Greek and Roman Tragedy in Flavian Epic Poetry - Exploring Intersections, Influences and Adaptations through Literature and Material Culture

Europe/Athens
Academy of Athens & A. Argyriadis (Academy of Athens & National and Kapodistrian University)

Academy of Athens & A. Argyriadis

Academy of Athens & National and Kapodistrian University

Panepistimiou 30 (Thursday/Friday), & Academy of Athens (Saturday), Athens.
Sophia Papaioannou, Angeliki Nektaria Roumpou (Academy of Athens)
Description

Greek Tragedy, with its rich themes, timeless characters, and powerful narratives, has left an indelible mark on the literary tradition. In the Flavian era epic poets such as Statius, Valerius Flaccus and Silius Italicus drew inspiration from Greek and Roman Tragedy, incorporating its themes, motifs and characters into their epic works. By closely scrutinising literary works and cultural elements, this conference aims to explore the multifaceted relationships and connections between these two literary genres, and seeks to foster a deeper understanding of the influences, adaptations, and reimaginings of ancient Greek and Roman Tragedy within the context of the Flavian period.

Scholarship has yielded a rich body of research that highlights the intricate relationship between these two genres, namely how the Flavian poets reshaped and subverted traditional mythological narratives to create new layers of meaning and commentary on their contemporary society. The recent volume on Elements of Tragedy in Flavian Epic (by Marinis/Papaioannou, 2021) has shed light on different aspects of this interaction (such as human and divine causation, the tragic motifs of anagnorisis and vengeance). Individual research has also delved into the incorporation of tragic characters and figures from Greek mythology into Flavian epic, and has analysed how these characters are reinterpreted and contextualised within the epic narratives (see bibliography below). On the other side, despite the detection of the engagement of the Roman Senecan tragedy with the Flavian epic, the findings are minor, and the subject needs further exploration in order to understand if, how and to what extent Roman tragedy works as an intermediary between Greek tragedy and Flavian epic. Additionally, the influence of the fragmentary tragedy of the Republican period on the Flavian epics is understudied and needs further investigation.

Overall, scholarship on elements of tragedy in Flavian epic poetry has already illuminated how the Flavian poets creatively engaged with Greek and Roman Tragedy to craft their own unique narratives, thereby enriching the classical literary tradition and providing valuable insights into the cultural and intellectual milieu of the Flavian era. As scholarship on Flavian epic poetry continues to evolve, several new trends and approaches have emerged, reflecting the dynamic nature of research in this field. The aim of this conference is to explore the enduring legacy of Tragedy and its resonance within the Flavian Epic tradition, in order to invigorate the field of Flavian epic, inspire new perspectives, and contribute to a deeper understanding of this literary tradition. Scholars and researchers interested in Flavian culture and poetry can help expand our knowledge of Flavian epic and its multifaceted connections to broader intellectual and cultural contexts.

 

Angeliki Nektaria Roumpou
    • 9:00 AM 9:15 AM
      Registration - Welcome Coffee & Biscuits 15m National and Kapodistrian University of Athens

      National and Kapodistrian University of Athens

      A. Argyriadis
    • 9:15 AM 9:30 AM
      Opening Ceremony 15m National and Kapodistrian University of Athens

      National and Kapodistrian University of Athens

    • 9:30 AM 11:00 AM
      NARRATIVE STRUCTURE: SPACE & TIME: PANEL 1 National and Kapodistrian University of Athens

      National and Kapodistrian University of Athens

      • 9:30 AM
        Ruth PARKES Incorporating the tragic in the epics of Statius 30m
      • 10:00 AM
        Bernhard SOLLRADL Looking back/moving forward: ‘tragic’ prologues in Statius’ Thebaid 30m
      • 10:30 AM
        Georgia FERENTINOU Senecan Poetics and Dramatic time in the Proem of Statius’ Thebaid 30m
    • 11:00 AM 11:30 AM
      BREAK 30m Academy of Athens & A. Argyriadis

