A commentary on book 6 of Achilles Tatius Leucippe and Clitophon

Achilles Tatius' novel, Leucippe and Clitophon (2nd c. CE), is a product of the literary experimentation in prose fiction during the Greek intellectual renaissance under the Roman Empire known as the Second Sophistic. For all appearances, the story follows the usual narrative course of the ancient Greek erotic adventure novels: boy meets girl, love occurs at first sight, and Fate attempts to keep them apart, triggering an odyssey of bizarre escapades and daring exploits that reaches its inevitable happy conclusion with their reunion and marriage. Achilles Tatius, however, takes each of these tropes far beyond their usual scope, displaying a ludic (and at times ludicrous) panache for defying the genre. This thesis provides the first extensive literary and philological commentary devoted exclusively to the Sixth Book of the novel. I examine both Achilles' unconventional approach to genre and storytelling, and his play on prevailing theories of psychology, physiology, and philosophy to enrich and enliven his narrative.

Grantor

School of Languages and Literatures

Year dc:date.issued

2022

Author dc:creator

• Bentel, Berenice

Advisor dc:contributor.advisor

• Chandler, Clive

• Languages and Literatures

Handle dc:identifier.uri

http://hdl.handle.net/11427/36768

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:open.uct.ac.za:11427/36768