The Schema, Runosong Motifs, and Creative Adaptation of Epic Poetry

Authors

• Venla Sykäri University of Helsinki https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2487-8657

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.30666/elore.143850

Keywords:

oral composition, creativity, runo singing, epic poems, schemes, motifs

Abstract

Elias Lönnrot created the narrative structure of the Kalevala based on epic runosong recorded from the northern Karelian-Finnish regions. Later, the extensive material that emerged from these and successive collections led to the formation of the Finnish school of folklore research, which centred on analysing variation. However, this variation was generally viewed as mechanical, with little effort to document or study the singers’ creative contributions. Over time, the rich body of material has enabled researchers to explore runosong cultures from new perspectives. Comparative studies on the foundations of epic composition have nevertheless primarily focused on materials from Western Ingria (Kuusi 1983; Harvilahti 1992).

In this article, I continue analysing the foundations of oral composition, focusing on epic runosong from northern poetic regions. Following the approaches of Anna-Leena Siikala (1984) and Lauri Harvilahti (1992) within schema theory, I examine the structure of these narratives, variation, and creative adaptation. I illustrate the concept of schema and essential content units in epic schema and song motifs (aihelma) using example material from the Kilpalaulanta poems of Arhippa Perttunen of Viena and Simana Kyöttinen of Aunus. The song motifs are typically units of two to six lines, based on crystallised content but allowing extensive variation. This concept has been used when analysing incantations and lyric poetry (Siikala 1992; Timonen 2004). In these genres, the thematic content of the poem is enacted using song motifs without a narrative backbone. I propose that song motifs also function as content units in epics, with the distinction that they are often introduced by narrative structures, such as expressions indicating a speaker’s turn. The cross-boundary nature of these structural units allows for the movement of motifs and formulaic material across genre boundaries. The third theme of this article is creative adaptation, in which the schema of the poem undergoes significant change. As an example, I analyse the fusion of new material within Kyöttinen’s Kilpakosinta poems.