Dirty Love : The Genealogy of the Greek Novel

Description

Where does the Greek novel come from? This book argues that whereas much of Greek literature was committed to a form of cultural purism, presenting itself as part of a continuous tradition reaching back to Homer, the novel revelled in its hybridisation with Persian, Egyptian and Jewish culture. Prelude -- First movement: Hellenism and hybridity -- Dirty love -- A history of the novel -- What is a novel? -- Epic and novel -- Sourcing Callirhoe -- Second movement: Persians -- The romance of Zarinaea and Stryangaeus -- Who was Ctesias? -- Persian love stories -- Media studies -- Cyrus' sex life -- Third movement: Jews -- Return to Joseph -- The Jewish novel -- Joseph in love -- Fourth movement: Egyptians -- The long Hellenistic -- Alexander in kohl -- Whose paradigm? -- Fifth movement: how Greek is the Greek romance? -- How Greek is the Greek romance? -- Romancing Semiramis -- Dirty love in late antiquity -- Conclusion: the foundation of Marseilles, some brooch-pins, and the history of the novel.