The thesis examines the presence of Demeter in Hellenistic poetry, while it also considers the way contemporary Demeter cult informs the poetic image of the goddess. My research focuses on certain poems in which Demeter is in the foreground, that is, Philitas’ Demeter, Callimachus’ Hymn to Demeter, Theocritus’ Idyll 7, and Philicus’ Hymn to Demeter, supplemented by the epilogue of Callimachus’ Hymn to Apollo and Philicus’ Hymn to Demeter. The first part of my study is dedicated to the presentation of the evidence for Demeter’s role in the religious life of places that are directly or indirectly associated with the poems I discuss, that is, Egypt, Cyrene, Cos and Cnidus, in order to establish the cultic and historical framework within which Demeter’s literary figure appears. In the second part I closely examine the poems that feature Demeter and conclude that the goddess and motifs closely linked with her have poetological significance, which supports the view that Demeter functions as a symbol of poetics. Furthermore, I examine the social elements in the narrative of the most extant Hellenistic poem on Demeter, i.e. Callimachus’ Hymn to Demeter, and propose that these reflect Demeter’s role as a ‘social’ goddess.

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This thesis explores the presence of canonical texts in the Hellenistic period beyond individual reading habits. It utilises the interpersonal context of the symposium to understand the place and significance of literature as a social phenomenon. Methodologically, it combines art and text, synthesising literature which represents, and literature visualised and depicted at, Hellenistic symposia. My over-arching argument is not simply that the post-classical symposium persists, contrary to much scholarship which represents it as dead or as vain re-enactments. Rather, I claim that studying the Hellenistic symposium exposes the social mechanisms which ensured that a Greek literary past remained relevant even in the Hellenistic world. Chapter One discusses the historical shift from the Archaic and Classical symposium to the Hellenistic symposium, and defends the latter’s often-questioned existence. It also theorises a new approach for handling images and texts related to the Hellenistic symposium. the subsequent chapters offer case studies showing the utility of this approach. Chapter Two considers the reception of the Phaeacians in relation to the symposium and Chapter Three looks at the theatrical tradition. Chapter Four focuses on Callimachus’ Iambi and the Letter of Aristeas, texts which in different ways have the symposium as a structuring principle and are concerned with the literary past. The aim is to highlight how the argument obtains even when the symposium is an imagined, textual one. The Conclusion advances the thesis in two ways. First, it extends my argument beyond the Hellenistic period with a short study of the visual and verbal reception of the comic poet Menander at Late Antique symposia. Second, its theorises the greater significance of studying the literary past and the Hellenistic symposia for a wider conception of how literary reception works.

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Mythological figures play a number of roles in literature: they may, of course, appear in person as developed characters, but they may also contribute more indirectly, as part of the substratum from which rhetorical argument or literary characterisation are constructed, or as a background against which other literary strategies (for example, the rewriting of epic or the appropriation of Greek culture by the Romans) can be marked out. This thesis sets out to examine the way in which the figure of Penelope emerges from unknown origins, acquires portrayal in almost canonical form in Homer's Odyssey, and then takes part in the subsequent interplay of Homeric and other literary allusions throughout later Classical literature (with chapters focusing particularly on fifth-century Greek tragedy, Hellenistic poetry, and Augustan poetry). In particular, it focuses on the manner in which, despite the potential complexities of the character and the possible variants in her story, she became quintessentially a stereotypical figure. In addition to considering example where Penelope is evoked by name, a case is also made for the thesis that allusion, or intertextual reference, could also evoke Penelope for an ancient audience. A central point of discussion is what perception of Penelope would be called to mind by intertextual reference. The importance of approaching relationships between ancient texts in intertextual terms rather terms of strict "allusion" is thus demonstrated. The formation of the simplified picture is considered in the light of folk-tale motifs, rhetorical simplification of myth, and favoured story patterns. The appendices include a summary of the myth of Penelope with all attested variants, and a comprehensive list of explicit references to her in classical literature.

