Aspects of Evil in Prudentius’ Psychomachia and Hamartigenia: on the verge between Classic and Early Christianity

Postgraduate Thesis uoadl:2796440 584 Read counter

Unit:
Κατεύθυνση Λατινική Φιλολογία
Library of the School of Philosophy
Deposit date:
2018-09-25
Year:
2018
Author:
Malisovas Angelos
Supervisors info:
Διονύσιος Γ.Μπενέτος, Αναπληρωτής Καθηγητής Λατινικής Φιλολογίας, Τμήμα Φιλολογίας, Φιλοσοφική Σχολή ΕΚΠΑ
Ανδρέας Ν.Μιχαλόπουλος, Καθηγητής Λατινικής Φιλολογίας, Τμήμα Φιλολογίας, Φιλοσοφική Σχολή ΕΚΠΑ
Σοφία Γ.Παπαϊωάννου, Καθηγήτρια Λατινικής Φιλολογίας, Τμήμα Φιλολογίας, Φιλοσοφική Σχολή ΕΚΠΑ
Original Title:
Εκφάνσεις του Κακού στην Psychomachia και την Hamartigenia του Προυδέντιου: στο μεταίχμιο κλασικού και πρωτοχριστιανικού
Languages:
Greek
Translated title:
Aspects of Evil in Prudentius’ Psychomachia and Hamartigenia: on the verge between Classic and Early Christianity
Summary:
In my thesis, I choose to deal with the various aspects and manifestations of Evil, as unfolded in the two aforementioned works of the Spanish Christian 4th century poet. On the one hand, I intend to demonstrate the way in which literature is used to spread Christian messages. Christian teachings, in turn, are considered the primary purpose of the overall composition, including that of Prudentius, through the topic of Evil. On the other hand, I investigate in what way and how successfully Prudentius carries out the blending of Christian connotations with a purely pagan/classic form. Conclusively, I target to the method in which the Spanish poet, and therefore the Christian erudite scholar of the 4th-5th century, thinks of Evil and interprets it in terms of literature, and not only that of a treatise. In the first chapter, I put into action the aforementioned dualistic approach, initially studying the two army camps of the troops of the Psychomachia, the Virtues and the Vices, concentrating mostly on the Vices, as is logical. In the second chapter, I focus on the main figure of Hamartigenia, and the cause/excuse for the composition of this exact poem, Marcion. I outline the doctrine and the overall beliefs of the founder of the dualistic cult of “Marcionitism”, while I peruse the way in which Prudentius chooses to present him in the dealing work: as an equivalent of Satan, and, consequently, as a bringer of Evil. Finally, I break down the two founding issues that the cult places in the forefront: the topic of theodicy and of free will, as well as the way in which Prudentius intends to handle and refute them. In the third and final chapter of this essay, I talk about the actual and dominating cause for the coming of death, Satan, Evil in general: the term of invidia. I examine its presence in both the Psychomachia and the Hamartigenia, based on the function that can be observed in the remainder abstracts, personified or not, while I underline the etymological relation to the term of division, the unifying power, in other words, of the whole thesis. The linguistic and etymological criterion consists of the key factor of an another subject on demand, that of the act of videre. The role of vision, though subcutaneous, functions in a decisive way as far as Prudentius’ mentality is concerned, when he comes to interpret and incorporate the concept of Evil in the two poems.
Main subject category:
Language – Literature
Keywords:
Prudentius, Late Antiquity, Late Latin Literature, Psychomachia, Hamartigenia, virtues, vices, Invidia, Videre, Satan, Devil, Marcion, Marcionitism, Gnosticism, allegory, religion, Spain, Evil, Christianism, Christian Literature, Biblical Studies, Bible, division, dualism
Index:
Yes
Number of index pages:
2
Contains images:
No
Number of references:
189
Number of pages:
156
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