Sexual Symmetry

Love in the Ancient Novel and Related Genres

David Konstan (Autor)

Buch | Softcover

286 Seiten

2014
Princeton University Press (Verlag)
978-0-691-60603-3 (ISBN)

Artikel merken

"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.

PrefaceA Note on the Spelling of Greek TermsAbbreviationsIntroduction3Ch. 1The Greek Novel: Sexual Symmetry14Hapless Heroes15The Pederastic Paradigm26Mutuality versus Mastery30Love and Lust36Passion and Permanence45Constancy versus Chastity48Fidelity and Fate55Eros in the Novel57Ch. 2Greek Novels: Variations on a Type60Achilles Tatius: The Hero as Voyeur60Chariton: The View of the Heroine73Longus: Passion and Puberty79Heliodorus: Sex and the Sacred90Ch. 3Roman Novels: Unequal Love99Apollonius King of Tyre: Marriage and Incest100Petronius: Pederastic Passion113Apuleius: Desire and the Divine125Ch. 4Before the Novel: Passion and Power139New Comedy141Elegy150Lyric and Epigram160Mime162Pastoral167Epic170Tragedy175Eros in Antiquity178The Novel185Ch. 5Modern Novels: The Division of Desire187Aucassin and Nicolette: Sex and Status188Arcadia: Passion and Patriarchy192Pandosto: The Division of Desire199Pamela: Learning to Love205The Pulp Romances: Harlequin Heroines211Love in the Modern Novel214Ch. 6Conclusion218Works Cited233Index263

Erscheint lt. Verlag	14.7.2014
Reihe/Serie	Princeton Legacy Library
Verlagsort	New Jersey
Sprache	englisch
Maße	152 x 229 mm
Gewicht	397 g
Themenwelt	Geschichte ► Allgemeine Geschichte ► Vor- und Frühgeschichte
	Geisteswissenschaften ► Sprach- / Literaturwissenschaft ► Anglistik / Amerikanistik
	Geisteswissenschaften ► Sprach- / Literaturwissenschaft ► Literaturwissenschaft
ISBN-10	0-691-60603-X / 069160603X
ISBN-13	978-0-691-60603-3 / 9780691606033
Zustand	Neuware