In Ancient Greek Ekphrasis: Between Description and Narration Niels Koopman offers a thorough linguistic and narratological analysis of five canonical ancient Greek ekphraseis from the archaic to the Hellenistic period: Achillesâ shield in Homerâs Iliad (18.478-608), Heraclesâ shield in pseudo-Hesiodâs Shield (139-320), the goatherdâs cup in Theocritusâ first Idyll (27-60), Jasonâs cloak in Apollonius Rhodiusâ Argonautica (1.721-68) and Europaâs basket in Moschusâ Europa (37-62). Ekphrasis, as the verbal representation of visual representation, is both text and image, which makes it a complex yet fascinating phenomenon. By investigating its descriptive and narrative properties, this study sheds light on the interplay between text and image at work in ekphrasis.
Niels Koopman earned his PhD in ancient Greek Literature from the University of Amsterdam in 2014. He teaches classical languages at Het 4e Gymnasium in Amsterdam.
Preface and AcknowledgmentsEditions and Translations
1 Introduction: Ekphrasis, Narration and Description â1.1âThe âProblemâ of Ekphrasis: To Narrate or to Describe? â1.2âA Definition of Ekphrasis â1.3âEkphrasis: Description and/or Narration? â1.4âNarration â1.5âDescription â1.6âEkphrasis, Narration and Description: Conclusion
2 Methodology, Test Cases and Corpus â2.1âIntroduction â2.2âA Model for Analysis â2.3âThe Harbour of Phorcys and the Cave of the Nymphs (Od. 13.96â112) â2.4âAgamemnon Arms for Battle (Il. 11.15â46) â2.5âConclusion â2.6âCorpus
3 The Shield of Achilles (Il. 18.478â608) â3.1âIntroduction â3.2âDescription, Narration, or Both? A Brief State of the Art â3.3âShield of Achilles: Its Descriptivity and Narrativity â3.4âConclusion â3.5âVisualizing the Shield of Achilles
4 The Shield of Heracles (Hes. Sc. 139â320) â4.1âIntroduction â4.2âDescription, Narration, or Both? A Brief State of the Art â4.3âThe Shield of Heracles: Its Descriptivity and Narrativity â4.4âConclusion â4.5âVisualizing the Shield of Heracles
5 The Goatherdâs Cup (Theoc. Id. 1.27â60) â5.1âIntroduction â5.2âDescription, Narration, or Both? A Brief State of the Art â5.3âThe Goatherdâs Cup: Its Descriptivity and Narrativity â5.4âConclusion â5.5âVisualizing the Goatherdâs Cup
6 Jasonâs Cloak (A.R. 1.721â768) â6.1âIntroduction â6.2âJasonâs Cloak: Its Descriptivity and Narrativity â6.3âConclusion â6.4âVisualizing Jasonâs Cloak
7 Europaâs Basket (Mosch. Eur. 37â62) â7.1âIntroduction â7.2âEuropaâs Basket: Its Descriptivity and Narrativity â7.3âConclusion â7.4âVisualizing Europaâs Basket
8 Conclusion â8.1âEkphrasis: Between Description and Narration â8.2âEkphrasis and Visualization â8.3âThe Findings of This Study and the Notion of Ekphrasis BibliographyIndex of Greek WordsGeneral Index
Classical scholars, especially those interested in ekphrasis, linguistics and narratology, and anyone interested in ekphrasis, visualization, narration and description.