      Academy of Athens & A. Argyriadis

      Academy of Athens & National and Kapodistrian University

      Panepistimiou 30 (Thursday/Friday), & Academy of Athens (Saturday), Athens.
    • 11:30 AM 1:00 PM
      ECHOES OF TRAGEDY: REIMAGINING DEATH SCENES IN FLAVIAN EPIC: PANEL 2 National and Kapodistrian University of Athens

      National and Kapodistrian University of Athens

      • 11:30 AM
        Lorenzo VESPOLI Nec fata traham natumque videbo / te sine. Tragic models in the death scene of Jason’s family (Val. Fl. 1.752–826) 30m
      • 12:00 PM
        Patrick KUNZENDORF Ending with a bang – the spectacular deaths of Statius’ Seven in light of theatre influenced reception habits in Flavian times 30m
      • 12:30 PM
        Francesca ECONIMO Tragedy in Nemea: Reading the Death of Opheltes and Maternal Grief in Statius’ Thebaid through Seneca’s Troades 30m
    • 1:00 PM 2:30 PM
      LUNCH BREAK 1h 30m Academy of Athens & A. Argyriadis

      Academy of Athens & A. Argyriadis

      Academy of Athens & National and Kapodistrian University

      Panepistimiou 30 (Thursday/Friday), & Academy of Athens (Saturday), Athens.
    • 2:30 PM 4:00 PM
      PANEL 3 - TRAGIC CHARACTER VS TRAGIC CHORUS Academy of Athens & A. Argyriadis

      Academy of Athens & A. Argyriadis

      Academy of Athens & National and Kapodistrian University

      Panepistimiou 30 (Thursday/Friday), & Academy of Athens (Saturday), Athens.
      • 2:30 PM
        Alison KEITH Tragic Intertexts (and Ovidian Interference) in Statius’ Theban Necromancy (Theb. 4.419–645) 30m
      • 3:00 PM
        Andrew ZISSOS Chorality in the Argonautica of Valerius Flaccus 30m
      • 3:30 PM
        William DOMINIK Echoes of Senecan Tragedy in Silius Italicus’ Punica 30m
    • 4:00 PM 5:00 PM
      KEYNOTE SPEAKER Federica BESSONE Oedipus on the Thebaid’s stage 1h Academy of Athens & A. Argyriadis

      Academy of Athens & A. Argyriadis

      Academy of Athens & National and Kapodistrian University

      Panepistimiou 30 (Thursday/Friday), & Academy of Athens (Saturday), Athens.
    • 9:00 AM 11:00 AM
      REPUBLICAN THEATRE AND FRAGMENTARY TRAGEDY - PANEL 1 National and Kapodistrian University of Athens

      National and Kapodistrian University of Athens

      • 9:00 AM
        Stefano BRIGUGLIO All That Remains: Statius’ Thebaid and the Tragedies of Accius 30m
      • 9:30 AM
        Kostas ARAMPAPASLIS Reading Sophocles through Accius: Two cases of Statian intertextuality 30m
      • 10:00 AM
        Diana LIBRANDI Prometheus Tragicus in Valerius Flaccus’s Argonautica 30m
      • 10:30 AM
        Esther MEIJER The Rumblings of Republican Tragedy in Flavian Epic 20m
    • 11:00 AM 11:30 AM
      BREAK 30m National and Kapodistrian University of Athens

      National and Kapodistrian University of Athens

    • 11:30 AM 1:30 PM
      PANEL 2 - MADNESS & TRAGIC PASSIONS IN FLAVIAN EPIC National and Kapodistrian University of Athens

