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R. Webb, Ekphrasis, Imagination and Persuasion in Ancient Rhetorical Theory and Practice

R. Webb, Ekphrasis, Imagination and Persuasion in Ancient Rhetorical Theory and Practice

Publié le par Frédérique Fleck (Source : BMCR)


Ruth Webb, Ekphrasis, Imagination and Persuasion in Ancient Rhetorical Theory and Practice,  Farnham, England/Burlington, VT:  Ashgate, 2009.  Pp. xiii, 238.  

  • ISBN 9780754661252.  
  • £55.00.  

Recension par Simon Goldhill (King's College, Cambridge) dans Bryn Mawr Classical Review 2009.10.03.

Extraits en ligne sur le site de l'éditeur, books.google et amazon.fr.

Présentation de l'éditeur:

This is a study of ekphrasis, the art of making listeners andreaders 'see' in their imagination through words alone, as taught inancient rhetorical schools and as used by Greek writers of the Imperialperiod (2nd-6th centuries CE). The author places the practice ofekphrasis within its cultural context, emphasizing the importance ofthe visual imagination in ancient responses to rhetoric, poetry andhistoriography. By linking the theoretical writings on ekphrasis withancient theories of imagination, emotion and language, she brings outthe persuasive and emotive function of vivid language in the literatureof the period.
This study also addresses the contrast between the ancient and themodern definitions of the term ekphrasis, underlining the differentconcepts of language, literature and reader response that distinguishthe ancient from the modern approach. In order to explain the ancientunderstanding of ekphrasis and its place within the larger system ofrhetorical training, the study includes a full analysis of the ancienttechnical sources (rhetorical handbooks, commentaries) which aims tomake these accessible to non-specialists.
The concluding chapter moves away from rhetorical theory toconsider the problems and challenges involved in 'turning listenersinto spectators' with a particular focus on the role of ekphrasiswithin ancient fiction. Attention is also paid to texts that lie at theintersection of the modern and ancient definitions of ekphrasis, suchas Philostratos' Imagines and the many ekphraseis of buildings andmonuments to be found in Late Antique literature.

L'auteur: Dr Ruth Webb is HonoraryResearch Fellow in the School of History, Classics and Archaeology,Birkbeck College, London, UK. She is also affiliated to theArScAn-THEMAM research team at the Universite / Paris X.

Table des matières:

Preface; Introduction; The contextsof ekphrasis; Learning ekphrasis: the progymnasmata; The subjects ofekphrasis; Enargeia; making absent things present; Phantasia; memory,imagination and the gallery of the mind; Ekphrasis and the art ofpersuasion; The poetics of ekphrasis: fiction, illusion andmeta-ekphrasis; Conclusion; Appendices; Bibliography; Index.