A Guide to Hellenistic Literature (eBook)

Kathryn Gutzwiller is Professor of Classics at the University of Cincinnati. Her recent publications include Poetic Garlands: Hellenistic Epigrams in Context (1998) and The New Posidippus: A Hellenistic Poetry Book (edited, 2005). She is the winner of the American Philological Association's Goodwin Award of Merit and has twice won the Gildersleeve Prize for the best article in the American Journal of Philology.

List of Figures ix

List of Maps x

Preface xi

1 History and Culture 1

1.1 The Successors 2

1.2 Macedonia and Greece 4

1.3 Seleucid Asia 8

1.4 Attalid Pergamum 12

1.5 Ptolemaic Egypt 16

2 Aesthetics and Style 26

2.1 Aesthetic Principles 29

2.2 Meter, Dialect, and Diction 36

2.3 Literature as Artefact 43

3 Authors and Genres 50

3.1 Menander 50

3.2 Callimachus 60

3.3 Apollonius of Rhodes 74

3.4 Theocritus and the Other Bucolic Poets 84

3.5 Didactic Poetry 97

3.6 Epigrams 106

3.7 Dramatic Poetry 120

3.8 Parodic and Philosophical Literature 131

3.9 Polybius 144

3.10 Technical Prose Writing 154

4 Topics in Hellenistic Literature 168

4.1 Learning and Innovation 169

4.2 Book Culture and Performance 178

4.3 Social and Political Background 188

4.4 The Critical Impulse in Literature and Art 202

4.5 Reception in Rome 213

Notes 223

Chronological Tables 228

Suggested Reading 230

Bibliography 239

Index 251

"Kathryn Gutzwiller is a renowned and well-respected scholar, and
her wide ranging publications have contributed greatly to the rise
in scholarly estimation that the field now enjoys.
Accordingly a guide to the subject by such a knowledgeable and
influential specialist is both a timely and welcome addition to the
handbooks and companions to classical authors already available."
(Journal of the Classical Association of Canada, Winter
2009)

"This book is likely to dispel more of the inherited prejudice
against Hellenistic literature. The guide is rich in detail and
succinct comments, yet very readable ... .Gutzwiller manages to
give life (albeit brief in most cases) to the prominent writers of
this period." (Scholia Reviews, 2009)

"Kathryn Gutzwiller's [Guide to Hellenistic Literature]
is exceptionally good...Gutzwiller covers a lot of ground in
not very much space, without the exposition ever appearing either
skimpy or cramped, and gives a good sense of the breadth and
diversity of Hellenistic literature (not just poetry), along with a
basic understanding of the historical, social, and cultural
context. This is a model of the genre." (Greece and
Rome, Vol 55 No. 2 2008)

"An up-to-date handbook on the literature of the period from the
death of Alexander to the Roman conquest of Egypt -- something long
needed in the field of Classics. As one of the leading scholars of
Hellenistic poetry in North America, Gutzwiller has helped to shape
the discourse of the critical issues in that field, and her
presentation of poets and poetry in this guide is always
well-informed and interesting. But what makes this guide so
valuable to the classical community as a whole is the broad scope
of the literature it presents ... .Students of Greek
literature, from undergraduates to specialists, will find
interesting observations and connections throughout the guide. No
Classicist should be without it. This guide consistently offers
elegant proof of how modern discoveries and the application of
critical theories have enriched our knowledge and appreciation of
Hellenistic literature. Gutzwiller's guide expertly summarizes what
we know about this period's literature, charts scholarly approaches
to it, and should -- I hope -- help to plot the path for future
research." (Bryn Mawr Classical Review, November 2008)

"Gutzwiller serves as an expert eyewitness to literature
which is, at the least, complex even for classicists and, more
often, wholly inaccessible to the non-scholarly reader. Like any
travel guide, such a tour cannot replace what it describes, but is
rather an invitation to visit the sites on one's own. More than any
other book available today, [it] opens the door to this rich and
exciting period of Greek literary history." (New England
Classical Literature)

"An internationally recognized authority, Gutzwiller
offers an engaging and stimulating guide to the field. This elegant
and useful guide has much to offer both new and long-standing
readers of Hellenistic literature." (Choice
Magazine)

"Simply said, this is a superb book. It is fresh, readable,
and liberated from the necessity of making a pronouncement on every
tired, scholarly controversy. Instead it dares to take a wide view
of Hellenistic literature that forges connections between poetry
and politics, literature and art, and science with all of the
foregoing. A better guide to the subject is impossible to
imagine."

-Dee L. Clayman, City University of New York