Chariton of Aphrodisias (Greek: Χάριτον Ἀφροδισίας), a small city in Caria, was the author of an ancient Greek novel entitled Chaereas and Callirhoe. Recent evidence of fragments of the text on papyri suggests that the novel may have been written in the mid 1st century AD, making it the oldest surviving complete ancient prose romance and the only one to make use of apparent historiographical features for background verisimilitude and structure, in conjunction with elements of Greek mythology, as Callirhoë is frequently compared to Aphrodite and Ariadne and Chaereas to numerous heroes, both implicitly and explicitly;^[1] As the fiction takes place in the past, and historical figures interact with the plot, Chaereas and Callirhoe may be understood as the first historical novel; it was later imitated by Xenophon of Ephesus and Heliodorus of Emesa, among others. The tetrapylon (monumental gate) Aphrodisias was a town in Caria, now part of modern Turkey, about 230 km (142. ... Location of Caria Photo of a 15th century map showing Caria. ... For other uses, see Papyrus (disambiguation). ... The 1st century was that century that lasted from 1 to 100 according the Gregorian calendar. ... As a literary genre, romance or chivalric romance refers to a style of heroic prose and verse narrative current in Europe from the Middle Ages to the Renaissance. ... The bust of Zeus found at Otricoli (Sala Rotonda, Museo Pio-Clementino, Vatican) Greek mythology is the body of stories belonging to the Ancient Greeks concerning their gods and heroes, the nature of the world and the origins and significance of their own cult and ritual practices. ... The Birth of Venus, (detail) by Sandro Botticelli, 1485 For other uses, see Aphrodite (disambiguation). ... Drinking scene with Dionysus and Ariadne on his lap. ... A historical novel a novel in which the story is set among historical events, or more generally, in which the time of the action predates the lifetime of the author. ... Xenophon of Ephesus (fl. ... Heliodorus of Emesa, from Emesa, Syria, was a Greek writer generally dated in the 3rd century of the Common Era, and is known for the ancient Greek romance or novel called the Aethiopica (the Ethiopian Story) or sometimes Theagenes and Chariclea. According to his own statement, his fathers name...

Chariton's date

Nothing is securely known of Chariton beyond what he states in his novel, which introduces him as "Chariton of Aphrodisias, secretary of the rhetor Athenagoras". The name "Chariton", which means "man of graces", has been considered a pseudonym chosen to suit the romantic content of his writing, but both "Chariton" and "Athenagoras" occur as names on inscriptions from Aphrodisias.^[2] Rhetoric (from Greek ρητωρ, rhêtôr, orator) is one of the three original liberal arts or trivium (the other members are dialectic and grammar). ... A pseudonym (Greek: , pseudo + -onym: false name) is an artificial, fictitious name, also known as an alias, used by an individual as an alternative to a persons legal name. ... The tetrapylon (monumental gate) Aphrodisias was a town in Caria, now part of modern Turkey, about 230 km (142. ...

The latest possible date at which Chariton could have written is attested in papyri that contain fragments of his work, which can be dated by palaeography to about AD 200.^[2] Analysis of Chariton's language has produced a range of proposals for dating. In the nineteenth century, before the discovery of the papyri, a date as late as the 6th century AD was proposed on stylistic grounds, while A. D. Papanikolaou argued in 1979 for the second half of the 1st century BC. One recent study of Chariton's vocabulary favours a date in the late 1st century or early 2nd century AD.^[3] For other uses, see Papyrus (disambiguation). ... Palaeography (British) or paleography (American) (from the Greek palaiós, old and graphein, to write) is the study of ancient handwriting, independent of the language (Koine Greek, Classical Latin, Medieval Latin, Old English, etc. ... The 6th century is the period from 501 - 600 in accordance with the Julian calendar in the Christian Era. ... (2nd millennium BC - 1st millennium BC - 1st millennium) The 1st century BC started on January 1, 100 BC and ended on December 31, 1 BC. An alternative name for this century is the last century BC. The AD/BC notation does not use a year zero. ... The 1st century was that century that lasted from 1 to 100 according the Gregorian calendar. ... The 2nd century is the period from 101 - 200 in accordance with the Julian calendar in the Christian Era. ...

