11 research outputs found
Receptions of the Odyssey in Twelfth-century Byzantium
This paper will explore the reception of Odysseusâ wanderings in twelfth-century Byzantium. Taking into account the Homeric writings of both Eustathius of Thessaloniki and John Tzetzes, I aim to demonstrate that the association between journey and knowledge was extremely productive in the context of the intellectual debates of the time. More specifically, I will show that the development of this traditional theme allowed the major Byzantine scholars to express their own standpoint on crucial matters such as the definition of philosophy, as well as to elaborate on their conception of Homer and their own activity as
Homeric exegetes
Reading between the lines of a Byzantine âparaphraseâ: (re)discovering Isaac Komnenos and the Letter of Aristeas
In a recent study on the illuminated Octateuchs, Lowden has defined this group of luxurious manuscripts as a typically âByzantine phenomenonâ. The present paper focuses on Isaac Komnenosâ paraphrase of the Letter of Aristeas, a unique feature of the Seraglio Octateuch.The few modern scholars who have dealt with it have been rather ungenerous in their assessments of Isaacâs literary enterprise. Through an analysis of the structure of the paraphrase and a systematic comparison with the Letter of Aristeas, I demonstrate that these appraisals do not do justice to Isaacâs work, in that they fail to see both the reasons for his interest in this text and the rationale inspiring his rewriting. As I argue, far from being the fruit of Isaacâs abstruse âphantasiesâ, the paraphrase opening the Seraglio Octateuch was carefully structured to fit his self-fashioning agenda, which, in turn, was deeply influenced by the sociopolitical and cultural climate of 12th-century Byzantium. In short, the Seraglio Octateuch will prove to be not just a âByzantine phenomenonâ but a typically Komnenian one
Porgere lâ(altra)... coscia: oscuri proverbi bizantini e insoliti fatti troiani
Il presente articolo prende le mosse dalla comparsa, in due raccolte epistolari bizantine, di formulazioni diverse di quello che sembra essere lo stesso detto proverbiale. La locuzione in questione figura in unâepistola di Teodoro Studita (Ep. 120 Fatouros) e in una missiva di Michele Psello (Ep. 380 Papaioannou): entrambi gli autori parlano di « offrire » o « porgere » la coscia in un contesto in cui si tratta di esporsi per una persona o una causa cui si tiene particolarmente. Gli editori moderni o non riconoscono la natura proverbiale di questâespressione o, se lo fanno, non ne indicano nĂ© il significato nĂ© le possibili origini.
Eppure, il detto citato da Psello e Teodoro Ăš ampiamente discusso dal principe bizantino Isacco Comneno Porfirogenito in un trattatello dedicato agli eventi « omessi » da Omero (De rebus ab Homero praetermissis), dove viene ricondotto ad unâinsolita versione della presa di Troia. A ben vedere, poi, questa tradizione ricompare, in epoca piĂč tarda e con alcune variazioni, nella cosiddetta Metafrasi dellâIliade di Costantino Ermoniaco. Nellâanalizzare i rapporti fra questi quattro testi afferenti ad epoche, luoghi e contesti socioculturali diversi, il presente articolo mira, in primo luogo, a chiarire il significato di unâespressione proverbiale apparentemente piuttosto diffusa ma finora passata pressochĂ© inosservata. In secondo luogo, si propone di identificare, per quanto possibile, i modelli e le fonti di una variante alquanto oscura della saga troiana. Tale indagine ci consentirĂ anche di meglio apprezzare la strategia retorica dei testi in esame, compresi quelli di Isacco Comneno e Costantino Ermoniaco, due autori ancora troppo spesso derubricati a meri â se non incompetenti â copiatori di opere altrui.This work is funded by national funds through the Fundação para a CiĂȘncia e a Tecnologia (FCT), I.P.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio
Rationale, study design, and analysis plan of the Alveolar Recruitment for ARDS Trial (ART): Study protocol for a randomized controlled trial
