[pjc50]

Yes, it reminds me of the "memory palace" trick that's taught for remembering e.g. numbers by associating them with a series of images. And similar tricks with "themes", audible or visual, are still used for particular characters in some modern media.

[hprotagonist]

yes. and for long works like Beowulf that were told episodically, the repetition of events serves the same purpose as the 90-second “last time on dragon ball Z...” recaps of fight hilights.