The 'Telemachus' Complex': Becoming Good Heirs on the Tragic Stage

Cozzi, Cecilia
https://etd.ohiolink.edu/acprod/odb_etd/ws/send_file/send?accession=ucin1684771212933443&disposition=inline

“The Telemachus Complex: Becoming Good Heirs on the Tragic Stage” applies to Greek tragedies psychoanalytic theory (the “Telemachus Complex” codified by Massimo Recalcati in response to Freud's own Oedipal Complex). This framework explains inheritance as an “act of reclamation”: sons need to exercise an active role in negotiating the symbolic debt connecting them to their fathers. Their “movement forward” to reclaim their position stems primarily from an individual choice, which should neither dismiss or recreate the memory of father's deeds. In the first chapter, I explore how Aeschylus shows the dangers of a firm rejection of the father's example of political authority, as Xerxes demonstrates it in the aftermath of the battle of Salamis throughout the Persians. Next, I concentrate on Aeschylus' Oresteia and argue that Orestes conceives of inheritance primarily as the need to claim his father's wealth and position of power in Argos, following closely in Agamemnon's footsteps, while the gods (Apollo, Athena) are reinforcing the leading role fathers exercise in their sons' lives, In the second chapter, I investigate how Sophocles offers a different representation of this issue by looking at the ethical implications of a father's example. I focus first on his earlier plays, where fathers impose on their offspring unquestioning obedience (Antigone) and the faithful imitation of their beliefs (Ajax, Trachiniae). These offspring (Ajax, Haemon and Hyllus) cannot deviate from their father's norms, but they should rather conform to them. Sophocles progressively concentrates on the sons' ability to go beyond the complete rejection and the passive duplication of fatherly examples. In the Electra and Philoctetes, Orestes and Neoptolemus offer the best embodiment of a successful heir mastering the “Telemachus Complex”: both these characters act upon their legacy, without being too attached to or too dismissive of their fathers' deeds. The third chapter shows how filial agency emerges in all its complexity in Euripides. The dramatist shows the consequences of open rebellion, which conceals an intrinsic similarity between fathers and sons behind their apparent verbal divide (Hippolytus, Alcestis). Other plays point to the son’s flawed inspiration to recreate fatherly deeds, as Neopotlemus betrays this tendency in the Andromache, Hecuba. Next, I analyze how, in place of biological heirs, other characters can step up and offer to be social substitutes of these figures (as Theseus in Heracles and the Maiden in the Heracleidae). Last, I examine how in the plays on the Atreidae saga (Electra, Orestes) the issue of inheritance remains open-ended: the heir (Orestes) retrieves his standing and position, but he often needs external guidance and inputs, devoid of any agency. Ultimately, this project highlights how Greek drama offers a privileged look into the challenges that sons must face to be acknowledged as heirs in a psychoanalytical sense. On stage, offspring can rarely escape from the (neurotic) degenerations that inheritance entails: sons either limit themselves to the repetition of their father’s past or its firm rejection, while few can embrace their agency and avoid these two equally destructive alternatives.

Το Σύμπλεγμα του Τηλέμαχου: Η ανάδειξη άξιων κληρονόμων στην τραγική σκηνή CHATGPT

Η μελέτη «Το Σύμπλεγμα του Τηλέμαχου: Η ανάδειξη άξιων κληρονόμων στην τραγική σκηνή» εφαρμόζει στις ελληνικές τραγωδίες την ψυχαναλυτική θεωρία του «Συμπλέγματος του Τηλέμαχου», την οποία διατύπωσε ο Massimo Recalcati ως απάντηση στο ίδιο το Οιδιπόδειο Σύμπλεγμα του Freud. Το θεωρητικό αυτό πλαίσιο ερμηνεύει την κληρονομιά ως «πράξη διεκδίκησης»: οι γιοι οφείλουν να αναλάβουν ενεργό ρόλο στη διαπραγμάτευση του συμβολικού χρέους που τους συνδέει με τους πατέρες τους. Η «πορεία προς τα εμπρός», με σκοπό την ανάκτηση της θέσης τους, απορρέει πρωτίστως από μια προσωπική επιλογή, η οποία δεν θα πρέπει ούτε να απορρίπτει ούτε να αναπαράγει άκριτα τη μνήμη των πράξεων του πατέρα.

Στο πρώτο κεφάλαιο, εξετάζω πώς ο Αισχύλος αναδεικνύει τους κινδύνους που συνεπάγεται η κατηγορηματική απόρριψη του πατρικού προτύπου πολιτικής εξουσίας. Αυτό καταδεικνύεται μέσα από τον Ξέρξη, όπως παρουσιάζεται μετά τη ναυμαχία της Σαλαμίνας σε όλη την έκταση των Περσών. Στη συνέχεια, επικεντρώνομαι στην Ορέστεια του Αισχύλου και υποστηρίζω ότι ο Ορέστης αντιλαμβάνεται την κληρονομιά πρωτίστως ως ανάγκη διεκδίκησης του πλούτου του πατέρα του και της θέσης εξουσίας που εκείνος κατείχε στο Άργος, ακολουθώντας πιστά τα βήματα του Αγαμέμνονα. Παράλληλα, οι θεοί —ο Απόλλων και η Αθηνά— ενισχύουν τον κυρίαρχο ρόλο που διαδραματίζουν οι πατέρες στη ζωή των γιων τους.

Στο δεύτερο κεφάλαιο, διερευνώ πώς ο Σοφοκλής προτείνει μια διαφορετική αναπαράσταση του ζητήματος, εστιάζοντας στις ηθικές προεκτάσεις του πατρικού παραδείγματος. Αρχικά, εξετάζω τα πρώιμα έργα του, στα οποία οι πατέρες επιβάλλουν στους απογόνους τους την άνευ όρων υπακοή (Αντιγόνη) και την πιστή μίμηση των πεποιθήσεών τους (Αίας, Τραχίνιαι). Οι απόγονοι αυτοί —ο Αίας, ο Αίμων και ο Ύλλος— δεν μπορούν να αποκλίνουν από τους κανόνες που θέτουν οι πατέρες τους, αλλά οφείλουν, αντίθετα, να συμμορφώνονται προς αυτούς.

Σταδιακά, ο Σοφοκλής εστιάζει περισσότερο στην ικανότητα των γιων να υπερβούν τόσο την ολοκληρωτική απόρριψη όσο και την παθητική αναπαραγωγή των πατρικών προτύπων. Στην Ηλέκτρα και στον Φιλοκτήτη, ο Ορέστης και ο Νεοπτόλεμος ενσαρκώνουν με τον καλύτερο τρόπο τον επιτυχημένο κληρονόμο που καταφέρνει να διαχειριστεί το «Σύμπλεγμα του Τηλέμαχου». Και οι δύο ήρωες ενεργούν με βάση την κληρονομιά τους, χωρίς να προσκολλώνται υπερβολικά στις πράξεις των πατέρων τους, αλλά ούτε και να τις απορρίπτουν κατηγορηματικά.

