Inaug.-Diss.--Erlangen. / Vita. Bibliography: p. 226-240.

Thesis (doctoral)--Universität Konstanz, 1974. / Includes bibliographical references.

This is the study of a previously neglected genre in pre-modern Arabic literature: the (poetic) epigram anthology. The epigram anthology was pioneered by a handful of poets in 14th-century Syria, but the genre was soon taken up by anthologists across the pre-modern Middle East and soon became one of the most popular types of Arabic poetry up until the modern period. This study is divided into two parts. Part One deals with critical issues in literary history and comparative literature, while Part Two is made up of three encapsulated studies on specific aspects of the social and literary (structural and textual) composition of the texts. In Part One, the epistemological background of the terms epigram and anthology is surveyed and their suitability for application to pre-modern Arabic literature is evaluated. Part One also includes a comprehensive history of the maqāṭīʿ (sing. maqṭūʿ, also maqṭūʿah) genre in Arabic as well as a detailed explication of this style of poetry, its anthological context, its generic status in the Arabic literary tradition, and its relation to the wider world-literary category of epigram. The three chapters of Part Two are devoted to the social network of anthologists and poets, the structure and composition of the anthologies themselves, and the way in which anthologists used a technique, which is called ‘variation’ in this study, to link the cited poetic material into an organic whole respectively. NB: This is a literary-historical study informed by the discipline of comparative literature; it is not primarily a philolological, biographical, or codicological investigation. The literary material presented here is what has been deemed most relevant for the purposes of the larger generic discussion at the centre of this literary-historical study. An annotated bibliography of unpublished sources is provided in an appendix in order to help the reader navigate the tricky present status of many Mamluk and Ottoman era sources.

This thesis represents the first full-scale commentary on Book 10 of Martial�s Epigrams. Jenkins� commentary on Book 10, a thesis from Cambridge in 1982, is the other detailed commentary on Book 10, but examines only 23 of the 104 epigrams from the book, selected according to significance or as being representative of broad categories and themes. My primary purpose is to present a literary analysis of the complete book, taking into account the literary tradition, and explaining the poems from a historical, social and political perspective. Most commentaries follow a traditional approach where the focus is investigation of the philological aspects of each epigram. These commentaries in their analysis of individual poems often fail to provide insight into Martial�s literary intentions for a particular poem, and the book as a coherent whole is generally not taken into consideration. My commentary provides an exploration of programmatic and structural issues which contribute to the book�s thematic continuity and unity. Aspects for consideration include the function and application of themes and motifs throughout the book, interrelationships of poems and their position within the book. Examination of these features is fundamental towards understanding Martial�s literary objectives in Book 10.

This thesis represents the first full-scale commentary on Book 10 of Martial�s Epigrams. Jenkins� commentary on Book 10, a thesis from Cambridge in 1982, is the other detailed commentary on Book 10, but examines only 23 of the 104 epigrams from the book, selected according to significance or as being representative of broad categories and themes. My primary purpose is to present a literary analysis of the complete book, taking into account the literary tradition, and explaining the poems from a historical, social and political perspective. Most commentaries follow a traditional approach where the focus is investigation of the philological aspects of each epigram. These commentaries in their analysis of individual poems often fail to provide insight into Martial�s literary intentions for a particular poem, and the book as a coherent whole is generally not taken into consideration. My commentary provides an exploration of programmatic and structural issues which contribute to the book�s thematic continuity and unity. Aspects for consideration include the function and application of themes and motifs throughout the book, interrelationships of poems and their position within the book. Examination of these features is fundamental towards understanding Martial�s literary objectives in Book 10.

Habilitationsschrift--Universität Münster, 1995/96. / Includes bibliographical references (p. [359]-390) and index.

Habilitationsschrift--Universität Münster, 1995/96. / Includes bibliographical references (p. [359]-390) and index.

Univ., Diss./2005 u.d.T.: Penzel, Joachim: Antipater von Sidon und Archias von Antiocheia--Bochum, 2004.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Chicago. / Includes bibliographical references.

Originally presented as the author's thesis (doctoral)--Universität Hamburg, 1983/84. / Includes indexes.