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  • Michael Psellos: Rhetoric and Authorship in Byzantium

    Michael Psellos by Papaioannou, Stratis;

    Rhetoric and Authorship in Byzantium

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      • Publisher's listprice GBP 111.00
      • The price is estimated because at the time of ordering we do not know what conversion rates will apply to HUF / product currency when the book arrives. In case HUF is weaker, the price increases slightly, in case HUF is stronger, the price goes lower slightly.

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    53 030 Ft

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    Availability

    Estimated delivery time: In stock at the publisher, but not at Prospero's office. Delivery time approx. 3-5 weeks.
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    Why don't you give exact delivery time?

    Delivery time is estimated on our previous experiences. We give estimations only, because we order from outside Hungary, and the delivery time mainly depends on how quickly the publisher supplies the book. Faster or slower deliveries both happen, but we do our best to supply as quickly as possible.

    Product details:

    • Publisher Cambridge University Press
    • Date of Publication 9 May 2013

    • ISBN 9781107026223
    • Binding Hardback
    • No. of pages359 pages
    • Size 236x158x23 mm
    • Weight 670 g
    • Language English
    • Illustrations 8 b/w illus.
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    Short description:

    This comprehensive study of Michael Psellos unravels the rich history of authorship, literature and self-representation in Byzantium.

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    Long description:

    This book explores Michael Psellos' place in the history of Greek rhetoric and self-representation and his impact on the development of Byzantine literature. Avoiding the modern dilemma that vacillates between Psellos the pompous rhetorician and Psellos the ingenious thinker, Professor Papaioannou unravels the often misunderstood Byzantine rhetoric, its rich discursive tradition and the social fabric of elite Constantinopolitan culture which rhetoric addressed. The book offers close readings of Psellos' personal letters, speeches, lectures and historiographical narratives, and analysis of other early Byzantine and classical models of authorship in Byzantine book culture, such as Gregory of Nazianzos, Synesios of Cyrene, Hermogenes and Plato. It also details Psellos' innovative attention to authorial creativity, performative mimesis and the aesthetics of the self. Simultaneously, it traces within Byzantium complex expressions of emotion and gender, notions of authorship and subjectivity, and theories of fictionality and literature, challenging the common fallacy that these are modern inventions.

    'This work leads to rich revelations about what Psellos was getting at in his writing, but beyond him, it provides us with subtle and convincing explorations of Byzantine culture, particularly the pervasive importance of ancient and biblical models of ideal behavior for the formation of character and the expression of self. Together with Derek Krueger's Liturgical Subjects: Christian Ritual, Biblical Narrative, and the Formation of the Self in Byzantium (2014), Papaioannou's exploration of Psellos's self-presentation lays the groundwork for understanding Byzantine conceptions of self and identity.' Leonora Neville, Speculum

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    Table of Contents:

    Introduction; Part I. The Professional Rhetor and Theory of Authorship: 1. The philosopher's rhetoric; 2. The rhetor as creator: Psellos on Gregory of Nazianzos; 3. The return of the poet: mimesis and the aesthetics of variation; Part II. Self-Representation: 4. Aesthetic charm and urbane ethos; 5. The statue's smile: discourses of Hellenism; 6. Female voice: gender and emotion; Conclusion: from rhetoric to literature; Appendix: books and readers in the reception of Psellos.

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