Το τρίτο κεφάλαιο αναδεικνύει την πολυπλοκότητα με την οποία εκδηλώνεται η αυτενέργεια των τέκνων στο έργο του Ευριπίδη. Ο δραματουργός παρουσιάζει τις συνέπειες της ανοιχτής εξέγερσης, η οποία, πίσω από την επιφανειακή λεκτική αντιπαράθεση, συγκαλύπτει μια εγγενή ομοιότητα μεταξύ πατέρων και γιων (Ιππόλυτος, Άλκηστις). Άλλα έργα αναδεικνύουν την προβληματική τάση του γιου να αναπαράγει τις πράξεις του πατέρα του, όπως συμβαίνει με τον Νεοπτόλεμο στην Ανδρομάχη και την Εκάβη.

Στη συνέχεια, αναλύω πώς, αντί των βιολογικών κληρονόμων, άλλα πρόσωπα μπορούν να αναλάβουν πρωτοβουλία και να προσφερθούν ως κοινωνικά υποκατάστατα αυτών των μορφών, όπως ο Θησέας στον Ηρακλή και η Κόρη στις Ηρακλείδες. Τέλος, εξετάζω πώς, στα έργα που πραγματεύονται τον μύθο των Ατρειδών (Ηλέκτρα, Ορέστης), το ζήτημα της κληρονομιάς παραμένει ανοιχτό. Ο κληρονόμος, ο Ορέστης, ανακτά τη θέση και το κύρος του, αλλά συχνά χρειάζεται εξωτερική καθοδήγηση και παρεμβάσεις, ενώ η δική του αυτενέργεια παραμένει περιορισμένη.

Τελικά, η μελέτη αυτή αναδεικνύει τον τρόπο με τον οποίο το αρχαίο ελληνικό δράμα προσφέρει μια προνομιακή οπτική στις προκλήσεις που αντιμετωπίζουν οι γιοι προκειμένου να αναγνωριστούν ως κληρονόμοι υπό ψυχαναλυτικούς όρους. Στη θεατρική σκηνή, οι απόγονοι σπάνια καταφέρνουν να ξεφύγουν από τις νευρωτικές εκτροπές που συνεπάγεται η κληρονομιά. Οι γιοι είτε περιορίζονται στην επανάληψη του παρελθόντος των πατέρων τους είτε το απορρίπτουν κατηγορηματικά, ενώ ελάχιστοι κατορθώνουν να αναπτύξουν την προσωπική τους αυτενέργεια και να αποφύγουν αυτές τις δύο εξίσου καταστροφικές εναλλακτικές.

Επισκόπηση AI

Το Σύμπλεγμα του Τηλέμαχου (Το Il complesso di Telemaco ), που κωδικοποιήθηκε από τον Ιταλό ψυχαναλυτή Massimo Recalcati στο βιβλίο του του 2013, είναι ένα ψυχαναλυτικό και πολιτισμικό πλαίσιο που επανερμηνεύει τη σχέση μεταξύ γονέων και παιδιών μετά την παρακμή της παραδοσιακής πατρικής εξουσίας . [1, 2]

Βασικές Έννοιες

Αντιστροφή του Οιδιπόδειου Συμπλέγματος: Ενώ το Οιδιπόδειο σύμπλεγμα του Σίγκμουντ Φρόιντ επικεντρώθηκε στην ασυνείδητη επιθυμία του γιου να ανατρέψει ή να εξαλείψει τον πατέρα ως αντίπαλο για την αγάπη της μητέρας, το σύμπλεγμα του Τηλέμαχου αντανακλά μια διαφορετική δυναμική. Αντί για πατροκτονία, το σύγχρονο παιδί λαχταρά μια συμβολική πατρική φιγούρα. [1, 2]

Το «Ηλιοβασίλεμα» ή η Παρακμή του Πατέρα: Ο Recalcati υποστηρίζει ότι ζούμε σε μια εποχή όπου οι παραδοσιακές αυταρχικές πατρικές φιγούρες έχουν εξαφανιστεί ή οι γονείς έχουν παραιτηθεί από τον συμβολικό τους ρόλο για να γίνουν μόνιμοι «συντρόφοι στο παιχνίδι» ή συνομήλικοι των παιδιών τους. [1, 2]

Η Μορφή του Τηλέμαχου: Εμπνευσμένος από την Οδύσσεια του Ομήρου , ο Τηλέμαχος δεν προσπαθεί να σκοτώσει τον Οδυσσέα. Αντίθετα, στέκεται στην ακτή της Ιθάκης, κοιτάζοντας τη θάλασσα, περιμένοντας και ελπίζοντας την επιστροφή του πατέρα του για να αποκαταστήσει την τάξη, τη δικαιοσύνη και τον «Νόμο του Λόγου» σε ένα σπίτι που έχει κατακλυστεί από το χάος (τους μνηστήρες). [1, 2, 3]

Μετάβαση Τυπολογιών Παιδιών: Ο Recalcati σκιαγραφεί πώς έχουν μεταβληθεί τα πολιτισμικά αρχέτυπα με την πάροδο του χρόνου:Οιδίποδας: Ο κλασικός γιος σε σύγκρουση με το πατρικό δίκαιο.

Αντι-Οιδίπους: Το επαναστατικό παιδί της αντικουλτούρας της εποχής μετά το 1968.

Νάρκισσος: Το υπερμοντέρνο, εγωκεντρικό άτομο παγιδευμένο σε έναν κόσμο που βασίζεται στις εικόνες και χωρίς γενεαλογικό βάθος.

