Conception to consumption reading greek literature in athenaeus' material world Molly M Schaub

Format:

Book

Thesis/Dissertation

Author/Creator:

Schaub, Molly M., author.

Contributor:

University of Pennsylvania. Classical Studies., degree granting institution.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Classical studies.

Classical literature.

Cultural anthropology.

Food science.

0434.

0294.

0359.

0326.

Local Subjects:

Classical studies.

Classical literature.

Cultural anthropology.

Food science.

0434.

0294.

0359.

0326.

Genre:

Academic theses

Physical Description:

1 online resource (306 pages)

Contained In:

Dissertations Abstracts International 87-12B

Place of Publication:

Ann Arbor : ProQuest Dissertations and Theses, 2026

Language Note:

English

Summary:

The Deipnosophists by Athenaeus of Naucratis has often been understood as reflecting nostalgically on the Greek past because of its extensive quotation of earlier Greek literature. Oft neglected is the narrative in which these quotations are embedded, which depicts a series of dinner parties taking place in the city of Rome at the house of wealthy Roman named Larensius. This dissertation argues that taking this Roman setting seriously is crucial to understanding this literary work and its intellectual project, which uses literature of the past as the very material of arguments about the Roman world of food and objects. The three chapters of this dissertation map onto three types of important objects in the Deipnosophists - books, drinking cups, and food - and contextualize their representations in the text within broader considerations of these same objects in other media from the Roman world - including comparison with other literary works, evidence from papyri, and visual representations. Each chapter also focalizes distinct features of the Deipnosophists and reinterprets them in light of their engagement with the material world. Chapter 1 examines the narrative frame in which Athenaeus reports the events of the dinner parties to an interlocutor named Timocrates, utilizing language of food consumption as a metaliterary language to describe how reading is subject to mechanisms like hunger, satiety, and even overconsumption. Chapter 2 analyzes one of the many catalogues that, throughout the work, interrupt the dinner narrative with encyclopedia-like entries and shows how these catalogues embody the aesthetic quality of poikilia ('variety') that can also be seen in images displayed in Roman houses. Chapter 3 examines how the arguments made by the diners through literature about food culminate in the consumption of these same food items, creating an eating and reading experience that is 'immersive'. In the end, this dissertation shows that Athenaeus, through his diners, uses literature from the past to make sense of and to enjoy a Roman material world that is complex, interconnected and abundant

Notes:

Source: Dissertations Abstracts International, Volume: 87-12, Section: B.

Advisors: Rosen, Ralph; Bowes, Kimberly Committee members: Damon, Cynthia

Ph.D. University of Pennsylvania 2026

Vendor supplied data

Local Notes:

School code: 0175

ISBN:

9798247984177

Access Restriction:

Restricted for use by site license