Mimetic syntax in the tragedies of Seneca
D’Anselmi, Luca A.
In CHAPTER I, I briefly review previous scholarship that focuses on mimesis in classical literature. I argue in CHAPTER II that Seneca’s plays strongly display mimetic syntax, a feature previously ascribed to his poetic models, especially Ovid. Furthermore, in CHAPTER III I claim that mimetic syntax is not an important feature of Seneca’s dramatic predecessors. In otherwords, Seneca’s development of the poetic feature of mimetic syntax sets him apart from earlier Roman dramatists: Ennius, Naevius, Pacuvius, and others. In CHAPTER IV, I examine the impact of mimetic syntax on characterization and performance in Senecan drama. I argue that mimetic syntax is an important aspect of characterization, focusing on mimetic containment and enclosure in the Phaedra. Besides being a tool of characterization, I show that mimetic syntax allows the reader to recognize intertexual connections between Seneca’s tragedies and the works of his predecessors, primarily Ovid’s Metamorphoses and Epistulae Heroidum. Finally, in CHAPTER V I examine mimetic syntax in a select narrative episode (Ag. 388-588) and suggest that the high frequency of mimetic elements sets it apart for excerpted reading or performance. Scholars have frequently criticized scenes like this both on account of their supposed literary artlessness and their unperformability. I ‘rehabilitate’ these mimetically-rich scenes. A study of mimetic effects shows them to be both visually and aurally dramatic.
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