Τηλέμαχος: Ο νέος κληρονόμος που αναζητά όρια, μια αίσθηση μελλοντικού ορίζοντα και μια ενεργή διεκδίκηση του συμβολικού χρέους αντί για μια πλήρη απόρριψη ή τυφλή αντιγραφή του παρελθόντος. [1, 2, 3, 4]

Ηθική Κληρονομικότητα: Για τον Recalcati, το να γίνει κάποιος πραγματικός ενήλικας και κληρονόμος σημαίνει αναγνώριση ενός συμβολικού χρέους προς το παρελθόν - αποδοχή ορίων και καλλιέργεια γνήσιας επιθυμίας αντί να πέσει θύμα μιας υπερμοντέρνας κουλτούρας ατελείωτης, απερίσκεπτης κατανάλωσης ( απόλαυση ). [1, 2, 3]

[1] https://www.aggiornamentisociali.it/articoli/il-complesso-di-telemaco/

[2] https://www.politybooks.com/bookdetail?book_slug=the-telemachus-complex-parents-and-children-after-the-decline-of-the-father--9781509531714

[3] https://www.wiley.com/en-us/shop/cultural-studies-general/the-telemachus-complex-parents-and-children-after-the-decline-of-the-father-p-9781509531745

[4] https://www.donboscoland.it/it/page/massimo-recalcati-il-complesso-di-telemaco

 The History of Mathematics and Exact Sciences in Antiquity: Discrimination and Aposiopesis

3rd. enhanced ed.

 Athens 2026

 

© Δ. Ν. Κονιδάρης

Ιστορία των θετικών τεχνών και επιστημών κατά την Αρχαιότητα: αποσιώπηση και μεροληψία

γ’ εμπλουτισμένη & αναθεωρημένη έκδοση

Dimitrios Konidaris

Copyright © Copyright Year Δημήτριος Ν. Κονιδάρης

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law.

 ISBN 978-618-88756-1-6

 https://www.lulu.com/shop/dimitrios-konidaris/%CE%B9%CF%83%CF%84%CE%BF%CF%81%CE%AF%CE%B1-%CF%84%CF%89%CE%BD-%CE%B8%CE%B5%CF%84%CE%B9%CE%BA%CF%8E%CE%BD-%CF%84%CE%B5%CF%87%CE%BD%CF%8E%CE%BD-%CE%BA%CE%B1%CE%B9-%CE%B5%CF%80%CE%B9%CF%83%CF%84%CE%B7%CE%BC%CF%8E%CE%BD-%CE%BA%CE%B1%CF%84%CE%AC-%CF%84%CE%B7%CE%BD-%CE%B1%CF%81%CF%87%CE%B1%CE%B9%CF%8C%CF%84%CE%B7%CF%84%CE%B1-%CE%B1%CF%80%CE%BF%CF%83%CE%B9%CF%8E%CF%80%CE%B7%CF%83%CE%B7-%CE%BA%CE%B1%CE%B9-%CE%BC%CE%B5%CF%81%CE%BF%CE%BB%CE%B7%CF%88%CE%AF%CE%B1/ebook/product-84q88k6.html?page=1&pageSize=4

Imprint: Δημήτριος Ν. Κονιδάρης

Αθήνα

https://independent.academia.edu/dimkonidaris

https://www.lulu.com/spotlight/dnkonidaris

Extended Summary

 

10.1 Purpose and central thesis

 

The work proposes an alternative interpretation of the history of mathematics and the exact sciences in antiquity. Its stated purpose is to examine the historical record critically and to challenge what the author considers selective or unbalanced narratives. The third edition incorporates additions and revisions to the earlier work.

A fundamental theme is the role of historical narratives in shaping perceptions of cultural achievement. The author argues that histories of science can reproduce prevailing intellectual, cultural, and ideological models, sometimes resulting in the neglect or marginalization of particular civilizations, regions, or traditions. The book therefore examines not only mathematical achievements themselves but also how those achievements have been interpreted by modern historians of science.

 

10.2 Historiography, bias, and the problem of cultural priority

 

The opening section focuses on the historiography of ancient mathematics. Particular attention is given to interpretations associated with scholars such as B. L. van der Waerden and Otto Neugebauer.

Van der Waerden's interpretation emphasizes the importance of Babylonian mathematics as a starting point for developments that were subsequently transformed within Greek mathematics. In this account, figures such as Thales and Pythagoras are presented as having encountered Babylonian mathematical traditions but having given them a distinctively Greek character. The development subsequently proceeds through the Pythagoreans, Theaetetus, Eudoxus, and ultimately Euclid.

Neugebauer's work is presented as particularly influential in redirecting attention toward Egyptian and Mesopotamian mathematics. His study of cuneiform mathematical texts contributed substantially to the modern understanding of Babylonian mathematics. At the same time, the author questions some of Neugebauer's interpretations of Greek mathematics and criticizes what is regarded as an excessive separation between Greek mathematics and its broader intellectual context.

A major historiographical controversy concerns the concept of “geometrical algebra.” Van der Waerden and Neugebauer associated certain Greek geometrical procedures with Babylonian algebraic techniques. The book examines this hypothesis through parallels between Babylonian problems and propositions in Euclid's Elements and Data.

The discussion also presents the opposing position of scholars such as David Fowler and Sabetai Unguru, who challenged the legitimacy of describing Greek mathematics in terms of modern algebra. Unguru, in particular, argued that the concept of algebra should not be projected anachronistically onto ancient Greek mathematics. The controversy ultimately contributed to a significant reconsideration of the historiography of Greek mathematics.

 

10.3 Egypt and Egyptian mathematics

 

The Egyptian section examines both the achievements and the limitations attributed to ancient Egyptian mathematics.

The document emphasizes that Egyptian mathematical practice was strongly connected to practical requirements, including measurement, construction, administration, and calculation. The principal surviving mathematical sources are identified as the Rhind Papyrus and the Moscow Mathematical Papyrus. Egyptian mathematics employed integers and unit fractions, with the notable exception of 2/3, and included methods for arithmetic operations and the solution of linear equations.

The author distinguishes between mathematical technique and mathematical science, arguing that Egyptian mathematics did not develop the same emphasis on generalization and formal proof that later characterized Greek mathematics.

The discussion nevertheless recognizes the considerable technical competence required for Egyptian monumental architecture. It also highlights evidence suggesting contacts between Egypt and the Aegean, including measuring instruments associated with the Minoan system of measurement discovered in an Egyptian architectural context.

Thus, Egypt is presented neither simply as the origin of all subsequent mathematics nor as an insignificant mathematical culture. Instead, the document stresses the importance of distinguishing practical mathematical knowledge from the later development of formal deductive mathematics.

 

10.4 Chinese mathematics

 

The Chinese section examines the mathematical tradition represented particularly by the Jiuzhang suanshu, or Nine Chapters on the Mathematical Art.

The text compares the importance of this work within Chinese mathematics to that of Euclid's Elements in the Western tradition. The work consists largely of mathematical problems organized according to subject and accompanied by procedures for obtaining solutions.

The author discusses calculations involving the constant π and a geometrical treatment of the Pythagorean rule. At the same time, the chronology and extent of the mathematical material are treated cautiously, with the author questioning claims that some of its contents should be dated considerably earlier.

