E-Book Overview
This volume investigates various exegetical possibilities in Christian Latin poetry during Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages. In the Latin West poetry was mainly associated with the powerful pagan tradition of writers like Vergil and Ovid, and by many poetry was considered to tell lies and provide mere entertainment potentially corrupting the soul. Therefore, Christians initially had reservations about this genre and believed it to be incompatible with Christian worship, literacy and intellectual activity. In practice, however, forms of specifically Christian poetry developed from the end of the third century onwards; theoretical reconciliations were developed around 400 A.D. This collection examines specimens of Christian poetry from "Juvencus" (the first biblical epicist shortly after 300) up to the thirteenth century. Its particular usefulness lies in the combination of literary theory and hermeneutics, close readings of the texts and new readings on a sound philological basis.
E-Book Content
Poetry and Exegesis in Premodern Latin Christianity
Supplements to
Vigiliae Christianae Formerly Philosopia Patrum Texts and Studies of Early Christian Life and Language
Editors
j. den boeft – j. van oort – w.l. petersen † d.t. runia – c. scholten – j.c.m. van winden
VOLUME 87
Poetry and Exegesis in Premodern Latin Christianity The Encounter between Classical and Christian Strategies of Interpretation
Edited by
Willemien Otten & Karla Pollmann
LEIDEN • BOSTON 2007
This book is printed on acid-free paper. A C.I.P. record for this book is available from the Library of Congress
ISSN: 0920-623X ISBN: 978 90 04 16069 9 Copyright 2007 by Koninklijke Brill NV, Leiden, The Netherlands. Koninklijke Brill NV incorporates the imprints Brill, Hotei Publishing, IDC Publishers, Martinus Nijhoff Publishers and VSP. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, translated, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without prior written permission from the publisher. Authorization to photocopy items for internal or personal use is granted by Koninklijke Brill NV provided that the appropriate fees are paid directly to The Copyright Clearance Center, 222 Rosewood Drive, Suite 910, Danvers, MA 01923, USA. Fees are subject to change. printed in the netherlands
CONTENTS
Notes on Contributors. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . vii Acknowledgements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xiii Introduction. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
1
i. theory Augustine and Poetic Exegesis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11 H.J. Westra Quid facit cum Horatio Hieronymus? Christian Latin Poetry and Scriptural Poetics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29 M. Vessey Time and the Integrity of Poetry: Ambrose and Augustine . . . . . . . . . 49 M.B. Pranger
ii. individual authors and works The Evangeliorum Libri of Juvencus: Exegesis by Stealth? . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65 R.P.H. Green Cantatur ad delectationem: Ambrose’s Lyric Poetry . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81 J. den Boeft Technological Innovation and Poetical Exegesis: The Glass Lamp in Prudentius’ Cathemerinon 5. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 99 J. Clarke The Carmen ad uxorem and the Genre of the Epithalamium . . . . . . . . . . 115 R. Chiappiniello Principles of Structure and Unity