Essays

Homerische vergelijkingen in de 'Posthomerica' van Quintus Smyrnaeus

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Abstract

Presumably in the 3th century, Quintus Smyrnaeus wrote his Greek epic poem Posthomerica, in which he treats the events at the end of the Trojan war. Thus filling in the gap between Iliad and Odyssey using a very Homer-like language and style, this author has often been considered an insignificant imitator of the master. However, when one takes a closer look at the narrative techniques hat Quintus uses, he appears to deliberately adapt the Homeric style to his own purposes. Using intertextual references to Homer (and probably later sources as well), Quintus remodels the ancient epic story to express his own, unhomeric view on the legendary war. This article deals with the use of Homeric similes to attain this objective.

How to Cite:

Scheijnen, T., (2011) “Homerische vergelijkingen in de 'Posthomerica' van Quintus Smyrnaeus”, Tetradio 20(1): 7, 141–162. doi: https://doi.org/10.21825/tetradio.91811