The overall interpretation in the document is that Chinese mathematics represents an important historical tradition, although the author considers its contribution during the pre-Christian period relatively limited compared with other ancient mathematical traditions.

 

10.5 Babylonian mathematics

 

Babylonian mathematics constitutes one of the most important components of the book.

The evidence demonstrates a highly developed computational tradition extending from the Old Babylonian period to the Seleucid period. Babylonian mathematicians employed a sexagesimal positional system and could solve equations of the first, second, and higher degrees, sometimes involving more than one unknown. They also worked with geometrical problems involving triangles, trapezia, circles, and related figures.

The famous Plimpton 322 tablet is discussed in connection with Pythagorean triples, although the author explicitly acknowledges that interpretations of the tablet are disputed.

A central historiographical question is therefore not whether Babylonian mathematics was sophisticated—it clearly was—but how its relationship to Greek mathematics should be understood.

Neugebauer is presented as emphasizing the dependence of aspects of Greek mathematics upon earlier Mesopotamian traditions. However, the work also introduces the alternative interpretation associated with Reviel Netz: rather than imagining a simple transfer of theoretical mathematical knowledge from Babylon to Greece, mathematical transmission may have involved the movement and transformation of individual problems, techniques, and intellectual practices across a long cultural continuum.

The author consequently argues for a more complex model of transmission than a simple “Babylon → Greece” sequence.

 

10.6 Neolithic Aegean numeracy and accounting

 

One of the book's distinctive contributions is its attention to Neolithic Aegean numerical practices, which the author argues have frequently received insufficient attention in conventional histories of mathematics.

Evidence includes:

• clay tokens or tokens;
• marked rods or tallies;
• numerical marks;
• possible proto-writing;
• impressed or incised signs;
• accounting devices.

Such objects occur in Thessaly, Macedonia, Central Greece, Thrace, the Aegean islands, and the wider Balkan region, with some dating as early as the seventh millennium BCE.

The work emphasizes the close historical relationship between accounting and writing. Numerical notation could develop alongside systems for recording information, as happened elsewhere in the ancient world.

An important historiographical issue is whether these developments resulted primarily from Near Eastern influence (Ex Oriente Lux) or represented indigenous developments in southeastern Europe (Ex Balcanis Lux). The book presents archaeological evidence that has been interpreted in support of local development, while recognizing that the question remains part of a broader scholarly debate.

 

10. 7 Minoan and Mycenaean mathematics and exact sciences

 

The sixth major section examines mathematical and scientific knowledge in the Minoan and Mycenaean Aegean.

The Minoan-Mycenaean numerical system was decimal and employed unit fractions, including 2/3. The surviving Linear A and Linear B tablets, however, provide only limited direct information about the broader mathematical knowledge of these societies.

Architecture

The architecture of Mycenaean and Minoan societies is used as indirect evidence for mathematical knowledge. The study of Mycenaean tholos tombs has led researchers to propose practical knowledge of mathematical curves such as the parabola and possible knowledge of Pythagorean triples.

The palace architecture of Phaistos is also discussed in connection with numerical proportions and, according to the cited research, relationships resembling the Fibonacci sequence. The author presents these interpretations as evidence of sophisticated proportional and geometrical practices, while the references also acknowledge that some specific claims—such as Egyptian knowledge of the Fibonacci sequence—remain disputed.

Minoan buildings are further described as having been planned using intersecting axes, grids, ropes, stakes, and orientation techniques connected with solar observation.

Art and geometry

The Akrotiri wall paintings provide another body of evidence. Their construction involved geometrical organization of large painted surfaces, including preliminary grids and mathematical curves. The document compares these practices with Egyptian techniques while acknowledging that the direction of influence is not always demonstrable.

 

10.8 Astronomy and cosmology

 

The discussion of Aegean science extends beyond mathematics into astronomy and cosmology.

The book considers evidence for astronomical observation and mathematical organization in Minoan and Mycenaean culture and discusses possible relationships between Aegean, Egyptian, Mesopotamian, and later Greek astronomical traditions.

The broader argument is that the development of ancient astronomy should not be represented as an isolated process occurring in one civilization. Rather, it emerged through long-term interaction, observation, transmission, reinterpretation, and independent development.

The work also connects mathematical concepts with ancient cosmological ideas, including the concept of the cosmic axis or axis mundi, linking earth and heaven.

 

10.9 Aegean–Mesopotamian interaction

 

A particularly important section examines the extensive contacts between the Aegean and Mesopotamia during the Bronze Age.

The evidence includes:

• trade networks;
• metals and raw materials;
• weights and measures;
• seals and cylinder seals;
• artistic motifs;
• ceramics;
• architectural and decorative techniques;
• Aegean objects found in Mesopotamia;
• Mesopotamian objects found in the Aegean.

The Aegean participated in a broad interconnected network extending from the Mediterranean to Anatolia, Mesopotamia and, more widely, toward South Asia. The author stresses that this network provides a context in which mathematical and technological knowledge could circulate.

Particularly important is the evidence from Mari, which indicates connections involving Minoan products, metals, ships, craftsmen and trade. The document notes that Minoan products acquired prestige in parts of the eastern Mediterranean and that Aegean artistic forms were adopted in several Near Eastern palatial centres.

Aegean-style frescoes and artistic practices are discussed in relation to sites including Avaris, Tell Kabri, Alalakh, Ebla, Qatna, Mari and Nuzi. The adoption of Aegean artistic forms is interpreted as evidence of substantial cultural interaction and of the prestige of Minoan-Mycenaean culture in parts of the eastern Mediterranean.

 

10.10 Weights, measures and commercial mathematics

 

An important component of the argument is the history of measurement and weighing.

The document notes that systems of standardized weights appeared in Egypt and Mesopotamia during the fourth millennium BCE and subsequently became attested in the Aegean and Anatolia. Different traditions of weights could coexist within the same commercial environment.

This evidence illustrates that ancient merchants were capable of conducting international trade using their own systems of measurement while establishing equivalences between different standards.

The conclusion is significant: the history of mathematics cannot be separated from the history of commerce, administration, architecture, metallurgy and technology.

 

10.11 Greek–Mesopotamian interaction in later periods

 

The relationship between Greece and Mesopotamia continued well beyond the Bronze Age.

The text discusses Greeks operating in Mesopotamia during Assyrian, Persian, Babylonian and Seleucid periods. In the Seleucid period, interaction intensified considerably. Greek names, Greek cultural practices and elements of Greek architecture and artistic decoration appear in Mesopotamian contexts.

