/lit/ - Literature

>>22561404

>>21640608
>What makes an epic poem?
The action, the subject, heroic deeds. Or at least that used to be the definition before these things died and now people consider Song of Myself an epic poem.
>Is the epic divisible from the long poem,
See, it used to be that the subject made epic poems, but now if Song of Myself is an epic, then probably any long poem will be considered epic.
> and could a short poem be epic?
No, the length is part of the epicness (epic proportions for epic subjects). But like I said, modernism rejects all definitions and wants words to mean nothing, so sure, you may see people write some garbage postmodernist short poem and call it an epic, and all the left-wing journalists will push that onto society.
>What are your favorites?
Iliad first and Odyssey second.
>What are some epics from around world history which deserve more discussion?
I like Song of Roland more than other more famous epics.
>Why are the Iliad, the Odyssey, the Divine Comedy, and Paradise Lost the crowning achievements in the genre?
Iliad and Odyssey because they're very good. Divine Comedy because it's the defining literary work of the European middle ages. Paradise Lost is *not* a crowning achievement, it's pushed by Anglos to be so. Aeneid is better than Paradise Lost, but you didn't mention that.

Overall, I really like epics. Their ability to define civilizations is some of the most impressive achievements literature has ever brought to our world. That Western literature starts with Iliad, the best work ever written, has to be some sorts of divine intervention in our world. It makes our world more beautiful.

Iliad > Odyssey > Aeneid > Divine Comedy >> Paradise Lost > Faust

Is it simply a coincidence that great works got progressively worse? The gap after Divine Comedy is particularly egregious.

Bigger list

>>20847219

>>20733922
>>20734265
Here ya go

>>20720932
>rabbit hole
>Strength
> Advanced physical training
fix'd

>>19649263
My great great grandfather's autobiography. It's pretty good, not a confession though, so I'm already getting a little cynical about the image he's projecting. It's not that bad, just I get it dude, you acted within the mores of your time, we don't even care about that stuff anymore.

>>19560613
working my way through all of these

>>19452095

>>18803807
Pic related is probably helpful

>inb4 retards complaining about some picks

Would Mexico have been able to be on this list if Cortes didn't burn nearly all of the Aztec manuscripts?

I'll post some charts I saved

Have you read your national epic, /lit/?