Oral-Formulaic Theory: Annotated Bibliography

Dorothy Whitelock. The Audience of "Beowulf." Oxford: Clarendon Press. Rpt. with corrs., 1958 et seq.

A historical and cultural study that assumes a learned and Christian poet who could rely on an audience familiar not only with Biblical materials but also with commentaries upon those materials. Although she sees oral recital as a possibility, she does not necessarily credit the audience with a prior acquaintance with the story.
Area: OE