CEU Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2024
| Author | Laguna Lopez, Alejandro |
|---|---|
| Title | Literary Subversion in Niketas Eugenianos' Drosilla & Charikles |
| Summary | Komnenian novels were, for some time, considered mere “replicas” of Hellenistic novels. In the last decades research has started to take a different tack, approaching the 12th century novels as refined and complex pieces of literature that enter a dialogue with their own period through their rewriting of ancient models. Niketas Eugenianos’ novel “Drosilla & Charikles” stands out among the other Komnenian novels, due to its subversive engagement with previous and contemporary literary works. Research on Eugenianos’ novel, which previously focused on its transtextual links with other works, has recently shifted its focus to narratological aspects. Although the literary models used by Eugenianos have been thoroughly discussed, his “distancing” from such models has not received scholarly attention so far. Eugenianos acknowledges his debt to previous works while still deliberately choosing to explore different paths, thereby building up anticipation and suspense, while ultimately subverting readerly expectations. This thesis will analyze the effects and functions of these literary strategies, as well as how they might have contributed to Eugenianos’ display of literary virtuosity. I will first perform a narratological analysis of the novel, which will provide the basis for further research. I will then explore various episodes in Drosilla & Charikles where Eugenianos’ dialogue with previous and contemporary works, his use of comic elements, and his establishment of contrasts can be seen as subversive. The analysis of Drosilla & Charikles as a subversive work will shed light on Eugenianos’ engagement with other works and on the interaction between the author, who purposefully creates a multilayered meaning, and his well-educated audience, capable of deciphering and understanding these strategies. |
| Supervisor | van den Berg, Baukje |
| Department | Medieval Studies MA |
| Full text | https://www.etd.ceu.edu/2024/laguna_alejandro.pdf |
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