The paintings on the Hermes tomb under San Sebastiano: a new Interpretation

2007 ◽  
Vol 53 ◽  
pp. 180-201
Author(s):  
Alastair H. B. Logan
Keyword(s):  
Present Article ◽  
Subject Matter ◽  
Second Century ◽  
Prodigal Son ◽  
New Interpretation ◽  
And Function

How early did Christians make their presence felt in the ancient cemetery under the present church of San Sebastiano in Rome? In this present article I will argue that enigmatic paintings on the attic of a second-century tomb, the tomb of Clodius Hermes, whose subject-matter and provenance is much disputed, are best interpreted as Christian and as representing three Lukan parables from chapters 14–15 (the Lost Sheep, the Great Supper and the Prodigal Son). I will suggest they were the work of a Christian slave or freedman of the household, perhaps a member of the titulus Byzantis on the Clivus Scauri, seeking to win over those coming to honour their dead relatives in the cemetery. It was such a community that was responsible for choosing the site for the joint cult of Peter and Paul in 258. My methodology will be, in the light of scholarly disagreement over the interpretation of the paintings as Christian, (a) to demonstrate the logic of the three scenes as representing linked parables, the likely identity of their author(s) and their apologetic function, with literary support from Tertullian; (b) to show the lack of obvious pagan parallels and argue for the plausibility of parables in the light of their occurrence and function elsewhere; (c) to suggest that such evidence of a Christian presence makes more comprehensible the later choice of the site for the joint cult.

„Raps“

POETICA ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 50 (3-4) ◽  
pp. 282-313
Author(s):  
Robert Stockhammer
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Present Article ◽  
Subject Matter ◽  
Literary Studies ◽  
Close Reading ◽  
Literary Traditions ◽  
Man And Nature ◽  
Cultivated Plant ◽  
Materiality Of Language

Abstract The recent controversy about the possibility of defining a new geological era called ‘Anthropocene’ has far-ranging consequences. The new notion forces us to rethink the dichotomy between the entities formerly referred to as men and nature and to conceive of their relation as an interrelation. The relevance of these considerations for literary studies is not limited to the anthropocene as a subject matter of literature, or to the possible use of literature as a means of enhancing the reader’s awareness of climate change. Rather, what is at stake is the relation of language to the new interrelation between man and nature, including the poetical and metalinguistic functions that emphasize the materiality of language. The present article explores the relation between the materiality of language and the materiality of things by way of a close reading of a single poem written by Marcel Beyer. Devoted to the cultivated plant rape, the literary traditions which this poem invokes reach beyond nature lyrics into georgic. An excursus recalls this genre of agriculture poetry and distinguishes it from pastoral, especially with regard to its use of language.

The Round Temple in the Forum Boarium

1960 ◽  
Vol 28 (1) ◽  
pp. 7-31 ◽  
Author(s):  
D. E. Strong ◽  
J. B. Ward-Perkins
Keyword(s):  
Nineteenth Century ◽  
Present Article ◽  
Architectural Design ◽  
Second Century ◽  
Early Nineteenth Century ◽  
Definitive Solution ◽  
Restoration Work ◽  
The Temple ◽  
General Opinion ◽  
Ancient Remains

The name and date of the little round temple in the Forum Boarium at Rome (popularly known as the ‘Temple of Vesta’) are long-standing problems of Roman topography. Its identification is still quite uncertain. On the chronology, however, general opinion seems to have hardened and, for reasons which are discussed below, most scholars appear now to believe that the building is Augustan, rejecting the attractive theory of Altmann and Delbrueck that it was erected some time in the later second century B.C. The present article is not concerned at all with the problem of identification, nor does it attempt the full and detailed study of the design and construction without which a definitive solution of the problem of dating is clearly impossible. Its purpose is twofold: to draw attention to some significant features of the architectural design and decoration, and to illustrate and discuss some surviving fragments which can be shown to belong to the lost entablture, but which seem hitherto to have escaped attention.The foundations of the temple were first exposed by Valadier in the early nineteenth century, in the course of restoration work undertaken to free the building of later accretions and to consolidate the ancient remains.

