Sing, muse…: the introit from Homer to Apollonius

Abstract

This paper attempts to reconstruct the development, from Homer to Hellenistic times, of the prayer for inspiration found at the beginning of Greek epic poems; we may, on a liturgical analogy, call this the 'introit' (I intend to reserve the word 'proem', which is usually applied to these texts, for the hymns that prefaced poetic performances). I have divided the present study into two parts. The conclusion of this first section is that the introits of written epics composed prior to the classical period largely conserved the prayer's traditional format and its complex amalgam of functions, both of which went back to the era of pre-literate extempore bardic performance, perhaps deep into pre-Hellenic history. The second part will consider the effects of the philosophical and literary innovations of the classical and Hellenistic periods, as well as examining the distinct species of proems. Bardic ideology Introits appear to have originated as the pre-performance prayers of bards, and we may begin by examining the ideology of bardship constructed in our earliest texts. Later ancient writers and modern scholars often downplay the importance attributed to inspiration in bardic recitation, claiming that bards were regarded as being at least partners of the Muses. 2 Havelock, for instance, described the Muse as merely 'the symbol of the bard's command of professional secrets'; 3 and Νο τα may be derived from an Indo-European root denoting mental activity. 4 Homer, however, consistently asserts the supernatural character of bardic recitation. Bards owe their bardship to the gods (

The Baptized Muse

“…4 Wheeler (2002) traces the introits invoking the Muses in pre-classical epics like Hesiod, Theog. 105-15; Homer, Od.…”

Invocations of the Muse in Homer and Hesiod: A Cognitive Approach

“… 27 There has been a significant shift in the theories of Homeric (and Hesiodic) poetics from the poet-as-a-passive-mouthpiece view (espoused by Falter [1934] 3-4; Otto [1955] 31; Lenz [1980] 200; mostly based on ancient theories of poetics formulated by Democritus and Plato) to a more ‘collaborative’ enterprise between the Muse and the poet (see Marg [1957] 8; Pedrick [1992]; Podbielski [1994] 176; De Jong [2006] 191; Murray [2008] 207; Halliwell [2011] 55-77). The applicability of Democritus’ and Plato’s theory of poetics to ‘Homer’ or Hesiod has been met with serious criticism, among others by Tigerstedt (1970); Verdenius (1983) 38; Murray (1981) 87; Wheeler (2002) 34.…”

Ficción de performance original en el exordio de ARGONÁUTICAS de apolonio de rodas

“…7 Se trata de una característica clave de este exordio, señalada por numerosos estudios. Entre ellos, podemos mencionar:Goldhill (1991: 286-294),Clauss (1993: 14-25),Hunter (1993: 124-25), DeForest (1994: 37-46),Albis (1996: 17-26), González(2000);Clare (2002: 20-32),Wheeler (2000),Cuypers (2004: 43-46),Morrison (2007: 286-293).8 Este es uno de los puntos más importantes en el abordaje metodológico de, que posiciona el enriquecimiento genérico contra el concepto de Kreuzung der Gattungen deKroll (1924), ya que para él la presencia de un género en otro no lleva ni a un cambio de identidad genérica ni a la creación de un híbrido. Por el contrario, la verdadera existencia de este fenómeno literario requiere que los límites y las identidades separadas de los géneros se mantengan.…”