Konstan Sexual Symmetry

Love in the Ancient Novel and Related Genres
Course Book
ISBN: 978-1-4008-6351-8
Verlag: De Gruyter
Format: PDF
Kopierschutz: 1 - PDF Watermark

E-Book, Englisch, 286 Seiten

Reihe: Princeton Legacy Library

"In the Greek romances," writes David Konstan, "sighs, tears, and suicide attempts are as characteristic of the male as of the female in distress; ruses, disguises, and outright violence in defense of one's chastity are as much the part of the female as of the male." Exploring how erotic love is represented in ancient amatory literature, Konstan points to the symmetry in the passion of the hero and heroine as a unique feature of the Greek novel: they fall mutually in love, they are of approximately the same age and social class, and their reciprocal attachment ends in marriage. He shows how the plots of the novels are perfectly adapted to expressing this symmetry and how, because of their structure, they differ from classical epic, elegy, comedy, tragedy, and other genres, including modern novels ranging from Sidney to Harlequin romances.

Using works like Chaereas and Callirhoe and Daphnis and Chloe, Konstan examines such issues as pederasty, the role of eros in both marital and nonmarital love, and the ancient Greek concept of fidelity. He reveals how the novelistic formula of sexual symmetry reverses the pattern of all other ancient genres, where erotic desire appears one-sided and unequal and is often viewed as either a weakness or an aggressive, conquering power. Konstan's approach draws upon theories concerning the nature of sexuality in the ancient world, reflected in the work of Michel Foucault, David Halperin, and John Winkler.

Originally published in 1993.

The Princeton Legacy Library uses the latest print-on-demand technology to again make available previously out-of-print books from the distinguished backlist of Princeton University Press. These editions preserve the original texts of these important books while presenting them in durable paperback and hardcover editions. The goal of the Princeton Legacy Library is to vastly increase access to the rich scholarly heritage found in the thousands of books published by Princeton University Press since its founding in 1905.

Autoren/Hrsg.

Konstan, David

Fachgebiete

• Geisteswissenschaften Geschichtswissenschaft Alte Geschichte & Archäologie

Inhaltsverzeichnis

Preface

A Note on the Spelling of Greek Terms

Abbreviations

Introduction 3

Ch. 1 The Greek Novel: Sexual Symmetry 14

Hapless Heroes 15

The Pederastic Paradigm 26

Mutuality versus Mastery 30

Love and Lust 36

Passion and Permanence 45

Constancy versus Chastity 48

Fidelity and Fate 55

Eros in the Novel 57

Ch. 2 Greek Novels: Variations on a Type 60

Achilles Tatius: The Hero as Voyeur 60

Chariton: The View of the Heroine 73

Longus: Passion and Puberty 79

Heliodorus: Sex and the Sacred 90

Ch. 3 Roman Novels: Unequal Love 99

Apollonius King of Tyre: Marriage and Incest 100

Petronius: Pederastic Passion 113

Apuleius: Desire and the Divine 125

Ch. 4 Before the Novel: Passion and Power 139

New Comedy 141

Elegy 150

Lyric and Epigram 160

Mime 162

Pastoral 167

Epic 170

Tragedy 175

Eros in Antiquity 178

The Novel 185

Ch. 5 Modern Novels: The Division of Desire 187

Aucassin and Nicolette: Sex and Status 188

Arcadia: Passion and Patriarchy 192

Pandosto: The Division of Desire 199

Pamela: Learning to Love 205

The Pulp Romances: Harlequin Heroines 211

Love in the Modern Novel 214

Ch. 6 Conclusion 218

Works Cited 233

Index 263