Naming and Defining

2009 ◽  
Vol 40 (1) ◽  
pp. 65-76 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ama Mazama
Keyword(s):  
Present Article ◽  
Subject Matter ◽  
Black Studies

Although it came into existence 40 years ago, Black Studies is still referred to by many names today. This proliferation of labels attests that, indeed, the question of naming remains a sensitive one for Black Studies. However, and this is one of the main contentions of the present article, this unfinished naming process reflects a deeper and equally unsettled issue: that of self-definition. Most specifically, it is argued here that as long as Black Studies is primarily defined by subject matter, as it is the dominant practice, rather than by perspective, the naming of the discipline will remain a contentious and tricky affair.

On the Alleged Truth About Lies in Plato’s Republic

2004 ◽  
Vol 21 (1-2) ◽  
pp. 93-106
Author(s):  
Daniel A. Dombrowski
Keyword(s):  
Present Article ◽  
Subject Matter ◽  
The Subject

The purpose of the present article is to explicate and criticize the most detailed philosophical appreciation of the ‘noble’ and other lies in Plato on a Straussian basis: Carl Page’s instructive 1991 article titled ‘The Truth about Lies in Plato’s Republic’. I carefully summarize and criticize Page’s sober, scholarly approach to the subject matter in question. Ultimately I reject his attempt to justify the ‘noble’ and other lies told by both Plato and contemporary government leaders.

Onomastics in Poland

1998 ◽  
Vol 25 (1-2) ◽  
pp. 87-114
Author(s):  
Sławomir Gala
Keyword(s):  
Subject Matter ◽  
Research Methodology ◽  
Proper Names ◽  
Chronological Order ◽  
Language History ◽  
Scientific Organizations ◽  
Systematic Development ◽  
And Function ◽  
Theoretical Issues

Summary The paper deals with onomastics as a branch of linguistics, its subject matter, scope of research, methodology, and relations to other branches of linguistics, such as language history, dialectology, as well as other fields, for example, history. The second part of the paper presents particular periods of onomastic research in chronological order. A systematic development of the discipline is shown through bibliographic examples and mention of the most important scientific organizations and institutions. The essence of the qualitative development of Polish onomastics consists in undertaking ever new problems which attest to the broadening of the scope of research to include new classes of speech signs recognized as nomina propria. Also essential is undertaking theoretical issues – the place and function of proper names in the system of language. A list of research desiderata concludes the discussion.

THE ANTI-BUCOLIC WORLD OF NICANDER'S THERIACA

2014 ◽  
Vol 64 (2) ◽  
pp. 623-641 ◽  
Author(s):  
F. Overduin
Keyword(s):  
Subject Matter ◽  
Professional Knowledge ◽  
Authentic Learning ◽  
Natural World ◽  
Second Century ◽  
Proper Treatment ◽  
Locus Amoenus ◽  
Linguistic Innovation ◽  
Negative Feelings ◽  
Selection Of

The last decades have shown that Nicander's Theriaca (second century b.c.e.), a didactic hexameter poem of 958 lines on snakes, scorpions, spiders, and the proper treatment of the wounds they inflict, is a markedly more playful work than most readers thought. Rather than considering the poem as a vehicle of authentic learning, literary approaches to the nature of Nicander's strange poetic world have focussed on his eye for Alexandrian aesthetics, intertextuality, linguistic innovation, and awareness of the didactic tradition that started with Hesiod's Works and Days, but also on his predilection for horror, voyeuristic sensationalism, and gory details. Although literary-minded readers have found it hard to disprove convincingly that Nicander may have had some professional knowledge of his subject matter, a glance at his arcane language is enough to convince any reader that the Theriaca cannot be concerned solely with its explicit subject. In this article I will make some additional observations on the way in which Nicander has turned the Theriaca into a work of literature, focussing on some of the choices that he has made with regard to his less than veracious depiction of snakes and animals. While Spatafora rightly points to Nicander's eye for detail when portraying floral beauty, I will argue that the poet's play with the topos of the locus amoenus has a darker side. Rather than creating an epic world of beauty, Nicander shows his talent for taking the reader along an unpleasant path of apprehension and negative feelings, portraying a choice selection of afflictions. Not only does he have many ways of giving his quasi-scientific account a markedly negative atmosphere, but his world may well be a deliberate reversal of that other well-known Hellenistic portrayal of the natural world, Theocritus' bucolics.