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Por se tratar de um gênero flexível, o epigrama pode ser analisado em conjunto ou sozinho, propiciando diferentes recortes e abordagens metodológicas. Estudos acerca do epigrama fúnebre geralmente analisam os poemas de acordo com temas afins focando nos mortos: guerreiros mortos, mulheres mortas no parto, mortos no mar dentre outros. No entanto, uma abordagem dos epigramas fúnebres com visão descentralizada do morto permite investigação mais ampla de outros temas. Desse modo, a presente tese partiu dos estudos de Giuseppe Giangrande, Francis Cairns e Alexander Sens sobre epigramas fúnebres que lançam mão de elementos simposiais no intuito de analisar a função de tais elemento e verificar de que maneira os simposiais presentes nos epigramas fúnebres se perpetuam ou se modificam. Para tanto, foram selecionados epigramas do livro VII da Antologia Grega que possuem léxico simposial e fúnebre e, a partir dos identificados, foram configurados três grupos: 1) os dedicados ao poeta Anacreonte, 2) os dedicados às mulheres bêbadas e 3) os dedicados aos homens bêbados. Nos epigramas dedicados a Anacreonte, pode-se constatar que os elementos simposiais resgatam sua poesia e a filiam aos epigramatistas por meio da transformação do espaço funerário e das relações entre o transeunte-leitor e o poeta. Nos poemas dedicados às mulheres bêbadas, o consumo do vinho e o enterramento próximo aos locais de produção dele ressaltam a mobilidade das anciãs, o distanciamento de seus familiares e o caráter cômico das mortas por conta da caracterização da bebedeira. Por fim, nos epigramas fúnebres dedicados aos homens bêbados, evidenciam-se a moderação e a imoderação diante do consumo de vinho. Em alguns, a moderação está alinhada ao conceito poético de composição. Em outros, o excesso de vinho causa acidentes retratados com tom cômico e que advertem o transeunte-leitor a não cometer os mesmos erros. Outro grupo de epigramas se vale das referências simposiais para criar enigmas ao transeunte-leitor. O último, por sua vez, é composto por epitáfios para filósofos mortos por bebedeira. Evidencia-se aqui a tensão entre a moderação e os ensinamentos filosóficos, permeados pelos tons anedótico e cômico. Sugere-se, portanto, que a presença de elementos simposiais adquire função distinta de acordo com o grupo de mortos. Isto posto, observa-se que os epigramas do corpus de diferentes séculos lançam mão de simposiais que passam a ganhar nuances distintas. Isso permite afirmar que os epigramas fúnebres com elementos simposiais perpetuam a tensão criativa entre a tradição e a inovação, conceitos debatidos por Marco Fantuzzi e Richard Hunter, para além do período helenístico. / Because it is a flexible genre, the epigram can be analyzed in groups or alone. It provides researchers with different possibilities of epigram grouping and methodological approaches. Studies on funerary epigram frequently analyze the poems according to related themes focusing on the dead: dead warriors, women dead in childbirth, dead in the sea among others. However, an approach to funerary epigrams which does not focus on the dead allows a broader investigation of other themes. Thus, the present thesis was based on the studies of Giuseppe Giangrande, Francis Cairns and Alexander Sens on funerary epigrams that use sympotic elements in order to analyze the function of such elements and to verify how the sympotic found in funerary epigrams continue being used of if they suffer modifications. In order to do so, we selected epigrams from Book VII of The Greek Anthology that display sympotic and funerary lexicon and, departing from the , three groups of epigrams were identified: 1) those dedicated to the poet Anacreon, 2) those dedicated to drunk women and 3) those dedicated to drunk men. In epigrams dedicated to Anacreon, sympotic elements recover his poetry and connect it to the epigrammatists by means of the transformation of the funeral space and the relationship between the passerby and the poet. In poems dedicated to drunken women, the consumption of wine and their burial near places of wine production emphasize the mobility of old women, their distancing from their relatives and the comic character of the dead women due to the characterization of their drunkenness. Finally, in the funerary epigrams dedicated to drunken men, moderation and immoderation are evident. In some, moderation is aligned with poetic composition. In others, the excess of wine causes accidents portrayed with comic tone. These epigrams warn the passerby not to make the same mistakes as the dead they commemorate. Another group of epigrams uses sympotic references to create charades to the passerby. The last group, in turn, is composed by epitaphs for philosophers killed by drunkenness. Here we see the tension between moderation and philosophical teachings permeated by the anecdotal and comic tone. It is suggested, therefore, that the presence of sympotic elements acquires a different function according to the group of dead. Thus, it is observed that, although the epigrams were composed in different centuries, the portrayed gain different nuances, which allows us to conclude that funerary epigrams with sympotic elements also reflect the creative tension between tradition and innovation, as debated by Marco Fantuzzi and Richard Hunter.

