individual units, but also the process whereby the whole narrative of the Iliad or Odyssey came together through deliberate selection. Furthermore, the oral development of the Homeric poems does not prevent discussion of the question of the genre of the whole, i.e. epic. Equally, the oral background of the gospels’ material does not obviate the need to consider the selection of the units and their overall genre. Thirdly, this approach led to the eclipse of the author: if oral tradition is considered