Joanna Sheldon wrote:
>
> At 03:13 24-05-01, Joanna B. wrote:
> >Homer probably couldn't read either...and yet, I don't think anyone would
> >argue that it was a bad thing.
>
> ...Then again, if people were memorizing books instead of reading them, I
> suppose aliteracy wouldn't really be an issue.
>
People didn't memorize books -- a small band of professional bards memorized and plagiarized each other and memorized the results of the plagiarism combined with their additions and emendations. People just listened to the result. Just like modern audiences for TV or movies.
Carrol