Centre for Research in Reasoning, Argumentation & Rhetoric along with the PhD in Argumentation Studies at the University of Windsor invite you to a talk by
Antonio Rossini and Christos Strubakos
Languages, Literatures and Cultures - Psychology
“‘Lionizing the Hero’. The art of repetition in the case of a Homeric and Virgilian simile.”
Abstract: Repetition is, admittedly, one of the major guarantors of cohesion and coherence in a text, and, as such, it is studied in Discourse Analysis. However, repetitions can also work on an intra-textual level expressing ‘serial meaning’, i.e. a semantic ‘plus-value’ triggered by the very arrangement of a certain thematic element’s occurrences. In this talk we aim to show how this is true in Homeric poetry in the case of the ‘lion simile’, a staple comparison between heroes and the animal proverbial for its regal strength, and, even more so, in the Virgilian reinterpretation of the same literary theme. By contrasting the Homeric use of the simile, which already exhibits a clear intra-textual strategy and the triggering of a ‘meta-meaning’, with the Virgilian appropriation, it will become apparent how this can be considered, almost by necessity, a quintessential feature of epic poetry as well as a versatile tool in any kind of narrative, whether visual or verbal.
Friday, September 18, 2020
3:00pm
Weekly presentations conducted via Zoom
All those interested should contact us for access information at crrar@uwindsor.ca