Koen De Temmerman

Bakhtin's theory of the literary chronotope: reflections, applications, perspectives

This edited volume is the first scholarly tome exclusively dedicated to Mikhail Bakhtin’s theory of the literary chronotope. This concept, initially developed in the 1930s and used as a frame of reference throughout Bakhtin’s own writings, has been highly influential in literary studies. After an extensive introduction that serves as a ‘state of the art’, the volume is divided into four main parts: Philosophical Reflections, Relevance of the Chronotope for Literary History, Chronotopical Readings and Some Perspectives for Literary Theory. These thematic categories contain contributions by well-established Bakhtin specialists such as Gary Saul Morson and Michael Holquist, as well as a number of essays by scholars who have published on this subject before. Together the papers in this volume explore the implications of Bakhtin’s concept of the chronotope for a variety of theoretical topics such as literary imagination, polysystem theory and literary adaptation; for modern views on literary history ranging from the hellenistic romance to nineteenth-century realism; and for analyses of well-known novelists and poets as diverse as Milton, Fielding, Dickinson, Dostoevsky, Papadiamandis and DeLillo.

Crafting characters: heroes and heroines in the ancient Greek novel

PREFACE (ACKNOWLEDGMENTS) CONTENTS ABBREVIATIONS INTRODUCTION: CHARACTER, TECHNIQUES OF CHARACTERIZATION AND THE ANCIENT GREEK NOVEL CONCLUSION BIBLIOGRAPHY INDEX

Ancient Rhetoric as a Hermeneutical Tool for the Analysis of Characterization in Narrative Literature

Abstract: This article argues that the conceptualization of the notions of character and characterization in ancient rhetorical treatises can serve as a hermeneutical tool for the analysis of characterization in narrative literature. It offers an analysis of ancient rhetorical loci and techniques of character depiction and points out that ancient rhetorical theory discusses direct, metaphorical, and metonymical techniques of characterization. Ultimately, it provides the modern scholar with a paradigm for the analysis of characterization in (ancient) narrative literature.

CHAEREAS REVISITED. RHETORICAL CONTROL IN CHARITON'S ‘IDEAL’ NOVEL CALLIRHOE

In ancient novel scholarship, the distinction between the ideal Greek novel and its comic–realistic Latin counterpart has been, and still is, highly influential. It originates with R. Heinze’s thesis that Petronius’ Satyricon develops from a literary genre parodying idealistic features in the Greek novels.1 Despite the contributions of scholars warning against applying this dichotomy too rigidly,2 the distinction remains a commonly accepted tool to classify novelistic literature.3 In this paper I will focus on the characterization of the male protagonist in Chariton’s Callirhoe, the oldest of the so-called ideal novels.4 My reading of this character will suggest that Chariton’s position within the ideal genre should be reassessed, and that consequently the overall distinction between ideal and realistic novels is a generalization that does not take into account the actual complexity of one of the oldest representatives of the genre. The distinction between ideal Greek and realistic Latin novelistic literature is largely informed by the divergent depiction of character in both sub-genres. Whereas the Latin novel adopts realistic and sexually explicit character portrayal, scholars have underlined the idealizing aspects in the characterization of protagonists in the Greek novel. Their beauty invests them with a godlike appearance, and their nobility ( ) generates loftiness of character that sharply distinguishes them from other, less noble, characters in the story.5 Scholars have emphasized the unreal atmosphere surrounding this characterization.6 E. Rohde’s view that the protagonists in the Greek novel are ‘seelenlose Gestalten’ and ‘Gliederpuppen’, invested with a ‘leere und 247

Characterization in Ancient Greek Literature.

This is the fourth volume in the series Studies in Ancient Greek Narrative. The book deals with the narratological concepts of character and characterization and explores the textual devices used for purposes of characterization by ancient Greek authors from Homer to Heliodorus.

The saint as cunning heroine: rhetoric and characterization in the Passio Caeciliae

This article provides a detailed analysis of character construction in the fifth century passio Caeciliae (Bibliotheca Hagiographica Latina 1495 – 1495a – 1496). Our analysis sets out to challenge the general assumption that character construction in the late antique passions can correctly be described in terms of stereotypes. The passio Caeciliae appeals to and inverts reader expectations based upon traditional patterns in erotic narrative. We also argue that it individuates the different characters (Caecilia and her fellow martyrs) by documenting one specific area of their representation, namely rhetorical ability. In this thematic area, Caecilia is set apart from her husband Valerianus: unlike him, she displays elaborate rhetorical aptitude which allows her to obtain the dominant position in the marriage and to achieve her aims. But the art of rhetoric is also a skill that can be learned as is shown by the character of Valerianus whose rhetorical approach changes in the course of the passion. Our analysis suggests that this passion from a literary point of view constitutes a more interesting text than is generally assumed.This article provides a detailed analysis of character construction in the fifth century passio Caeciliae ( Bibliotheca Hagiographica Latina 1495 – 1495a – 1496). Our analysis sets out to challenge the general assumption that character construction in the late antique passions can correctly be described in terms of stereotypes. The passio Caeciliae appeals to and inverts reader expectations based upon traditional patterns in erotic narrative. We also argue that it individuates the different characters (Caecilia and her fellow martyrs) by documenting one specific area of their representation, namely rhetorical ability. In this thematic area, Caecilia is set apart from her husband Valerianus: unlike him, she displays elaborate rhetorical aptitude which allows her to obtain the dominant position in the marriage and to achieve her aims. But the art of rhetoric is also a skill that can be learned as is shown by the character of Valerianus whose rhetorical approach changes in the course of the passion. Our analysis suggests that this passion from a literary point of view constitutes a more interesting text than is generally assumed.

De novis libris iudicia How Ideal is the Oldest Ideal Greek Novel

In this review article, I first offer a critical discussion of S.D. Smith’s Greek Identity and the Athenian Past in Chariton: The Romance of Empire (Groningen 2007). Subsequently, I analyze in detail what I consider to be one of the most important contributions of the book; this is Smith’s identification of what I would call ‘epistemological relativism’ as a pattern underlying Chariton’s narrative technique. I single out two thematic areas in which this pattern is particularly relevant and make some additions of my own regarding specific readings by Smith in each area. I argue that these two thematic strands challenge the widely-held view that Chariton is one of the most prototypical representatives of the genre of the ideal Greek novel.