From Epic Stories to Epos of the King Erekle II

Abstract

Temur Jagodnishvili’s scope of research and interests is truly vast and remarkable. The various publications, monographs and textbooks penned by him exceed 150 units. Amomg them are Rapiel Eristavi and Folklore, 1979, At the Beginning of Georgian Folklore, 1986, Spare me, the Old Man (Folklore and Literature Studies, 1990, Georgian Art of Oratory, 2000, Nodar Tabidze (Life and Works) 2009, Mentor of Numerous Generations, 2011, Khandzta, the Old, the New, 2014, Spoken and Written Communications, 2017 (co-authored), New Technologies of Rhetorics, 2018 (co-authored), Linguocriminalistics, 2020, Epos of the King Erekle II, 2021. The works by the prominent scientist embrace literature studies, folkloristics, communicology, journalism studies, methodology of teaching the Georgian Language. From this incomplete list of publications, we would like to highlight Epos of Erekle II. The book was first published in 2005 and later in 2021 the author presented the reader with a new completed edition. Its English translation was released in 2023. The significance of the book is great. It has enriched Georgian folk epos. It has taken a deserved place next to the classics of the genre, such as Epos of Amiran, Eteriani and Poem of Arsena. The Georgian folk epic consciousness became full and complete as along with mythological and love epos we have epic-historical as well. Temur Jagodnishvili was the first in Georgian folklore, who was able to identify the texts of the heroic-historical epic of Erekle II on the basis of existing folk songs. The work offers not only a profound analysis of theoretical foundations of epos of Erekle II and essential issues of epos studies but also the epic structure of King Erekle’s adventures depicted in folklore. And, most importantly, the book enables us to perceive the epic adventure of King Erekle II preserved in the folk narrations as something whole, to gain a better knowledge of the heroes of “Patara Kakhi” (meaning the Small Kakhetian, a loving nickname for the King) cycle (such as Prince Levan, Tamar of Vashlovani, Tina of Tsavkisi, Dzaglika Khimikauri, Paata Temurishvili. Gela Natelashvili, etc) and to realize their historic mission against the background of the tragic lot of Georgia.