Edmund Cueva has shown^[1] that Chariton also depended on Plutarch's vita of Theseus for thematic material, or perhaps directly on one of Plutarch's sources, an obscure mythographer, Paion of Amathus. If the source is Plutarch, then a date after the first quarter of the second century is indicated. There is a dismissive reference, however, to a work called Callirhoe in the Satires of Persius, who died in AD 62; if this is Chariton's novel, then a relatively early date would be indicated.^[2] Regardless, Chariton is generally believed to have written before the other Greek novelists whose works survive,^[4] making either his work or Petronius' Satyrica the earliest extant European novel. Mestrius Plutarchus (Greek: Πλούταρχος; 46 - 127), better known in English as Plutarch, was a Greek historian, biographer, essayist, and Middle Platonist. ... Vita or VITA can refer to any of a number of things: Vita (Latin for life) can also refer to a brief biography, often that of a saint (i. ... Theseus (Greek ) was a legendary king of Athens, son of Aethra, and fathered by Aegeus and Poseidon, with whom Aethra lay in one night (By some accounts, this was presented as a rape). ... Amathus was one of the most ancient royal cities of Cyprus, on the southern coast, about 24 miles west of Larnaka and 6 miles east of Limassol. ... Persius, in full Aulus Persius Flaccus (AD 34-62), was a Roman poet and satirist of Etruscan origin. ... This article is about the Roman author Petronius. ... Satyricon (or Satyrica) is a Latin novel, believed to have been written by Gaius Petronius, though the manuscript text of the Satyricon calls him Titus Petronius. ...

Chaereas and Callirhoe

Chariton's novel exists in only one (unreliable) manuscript, from the thirteenth century. It was not published until the eighteenth century, and remained dismissed until the twentieth. It nevertheless gives insight into the development of ancient prose fiction.

Plot outline

The story, which is set against a historical background of ca 400 BC. In Syracuse, Chaereas falls madly in love with the supernally beautiful Callirhoe,^[5] and they are married, but when he suspects her faithlessness, he kicks her so hard that she falls over as if dead.^[6] There is a funeral, and she is shut up in a tomb, but then it turns out she was only in a coma, and wakes up in time to scare the pirates who have opened the tomb to rob it; they recover quickly and take her^[7] to sell as a slave in Miletus, where her new master, Dionysius, falls in love with her and marries her, she being afraid to mention that she is already married (and pregnant by Chaereas). As a result, Dionysius believes Callirhoe's son to be his own. Syracuse (Italian, Siracusa, ancient Syracusa - see also List of traditional Greek place names) is a city on the eastern coast of Sicily and the capital of the province of Syracuse, Italy. ... The lower half of the benches and the remnants of the scene building of the theater of Miletus (August 2005) Miletus (Carian: Anactoria Hittite: Milawata or Millawanda, Greek: Μίλητος transliterated Miletos, Turkish: Milet) was an ancient city on the western coast of Anatolia (in what is now Aydin Province, Turkey), near...

Meanwhile Chaereas has heard she is alive, and has gone looking for her, but is himself captured and enslaved, and yet they both come to the attention of Artaxerxes, the Great King of Persia, who must decide who is her rightful husband, but is thinking about acquiring her for himself. When war erupts, Chaereas successfully storms the Persian stronghold of Tyre on behalf of the Egyptian rebels, and then wins a naval victory against the Persians, after which the lovers are finally reunited. Callirhoe writes to Dionysius, telling him to bring up her son and send him to Syracuse when he grows up. Chaereas and Callirhoe return in triumph to Syracuse, where Callirhoe offers prayers to Aphrodite, who has guided the events of the narrative. Persia redirects here. ... Tyre (Arabic , Phoenician , Hebrew Tzor, Tiberian Hebrew , Akkadian , Greek Týros) is a city in the South Governorate of Lebanon. ...

Historical basis

Several characters from Chaereas and Callirhoe can be identified with figures from history, although their portrayal is not always historically accurate.^[8][9] Hermocrates was a real Syracusan general, and did have a daughter (her name is unknown), who married Dionysius I of Syracuse. This Dionysius was tyrant of Syracuse from 405 to 367 BC and not a resident of Miletus. However, Callirhoe's expectation that her son will return to Syracuse after being brought up as Dionysius' own has been connected to the fact that the historical Dionysius I was succeeded in Syracuse by his son, Dionysius II.^[9] The historical daughter of Hermocrates died after a violent attack by soldiers; that Callirhoe merely appears to be dead after being kicked by Chaereas has been seen as a deliberate change allowing Chariton "to resurrect her for adventures abroad".^[10] Hermocrates (Ancient Greek: ) was a general of Syracuse during the Athenians Sicilian Expedition. ... Dionysius I or Dionysius the Elder (ca. ... Dionysius the Younger or Dionysius II (c. ...

Chariton's Artaxerxes represents Artaxerxes II of Persia. Since Hermocrates died in 407 BC and Artaxerxes did not come to the throne until 404 BC, Chariton is anachronistic in having Hermocrates alive during Artaxerxes' reign. The hero Chaereas is not a historical figure, although his name recalls Chabrias, an Athenian general who fought in an Egyptian revolt against Persia in about 360 BC. His capture of Tyre may be based on that by Alexander the Great in 332 BC.^[9] Artaxerxes II Memnon (c. ... Look up Anachronism in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Chabrias (Greek:Χαβρίας)was a celebrated Athenian general of the 4th century BC. In 388 BC he defeated the Spartans at Aegina and commanded the fleet sent to assist Evagoras, king of Cyprus, against the Persians. ... For the film of the same name, see Alexander the Great (1956 film). ...