Background: Acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) is associated with high in-hospital mortality. Alveolar recruitment followed by ventilation at optimal titrated PEEP may reduce ventilator-induced lung injury and improve oxygenation in patients with ARDS, but the effects on mortality and other clinical outcomes remain unknown. This article reports the rationale, study design, and analysis plan of the Alveolar Recruitment for ARDS Trial (ART). Methods/Design: ART is a pragmatic, multicenter, randomized (concealed), controlled trial, which aims to determine if maximum stepwise alveolar recruitment associated with PEEP titration is able to increase 28-day survival in patients with ARDS compared to conventional treatment (ARDSNet strategy). We will enroll adult patients with ARDS of less than 72 h duration. The intervention group will receive an alveolar recruitment maneuver, with stepwise increases of PEEP achieving 45 cmH(2)O and peak pressure of 60 cmH2O, followed by ventilation with optimal PEEP titrated according to the static compliance of the respiratory system. In the control group, mechanical ventilation will follow a conventional protocol (ARDSNet). In both groups, we will use controlled volume mode with low tidal volumes (4 to 6 mL/kg of predicted body weight) and targeting plateau pressure <= 30 cmH2O. The primary outcome is 28-day survival, and the secondary outcomes are: length of ICU stay; length of hospital stay; pneumothorax requiring chest tube during first 7 days; barotrauma during first 7 days; mechanical ventilation-free days from days 1 to 28; ICU, in-hospital, and 6-month survival. ART is an event-guided trial planned to last until 520 events (deaths within 28 days) are observed. These events allow detection of a hazard ratio of 0.75, with 90% power and two-tailed type I error of 5%. All analysis will follow the intention-to-treat principle. Discussion: If the ART strategy with maximum recruitment and PEEP titration improves 28-day survival, this will represent a notable advance to the care of ARDS patients. Conversely, if the ART strategy is similar or inferior to the current evidence-based strategy (ARDSNet), this should also change current practice as many institutions routinely employ recruitment maneuvers and set PEEP levels according to some titration method.Hospital do Coracao (HCor) as part of the Program 'Hospitais de Excelencia a Servico do SUS (PROADI-SUS)'Brazilian Ministry of Healt
From contentious hero to bone of contention: the reception of Thersites by John Tzetzes and Eustathios of Thessaloniki
In an overview of the literary reception of Thersites, Corinne Jouanno has shown that, in Byzantine times, this notoriously ugly hero was employed as a negative paradigm of verbal inappropriateness, shameless ignorance and moral (as well as aesthetic) ugliness. Amongst the authors quoted by Jouanno, we encounter the Byzantine scholars John Tzetzes and Eustathios of Thessaloniki, who both remark upon Thersitesâ proverbial arrogance and verbal intemperance. In this paper I suggest that the analysis of some additional texts by Tzetzes, combined with a closer comparison with Eustathios, might further enrich the picture.
Specifically, in the first section of the paper I demonstrate that Tzetzes and Eustathios took part, from opposite perspectives, in a scholarly debate involving the figure of Thersites. The second part of the paper focuses especially on Tzetzesâ treatment of Thersites. As I argue, Tzetzesâ fluctuating reception of Thersites can be traced to his ambivalent attitude towards Homeric poetry as a whole. In the last section, I suggest that Tzetzesâ fascination with Thersites may also be linked to the heroâs connection with the so-called poetry of blame, a form of literary expression that the polemic Tzetzes was particularly fond of. In this context, I analyze Tzetzesâ reception of the iambic poet Hipponax, another notorious paradigm of ugliness and outspokenness.Il convegno da cui ha tratto origine il presente volume Ăš stato finanziato dal programma di ricerca e innovazione dellĂUnione Europea "Horizon 2020" tramite una borsa Marie SkĆodowska-Curie (progetto "ASAGIP", Grant Agreement n° 708556)info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio
La ricezione di Odisseo e di Omero presso Giovanni Tzetze e Eustazio di Tessalonica
Ce travail examine la réception du personnage d'Ulysse chez les principaux érudits byzantins du XIIe siÚcle, Jean TzetzÚs et Eustathe de Thessalonique. L'analyse de la fortune littéraire du héros de VOdyssée est en effet un sujet trÚs riche, qui permet non seulement d'approfondir la réception d'HomÚre à Byzance, mais aussi de jeter un regard sur la culture et la société de l'époque des ComnÚnes.
MĂȘme Ă une Ă©poque oĂč HomĂšre reprĂ©sentait un Ă©lĂ©ment fondamental du cursus scolaire et de l'Ă©ducation de l'Ă©lite, ses poĂšmes pouvaient ĂȘtre perçus et interprĂ©tĂ©s de maniĂšre trĂšs variĂ©e selon les auteurs. Si, chez Eustathe, Ulysse et ses mensonges vraisemblables reprĂ©sentent la dĂ©finition mĂȘme de l'admirable art homĂ©rique et de ses mythes plausibles, selon TzetzĂšs la prĂ©dilection d'HomĂšre pour le fils de LaĂ«rte dĂ©montre la mauvaise foi du poĂšte, qui consacre une Ćuvre entiĂšre aux louanges d'un personnage inutile, traĂźtre et mensonger.
