Texte remanié de: Th. Ph. D--Cambridge (GB)--Christ 's College, 1999. Titre de soutenance : Method and madness in the 'Dionysaca' of Nonnus. / Bibliogr. p. 215-227. Index.

Ce mémoire de maîtrise porte sur le thème de l'apothéose de Dionysos dans l'épopée de Nonnos de Panopolis, poète égyptien du Ve siècle p.C., intitulée les Dionysiaques. Cette étude s'intéresse à la nature et au rôle de la déification pour le héros et pour l'œuvre. Le premier chapitre pose les bases de la recherche en présentant la nature des trois Dionysos de l'histoire, Zagreus, Bacchos, Iacchos, ainsi que leurs liens avec la sphère divine. Cette première étape montre que l'apothéose est progressive chez Nonnos puisqu'elle se déroule tout au long de l'épopée. L'ascension finale de Dionysos dans l'Olympe n'est plus qu'une formalité qui donne l'occasion aux trois entités dionysiaques d'être honorées conjointement. Une fois la nature de l'apothéose établie, le second chapitre s'intéresse au rôle de l'ascension divine pour la structure de la trame narrative et pour les autres personnages. Il y est question de la sincérité des mystères et des espoirs de salut dans le récit. Le dernier aspect de cette section concerne le sérieux de l'épopée et de son héros Dionysos, en lien avec ses objectifs d'écriture, subordonnés à l'esthétique de l'époque, la paideia et la poikilia.

Esta pesquisa pretende discutir a forma com que Dioniso foi transformado em herói épico nas Dionisíacas de Nono de Panópolis, uma epopeia em quarenta e oito cantos sobre o ciclo de Dioniso, desde a fundação de Tebas e o estabelecimento de seus antepassados à apoteose olímpica do deus. A análise será baseada nas características de Dioniso no campo de batalha e em oposição aos três principais adversários no poema, Licurgo, Deríades e Penteu. Para uma melhor compreensão da construção de Dioniso como herói, é necessária uma análise sobre o contexto social e cultural em que Nono compõe sua obra, assim como a relação do poeta com Homero, o principal poeta épico grego. Em anexo encontram-se os cantos XXXIX e XL das Dionisíacas em original grego e na tradução feita por mim. / This research intend to discuss the way Dionysus was transformed into epic hero in Nonnus Dionysiaca, an epic in forty-eight chants concerning the Dionysian Cycle, from the foundation of Thebes and the establishment of their ancestors to the Olympic apotheosis of the god. The analysis will be based on Dionysos features on the battlefield in opposition to the three main opponents in the poem, Lycurgus, Deríades and Pentheus. For a better understanding of the construction of Dionysus as a hero, an analysis is needed on the social and cultural context in which Nono composes his poem, as well as the poet\'s relationship with Homer, the Greek main epic poet. Attached are the chants XXXIX and XL of Dionysiaca in original greek and the translation made by me.

Esta pesquisa pretende discutir a forma com que Dioniso foi transformado em herói épico nas Dionisíacas de Nono de Panópolis, uma epopeia em quarenta e oito cantos sobre o ciclo de Dioniso, desde a fundação de Tebas e o estabelecimento de seus antepassados à apoteose olímpica do deus. A análise será baseada nas características de Dioniso no campo de batalha e em oposição aos três principais adversários no poema, Licurgo, Deríades e Penteu. Para uma melhor compreensão da construção de Dioniso como herói, é necessária uma análise sobre o contexto social e cultural em que Nono compõe sua obra, assim como a relação do poeta com Homero, o principal poeta épico grego. Em anexo encontram-se os cantos XXXIX e XL das Dionisíacas em original grego e na tradução feita por mim. / This research intend to discuss the way Dionysus was transformed into epic hero in Nonnus Dionysiaca, an epic in forty-eight chants concerning the Dionysian Cycle, from the foundation of Thebes and the establishment of their ancestors to the Olympic apotheosis of the god. The analysis will be based on Dionysos features on the battlefield in opposition to the three main opponents in the poem, Lycurgus, Deríades and Pentheus. For a better understanding of the construction of Dionysus as a hero, an analysis is needed on the social and cultural context in which Nono composes his poem, as well as the poet\'s relationship with Homer, the Greek main epic poet. Attached are the chants XXXIX and XL of Dionysiaca in original greek and the translation made by me.