Despite the liberties Chariton took with historical fact, he clearly aimed to place his story in a period well before his own lifetime. Tomas Hägg has argued that this choice of setting makes the work an important forerunner of the modern historical novel.^[11] A historical novel a novel in which the story is set among historical events, or more generally, in which the time of the action predates the lifetime of the author. ...

Style and influences

There are echos of Herodotus and Thucydides and other historical and biographical writers from the ancient world. The novel is told in a linear manner; after a brief first person introduction by Chariton, the narrator uses the third person. Much of the novel is told in direct speech, revealing the importance of oratory and rhetorical display (as in the presentation before the King of Persia) and perhaps as well the influence of New Comedy. Dramatic monologues are also used to reveal the conflicted states of the characters' emotions and fears (what should Callirhoe do, given that she is pregnant and alone?). The novel also has some amusing insights into ancient culture (for instance, the pirates decide to sell Callirhoe in Miletus rather than in the equally wealthy Athens, because they considered Athenians to be litigious busybodies who would ask too many questions). Herodotus of Halicarnassus (Greek: Hērodotos Halikarnāsseus) was a Greek historian from Ionia who lived in the 5th century BC (ca. ... Bust of Thucydides residing in the Royal Ontario Museum, Toronto. ... Greek comedy is the name given to a wide genre of theatrical plays written, and performed, in Ancient Greece. ... This article is about the capital of Greece. ...

The discovery of five separate fragments of Chariton's novel at Oxyrhyncus and Karanis in Egypt attest to the popularity of Chaereas and Callirhoe. One fragment, carefully written on expensive parchment, suggests that some, at least, of Chariton's public were members of local elites.^[12] There are few remains at Oxyrhynchus to be seen above ground: its treasures lie beneath the sands Oxyrhynchus ( Greek: Οξύρυγχος; sharp-nosed; ancient Egyptian Per-Medjed; modern Arabic el-Bahnasa) is an archaeological site in Egypt, considered one of the most important...

Notes

“Athenian War” redirects here. ... Naxos (Greek: Νάξος; Italian: Nicsia; Turkish: Nakşa) is a Greek island, the largest island (428 km²) in the Cyclades island group in the Aegean. ... This article is about the ancient deity. ... The Loeb Classical Library is a series of books, today published by the Harvard University Press, which present important works of ancient Greek and Latin Literature in a way designed to make the text accessible to the broadest possible audience, by presenting the original Greek or Latin text on each...

See also

Other ancient Greek novelists:

• Xenophon of Ephesus - The Ephesian Tale
• Achilles Tatius - Leucippe and Clitophon
• Heliodorus of Emesa - The Aethiopica
• Longus - Daphnis and Chloe

Xenophon of Ephesus (fl. ... The Ephesian Tale of Anthia and Habrocomes by Xenophon of Ephesus is a novel belonging to the mid second century of the Common Era. ... Achilles Tatius (in Greek Aχιλλευς Τατιος) was a Roman era Greek writer whose fame is attached to his only surviving work, the erotic romance The Adventures of Leucippe and Cleitophon. ... Achilles Tatius of Alexandria, Greek rhetorician, author of the erotic romance, The Adventures of Leucippe and Cleitophon, flourished about 450, perhaps later. ... Heliodorus of Emesa, from Emesa, Syria, was a Greek writer generally dated in the 3rd century of the Common Era, and is known for the ancient Greek romance or novel called the Aethiopica (the Ethiopian Story) or sometimes Theagenes and Chariclea. According to his own statement, his fathers name... Daphnis and Chloe by Jean-Pierre Cortot Longus (Greek: Λόγγος) was a Greek novelist and romancer, and author of Daphnis and Chloe. ... Longus was a Greek sophist and romancer, and author of Daphnis and Chloe. ...

Further reading

In classical scholarship, editio princeps is a term of art. ... For other uses, see Latin (disambiguation). ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 47th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Rudolf Hercher (11 January 1821–26 March 1878) was a German classical scholar. ... The Collection Budé, or the Collection des Universités de France, is a series of books comprising the Greek and Latin classics up to the middle of the 6th century. ... The Loeb Classical Library is a series of books, today published by the Harvard University Press, which present important works of ancient Greek and Latin Literature in a way designed to make the text accessible to the broadest possible audience, by presenting the original Greek or Latin text on each... The English language is a West Germanic language that originates in England. ... The Loeb Classical Library is a series of books, today published by the Harvard University Press, which present important works of ancient Greek and Latin Literature in a way designed to make the text accessible to the broadest possible audience, by presenting the original Greek or Latin text on each...

External links

• Synopsis of the novel