-, De plus, si HomĂšre se reflĂšte dans l'image d'Ulysse et vice versa, de la mĂȘme maniĂšre l'exĂ©gĂšte, qui avec HomĂšre dialogue et rivalise, peut Ă son tour se prĂ©senter comme un nouvel Ulysse ou comme son pire ennemi. Dans les Parekbolai d'Eustathe, en effet, le hĂ©ros ne reprĂ©sente plus seulement l'alter ego du poĂšte, mais il finit par devenir le symbole de l'exĂ©gĂšte. Au contraire, TzetzĂšs se prĂ©sente comme l'incarnation du vrai protagoniste de la guerre de Troie, c'est-Ă -dire PalamĂšde, le hĂ©ros savant qui aurait Ă©tĂ© tuĂ© par Ulysse et entiĂšrement nĂ©gligĂ© par HomĂšre.
Cette tendance Ă s'identifier aux personnages de la lĂ©gende troyenne, ainsi que l'intĂ©rĂȘt que les deux Ă©rudits portent Ă l'a figure d'Ulysse, dĂ©montrent que, dans la Byzance des ComnĂšnes, la rĂ©flexion sur les -poĂšmes homĂ©riques ne concernait pas une tradition littĂ©raire perçue comme appartenant Ă un passĂ© lointain et i n acce s s ible .Ton Lcomm e ses hĂ©ros, HomĂšre Ă©tait profondĂ©ment enracinĂ© dans le prĂ©sent ; ainsi, la diffĂ©rente rĂ©ception dĂ© ses Ćuvres Ă©tait strictement liĂ©e Ă la maniĂšre dont chaque Ă©rudit concevait son propre rĂŽle en tant qu'exĂ©gĂšte, intellectuel et rhĂ©teur.
En effet, dans les Parekbolai d'Eustathe, Ulysse ne représente pas seulement l'alter ego du poÚte, mais devient au fur et à mesure le symbole d'une nouvelle éloquence et d'un différent modÚle de rhéteur qui était en train de s'affirmer dans les milieux littéraires de la capitale. En justifiant les mensonges vraisemblables d'Ulysse et d'HomÚre, Eustathe semble promouvoir une nouvelle sensibilité littéraire, qui visait de plus en plus à l'amusement du public grùce au charme engendré par le recours au mythe et à la fiction.
Chez TzetzĂšs, par contre, les mensonges d'Ulysse reprĂ©sentent l'hypocrisie des intellectuels malhonnĂȘtes et incompĂ©tents. TzetzĂšs, nouveau PalamĂšde, s'engage Ă combattre les mensonges de ces faux savants, qui, tout comme Ulysse, obtiennent une gloire immĂ©ritĂ©e au dĂ©triment des vrais sophoi. Dans ce cadre, HomĂšre, qui est le principal responsable du succĂšs d'Ulysse, symbolise un modĂšle de rhĂ©teur dont TzetzĂšs admire le talent mais critique la mauvaise foi ; en particulier, l'Ă©rudit reproche au grand poĂšte son goĂ»t pour une virtuositĂ© qui vise Ă la beautĂ© de la forme en nĂ©gligeant la vĂ©ritĂ© des contenus.
