MAJOR ACQUISTION:
THE ANCIENT GREEK LIBRARY
#17 HOMER: THE ODYSSEY
MS in Greek on papyrus, Egypt, late 3rd - 2nd c. BC, 3 fragments from column 1-3 of a scroll. Commentary: Homer's poems were originally composed orally in the 8th c. BC, and transmitted orally until written down in many different versions several centuries later. The first critical editions were made by the Alexandrian scholars, Zenodotus (325-234 BC), Aristophanes, Librarian of Bibliotheca Alexandrina (195-180 BC), but foremost Aristarchus, Librarian of Bibliotheca Alexandrina (180 - ca. 145 or 131 BC), who published his definite edition in the middle of 2nd c. BC, which is still the standard. The very few surviving Homeric papyri that date from before Aristarchus' edition, are of the greatest textual importance, since they alone preserve the earlier forms of the poems, as they were recited by singers in the archaic and classical periods. The present MS is the earliest of book 12, and the only one from the pre-Aristarchan period, most likely have been copied in Bibliotheca Alexandrina. |
#17 Hesiod: Works and Days
MS in Greek on papyrus, Alexandria, Egypt, 3rd c. BC, 2 fragments from 1 column of a scroll. Commentary: This is by far the earliest surviving MS of Hesiod's poem, and also one of the earliest MSS of Greek literature. Hesiod (ca. 700 BC) was, after Homer, the earliest and most popular epic poet in Greece. |
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#19 Florilegium by Maximus the Confessor |
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QUOTING THE BIBLE, THE CHURCH FATHERS, JOSEPHUS, PLUTARCH, ISOCRATES, DEMOCRITES, SOCRATES, DIOGENES, DEMOSTHENES, MENANDER, CLEANTHOS, PLATO, EPICTETUS, ALEXANDER THE GREAT, LYCURGUS, PYTHAGORAS, EURIPIDES, EPICURUS, CRITIAS, AND SEVERAL MORE MS in Greek on vellum, Greece (or Turkey?), 2nd half of 11th c. Commentary: Florilegiae are in many cases the earliest witnesses to parts of the first writings of classical texts. They contain many quotes of Greek authors whose whole production is lost. The Florilegium thus, in many cases, is a primary source of Greek literature, philosophy and science. Although the text is attributed to Maximus the Confessor (ca. 580-662), it was probably compiled in the 10th c. Similar anthologies were in circulation from at least the 5th c. |
| The Question: Wittgenstein said, "Ethics and aesthetics are one". When a
work of literature achieves aesthetic excellence, it achieves some kind of individual
truth that echoes of universal truths as well. Some writers go at it directly, such as
Orwell, in 1984, where he illuminates the corruption of power inherent in a
political system resembling our own. Big Brother, we discover, ought to be monitored
and curtailed. Nussbaum says literature is where we can exercise our "moral
imagination", where we are exposed to lives distant to our own, which allows us to
imagine what it is like to be in unfamiliar situations. In this way we identify with
people very different from ourselves. We also are privy to "what if..." --
to those situations where life might be very different under oppressive governments
or moral authorities. Lately we seem to hear more people say they do not have time
for literature; they just want the "facts" or the objective truth in our
confusing times. But "facts" are written by journalists or other writers
who are also people with opinions or a political agenda, and often slant their view to a
readership. Literature does not tell us what to think; it shows us a set of
circumstances. The ideas emerge organically from the life of the characters.
At the same time, the reader must make the effort of imagining new circumstances and work
through the conflicts of opposing sides. This is a form of argumentation but here
the reader is not told what is the "correct" point of view. Through
conscious engagement with the best works of literature, students develop the ability to
think for themselves. What connections do you see here between Taylor's "malaise" of political apathy and the direction our popular culture is taking? What can teachers do to encourage students to develop a moral imagination? |