Direct speech in Nonnus' Dionysiaca
Subtitle: narrative and rhetorical functions of the characters' "varied" and "many-faceted" words
By: by Berenice Verhelst
Series: Mnemosyne -- Supplements, Late antique literature -- volume 397; Mnemosyne, bibliotheca classica Batava; Mnemosyne, bibliotheca classica Batava -- 397.
Publisher: Brill
Published: 2016
Place of publication: Leiden; Boston
Language: eng
Number of pages: 330
ISBN-13: 9789004325890; 9789004334656
Subjects: Direct discourse in literature; Ancient Rhetoric; Dionysiaca (Nonnus, of Panopolis)
Description: Direct Speech in Nonnus' 'Dionysiaca'' is the first more extensive study of the use and functions of direct speech in Nonnus' 'Dionysiaca' (5th century AD). Its long soliloquies and scarcity of dialogues have often been pointed out as striking characteristics of Nonnus' epic style, but nonetheless this fascinating subject received relatively little attention. Berenice Verhelst aims to reveal the poem's constant interplay between the epic tradition and the late antique literary context with its clear rhetorical stamp. She focusses on the changed functions of direct speech and their implications for the presentation of the mythological story. Organized around six case studies, this book presents an in-depth analysis of a representative part of the vast corpus of the 'Dionysiaca's' 305 speeches.
Notes: Thesis (doctoral) - Universiteit, Gent, 2014.

Includes bibliographical references (pages 308-325) and index.