Ă la mĂȘme Ă©poque et dans le mĂȘme environnement culturel, HomĂšre et son alter ego Ulysse peuvent donc devenir le symbole de deux diffĂ©rentes conceptions de la littĂ©rature, de la rhĂ©torique et du rĂŽle de l'intellectuel. Si Eustathe semble promouvoir un modĂšle d'orateur et d'Ă©crivain plus proche des goĂ»ts littĂ©raires de l'Ă©poque, TzetzĂšs, tout en innovant dans d'autres domaines, propose un modĂšle depaideia plus traditionnelle, oĂč le plaisir esthĂ©tique ne doit jamais triompher sur la crĂ©dibilitĂ© des contenus. Toutefois, ce cadre nĂ©cessairement schĂ©matique ne rĂ©sume pas les subtiles nuances qui caractĂ©risent l'image d'HomĂšre et d'Ulysse chez les deux Ă©rudits byzantins. MalgrĂ© son mĂ©pris, TzetzĂšs ne peut s'empĂȘcher d'admirer les indĂ©niables qualitĂ©s du rhĂ©teur HomĂšre, qui, tout en louant un personnage infĂąme comme Ulysse, le fait avec style et Ă©lĂ©gance. De l'autre cĂŽtĂ©, tout en prĂ©sentant Ulysse et HomĂšre comme les rhĂ©teurs idĂ©aux, Eustathe n'arrive pas Ă cacher sa perplexitĂ© face Ă leur goĂ»t pour le mythe et la fiction, qui peut devenir dangereux pour l'auditeur inexpĂ©rimentĂ©. L'image d'HomĂšre-SirĂšne qui ouvre les Parekbolai Ă l'Iliade semble vouloir prĂ©venir le futur lecteur des poĂšmes : le charme de la voix poĂ©tique est indĂ©niable, mais il ne faut jamais oublier que, aprĂšs avoir Ă©coutĂ© le chant harmonieux des SirĂšnes, Ulysse-exĂ©gĂšte dut en payer le prix
Odysseus the schedographer
In his Parekbolai on the Odyssey, the twelfth-century polymath Eustathios of Thessalonike often uses the figure of Odysseus as a starting point to meditate upon crucial themes such as the role of poetry, the duties of the exegete and the qualities of the ideal rhetor. The first part of this chapter focuses on one such passage, where Eustathios analyses the famous âlinguistic stratagemâ concocted by Odysseus to fool Polyphemus. The sophistic subtlety of Odysseusâ plan leads Eustathios to insert a long excursus on schedography, a rhetorical exercise that was increasingly popular in Komnenian Byzantium. As I argue, in Eustathiosâ eyes, the Homeric text is nothing more than a sort of schedographic display ante litteram. More interestingly still, this interpretation provides Eustathios with an ideal pretext for a lesson on rhetorical âgood tasteâ. The second part of the chapter examines an extract from John Tzetzesâ Histories in which Odysseus and his adventures again feature as a starting point for reflecting upon contemporary schedography. In this section, I show that, despite some similarities with Eustathiosâ ideas, Tzetzes takes a more dogmatic position. As a matter of fact, Tzetzesâ careful depiction of Odysseus might even be interpreted as a subtle criticism of Eustathiosâ standpoint.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio
Too Homeric to be true: John Tzetzesâ reception of Quintus of Smyrna and the importance of plausibility (pithanoteÌs)
Quintus of Smyrna features quite prominently in the so-called Carmina Iliaca, a short hexametric poem penned by the Byzantine polymath John Tzetzes with the aim to provide a complete account of the Trojan war. Tzetzesâ engagement with the Posthomerica does not simply stem from his interest in the Trojan saga, but seems to be closely connected both to his authorial practices and to the principles informing his literary criticism. Tzetzes finds fault especially with the ambitious scope of the Posthomerica, including Quintusâ attempt to pose himself as a new Homer. In Tzetzesâ eyes, far from being a match for the Poet, Quintus managed to appropriate only the most censorable aspects of the Homeric epics, composing an implausible and verbose account of the Trojan war. In his Carmina Iliaca, Tzetzes sets out to unmask the preposterousness of Quintusâ endeavor, while also setting an alternative (and superior) model of rhetorical and literary composition: his own.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio
Isaac Komnenosâ poem to the Virgin: the literary self-portrait of a byzantine prince
This article provides a new edition, commentary and English translation of Isaacâs âpoem to the Virginâ, suggesting a new dating for its composition (which I connect to the foundation of his Kosmosoteira monastery in Thrace).Ouranis Foundation, Athensinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio
From Cato to Plato and back again. Friendship and patronage in John Tzetzesâ Letters and Chiliads
In many passages of his works, John Tzetzes likens himself to different figures from the Greek and Roman past in order to emphasise relevant features of his authorial persona. This strategy has been the subject of recent studies, which underscore the self-advertising agenda underlying Tzetzesâ constant reference to â and identification with â Greek and Roman models. Drawing on and going beyond this strand of literature, this paper pursues two main goals. First, it aims to situate Tzetzesâ references to these figures from the past within the broader sociocultural dynamics informing his self-fashioning strategy. To this end, it will focus on passages of his works dealing with friendship and patronage, two social practices that were crucial to any Byzantine writer. Second, the paper seeks to show that Tzetzes uses these figures to reflect upon his condition as a commissioned writer, skilfully employing them to create an authorial narrative that both spells out and plays with the constraints and contradictions stemming from his professional status.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio