The multifarious muse: two palaeologan collections of paraenetic chapters

Thesis

This thesis discusses the nature, genesis, authorship and audience of two paraenetic chapter collections of the Palaiologan period and offers a partial edition. I have called these collections Chapters in Four Ways (CFW) and Chapters in Political Verse (CPV). Their nature and composition are rather unusual in comparison to other chapter collections, and they are shrouded in an aura of mystery, which is made worse by the limited attention they have received from scholars. The study of these texts provides information on a wide range of topics such as the two main manuscripts, the genre of paraenetic poetry, the composition of CFW and CPV, intertextuality, hypertextuality, and the legacy of literary authorities in Byzantium, and the interaction between secular and monastic circles. It offers new insights on the authorship of the two collections, which this study shows to be closely related. The critical editions provided in this thesis make hitherto unedited texts available to the scholarly community, contribute to a better understanding of the two collections, and enrich our knowledge of late Byzantine literature.

Authors: Paoletti, G

• DOI: 10.5287/ora-b71jamo8x
• Type of award: DPhil
• Level of award: Doctoral
• Awarding institution: University of Oxford
• Language: English
• Keywords: Byzantine Poetry; Palaiologan Poetry; Paraenetic Literature; Chapter Literature
• Subjects: Byzantine Philology