Essays on the Greek Romances

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  ESSAYS ON THE GREEK ROMANCES

  BY ELIZABETH HAZELTON HAIGHT _Professor Emeritus of Latin, Vassar College_

  _NEW YORK_ LONGMANS, GREEN AND CO. M D CCCC XLIII

  HAIGHT ESSAYS ON THE GREEK ROMANCES

  COPYRIGHT . 1943 BY LONGMANS, GREEN AND CO., INC.

  ALL RIGHTS RESERVED, INCLUDING THE RIGHT TO REPRODUCE THIS BOOK, OR ANY PORTION THEREOF, IN ANY FORM

  PUBLISHED SIMULTANEOUSLY IN THE DOMINION OF CANADA BY LONGMANS, GREEN AND CO., TORONTO

  FIRST EDITION

  PRINTED IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

  _To_ BLANCHE FERRY HOOKER IN HONOR AND FRIENDSHIP

  The Publication of this book was made possible by the J. LEVERETT MOORE RESEARCH FUND IN CLASSICS and the LUCY MAYNARD SALMON FUND FOR RESEARCH established at Vassar College in 1926

  _PREFACE_

  If all the world loves a lover, as the old proverb says, then this mybook should win wide fame. For these Greek Romances of the first to thefourth century of our era seem still to be singing the immemorialrefrain from the old spring-time song of "The Vigil of Venus":

  Cras amet qui numquam amavit, quique amavit cras amet.

  "Let those love now, who never lov'd before; Let those who always lov'd, now love the more."

  At a time when fiction is the most popular form of literature, thesewonderful old Greek stories of love, adventure and worship are halfforgotten and rarely read except by the scholar. Yet here, as in epic,lyric, elegy, drama, oratory and history, the Greeks were pioneers. Inthe second and third centuries they had created four different types ofromance (of love, of adventure, the pastoral, the satiric) which were tohave great influence on French, Italian and English fiction. The studentof comparative literature, the student of the history of fiction cannotafford to neglect these pioneer Greek novels.

  Their appeal, however, should be just as great for the general reader asfor the scholar. For here are stories that mirror the life of theMediterranean world in the Roman Empire with all its new excitements oftravel, piracy, kidnapping, the new feminism, the new religious cults.And through all the different types of romance except the satiric theLove-God holds supreme sway over the hearts of men. So human, sovivacious are the love-stories that I offer to my readers Longus'assurance of profit in his introduction to his Pastoral Romance:

  "I drew up these four books, an oblation to Love and to Pan and to the Nymphs, and a delightful possession even for all men. For this will cure him that is sick, and rouse him that is in dumps; one that has loved, it will remember of it; one that has not, it will instruct. For there was never any yet that wholly could escape love, and never shall there be any, never so long as beauty shall be, never so long as eyes can see. But help me that God to write the passions of others; and while I write, keep me in my own right wits."[1]

  My hope in writing on the Greek Romances is that I may lure readers backto them. My essays aim to be guideposts pointing the way. I venture tosuggest that along with my book readers should peruse at least fournovels of different types for which good translations are available.These are _Chariton's Chaereas and Callirhoe_ by Warren E. Blake(beautiful in English and format) and three volumes of _The LoebClassical Library_: _Daphnis and Chloe by Longus_, Lucian's _TrueHistory_ (in Lucian vol. I) and the Latin novel which combines thedifferent Greek types into one great synthesis, Apuleius'_Metamorphoses_. If I can win new readers for these my favorites, mywriting will be as successful as it has been happy!

  It is a pleasure once again to express grateful thanks to publishers andauthors who have allowed me to quote material. I am indebted to theHarvard University Press for its courtesy in allowing me to quote freelyfrom volumes in _The Loeb Classical Library_; to the Clarendon Press,Oxford for the use of material from R. M. Rattenbury, "Romance: theGreek Novel," in _New Chapters in the History of Greek Literature_,_Third Series_, from F. A. Todd, _Some Ancient Novels_, from J. S.Phillimore, "Greek Romances" in _English Literature and the Classics_,and from _The Works of Lucian of Samosata_ translated by H. W. Fowlerand F. G. Fowler; to Longmans, Green and Co., for the use of a quotationfrom F. G. Allinson, _Lucian Satirist and Artist_; to the University ofMichigan Press for the use of Warren E. Blake's translation of Chariton;to the Columbia University Press for permission to quote from S. L.Wolff's _The Greek Romances in Elizabethan Prose Fiction_; and forgenerous permissions for quotations from Professor M. Rostovtzeff andProfessor B. E. Perry.

  My writing has been greatly facilitated by the cooperation of the staffof the Vassar Library, especially of Miss Fanny Borden, Librarian, whohas provided me with a study in the Library, patiently borrowed manybooks from other libraries for me and shown unfailing interest in mywork. A constant stimulus to my writing has been the appreciation of mycolleagues and students expressed in invitations to read differentchapters of this volume to the Classical Journal Club and to theClassical Society. Finally my profound gratitude is due to the donors ofthe funds which made possible the publication of these Essays.