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THEMINIATUREEPICINVANDALAFRICAANDTHEHERITAGEOFA.NON-GENRE’
theArchaicGreekculture.Insteadofheroismanditsstereotypicexaltation,itproposesa
sortofzbourgeois,ethicsandazbourgeois,conceptofexistence,muchmoreappropriate
andunderstandableforthesocietyoftheznew,era.Hencethefocusonhumanratherthan
heroictraitsofamythicalprotagonist,hencealsothemarginalizationofsomezfixed,motifs
ofthegrandepic.Similarly,intheRomanliteraturetheepyllionisintroducedbytheNeo-
tericswhonoticeverywellthattheAlexandrianformsareexcellenttodescribeprecisely
thecrisisoftraditionalvalues,thecrisistheythemselveswitnessedintheirownculture.18
Asitappears,thenextperiodthatseesakindofrevivaloftheepylliongenreislate
antiquity.Here,asfarastheLatinpoetryisconcerned,particularlyrelevantseemthe
textswritteninthelatefhcenturyA.D.inVandalAfrica:Dracontius,sHylas,Deraptu
Helenae,Medea,OrestisTragoedia,andthepseudo-DracontianAegritudoPerdicae.19Te
interestinthezold-fashioned,
,elaborateform,astheminiatureepicmusthavebeenper-
ceivedinthosetimes,theveryinterestinthezancient,mythassuchcannotsurpriseifwe
takeintoconsiderationthefactthattheliterarycultureoflateantiquity,especiallytheone
representedbyDracontius,iselitistparexcellence.20Itisaculturecreatedbyintellectuals,
schoolprofessors,connoisseursandloversoftheclassicaltraditionforwhomcomposing
poetrywasakindofsnobbish,refinedzgame,
.Inaddition,itseemsreasonabletosuppose
thatlateantiquezlittérateurs,
,inparticularthosewhohappenedtolivetheirlivesinthe
agezaferRome,
,forexampleinCarthage,oneofthetruecentersoflearningoftheRo-
manworldoccupiedbytheVandals,didfeelacertainzsenseofmission,
,astrongneedto
defendtheircommonculturalheritage,andmaybealsoanambitiontotransmititand
showitsrichnesstotheaudienceofthenewzbarbarian,upperclasses.21
18SeePerutelli1979:29-30.
19Undoubtedly,wemusttakeintoconsiderationallthelimitationsinourknowledgeonthe
factualpresenceoftheepylliongenreinancientliteratureoftheimperialandthelateantiqueera.
Wecannotevenbesuretowhatextentthetextswepossess,Dracontius,sfourpoemsandtheAe-
gritudo(onitsrelationshipwithDracontius,sworks,seeCh.I.6),shouldbeconsideredexceptional
andtowhatextenttheyrevealwiderinterestincomposingminiatureepicinLatinliteratureof
VandalAfrica.Asregardsotherexamplesoflateantiqueepyllia,inGreekpoetryonecanmention
Tryphiodorus,sTakingofIlios,Musaeus,sHeroandLeander,theOrphicArgonautica,andCol-
luthus,sRapeofHelen.InLatinliterature,Reposianus,sDeconcubituMartisetVenerisisacertain
example.Infact,thisquitecharminglittlepoemistheonlycertainexampleofalaterLatinepyllion
thatwepossess.Unfortunately,asKay(2006:10)notesrightly,itis“remarkableinattractingdates
fromthesecondtosixthcenturies.”Somescholarsarguestronglyforthecontemporaneousnessof
ReposianusandDracontius,seenotablyCourtney1984:309(actuallyfollowingGualandri1974:
876-882);Shanzer1986:19-20.Ifso(andtheargumentsaresound),itisevenmorereasonable
tospeakoftherevivaloftheepylliongenreinlateantiqueAfrica.Generally,however,onemust
admitthattheDeconcubitu,comparabletosomeextentwiththeAegritudo(especiallyifaesthetic
featuresaretakenintoaccount),ismuchlessinterestingtostudyfromthegenericperspectivethat
Dracontius,spoemsandtheAeP.IdonotagreewithBright,s(1987:251n.8)listingClaudian,sDe
belloGeticoandDebelloGildonicoamonglateantiqueLatinepyllia.Similarly,itwouldbepoint-
less,inmyview,tointerpretcertainChristianpoemsaszepyllic,(likePrudentius,sPsychomachiaor
Avitus,sDetransitumarisrubri).
20Bright(1987:6)justlypointsattheznewAlexandrianism,oflateantiquepoetry.
21SeeGualandri1999:67;similarlySimons2005:369-371.Gualandrifollowstheconclusions
ofGianotticoncerningthepublicofDaresandDictysCretensiswhichcouldinclude“iricchima