Uruk is particularly important in this discussion. Members of local elite families sometimes adopted Greek names and participated in the new Hellenistic cultural environment. Archaeological evidence also demonstrates the incorporation of Greek or Greek-inspired architectural and decorative elements into Babylonian buildings.

The author emphasizes that this process was bidirectional: Greeks were not merely transmitters of culture to Mesopotamia. Greeks themselves encountered Mesopotamian mathematical and astronomical traditions, and these encounters contributed to the development of later Greek science.

 

10. 12 The question of Egyptian influence on Greek mathematics

 

A later section specifically addresses the widespread claim that Greek mathematicians learned mathematics from the Egyptians.

The document examines ancient testimony concerning Egyptian mathematical prestige but questions whether such testimony should automatically be interpreted as proof of direct intellectual dependence.

The author differentiates between:

1. knowledge that could have been transmitted between cultures;
2. practical techniques;
3. mathematical problems;
4. theoretical concepts;
5. formal deductive systems.

The important distinction is that contact or transmission does not necessarily establish intellectual dependence in its strongest sense.

 

10.13 Greek or Arabic algebra?

 

Another major section addresses the history of algebra, particularly the conventional attribution of the decisive origins of algebra to the Islamic mathematician al-Khwarizmi.

The document begins from the familiar interpretation that Arabic mathematics of the eighth and ninth centuries represented a major transition toward algebraic thinking. It then investigates the extent to which this development was genuinely new and the degree to which it incorporated earlier Greek mathematical traditions.

The discussion emphasizes the importance of Greek authors such as:

• Euclid;
• Diophantus;
• Apollonius;
• Pappus.

It also examines the later development of symbolic mathematics and the emergence of generalized algebraic notation. In this context, the history of algebra is presented as a long process of transformation rather than the invention of a single civilization or individual.

The document therefore challenges simplified narratives that sharply separate “Greek geometry” from “Arabic algebra.”

 

10.14 The broader conclusion of the work

 

The concluding section presents the history of mathematical knowledge as a cumulative, non-linear process. Knowledge develops through successive stages, but these stages can include interruptions, regressions, transformations and intellectual leaps.

The author emphasizes the importance of the material conditions that made intellectual development possible. Surplus production, administration, urbanization and early state organization created environments in which systems of recording, accounting and calculation could emerge.

The overall historical model proposed by the work is therefore not one of a single cultural “origin” followed by passive transmission. Instead, mathematical knowledge is portrayed as the product of:

observation → practical needs → recording → calculation → exchange between cultures → abstraction → generalization → proof → further transformation.

 

10.15 Key Points

 

1. Histories of mathematics are not neutral by definition. The selection and interpretation of evidence can influence perceptions of cultural achievement.
2. The book challenges simplistic “origin” narratives. Ancient mathematics developed through multiple traditions and long-term interaction.
3. Babylonian mathematics was highly sophisticated, particularly in numerical calculation and the solution of complex problems.
4. Egyptian mathematics was highly practical, with substantial competence in arithmetic, measurement and construction, but the author distinguishes it from later deductive mathematical science.
5. Greek mathematics introduced or developed a distinctive emphasis on abstraction, generalization and proof, especially in the tradition represented by Euclid and Archimedes.
6. The concept of “geometrical algebra” is controversial. The book discusses the disagreement between scholars who emphasize Babylonian antecedents and those who reject the anachronistic application of modern algebraic terminology to Greek mathematics.
7. Neolithic southeastern Europe and the Aegean deserve greater attention in histories of numeracy, accounting and proto-writing.
8. Minoan and Mycenaean societies possessed significant practical mathematical knowledge, visible particularly in architecture, measurement, artistic construction and possibly astronomy.
9. Aegean–Mesopotamian interaction was extensive. Trade, metallurgy, weights, seals, artistic motifs, architecture and possibly scientific knowledge circulated across regions.
10. Cultural transmission was multidirectional. Greek culture influenced Mesopotamia in later periods, while Greek scholars also encountered and incorporated older Egyptian and Mesopotamian traditions.
11. The development of algebra was gradual and interconnected. The transition from Greek mathematics to medieval Islamic mathematics should not be reduced to a simple replacement of “Greek geometry” by “Arabic algebra.”
12. The central methodological message is historiographical: the history of mathematics should be reconstructed from the totality of available evidence, while avoiding both cultural exclusion and simplistic claims of unilateral influence.

 

10.16 Overall synthesis

 

The attached work ultimately presents the history of ancient mathematics as a complex network of interacting traditions rather than a linear succession of civilizations. Egypt, Mesopotamia, the Aegean and Greece, China and later Islamic mathematical cultures each contributed different forms of numerical, geometrical, astronomical and practical knowledge. The author places particular emphasis on the need to distinguish practical mathematical techniques from formal mathematical science, and cultural contact from demonstrable intellectual dependence.

At the same time, the work argues that the distinctive Greek achievement—especially the development of systematic proof, abstraction and deductive organization—should remain visible within a broader history that also recognizes the substantial achievements of earlier and contemporary civilizations. The final perspective is therefore one of continuity, interaction, transformation and cumulative development, rather than exclusive cultural ownership of mathematics.

 

Homer and the Poetics of Gesture

ΟΜΗΡΟΣ & ΠΟΙΗΤΙΚΗ ΤΗΣ ΣΤΑΣΕΩΣ ΣΩΜΑΤΟΣ

https://bmcr.brynmawr.edu/2019/2019.09.52/

Alex C. Purves, Homer and the Poetics of Gesture. Oxford studies in late antiquity. Oxford; New York: Oxford University Press, 2019. xiii, 214. ISBN 9780190857929. $74.00.

