At 08:07 AM 2/22/01 +0000, you wrote:
Hi Graem
>Firstly, the ep- in epic (Greek epos) and the ep- in the prefix epi- aren't
>from related origins. Epos started out meaning any sort of utterance
>(story, counsel or whatever) and came to be used in the plural (epe) in the
>meaning "epic" though not exclusively. You're right that nothing in the
>word itself implies length necessarily, though as you say, by its use as a
>description of Homer (and the other, lost, epic poets) it became associated
>with long poems.
I was testing the possibilites of 'epi' and getting a bit carried away with
it. But you make more sense than I did. Cheers.
>I'm afraid my brain isn't producing anything more meaningful than "A
>generally big poem about people dealing with the serious shit of life."
I really like this. Awsome. Any ideas on the serious shit of life?
Ali
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