
The Manipulation of Poetry in the Prose of the Second Sophistic
Orestis Karavas(Author)
Routledge (Publisher)
1st Edition
Will be published approx. on 10. July 2026
Book
Hardback
78 pages
978-1-032-88460-8 (ISBN)
Description
This book uncovers a sophisticated rhetorical game in Second Sophistic prose in the Roman Empire, in which authors intentionally distorted poetic quotations to challenge readers, display erudition, and creatively rework the Greek literary past.
It provides readers with a new interpretive framework for understanding the use and manipulation of quotations from classical poets, including Homer, Hesiod, and Pindar, among others, by Greek authors writing under Rome. Through close philological analysis, systematic classification of examples, and detailed case studies of authors of the Second Sophistic such as Plutarch, Lucian, Dio Chrysostom and Aelius Aristides, the book demonstrates how altered quotations functioned as sophisticated rhetorical strategies within elite paideia, offering tools applicable to the study of Imperial prose, intertextuality, and ancient literary culture more broadly.
This volume is suitable for students and scholars working on the Second Sophistic and Greek literature in the Roman Empire, as well as those interested in ancient rhetoric and classical literature more broadly.
It provides readers with a new interpretive framework for understanding the use and manipulation of quotations from classical poets, including Homer, Hesiod, and Pindar, among others, by Greek authors writing under Rome. Through close philological analysis, systematic classification of examples, and detailed case studies of authors of the Second Sophistic such as Plutarch, Lucian, Dio Chrysostom and Aelius Aristides, the book demonstrates how altered quotations functioned as sophisticated rhetorical strategies within elite paideia, offering tools applicable to the study of Imperial prose, intertextuality, and ancient literary culture more broadly.
This volume is suitable for students and scholars working on the Second Sophistic and Greek literature in the Roman Empire, as well as those interested in ancient rhetoric and classical literature more broadly.
More details
Series
Language
English
Place of publication
London
United Kingdom
Publishing group
Taylor & Francis Ltd
Target group
College/higher education
Postgraduate and Undergraduate Advanced
Dimensions
Height: 216 mm
Width: 138 mm
ISBN-13
978-1-032-88460-8 (9781032884608)
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Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions
Orestis Karavas
The Manipulation of Poetry in the Prose of the Second Sophistic
E-Book
approx. 07/2026
Routledge
€31.49
Not yet available
Orestis Karavas
The Manipulation of Poetry in the Prose of the Second Sophistic
E-Book
approx. 07/2026
Routledge
€31.49
Not yet available
Person
Orestis Karavas was born in Athens, Greece. Since 2005 he has taught at the University of the Peloponnese (Kalamata, Greece), where he is currently an Associate Professor. He has published widely on the literature of Imperial Rome and the epic poetry of Later Antiquity.
Content
Introduction; 1. Incorporated poetic verses; 2. Isolated words or syntagmas; 3. Paraphrased quotations retaining key-words of the original passage; 4. Conflation of passages; 5. Intentional alteration of the quotations; 6. A quotation continued by the author in his own or other poet's words; Conclusion.