Dans ce travail, nous proposons une étude de la poétique des Dionysiaques de Nonnos de Panopolis qui tient compte des critères esthétiques en vigueur dans l’Antiquité tardive. Pour cela, nous prenons pour point de départ les images du monstre et de la mosaïque, parce qu’elles cristallisent le goût de l’époque pour la fragmentation et l’accumulation. Ces deux caractéristiques se retrouvent à la fois dans le jeweled style (M. Roberts) et la spatial form (J. Frank), deux concepts développés à partir d’une comparaison avec les arts visuels et destinés à expliquer des esthétiques non classiques comme celle de Nonnos. Nous menons d’abord une étude de la temporalité du récit pour montrer que la picturalité est au centre de son art : non seulement le poète disloque la séquence temporelle, mais surtout il donne la primauté au mode descriptif. Tout son récit est fragmenté en une série de miniatures, comme celles que l’on trouve sur les mosaïques. L’épopée nonnienne exige donc le même type de lecture, à savoir la lecture thématique. Nous explorons ensuite ce deuxième aspect en étudiant les références internes qui dessinent une véritable architecture paradigmatique à l’intérieur de l’œuvre : les épisodes en écho se réécrivent les uns les autres selon une poétique de la métamorphose. Enfin, nous nous intéressons au caractère composite et cumulatif des Dionysiaques en le mettant en parallèle avec la pratique du remploi en architecture et en art : Nonnos conçoit son récit comme un empilement de blocs parmi lesquels il peut intégrer des fragments des œuvres de ses prédécesseurs, valorisant ainsi une hétérogénéité irréductible. / This thesis aims at studying the poetics of Nonnus’ Dionysiaca according to the principles of late antique aesthetic. As a starting point, we consider the images of the monster and the mosaics because they illustrate the then current tendencies towards fragmentation and accumulation. These two characteristics are part of both jeweled style (M. Roberts) and spatial form (J. Frank), which were based on a comparison with visual arts and designed to explain non classical aesthetics such as Nonnus’. First of all, we study the temporal organization of the narrative and show that picturality lies at the core of his art : Nonnus not only dislocates the narrative sequence, but he also gives the primacy to the descriptive mode. The whole narrative is fragmented into a series of miniatures just like a mosaic. Therefore Nonnus’ epic calls for the same kind of reading, i.e. the thematic reading. We then turn to an analysis of the internal references which are the key to a paradigmatic architecture inside the poem : echoing episodes are rewritten according to the poetics of metamorphosis. Lastly, we are concerned with the composite and cumulative aspect of the Dionysiaca, which can be paralleled with the use of spolia in architecture and art : Nonnus conceives of his narrative as a stacking of blocks among which he can insert fragments of former works — a way to advertise an irreducible heterogeneity.

This thesis is a narratological study of Nonnus of Panopolis' Dionysiaca, focussing on the figure of the narrator whose interventions reveal much about his relationship to his predecessors and his own conception of story-telling. Although he presents himself as a follower of Homer, whom he mentions by name in his poem, the Dionysiaca are clearly influenced by a much wider range of sources of inspiration. The study of narratological interventions brings to light the narrator's relationship with Homer, between imitation and innovation. The way he renews and transforms epic narratorial devices attests to his literary skills as he strives for ποικιλία in his poem. His interventions hint at sources of inspiration other than Homer, such as lyric poetry, historiography, and didactic epic. Another innovation is the way the narrator intervenes not to draw the narratee's attention to the contents of his text, but to underline his own role as story-teller. Some interventions signal a change in tone or the integration of another genre; the expected proems and invocations to the Muse become spaces for a display of ingeniousness, a discussion of the sources and a reflection on the role of the poet. The efforts made by the Nonnian narrator to renew well known devices also denotes his mindfulness of his narratee, whom he involves in the story through metaleptic devices, or by drawing on a shared cultural background to enhance the narrative with allusions to extradiegetic references. The study of narratorial interventions proves that the Dionysiaca were not written only in an attempt to recreate a Homeric epic, but are a compendium of influences, genres, and myths, encompassing the influence of a thousand years of Greek literature.