The Hylas myth, in which the eponymous boy beloved of Heracles is raped by water nymphs while drawing water from a spring, seems to have been a wildly popular subject among the literary circles of Augustan Rome. Indeed the rape of Hylas had been so ubiquitous that Virgil himself could claim that no one was unfamiliar with it (Georgics 3.6: cui non dictus Hylas puer?). Yet despite this declaration, few renditions of the Hylas myth survive. Propertius 1.20, an Augustan era Latin poem in elegiac couplets, is one extant version of the rape of Hylas. While the similarities between this poem and Theocritus Idyll 13, a short Hellenistic hexameter poem composed well before Propertius, have long been observed by modern scholars, there has been no sustained effort to connect these two accounts of the Hylas myth conclusively. Instead, what little scholarly work that has been done on these poems either appraises them in isolation, or seeks a non-Theocritean template behind Propertius 1.20. With this thesis, I aim to prove definitively that Theocritus Idyll 13 is the major model for Propertius 1.20. In my first chapter, I provide a brief overview of the rape of Hylas throughout all of Greek and Latin literature. In my second chapter, I examine Theocritus Idyll 13 with particular attention to its wit, humour, and narrative. In my third chapter, I offer a thorough literary-critical appreciation of Propertius 1.20, establishing links to Idyll 13 wherever possible. Finally, in my conclusion, I consider the possible influence of other poets and mythographers upon Propertius, before appraising 1.20 both independently and within the context of the Propertian Monobiblos. / Thesis / Master of Arts (MA) / The rape of Hylas is a minor event occurring during the famed expedition of the Argo. A handsome boy named Hylas, who is the beloved of the mighty hero Heracles, fetches water during a brief landing on their voyage to Phasis. As Hylas draws water from a spring, water nymphs abduct him. Heracles, now bereaved, rampages madly in futile search while the other Argonauts sail on without him. Such are the general details of the Hylas myth.
This thesis examines two versions of the Hylas myth, the first by Theocritus, a third century BC Hellenistic poet, and the second by Propertius, a first century BC Roman poet. My objective is to prove definitively that these two accounts are connected, with Propertius having modelled his treatment on the rendition provided by Theocritus. This will be achieved through a thorough literary-critical appreciation, with particular focus on wit, humour, and narrative.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:mcmaster.ca/oai:macsphere.mcmaster.ca:11375/18312 |
| Date | 11 1900 |
| Creators | Gyorkos, Andrew |
| Contributors | Murgatroyd, Paul, Classics |
| Source Sets | McMaster University |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis |
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