Complex Inferiorities

Language: English

Published by Oxford University Press, GB, 2018

0198814062 / 9780198814061

  • Hardcover
  • New
See all details

Seller: Rarewaves.com UK, London, United KingdomRarewaves.com UK

5-star seller

AbeBooks seller since June 11, 2025

Hardcover

Condition: New

£ 162.43

£ 65.00 shipping 
Ships from United Kingdom to U.S.A.

Quantity: Over 20 available

Add to basket
Free 30-day returns

Item description from seller

This volume investigates an important and surprisingly widespread phenomenon in Latin literature, which has to date received little sustained discussion: the deliberate assumption of a weaker voice by speakers who in fact hold sufficient status not to be forced into this position. Though often associated with the markers of imperial hegemony and elite speech, Latin literature evinces a remarkably broad range of strategies designed to enable the adoption of a markedly disempowered voice- from topoi such as recusatio (professing a lack of ability to write in status-conforming, superior genres) and rhetorical devices such as prosopopoeia (artfully and strategically adopting a persona to garner favour, even when this means temporarily forfeiting one's higher status and discursive privileges), to the long-silenced female heroines of Ovid's Heroides and satire's irreverent take on the great and the good by framing its narratives as being articulated 'from below'. Even large-scale cultural self-positionings fall within this scope, be they expressions of Roman cultural inferiority vis-à-vis classical Greece or the tensions that arise between humble (yet spiritually superior) Christian writers and their grand, canonical, and classical (yet pagan) predecessors.The intersecting case studies offered in Complex Inferiorities examine this phenomenon in a wide range of genres, periods, and authors. By demonstrating that re-negotiating alleged weakness constitutes a central activity in Latin literature, this volume reveals the extent of the literary and cultural-political possibilities opened up by assuming and speaking in voices of weakness and inferiority. Authored by experts in their fields, the individual chapters explore the crucial role of the 'weaker voice' in establishing, perpetuating, and challenging hierarchies and values in a wide range of contexts- from poetics and choices of genre, to social status and intra- and intercultural relations- thereby offering invaluable insights not only for the study of classics, but for literary and cultural studies across the humanities.…

Seller Inventory # LU-9780198814061

Title
Complex Inferiorities
Author
Sebastian Matzner
Publisher
Oxford University Press, GB
Publication year
2018
Condition
New
Binding
Hardback
Language
English
ISBN 10
0198814062
ISBN 13
9780198814061
Item weight
538 grams

Rarewaves.com UK

London, United Kingdom

5-star seller

AbeBooks seller since June 11, 2025

Shipping rates from United Kingdom to U.S.A.

Item60 to 60 business days60 to 60 business days
First item£ 65.00£ 100.00
Delivery times are set by sellers and vary by carrier and location. Orders passing through Customs may face delays and buyers are responsible for any associated duties or fees. Sellers may contact you regarding additional charges to cover any increased costs to ship your items.

Payment methods

  • Visa
  • Mastercard
  • American Express
  • Apple Pay
  • Google Pay

Seller's business information

RAREWAVES.COM LIMITED

Elsley Court, 20-22 Great Titchfield Street
London, United Kingdom W1W 8BE