      National and Kapodistrian University of Athens

      • 11:30 AM
        Ray MARKS Hannibal and the Furies in Silius Italicus’ Punica 30m
      • 12:00 PM
        Elaine SANDERSON Missing Madness? Hercules and Hercules Furens in Valerius Flaccus’ Argonautica 30m
      • 12:30 PM
        Francesco CANNIZZARO A “Senecan dyad” in Silius: echoes of Thyestes and Hercules Furens in Punica 1-2 30m
      • 1:00 PM
        Neil BERNSTEIN Tragic passion and restraint in Silius Italicus’ Punica 30m
    • 1:30 PM 2:30 PM
      LUNCH BREAK 1h National and Kapodistrian University of Athens

      National and Kapodistrian University of Athens

    • 2:30 PM 4:00 PM
      PANEL 3 - TYRANNY, SILENCE & POETIC SUPPRESSION A. Argyriadis (EKPA)

      A. Argyriadis

      EKPA

      • 2:30 PM
        Helen LOVATT (Don’t) Eat the Rich: Disnarration, Power and Consumption in Seneca, Lucan and Statius 30m
      • 3:00 PM
        Alexis WHALEN-MUSE Quid Pandioniae restant? Tereus, Procne, and Philomela in Statius’ Thebaid” 30m
      • 3:30 PM
        Lorenzo COLLE A Problematic Replacement: Hercules as Alter Iuppiter in (Pseudo)Senecan Hercules Oetaeus 30m
    • 4:00 PM 4:30 PM
      BREAK 30m Academy of Athens & A. Argyriadis

      Academy of Athens & A. Argyriadis

      Academy of Athens & National and Kapodistrian University

      Panepistimiou 30 (Thursday/Friday), & Academy of Athens (Saturday), Athens.
    • 4:30 PM 6:30 PM
      TRAGIC CHARACTERS & (ANTI)- HEROES - PANEL 4 National and Kapodistrian University of Athens

      National and Kapodistrian University of Athens

      • 4:30 PM
        Marco FUCECCHI The hero’s (disputed) legacy: armorum iudicium and its transformation in Flavian epic poetry 30m
      • 5:00 PM
        Ana LÓIO Tragic Viriathus? Silius’ Narrative of the Lusitanian War between Tragedy and Historiography 30m
      • 5:30 PM
        Clara NUSSLEIN Didactic Tragedy. Tragic Figures in Silius Italicus’ Punica as Warning exempla for Domitian 30m
      • 6:00 PM
        Dalida AGRI Echoes of Tragedy in the Punica: The Battles of Lake Trasimene and Cannae. 30m
    • 9:00 AM 10:00 AM
      KEYNOTE SPEAKER: KEYNOTE SPEAKER Antony AUGOUSTAKIS Ceu nova tunc clades: Statius’ Hypsipyle and Greek Tragedy (Keynote) Academy of Athens

      Academy of Athens

    • 10:00 AM 11:00 AM
      POLITICAL IMPLICATIONS - PANEL 1 Academy of Athens

      Academy of Athens

      • 10:00 AM
        Claire STOCKS Domitian’s Tragic Farce: Staging theatre in Flavian Rome 30m
      • 10:30 AM
        Madeline Marie THAYER Seneca’s Argonautic Tragedy in Statius’ Achilleid 30m
    • 11:00 AM 11:30 AM
      COFFEE BREAK 30m Academy of Athens

      Academy of Athens

    • 11:30 AM 1:00 PM
      INCEST & INTRAFAMILIAL RELATIONSHIPS - PANEL 2 Academy of Athens

      Academy of Athens

      • 11:30 AM
        Cecilia CRIADO Statius and the Tragic Rhetoric of Incest 30m
      • 12:00 PM
        Alice HU Curious alchemy: rape as foundation myth in Euripides’ Ion and Statius’s Thebaid 30m
      • 12:30 PM
        Jean-Michel HULLS Ecce iterum soror! Re-reading Statius’ Antigone 30m
    • 1:00 PM 1:30 PM
      CLOSING REMARKS Academy of Athens

      Academy of Athens