Greek literature

Greek literature(Greek:Ελληνική Λογοτεχνία) dates back from theancient Greek literature,beginning in 800 BC, to themodern Greek literatureof today.

Ancient Greek literature was written in an Ancient Greek dialect, literature ranges from the oldest surviving written works until works from approximately the fifth century AD. This time period is divided into the Preclassical, Classical, Hellenistic, and Roman periods. Preclassical Greek literature primarily revolved around myths and include the works ofHomer;theIliadand theOdyssey.TheClassicalperiod saw the dawn of drama and history. Three philosophers are especially notable:Socrates,Plato,andAristotle.During the Roman era, significant contributions were made in a variety of subjects, including history, philosophy, and the sciences.

Byzantine literature,the literature of theByzantine Empire,was written inAtticizing,Medievaland earlyModern Greek.Chronicles,distinct from historics, arose in this period.Encyclopediasalso flourished in this period.

Modern Greek literature is written in commonModern Greek.TheCretan RenaissancepoemErotokritosis one of the most significant works from this time period.Adamantios KoraisandRigas Feraiosare two of the most notable figures.

Ancient Greek literature (800 BC – 350 AD)

Main article:Ancient Greek literature

Ancient Greek literature refers to literature written in Ancient Greek dialects. These works range from the oldest surviving written works in theGreek languageuntil works from the fifth century AD. The Greek language arose from theproto-Indo-European language;roughly two-thirds of its words can be derived from various reconstructions of the tongue. A number ofAlpha betsandsyllabarieshad been used to render Greek, but surviving Greek literature was written in aPhoenician-derived Alpha bet that arose primarily in GreekIoniaand was fully adopted byAthensby the fifth century BC.

Idealized portrayal ofHomer

Preclassical (800–500 BC)

All ancient Greek literature was to some degree oral in nature, and the earliest literature was completely so.The Greeks created poetry before making use of writing for literary purposes. Poems created in the Preclassical period were meant to be sung or recited (writing was little known before the 7th century BC). Most poems focused on myths, legends that were part folktale and part religion. Tragedies and comedies emerged around 600 BC.

At the beginning of Greek literature stand the works ofHomer;theIliadand theOdyssey.Though dates of composition vary, these works were fixed around 800 BCor after.Another significant figure was the poetHesiod.His two surviving works areWorks and DaysandTheogony.

Classical (500–323 BC)

During theclassicalperiod, many of the genres of western literature became more prominent.Lyrical poetry,odes,pastorals,elegies,epigrams;dramaticpresentations ofcomedyandtragedy;histories,rhetoricaltreatises,philosophicaldialectics,and philosophical treatises all arose in this period.

The two major lyrical poets wereSapphoandPindar.Of the hundreds oftragedieswritten and performed during this time period, only a limited number of plays survived. These plays are authored byAeschylus,Sophocles,andEuripides.

The comedy arose from a ritual in honor ofDionysus.These plays were full of obscenity, abuse, and insult. The surviving plays byAristophanesare a treasure trove of comic presentation.

Two influential historians of this age areHerodotusandThucydides.A third historian,Xenophon,wrote "Hellenica," which is considered an extension of Thucydides's work.

The greatest prose achievement of the 4th century BC was in philosophy.Greek philosophyflourished during the classical period. Of the philosophers,Socrates,Plato,andAristotleare the most famous.

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  Herodotus
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  Plato
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  Sophocles

Hellenistic (323–31 BC)

By 338 BC many of the key Greek cities had been conquered byPhilip II of Macedon.Philip II's sonAlexanderextended his father's conquests greatly.

The Hellenistic age is defined as the time between the death of Alexander the Great and the rise of Roman domination. After the 3rd century BC, the Greek colony ofAlexandriain northernEgyptbecame the center of Greek culture.

Greek poetry flourished with significant contributions fromTheocritus,Callimachus,andApollonius of Rhodes.Theocritus, who lived from about 310 to 250 BC, was the creator of pastoral poetry, a type that theRomanVirgilmastered in hisEclogues.

Drama was represented by theNew Comedy,of whichMenanderwas the principal exponent.

One of the most valuable contributions of the Hellenistic period was theSeptuaginttranslation of theOld Testamentinto Greek. This work was done at Alexandria and completed by the end of the 2nd century BC.

