KnoWhy #241 - Why is The Book of Ether an Epic? (Ether 7:9)

In 1952, Hugh Nibley noted that that the book of Ether is similar to epic poetry. Nibley argued that the book of Ether was originally an epic, and as such was composed orally. In cultures where writing is not common, oral stories are created in ways that make them easy to remember. This lead to similar methods for creating oral stories across many cultures, leading to many similarities in stories told by various cultures, which are also present in Ether. As with much of the rest of the Book of Mormon, Ether is a carefully crafted work, yet it is also historically reliable.