are characterized by compression and felicity. The epigram's broadly diverse types, including the lyrical, fall into four major categories: religious, ideational, emotional, and convivial. All brief poems are epigrams, and the best examples (Jonson's "On My First Daughter," Blake's "The Sick Rose," Frost's "Fire and Ice," Yeats's "The Magi") are widely known as great poems, with no concessions made for their brevity. The satisfactions to writer and audiences from this huge genre of the miniature have made it flourish from the days of oral charms to the present in languages throughout the world. The Epigrams as Evidence and The English Anthology. In Sections 2 and 3, I present about 450 epigrams from early English through the twentieth century to substantiate the claim that the form has been vigorous in every age. Discussions and analyses highlight the epigrams' continuity and characteristics, demonstrating how the poems are illuminated when recognized as members of a fundamental form.
@phdthesis{hewitt_epigram_1981,
title = {The epigram in {English}},
abstract = {Concept: 1. A vicious circle has developed: the epigram in English is neglected because it is improperly defined, and it is improperly defined because it is neglected. Critics' long inattention has resulted in (1) popularizing an inaccurately narrow definition and (2) dissociating the important lyrical element of the genre. The current concept of epigram is split into two major positions: a broad definition which includes brief poems, and prose, of many types; and a narrow definition which includes primarily snappy cleverness.
Confusion is added to conflict when writers (including authors of standard reference works and introductory poetry texts) use the term to mean various things between the two major positions. Consequently, epigram--outside the classical field--has lost its essential function of clear, reasonably accurate communication. Even more dangerously, many are not aware of the term's ambiguity. The conflict is not among specialists, most of whom are massed on one side. The conflict is between the broad, specialists' definition and the narrow, non-authoritative one, including only a few of the epigram's many types, which has somehow become established through neglect. Poets, however, have ignored the critical error and kept the epigram vigorous ever since it appeared in early Greece as the oldest written form in our culture. Both the need for reliable definition and the current surge of the lyrical epigram make re-examination and reintegration of the form urgent.
Concept: 2. In my view, from a perspective newly available in this century (during which no general book on the epigram has been published), the epigram in English does not have its ultimate source in Greek inscriptions. The epigram, both in English and in Greek, is part of a worldwide form which precedes writing. The epigram's essential characteristic is brevity; the epigram expresses the author's conception as briefly and well as possible. In the epigram, man tries to organize the bewildering multiplicity of human experience into the shortest, most effective expressions he can achieve.
An epigram is a brief literary work, usually a poem; its many types are characterized by compression and felicity. The epigram's broadly diverse types, including the lyrical, fall into four major categories: religious, ideational, emotional, and convivial. All brief poems are epigrams, and the best examples (Jonson's "On My First Daughter," Blake's "The Sick Rose," Frost's "Fire and Ice," Yeats's "The Magi") are widely known as great poems, with no concessions made for their brevity. The satisfactions to writer and audiences from this huge genre of the miniature have made it flourish from the days of oral charms to the present in languages throughout the world.
The Epigrams as Evidence and The English Anthology. In Sections 2 and 3, I present about 450 epigrams from early English through the twentieth century to substantiate the claim that the form has been vigorous in every age. Discussions and analyses highlight the epigrams' continuity and characteristics, demonstrating how the poems are illuminated when recognized as members of a fundamental form.},
school = {University of California, Irvine},
author = {Hewitt, Jerene},
year = {1981},
}
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Consequently, epigram–outside the classical field–has lost its essential function of clear, reasonably accurate communication. Even more dangerously, many are not aware of the term's ambiguity. The conflict is not among specialists, most of whom are massed on one side. The conflict is between the broad, specialists' definition and the narrow, non-authoritative one, including only a few of the epigram's many types, which has somehow become established through neglect. Poets, however, have ignored the critical error and kept the epigram vigorous ever since it appeared in early Greece as the oldest written form in our culture. Both the need for reliable definition and the current surge of the lyrical epigram make re-examination and reintegration of the form urgent. Concept: 2. In my view, from a perspective newly available in this century (during which no general book on the epigram has been published), the epigram in English does not have its ultimate source in Greek inscriptions. The