Cette thèse propose une synthèse autour des différents rôles de la lumière et de l'obscurité dans les Argonautiques d'Apollonios de Rhodes. Ce sujet comporte une forte composante lexicale, qui fait l'objet d'une étude dans la première partie, où les vocabulaires de la lumière et de l'obscurité chez Apollonios sont comparés aux emplois homériques. Ce thème interroge également les catégories de l'espace et du temps dans la mesure où lumière et obscurité structurent la narration autant qu'elles la déstructurent et proposent un itinéraire placé à la croisée de la barbarie et de la civilisation, état d'entre-deux qui reflète bien les craintes de l'époque alexandrine. La dialectique de la lumière et de l'obscurité permet aussi de mettre en perspective la notion d'héroïsme placée au cœur de l'épopée : la brillance des armes homériques fait alors place à l'éclat de la séduction, arme principale de Jason dont la valeur se mesure surtout dans le domaine érotique. Ce transfert des valeurs traditionnelles de la lumière sur le plan masculin s'accompagne d'une affirmation des pouvoirs féminins en contexte nocturne. Une quatrième partie interroge enfin le statut littéraire des Argonautiques à l'aune de la dialectique entre lumière et obscurité : l'épopée au long cours dénigrée par Callimaque peut en effet être lue comme un recueil poétique de pièces autonomes et une galerie de tableaux correspondant aux canons de l'esthétique hellénistique. Le dieu Apollon, dieu de la lumière et de la poésie placé au centre de l'oeuvre d'Apollonios, se fait le porte-parole privilégié d'un auteur au nom si proche du sien et devient le destinataire d'une sorte d'hymne atomisé qui mêle célébration poétique et réflexions métapoétiques. / Through this thesis, we aim to prove the various roles played by light and darkness in Apollonius Rhodius'Argonautica. In the first part, a lexical study specifically explores the terms expressing the ideas of light and darkness, in comparison to the Homeric references. Our thematic also tackles the issue of the construction of space and time, a notorious one in the Hellenistic period. The epic's structure is indeed based on the light and darkness' duality, but the threat of darkness symbolizing chaos is never far from the Argonauts who constantly struggle with barbarians and on the contrary symbolize Greek enlightment and civilization. The light and darkness'couple also allows us to give a new perspective on heroism, which is a central issue in Apollonius'poem. Whereas Homeric warriors project martial light due to their armour's glistening, Jason appears as love-hero shining with his purple cloak, an Hellenistic artefact replacing Achilles'shield described in the Iliad. At the same time, we can observe a kind of empowerment on the feminine side during the scenes occuring at night. In the fourth and last part, light and darkness endorse a metapoetical value, as they build a new kind of epic, like a collection of brief literary pieces joined together by a common celebration of Apollo, god of both poetry and light. Apollonius'Argonautica can therefore be seen as a prefiguration of Philostratus'Imagines, as it is built around a succession of vivid poetical paintings.