Review by

Michel Briand

Στην συνέχεια (Συνήθεια, Χειρονομία και Ελευθερία, σελ. 13-17), μέσα από τις έννοιες του κινητικού αυθορμητισμού και του κιναισθητικού υποβάθρου, επιβεβαιώνουμε ότι οι λεκτικές και χειρονομιακές μορφές θεμελιώνουν τη δυναμική συνοχή του ποιήματος. Ένα τρίτο μέρος (Σώματα Εν Κινήσει, σελ. 17-26) επιχειρεί μια σύνθεση σχετικά με την εφεύρεση της κινούμενης εικόνας, στις αρχές του 20ου αιώνα, και την διαμόρφωση της χειρονομίας ως «φράση ή κύμα» (20). Οι φωτογραφίες της μετακίνησης των ζώων του Muybridge και αυτές του Marey συγκρίνονται με αρχαϊκές αγγειακές αναπαραστάσεις αθλητικών αγώνων ή πένθιμων τελετών, όπως στον Άτλαντα Μνημοσύνης του ιστορικού τέχνης Aby Warburg και του Pathosformeln του: αυτό το «εικονολογικό διάστημα» αντιπαραθέτει παραστάσεις από διάφορες περιόδους με την ίδια συναισθηματικά φορτισμένη χειρονομία.3 Αφού προηγηθεί ένα περίγραμμα του κεφαλαίου, σελ. 26-29, έρχεται το καταληκτικό μέρος της εισαγωγής (Ομηρικά Σώματα, σελ. 29-35), που διευρύνει την μελέτη του σώματος των ραψωδών ως μέσου μεταδόσεως μηνυμάτων / εννοιών / καταστάσεων, ιδιαίτερα με τον Ίωνα του Πλάτωνα.4 Οι χειρονομίες των ομηρικών χαρακτήρων ενεργοποιούν την «ενσάρκωσή» τους ή την «σωματποίηση» τους από τον ραψωδό (ενσάρκωση, όχι «αναπαράσταση», αναπαράσταση, σύμφωνα με την αντίθεση που διατύπωσε ο Purves, μάλλον για να διευκρινιστεί καλύτερα). Τέλος, ο Purves διαψεύδει τον Snell: το ομηρικό σώμα θα ήταν χωρίς κέντρο ή μέρη, που παρήχθησαν από τις κινήσεις των αρθρώσεων και όχι των οργάνων.5 Και η σύγχρονη σκέψη ενδιαφέρεται για παρόμοια αποτελέσματα, τονίζοντας το ίδιο το αίνιγμα της ζωντάνιας της χειρονομίας (ζωηρότητα της χειρονομίας, σελ. 35).

Then (Habit, Gesture, and Freedom, 13-17), through the notions of kinetic spontaneity and kinaesthetic background, we confirm that the verbal and gestural forms found the dynamic coherence of the poem. A third part (Bodies in Motion, 17-26) attempts a synthesis on the invention of the moving image, at the turn of the twentieth century, and the figuration of the gesture as “phrase or wave” (20). Muybridge’s photographs of animal locomotion and Marey’s are compared to archaic vascular representations of athletic races or mourning ceremonies, as in the art historian Aby Warburg’s Mnemosyne Atlas and his Pathosformeln: this “iconology of intervals” juxtaposes representations from various periods of the same emotionally charged gesture.3 After a Chapter Outline, 26-29, comes the concluding part of the introduction (Homeric Bodies, 29-35), which broadens the study to the performing body of the rhapsodes, especially in Plato’s Ion.4 The gestures of the Homeric characters energize their “incarnation” or “embodying” by the rhapsode (embodiment, not “representation,” re-enactment, according to the opposition formulated by Purves, probably in need of more precision). Finally, Purves refutes Snell: the Homeric body would be without center or parts, produced by the movements of the joints rather than the organs.5 And contemporary thought is interested in similar effects, staging the very enigma of the liveliness of gesture (liveliness of gesture, 35).

Η ΕΙΚΟΝΑ (!!) ΤΗΣ ΑΝΘΡΩΠΙΝΗΣ ΨΥΧΗΣ [ΑΠΟ ΤΟΝ Esa Kirkkopelto ΜΕ ΒΑΣΗ ΤΗΝ ΠΕΡΙΓΡΑΦΗ ΤΗΣ ΠΟΛΙΤΕΙΑΣ (?)

https://journals.openedition.org/edl/7847?lang=en

Esa Kirkkopelto. 2024. "Monster and Khôra: Re-Imagining the Performing Body with Plato," Etudes des Lettres 324, pp. 107-128.

 

3. Michel Briand. “Paradoxes of Spectacular/Political Performativity: Dionysiac Dance in Classical Greek Theatre, Olivier Dubois’ Tragédie, the Femen’s Sextremist Protests, and Trajal Harrell’s Antigone SR“. In CORD Conference Proceedings, Cut and Paste: Dance Advocacy in the Age of Austerity, Cambridge UP, 2016, 27-37, et “Gestures of grieving and mourning: a transhistoric dance-scheme”. In Ken Pierce (ed.), Dance ACTions – Traditions and transformations., NOFOD/SDHS, Trondheim, 2013, 73-87. Sur Warburg et les notions de figure, schème, formule : Pour un atlas des Figures.

ϊ

4. Le dialogue empathique performance/public pourrait être approfondi { The empathetic dialogue between performance and audience could be deepened : Ο διάλογος παραστάσεως/κοινού θα μπορούσε να εμβαθύνει την συναισθηματική ταύτιση ή συντονισμό}: A. P. David. The Dance of the Muses. Choral Theory and Ancient Greek Poetics. Oxford: Oxford UP, 2007 { https://bmcr.brynmawr.edu/2007/2007.04.46/ }; Pierre Destrée & Fritz-Gregor Herrmann (eds.). 2011. Plato and the Poets. Leiden: Brill, 2011; Anastasia-Erasmia Peponi. Frontiers of Pleasure: Models of Aesthetic Response in Archaic and Classical Greek Thought. Oxford: Oxford UP, 2012.

https://bmcr.brynmawr.edu/2007/2007.04.46/

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/276374794_A_P_David_The_Dance_of_the_Muses_Choral_theory_and_ancient_Greek_poetics

5. Guillemette Bolens. La logique du Corps articulaire. Les articulations du corps humain dans la littérature occidentale. Rennes: PU de Rennes, 2000.

https://www.academia.edu/87664690/The_missing_link_Writing_in_West_Anatolia_during_the_Late_Bronze_Age?uc-g-sw=8491430

Waal, W. 2022. “The missing link? Writing in West Anatolia during the Late Bronze Age,” in The Political Geography of Western Anatolia in the Late Bronze Age. Proceedings of the EEA Conference Bern, 7 September 2019, ed. I. Hajnal, E. Zangger, J. Kelder, Budapest, pp. 229-270.

https://muse.jhu.edu/pub/1/article/740925/pdf

Tsagalis, C. 2019. Rev. of A. C. Purves, Homer and the Poetics of Gesture, in Classical World 113 (1), pp. 116-117.

