Claudian. A Poetics of the Epic.
Beautiful Letters| N° d'inventaire | 22293 |
| Format | 16 x 24 |
| Détails | 554 p., paperback. |
| Publication | Paris, 2019 |
| Etat | Nine |
| ISBN | 9782251450353 |
Claudian, originally from Alexandria, was official poet at the court of Milan between 395 and 404 AD. As the division of the empire between East and West deepened, and the threat of the Visigoths weighed increasingly heavily on Italy, over the years he commented on political life from a Roman perspective, in the form of panegyrics, censure, and historical epics – but he was also the author of mythological epics, epithalamia, and several occasional plays. In all these works, Claudian drew heavily on the tradition of classical epic: the generic question is thus at the heart of Claudian studies. In this work, the author proposes a systematic approach, taking into account the entire corpus and analyzing stylistic, thematic and formal elements to best define the poetics of the one traditionally considered the last pagan poet of classical inspiration. Preface, by Jean-Louis Charlet Acknowledgments Introduction Part One. The Ethos of an Epic Poet? Chapter 1: Invocations to the Muse, Proems and Prefaces I. The Poet and His Muse II. Proems or Prooemia: What Position for the Poet? III. The Prefaces Conclusion Chapter 2: Is There a Literary Theory in Claudian? I. Construction of a Self-Portrait II. Denunciation of Certain Poetic Procedures Conclusion Part Two. Epic Language Chapter 1: Epic Comparison I. The Construction of Epic Comparisons II. Comparators and Compared III. Remarkable Phenomena IV. Functions of Comparison V. Claudian and His Predecessors Conclusion Part Three. Epic Motifs Chapter 1: The Epic Warrior Theme I. Narrative Forms II. Definition of the Hero and the Anti-Hero III. Gigantomachy: Mythological Conflict as a Means of Reflection Conclusion Chapter 2: Dreams, Prophecies, Prodigies and Omens: The Future of an Epic Narrative Process I. The Dream II. The Prophecy III. Prodigies and Omens Conclusion Chapter 3: Missing Motifs? I. Is There a Catabasis in Claudian's Poems? II. A New Type of Games: The Consular Games III. The Ira Deorum as a Narrative Mechanism Conclusion Part Four. The Conception of the World: Men and Gods Preliminary Chapter 1: Heroic Morality in Claudian's Work I. Heroic Values II. The Models Evoked and Invoked III. The Ancestors Conclusion Chapter 2: Gods and Mythological Scenes I. A Definitional Element of the Epic Present in Claudian II. The modalities of their presence in Claudian III. How to read this presence? Conclusion Part Five. An epic, epics, or epicizing poems? Chapter 1: Mythological, didactic, historical or political epic? I. The problem of the epic outside the epic: the carmina minora II. The influences of the mythological and didactic epic III. From the historical epic to the political epic Conclusion Chapter 2: Who is the true hero? I. Within the imperial family II. Roma aeterna III. Natura? Conclusion CONCLUSION APPENDICES BIBLIOGRAPHY INDEX
Claudian, originally from Alexandria, was official poet at the court of Milan between 395 and 404 AD. As the division of the empire between East and West deepened, and the threat of the Visigoths weighed increasingly heavily on Italy, over the years he commented on political life from a Roman perspective, in the form of panegyrics, censure, and historical epics – but he was also the author of mythological epics, epithalamia, and several occasional plays. In all these works, Claudian drew heavily on the tradition of classical epic: the generic question is thus at the heart of Claudian studies. In this work, the author proposes a systematic approach, taking into account the entire corpus and analyzing stylistic, thematic and formal elements to best define the poetics of the one traditionally considered the last pagan poet of classical inspiration. Preface, by Jean-Louis Charlet Acknowledgments Introduction Part One. The Ethos of an Epic Poet? Chapter 1: Invocations to the Muse, Proems and Prefaces I. The Poet and His Muse II. Proems or Prooemia: What Position for the Poet? III. The Prefaces Conclusion Chapter 2: Is There a Literary Theory in Claudian? I. Construction of a Self-Portrait II. Denunciation of Certain Poetic Procedures Conclusion Part Two. Epic Language Chapter 1: Epic Comparison I. The Construction of Epic Comparisons II. Comparators and Compared III. Remarkable Phenomena IV. Functions of Comparison V. Claudian and His Predecessors Conclusion Part Three. Epic Motifs Chapter 1: The Epic Warrior Theme I. Narrative Forms II. Definition of the Hero and the Anti-Hero III. Gigantomachy: Mythological Conflict as a Means of Reflection Conclusion Chapter 2: Dreams, Prophecies, Prodigies and Omens: The Future of an Epic Narrative Process I. The Dream II. The Prophecy III. Prodigies and Omens Conclusion Chapter 3: Missing Motifs? I. Is There a Catabasis in Claudian's Poems? II. A New Type of Games: The Consular Games III. The Ira Deorum as a Narrative Mechanism Conclusion Part Four. The Conception of the World: Men and Gods Preliminary Chapter 1: Heroic Morality in Claudian's Work I. Heroic Values II. The Models Evoked and Invoked III. The Ancestors Conclusion Chapter 2: Gods and Mythological Scenes I. A Definitional Element of the Epic Present in Claudian II. The modalities of their presence in Claudian III. How to read this presence? Conclusion Part Five. An epic, epics, or epicizing poems? Chapter 1: Mythological, didactic, historical or political epic? I. The problem of the epic outside the epic: the carmina minora II. The influences of the mythological and didactic epic III. From the historical epic to the political epic Conclusion Chapter 2: Who is the true hero? I. Within the imperial family II. Roma aeterna III. Natura? Conclusion CONCLUSION APPENDICES BIBLIOGRAPHY INDEX