Ljubav i nasilje u Alkifronovim Pismima

• Published in: Sic 2017-06, Vol.7 (2.7)
• Main Author: Hajdarević, Sabira
• Format: Article
• Language: hrv ; eng
• Subjects: Alciphron; erotic expressions; erotica; Greek fictional epistolography; love; violence
• ISSN: 1847-7755; 1847-7755
• DOI: 10.15291/sic/2.7.lc.5

Alciphron's Letters (2nd or 3rd century AD) belong to Greek fictional epistolography, a subgenre whose literary conventions forbid direct portrayals of nudity or physical contacts. However, once the author chose erotica as a prevalent theme for his letters, he found himself entrapped; he had the obligation to obey the “chastity” of the literary subgenre and avoid any drifts into pornography and impropriety, but, at the same time, he was expected to satisfy his readers' curiosity and tantalize their imagination with shy innuendos. Consequently, he had to make sure that his stylistic devices used for erotic allusions (metaphors, metonymies, euphemisms etc.) were as vivid and various in origin as possible. Those erotic expressions are at the focus of this paper. In accordance with the given theme, the ones that contain the idea of violence, conflict, and warfare or its consequences are scrutinized. Once the erotic expressions of this kind are detected, they will be placed into a wider context. Their importance (both quantitative and qualitative) and their meanings achieved in the “domicile” letters will be determined. Furthermore, the examples will be compared with similar ones from Philostratus' and Aristaenetus' letter-collections. The final goal of the paper is to define the comprehensive role of “violent” erotic expressions in the literary subgenre as a whole.