10.1353/clw.2019.0070

In lieu of an abstract, here is a brief excerpt of the content:

Gesture in Homer has been studied before. D. Lateiner's Sardonic Smile: Non-Verbal Behavior in Homeric Epic (Ann Arbor 1995), to state one well-known book, explores the "silent language" of characters, especially in the Odyssey, bringing into the limelight the wealth of body-language and non-verbal forms of communication employed in Homeric epic. Purves' book goes a step further, and indeed an important step it is. By arguing that gestures in Homeric epic "function simultaneously as kinetic reflexes for the hero and aesthetic reflexes for the poet," Purves shows that body-language operates on both the individual and the generic level. The author seeks to identify underlying patterns of kinetic behavior that behave more or less like verbal formulas. They, too, are marked by the tension between what is expected according to an epic "kinetic grammar" and the divergence or aberration from that norm. This interpretive course allows Purves to trace a sort of "kinetic interaction" between the gestures of given characters either within the same Homeric epic or across the Iliad and the Odyssey. Although I would have liked to see this method applied to some important gesture-oriented moments in the Epic Cycle (moments that resonate in Homeric epic as well), I can say up front that Purves has succeeded in opening new perspectives on a "kinetic set of patterns," i.e., a sub-category of a "grammar of space," which is systematically employed throughout the Iliad and the Odyssey.

I will now focus on three chief examples of Purves' analysis, which is structured as a horizontal study of five distinct forms of kinetic behavior (corresponding to individual chapters of her book): falling, running, leaping, standing, and reaching.

Whereas "falling" for mortals signifies death, a standard motif in a principally martial epic like the Iliad, "falling" for gods pertains to their active involvement in the plot, when they descend from their divine abode and mingle with humans. In this light, "falling" has a stereotypical function within the Iliad. At the same time, "divine falling" acquires a special function, which displays a level of sophistication that marks the Iliad as the celebrated epic it has always been. The gods' knees may collapse (so Hephaestus in Books 1 and 18, Ares in Books 5 and 21, Aphrodite in Book 21),1 but since death is not a narrative option for them, the Iliad exploits the one possibility that keeps alive [End Page 116] their potential to fall. Zeus, the one god who never appears on the battlefield of Troy, threatens to hurl all the gods who disobey him into Tartarus (8.13); he tosses Ate by the hair (19.130-131); he tries to throw out Hypnos (14.258); and he reminds Hera that he had hung her from on high, with anvils on her feet and unbreakable bonds around her hands (15.18-21). Purves has built a strong case for the co-existence within the Iliad of a system used for mortal and divine "falling," as well as a transgression of this system by means of a curtailed falling, i.e., divine suspension.

Achilles' stillness for two thirds of the Iliad is counterbalanced by his quickness of movement in the last, climactic third. This is the part of the poem where he becomes "swift-footed Achilles" (πόδας ὠκὺς Ἀχιλλεύς). Purves observes that Achilles' running in this last third takes the form of chasing: first, he chases the panic-stricken Trojans, then Agenor, and finally Hector himself, who is "shackled by fate" (Iliad 22.5). The contrast between running and standing still will soon give way to Achilles' all too real chase of Hector around the walls of Troy. Purves shows that "the kinetic aspects" of this part of the poem, culminating in the dramatic duel between Achilles and Hector, have been prepared by means of a "kinetic recall" of Iliad 6,2 where Hector is again found at the Scaean Gates, his brother Paris joining him as they march into battle, after Andromache has expressed her fear that he might not return alive. This is not, as Purves rightly notes, just a case of scene-mirroring; it is a theme synchronized with the unraveling of the larger Iliadic...

Achilles on the Mount of Olives: The Savior’s Agony in the Homeric Centos

Ο Αχιλλέας στο Όρος των Ελαιών: Η αγωνία του Σωτήρος στον Ομηρικό Κέντο 1443–1616

https://muse.jhu.edu/pub/77/article/942863

https://www.academia.edu/125859885/ACHILLES_ON_THE_MOUNT_OF_OLIVES_THE_SAVIORS_AGONY_IN_THE_HOMERIC_CENTOS_1443_1616

Anna Lefteratou. 2023. “Achilles on the Mount of Olives: The Savior’s Agony in the Homeric Centos 1443–1616,” Phoenix 77 (3-4), pp. 350-373.

Επισκόπηση AI

Achilles on the Mount of Olives: The Savior’s Agony in the Homeric Centos 1443–1616 is an academic article by Anna Lefteratou published in Phoenix (2023) that examines how Empress Eudocia’s fifth-century Homeric Centos reconfigures Jesus' Agony in Gethsemane through classical epic poetry. [1, 2]

Key Themes and Analysis

Heroic Reinterpretation: The text translates the agony of Jesus from passive distress into an active, athletic, and martial agon (a contest or perseverance), helping to sidestep contemporary theological concerns like docetism and theopaschism. [1]

Achillean and Odyssean Foils: It utilizes Achilles as a model for divine indignation and a tragic hero seeking kleos (glory) from the Father, while employing Odyssean elements to represent human suffering and the physical flesh. [1]

Divine Unity: Figures like Helios, Ares, and Agamemnon are recontextualized to demonstrate the unified will of the Father and the Son, framing Christ's passion as a definitive triumph over death. [1]

τοὺς δὲ ἰδὼν ἐλέησε Κρόνου πάϊς ἀγκυλομήτεω,  (Hom. Il. 16. 431)

ἐγένετο δὲ ὁ ἱδρὼς αὐτοῦ ὡσεὶ θρόμβοι αἵματος καταβαίνοντες ἐπὶ τὴν γῆν. (Lk 22: 44)

καὶ θέλει ἐξαλείψει ὁ Θεὸς πᾶν δάκρυον ἀπὸ τῶν ὀφθαλμῶν αὐτῶν, καὶ ὁ θάνατος δὲν θέλει ὑπάρχει πλέον, οὔτε πένθος οὔτε κραυγή οὔτε πόνος δὲν θέλουσιν ὑπάρχει πλέον· διότι τὰ πρῶτα παρῆλθον (Rev. 21:4)

GRAECO-ROMAN GODS, though capable of pitying mankind — Zeus’ grief for Sarpedon's pending death is the chief example do not weep. In the Homeric heroic universe, on the other hand, the more valiant the hero is, the more he tends to cry. As an ancient scholiast said, "heroes are prone to tears" (έτοιμον το ηρωικόν προς δάκρυα, Schol. Il. 1.349b).2 In the Christian universe this configuration changes: God, at least in the person of Christ, is not only responsible for drying humanity's tears, as in the Revelation passage above, but he is also capable of feeling and expressing human grief, as in the Lucan passage. It was these two different perceptions of divine emotion that Christian classicizing verse attempted to reconcile. The Christianization of epic poetry prompted a creative reappraisal of the Christian weeping Savior and resulted in a deep transformation of the classical tropes, a process seen most clearly in the trans-formation and appropriation of the epic notion of Ideas. This article is about the reconfiguration of the Iliadic heroic code in a fifth-century biblical hexametric poem, the Homerocentones attributed to the Empress Eudocia (401-460 c.E.).3 The analysis focuses on the epic heroes' anti-climactic moments, namely their despair when their glory and renown is thwarted, by inviting a comparison of .. {..}

