Les Pseudo-Clémentines et le choix du roman grec

Preview this chapter:

Les Pseudo-Clémentines et le choix du roman grec, Page 1 of 1

< Previous page | Next page > /docserver/preview/fulltext/10.1484/M.STR-EB.5.110574/J.BAIEP.5.107531-1.gif

This paper considers the relationship between the Pseudo-Clementines and the Greek novel from the point of view of literary strategy. Instead of responding to the question of how the Pseudo-Clementines were influenced by the Greek novel, it is rather why the Pseudo-Clementines have decided to use the Greek novel that is here investigated. Comparative analysis of the Apostolic Constitutions and the Pseudo-Clementines in their treatment of the same narrative allows to assess at the start how original is the pseudo-clementine strategy in the cultural context of the IIIrd and IVth centuries. Comparative analysis of the pseudo-clementine romance and the Greek novel in their use of the ‘love’ and ‘recognition’ motives also highlights the originality of the pseudo-clementine writers in the way they used the novel form. Finally, resorting to the concept of champ littéraire, as defined by Pierre Bourdieu in his work Les règles de l’art. Genèse et structure du champ littéraire, leads to an explanation of the Pseudo-Clementines’ literary strategy in terms of sociology.