Strabo

Roman Age (31 BC – 284 AD)

Literature in Greek in the Roman period contributed significant works to the subjects of poetry, comedy, history, and tragedy. A large proportion of literature from this time period were histories.

Significant historians of the period wereTimaeus,Polybius,Diodorus Siculus,Dionysius of Halicarnassus,Appian of Alexandria,Arrian,andPlutarch.The period of time they cover extends from late in the 4th century BC to the 2nd century AD.

Eratosthenesof Alexandria wrote onastronomyandgeography,but his work is known mainly from later summaries. The physicianGalenpioneered developments in various scientific disciplines including anatomy, physiology, pathology, pharmacology, and neurology. This is also the period in which most of theAncient Greek novelswere written.

TheNew Testament,written by various authors in varying qualities ofKoine Greek,hails from this period. TheGospelsand theEpistles of Saint Paulwere written in this time period as well.

Byzantine literature (350–1453)

Main article:Byzantine literature

A page from a 16th-century edition of the 10th century Byzantineencyclopaediaof the ancient Mediterranean world, theSuda

Byzantine literature refers to literature of theByzantine Empirewritten inAtticizing,Medievaland earlyModern Greek.

Byzantine literature combined Greek andChristian civilizationon the common foundation of the Roman political system. This type of literature was set in the intellectual and ethnographic atmosphere of theNear East.Byzantine literature possesses four primary cultural elements: Greek, Christian, Roman, andOriental.

Aside from personal correspondence, the literature of this period was primarily written in theAtticizingstyle. Some early literature of this period was written inLatin;some of the works from theLatin Empirewere written inFrench.

Chronicles,distinct from historic, arose in this period.Encyclopediasalso flourished in this period.

Digenes Akritas(Διγενῆς Ἀκρίτας) is the most famous of theAcritic songsand is often regarded as the only surviving epic poem from theByzantine Empire.It is considered by some to signal the beginnings ofmodern Greek literature.

Modern Greek literature (1453–present)

Main article:Modern Greek literature

Manuel Chrysoloras,scholar in the Renaissance

Modern Greek literature is written in commonModern Greek.During this period, the modern vernacular form of the Greek language became more commonplace in writing.

This period saw the revival ofGreekandRomanstudies and the development ofRenaissance humanismandscience.

TheCretan RenaissancepoemErotokritosis a prominent work of this time period. It is a verseromancewritten around 1600 byVitsentzos Kornaros(1553–1613).

Modern Greek literature is significantly influenced by theDiafotismos,a movement that translated the ideas of theEuropean Enlightenmentinto the Greek world.Adamantios KoraisandRigas Feraiosare two prominent figures of this movement.

Today, Modern Greek Literature participates in the global literary community. The Greek authorsGeorge SeferisandOdysseas Elytishave been awarded theNobel Prize in Literature.

Cover ofErofilibyGeorgios Chortatzis

Adamantios Korais,major figure of theModern Greek Enlightenment

Dionysios Solomos,member of theHeptanese School (literature)and writer of theHymn to Liberty

See also

• Ancient literature
• Latin literature
• Greek scholars in the Renaissance
• Modern Greek Enlightenment
• Modern Greek theatre
• Loeb Classical Library
• Greek Anthology

Sources

• Encyclopædia Britannica Article on Greek Literature
• Warwick University Bibliography of Greek Literature

Preclassical

• Overview of Preclassical Greek Literature

Classical

• Princeton and Stanford Working Papers in Classics
• Ancient World Open Bibliography on Classical LiteratureArchived2018-09-20 at theWayback Machine
• Williams College Bibliography for the Classics

Hellenistic

• Bryn Mawr Guide to Hellenistic Literature
• Oxford Bibliographies for Hellenistic Literature
• Ancient-Greec.org overview of Hellenistic Literature
• History Channel Vault of Hellenistic Greece
• Hellenistic Historiography by Syracuse University

Greco-Roman

• University of Chicago Greco-Roman Literature OverviewArchived2018-09-20 at theWayback Machine
• Shawnee Heights Greco-Roman Literature Overview

Byzantine

• University of Notre Dame, History of Byzantine Literature
• King's College London History of Byzantine LiteratureArchived2017-04-07 at theWayback Machine

Modern

• Modern Greek Studies Association
• Hellenism.net, Modern Greek Literature Overview
• Greece In Print