scholarly journals Comprendre la loi ephebarchique d’Amphipolis

2017 ◽  
Vol 13 ◽  
pp. 145
Author(s):  
Μιλτιάδης Χατζόπουλος
Keyword(s):  
Present Article ◽  
Special Section ◽  
Second Century ◽  
Legal Document ◽  
The Common

The author of the present article reviews the objections that have been raised to Calliope Lazaridou’s and his own interpretation of the recently published ephebarchical law from Amphipolis. To this end he exposes the overall plan of this legal document, devoting a special section to two of its articles which present a problem. He then examines the objections that have been raised a) against the identity of the two existing copies, b) against the common inspiration of the ephebarchical law of Amphipolis and the gymnasiarchical law of Beroia, and against the connection between the ephebarchical law and writings of classical authors on the education of the young. He concludes that the text engraved in 24/3 B.C. reproduces the provisions of the ephebarchical law promulgated under the Antigonids in the frst third of the second century B.C.

scholarly journals Sobre o protagonismo laical do catolicismo popular: pistas para reflexão

2019 ◽  
Vol 78 (311) ◽  
pp. 679
Author(s):  
José Reinaldo Felipe Martins Filho
Keyword(s):  
Present Article ◽  
Subject Matter ◽  
Great Amplitude ◽  
The Subject ◽  
Popular Catholicism ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Heaven And Earth

Este artigo tenta suscitar algumas pistas de reflexão sobre o protagonismo laical presente no catolicismo popular brasileiro, tendo como mote superar uma leitura meramente dicotômica e de oposição entre as esferas do oficial e do popular. Vale-se, para isso, de conceitos já consolidados pelas pesquisas em Teologia e Ciências da Religião, bem como de suas interfaces com a Antropologia, a Filosofia e a Sociologia. Entre as principais características do catolicismo popular que apontam para o protagonismo dos leigos estão a dimensão comunitária, a capacidade de ressignificação espaçotemporal e identitária e a ausência de intermediadores na relação entre céu e terra, como é o caso dos santos. Trata-se de um vasto e rico horizonte a ser explorado, cuja contribuição também alcança nossas atuais discussões sobre a identidade dos cristãos leigos. Abstract: The present article is an attempt to rise some reflecting clues on the lay protagonism presents in the Brazilian popular Catholicism, aiming at overcoming a merely dichotomous reading and opposition between official and popular spheres.  In this way, it is worth to recur to concepts already established by researches in Theology, Religion Science, as well as their interfaces with Antropology, Philosophy and Sociology. Among the main characteristics of popular Catholicism that point out in the direction of the lay Christian  are communitarian dimention, capacity of  identity espacio-temporal resignification and the absence of mediators such as saints, in the relationship between  Heaven and Earth. The subject matter, whose contribution meets our current discussions  about identity and lay Christians, is of great amplitude and still needs to be explored in depth.Keywords: Lay protagonism; Popular Catholicism; Identity.

scholarly journals Ironia i nihilizm. Figura bibliotekarza w Posłuchaniu u Lucypera Józefa Sękowskiego

2019 ◽  
pp. 83-94
Author(s):  
Jarosław Ławski
Keyword(s):  
National Identity ◽  
Present Article ◽  
Short Story ◽  
Subject Matter ◽  
Russian Literature ◽  
Absolute Power ◽  
Polish Literature ◽  
The World ◽  
History Of ◽  
The Subject

The subject matter of the present article is the image of library and librarian in a forgotten short story by a Polish-Russian writer Józef Julian Sękowski (1800−1858). Sękowski is known in Polish literature as a multi-talented orientalist and polyglot, who changed his national identity in 1832 and began to write only in Russian. In the history of Russian literature he is famous for Library for Reading and Fantastic Voyages of Baron Brambeus, an ironic-grotesque work, which was precursory in Russian prose. Until 1832 Sękowski was, however, a Polish writer. His last significant work was An Audience with Lucypher published in a Polish magazine Bałamut Petersburski (Petersburgian Philanderer) in 1832 and immediately translated into Russian by Sękowski himself under the title Bolszoj wychod u Satany (1833). The library and librarian presented by the author in this piece are a caricature illustration proving his nihilistic worldview. Sękowski is a master of irony and grotesquery, yet the world he creates is deprived of freedom and justice and a book in this world is merely a threat to absolute power.

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