Quintus Smyrnaeus' Posthomerica, books 1-3: a Portuguese translation and an English narratological commentary

• Grant number: 20/06785-3
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Doctorate
• Start date: March 01, 2021
• End date: June 30, 2025
• Field of knowledge: Linguistics, Literature and Arts - Literature - Classical Literatures
• Principal Investigator: André Malta Campos
• Grantee: Rafael de Almeida Semêdo
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Filosofia, Letras e Ciências Humanas (FFLCH). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). São Paulo , SP, Brazil
• Associated scholarship(s): 23/12998-8 - Quintus of Smyrna's Posthomerica, Books 1-3: a narratological commentary, BE.EP.DR

Abstract

This project aims to produce a Portuguese translation and an English narratological commentary on Books 1-3 of Quintus Smyrnaeus' Posthomerica, an epic poem from Imperial Age Greece dated to ca. 3 AD. The work presents in 14 books of dactylic hexameters the books events taking place between Homer's Iliad and Odyssey, from the aftermath of Hector's death to the departure of the Greeks from Troy. These events include famous episodes such as the Trojan horse scheme and the sack of Troy, the judgment over the arms of Achilles and Ajax's ensuing suicide, and, most importantly for this project, the death of Achilles. Books 1-3, the segment addressed in this project, depict the final arc of the Iliad's protagonist: the arrival of the amazon Penthesilea and of the hero Memnon, both killed by Achilles, and his own death after an arrow wound to his ankle. This project shall produce the first ever Portuguese translation of this segment, as well as the first narratological commentary to be written on the Posthomerica. There are currently commentaries for half of the poem's books. None of them, however, make use of narratology as their primary methodological apparatus. Thus, following the same model of Irene de Jong's 2001 A Narratological Commentary on the Odyssey, we shall be concerned for the most part in our analysis with the narrativity of Quintus' text, that is, with how his story is presented, and with the techniques employed in the depiction of his characters, their actions, the layout of space and the handling of time. Thus, we assess the narrative devices which the Quintean narrator uses to lead his narratees through his portrayal of the final moments of one the most important heroes of Antiquity, the protagonist of the Iliad and the best of the Achaeans, Achilles. (AU)