epigram, both in English and in Greek, is part of a worldwide form which precedes writing. The epigram's essential characteristic is brevity; the epigram expresses the author's conception as briefly and well as possible. In the epigram, man tries to organize the bewildering multiplicity of human experience into the shortest, most effective expressions he can achieve. An epigram is a brief literary work, usually a poem; its many types are characterized by compression and felicity. The epigram's broadly diverse types, including the lyrical, fall into four major categories: religious, ideational, emotional, and convivial. All brief poems are epigrams, and the best examples (Jonson's \"On My First Daughter,\" Blake's \"The Sick Rose,\" Frost's \"Fire and Ice,\" Yeats's \"The Magi\") are widely known as great poems, with no concessions made for their brevity. The satisfactions to writer and audiences from this huge genre of the miniature have made it flourish from the days of oral charms to the present in languages throughout the world. The Epigrams as Evidence and The English Anthology. In Sections 2 and 3, I present about 450 epigrams from early English through the twentieth century to substantiate the claim that the form has been vigorous in every age. Discussions and analyses highlight the epigrams' continuity and characteristics, demonstrating how the poems are illuminated when recognized as members of a fundamental form.","school":"University of California, Irvine","author":[{"propositions":[],"lastnames":["Hewitt"],"firstnames":["Jerene"],"suffixes":[]}],"year":"1981","bibtex":"@phdthesis{hewitt_epigram_1981,\n\ttitle = {The epigram in {English}},\n\tabstract = {Concept: 1. A vicious circle has developed: the epigram in English is neglected because it is improperly defined, and it is improperly defined because it is neglected. Critics' long inattention has resulted in (1) popularizing an inaccurately narrow definition and (2) dissociating the important lyrical element of the genre. The current concept of epigram is split into two major positions: a broad definition which includes brief poems, and prose, of many types; and a narrow definition which includes primarily snappy cleverness.\n\nConfusion is added to conflict when writers (including authors of standard reference works and introductory poetry texts) use the term to mean various things between the two major positions. Consequently, epigram--outside the classical field--has lost its essential function of clear, reasonably accurate communication. Even more dangerously, many are not aware of the term's ambiguity. The conflict is not among specialists, most of whom are massed on one side. The conflict is between the broad, specialists' definition and the narrow, non-authoritative one, including only a few of the epigram's many types, which has somehow become established through neglect. Poets, however, have ignored the critical error and kept the epigram vigorous ever since it appeared in early Greece as the oldest written form in our culture. Both the need for reliable definition and the current surge of the lyrical epigram make re-examination and reintegration of the form urgent.\n\nConcept: 2. In my view, from a perspective newly available in this century (during which no general book on the epigram has been published), the epigram in English does not have its ultimate source in Greek inscriptions. The epigram, both in English and in Greek, is part of a worldwide form which precedes writing. The epigram's essential characteristic is brevity; the epigram expresses the author's conception as briefly and well as possible. In the epigram, man tries to organize the bewildering multiplicity of human experience into the shortest, most effective expressions he can achieve.\n\nAn epigram is a brief literary work, usually a poem; its many types are characterized by compression and felicity. The epigram's broadly diverse types, including the lyrical, fall into four major categories: religious, ideational, emotional, and convivial. All brief poems are epigrams, and the best examples (Jonson's \"On My First Daughter,\" Blake's \"The Sick Rose,\" Frost's \"Fire and Ice,\" Yeats's \"The Magi\") are widely known as great poems, with no concessions made for their brevity. The satisfactions to writer and audiences from this huge genre of the miniature have made it flourish from the days of oral charms to the present in languages throughout the world.\n\nThe Epigrams as Evidence and The English Anthology. In Sections 2 and 3, I present about 450 epigrams from early English through the twentieth century to substantiate the claim that the form has been vigorous in every age. Discussions and analyses highlight the epigrams' continuity and characteristics, demonstrating how the poems are illuminated when recognized as members of a fundamental form.},\n\tschool = {University of California, Irvine},\n\tauthor = {Hewitt, Jerene},\n\tyear = {1981},\n}\n\n","author_short":["Hewitt, J."],"key":"hewitt_epigram_1981","id":"hewitt_epigram_1981","bibbaseid":"hewitt-theepigraminenglish-1981","role":"author","urls":{},"metadata":{"authorlinks":{}},"html":""},"bibtype":"phdthesis","biburl":"https://bibbase.org/zotero/amandafrench","dataSources":["S3my8qdSSqDLjhWBY"],"keywords":[],"search_terms":["epigram","english","hewitt"],"title":"The epigram in English","year":1981}