Late Literature in the Sixth Century, East and West

The International Society for Late Antique Literary Studies was cofounded by David Bright (Emory University), Scott McGill (Rice University), and Joseph Pucci (Brown University) in 2012, after a pair of conferences hosted at Rice University and Brown University in 2011. The organisers intend a broad definition of literature — Christian as well as secular, high as well as low — and envision the sharing of work on literary studies, East and West. This was the first of a series of biennial or annual conferences. The conference limited its focus to the rich body of literature surviving from the sixth century. The organisers encouraged contributions focused on the Greek east, or on the connections between eastern and western literature. This brought together classicists, Latinists, and medievalists in fruitful debate and conversation. The fifteen papers presented over the course of two days were given in the Annmary Brown Memorial (www.library.brown.edu/about/amb/). In what follows, I will summarize each paper and the conversation it provoked, concluding with a general summary of particular themes drawn out by presenters

High and Low Literature in Late Antiquity

The second annual meeting of the International Society for Late Antique Literary Studies gathered scholars from a wide variety of backgrounds and places for a stimulating two days of papers and friendly discussion. Organisers Scott McGill, David Bright, and Joseph Pucci sought papers which examined how the categories of ‘high’ and ‘low’ literature were used, considered, or made problematic by late antique authors. Participants were also encouraged to address the ways in these categories of ‘high’ and ‘low’ have framed the reception of late antique literature. In what follows I will briefly summarise each paper and the subsequent discussion. I conclude with a review of common themes and points of interest

Friendship in the Works of Venantius Fortunatus

This thesis investigates the reception and transformation of Roman ideas of friendship in the Merovingian kingdoms of sixth-century Gaul. The barbarian invasions of Late Antiquity were once seen as the cause of a cataclysmic rupture in Roman culture but I argue that Merovingian elites drew widely from Classical traditions of friendship in their culture and social organisation. Using the poems, letters, and saints’ lives of Venantius Fortunatus (c. 530/540-609?), an Italian-born aristocrat who made his career writing for and about members of Gaul’s elite, I show that the Classical relationship of patronage was subsumed into friendship. Fortunatus has more often been relegated to scholarly footnotes than studied in his own right, but when his works are taken seriously as sources for the mentality of his age our picture of Merovingian society and its debt to Classical culture comes into sharper focus. Fortunatus expressed the relationship between himself and his addressees in terms of parity and equality, as well as dependence and deference, which changes how we understand the structure of the early medieval elite: alongside the patronal language of vertical hierarchy, these linguistic friendships facilitated the creation of horizontal networks through ties of mutual benefit, obligation, and affection. I argue that elite men and women used the hyper-literate conventions of epistolary culture to organise themselves into networks. Such networks were made and maintained to help their members navigate a post-imperial world which remained culturally Roman. The major contribution of my thesis is thus to provide a model for using letters and poems, literary sources medieval historians rarely exploit in full, to chart the social and cultural transition between the later Roman world and the early Middle Ages

Critical reflections and collaborative approaches to the University of Lincoln’s decolonising projects: A library perspective

Decolonisation is high on the agenda in many universities and library staff are increasingly contributors to the discussions of how these issues affect our collections and our work with students. In this article, University of Lincoln (UoL) Academic Subject Librarians Oonagh Monaghan and Hope Williard outline their backgrounds and interest in initiatives to decolonise the curriculum and equality, diversity and inclusion (EDI) from an intersectional perspective. They reflect on how the lessons of library and heritage conferences and events held between 2019 and 2021 influenced their planning and practice at UoL. Potential approaches to decolonisation and EDI within the library setting and plans for future collaborative projects are presented and shared

Friendship and Diplomacy in the Histories of Gregory of Tours

Book Description by the Editors (Stefan Esders, Yitzhak Hen, Pia Lucas, Tamar Rotman): The book explores the place of the Merovingian kingdoms in Gaul within a broader Mediterranean context. Their politics and culture have mostly been interpreted in terms of a local phenomenon, but as this book shows, the Merovingian kingdoms had complicated and multi-layered political, religious, and socio-cultural relations with their Mediterranean counterparts, from Visigothic Spain in the West to the Byzantine Empire in the East. The papers provide new insights into the history of the Merovingian kingdoms in their late-antique and early-medieval Mediterranean context, examining subjects from the formation of identity to the shape and rules of diplomatic relations, social, legal, and religious aspects that reflect cultural transfer, as well as voiced attitudes towards the other. The perspectives of the individual sources and their contextualization are at the centre of this analysis, and each paper thus begins with a short excerpt from a relevant source text, which then serves as a jumping board to the discussion of broader issues. This innovative structuring principle ensures discussions are accessible to students and non-specialists, without jeopardizing the high standard of academic debate and diligent historical analysi

Venantius Fortunatus: Poems. Dumbarton Oaks medieval library, 46

Michael Roberts, Venantius Fortunatus: Poems. Dumbarton Oaks medieval library, 46. Cambridge, MA; London: Harvard University Press, 2017. xx, 910. ISBN 9780674974920 $29.95

V. Alice Tyrrell, Merovingian Letters and Letter Writers

V. Alice Tyrrell, Merovingian Letters and Letter Writers. (Publications of the Journal of Medieval Latin 12.) Turnhout: Brepols, 2019. Paper. Pp. xxxi, 386; 2 figures and 1 table. €90. ISBN: 978-2-5035-8358-7

Late Antique Letter Collections: A Critical Introduction and Reference Guide

Cristiana Sogno, Bradley K. Storin, Edward J. Watts, Late Antique letter collections: A critical introduction and reference guide. Oakland: University of California Press, 2017. 488 p.. ISBN 9780520308411 $65.00

How Hope Williard Does History

Hope Williard is a medieval historian and an academic subject librarian at the University of Lincoln. Here’s how she does history

L’empreinte chrétienne en Gaule du IVe au IXe siècle. Edited by Michèle Gaillard. Turnhout: Brepols. 2014. 551 pp. ISBN 9782503550442.

Review of L’empreinte chrétienne en Gaule du IVe au IXe siècle. Edited by Michèle Gaillard