1 Hom. Il.16.431: 'and watching them [Patroclus and Sarpedon dueling], the son of devious-devising Cronus was pitiful” {τοὺς δὲ ἰδὼν ἐλέησε Κρόνου πάϊς ἀγκυλομήτεω}[ Κι όπως τους είδε, τους σπλαχνίστηκε βαθιά του ο γιος του Κρόνου]; Lk 22:44: "and his sweat became like great drops of blood falling down on the ground; {And being in anguish, he prayed more earnestly, and his sweat was like drops of blood falling to the ground}[ και γενομενος εν αγωνια εκτενεστερον προσηυχετο εγενετο δε ο ιδρως αυτου ωσει θρομβοι αιματος καταβαινοντες επι την γην] Rev. 21:4: "be will wipe every tear from their eyes. Death will be no more.” { 4καὶ θέλει ἐξαλείψει ὁ Θεὸς πᾶν δάκρυον ἀπὸ τῶν ὀφθαλμῶν αὐτῶν, καὶ ὁ θάνατος δὲν θέλει ὑπάρχει πλέον, οὔτε πένθος οὔτε κραυγή οὔτε πόνος δὲν θέλουσιν ὑπάρχει πλέον· διότι τὰ πρῶτα παρῆλθον.} [«Θα σκουπίσει κάθε δάκρυ από τα μάτια τους· και θάνατος δεν θα υπάρχει πια ούτε πένθος ούτε κραυγή ούτε πόνος θα υπάρχουν πια· γιατί τα παλιά πέρασαν».—Αποκάλυψη 21:4, Η Αποκάλυψη του Ιωάννη, Μεταγραφή Γιώργος Σεφέρης.]Translations of the New Testament are from the New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition; translations of Homer from Lattimore 2011; other translations, unless otherwise stated, are my own.

2 Schol. ad Il. 1.349b, gives as parallels Od. 8.523 and Il. 11.15. For example, Hom. Il. 1.349: "[But Achilles] weeping went and sat in sorrow apart from his companions (δακρύσας ἑτάρων ἄφαρ ἕζετο νόσφι λιασθείς,)”. See also for heroes crying on the seashore Schol. Ad Il. 1.350c; Monsacre 1984: 137-142 on tears. For an introduction to Christian poetry, see Agosti 2012; Pollmann 2017; Miguelez Cavern and McGill 2018; and Hadlittoffi and Lefteratou 2020, with further literature.

3 The first recension of Homeric censor (hereafter HC I) in Schembra 2007 [https://www.academia.edu/43258828/Homerocentones] is attributed to the Empress Eudocia. See also Lefteratou 2023: 96-102 [ 2023. The Homeric Centos: Homer and the Bible Interwoven. Oxford.]. This is similar but not identical to the Iviron manuscript {Ιερά Μονή Ιβήρων Αγίου Όρους} presented by Usher (1998) as originally Eudocian { Usher, M. D. 1998. Homeric Stitchings: The Homeric Centos of the Empress Eudocia. Lanham. }. 

3 Η πρώτη αναγέννηση της ομηρικής επιμελείας (στο εξής HC I) στο Schembra 2007 αποδίδεται στην αυτοκράτειρα Ευδοκία. Βλέπε και Λευτεράτου 2023: 96-102. Αυτό είναι παρόμοιο αλλά όχι πανομοιότυπο με το χειρόγραφο Iviron που παρουσιάστηκε από τον Usher (1998) ως αρχικά Eudocian.

two divine and mortal beings, Jesus and Achilles. More precisely, it explores what had long been thought of as the highlight of heroic emotion, allegedly commensurable to one’s bravery, tears.

After presenting briefly Eudocia and her Cento, the analysis centers on the centonic revision of Jesus’ Agony in Gethsemane, one of the most disturbing Gospel passages that showcases the ultimate moment of weakness of the God-Man. In what follows, I will explore the exegetical attitudes to the passage in late antiquity in order to demonstrate the Christological challenges to which any interpretation of this passage would give rise. Subsequently I will provide a close reading of the centonic recasting of the Agony and study how Homeric lines and concepts of heroism impact the crafting of the cento’s Jesus in the light of ancient Homeric scholarship. A final section will consider the extent to which Homeric language contributes towards two phenomena: first, the reconsideration of epic heroism through the Christian lens, and secondly, the exegesis of Jesus’ grief through the mediation of Homeric language.

Before embarking on the recasting of Jesus in the guise of Achilles, it is worth considering some innovative characteristics of late antique classicizing Christian poetics in its dialogue with classical poetry. Cento poetry is an audacious literary experiment of late antiquity, the period that witnessed a heightened interest in classicizing hexametric poetry, both mythological and Christian.4 Two of its most celebrated Christian female poets, Proba in the West (died ca 350s) and Eudocia in the East, reassembled the story of the Gospels with lines taken verbatim from Virgil and Homer respectively, recasting the story of Redemption in epic language and style. Centonic Christian heroes are molded on the pattern of classical heroes. This tendency is found throughout Christian writings but is most conspicuous in the case of cento compositions precisely because of their verbatim reuse of Homeric and Virgilian lines, which invites a closer identification of biblical and classical epic heroes.5

The Christian modification of the heroic epic code is fascinating, as nothing could seem more alien to the valiant and proud epic hero than the Son of Man who self-willingly sacrifices himself for the sake of mankind.6 Achilles, a hero characterized by his excessive emotions, provides a useful case study to explore how Christians appropriated his famous heroism and reconfigured his irascible side. In the Iliad, as the ancient scholiast noted, bravery, pride, and anger {..}

4For the Christianization of classical poetry, see, for example, Agosti 2001, 2009, and 2011; Pollmann 2017.

5For Greek mythology in Christian contexts, see Rahner 1963 and the contributions in Leppin 2015. For cento poetics, see, for example, Baˇzil 2009; for Proba, see McGill 2007 and Schottenius-Cullhed 2016; for Eudocia, Whitby 2007 and Lefteratou 2023. For a Christian reuse of Achilles, see Goldhill 2021 on the poet Cometas in the Palatine Anthology. For general introductions to Eudocia, see now Sowers 2020; Sandnes 2022; and Lefteratou 2023.

6Early Christian art tends to portray Jesus not as suffering but as a nude all-conquering hero; see Harley-McGowan 2003.

 

Gift of the Nile: Hellenizing Egypt from Aeschylus to Alexander

https://dokumen.pub/qdownload/gift-of-the-nile-hellenizing-egypt-from-aeschylus-to-alexander-9780520926721-9780520228207.html