Lies and Fiction in the Ancient World
Distributed for Liverpool University Press
“If the range of ideas developed by ancient writers does not precisely correspond to modern categories, that is hardly surprising: as Michael Wood and D.C. Feeney argue, the boundaries between fact, fiction and falsehood are culturally determined and change over time. This book explores the varying ways in which these categories were constructed in the ancient world, and in the process raises important questions about the definition of fiction in contemporary culture.” –Journal of Hellenic Studies
“It has long been recognized that the imagination of the novelist, the poet, and the historian must be related in important, intimate ways. This collection advances our understanding of those related imaginations.” –Professor James Tatum, Dartmouth College, USA
“Despite its selective focus, this superb collection of articles on the problem of fiction in antiquity is a valuable acquisition for any general library, the scope of the book and the range of the individual contributions extensive enough to ensure that the evidence for this protean literary category is given generous coverage.” –Classical World, June 1997
Preface
Notes on Contributors
Prologue
Michael Wood
1. Lies, Fiction and Slander in Early Greek Poetry
E. L. Bowie
2. Plato on Falsehood—not Fiction
Christopher Gill
3. Truth and Untruth in Herodotus and Thucydides
J. L. Moles
4. Lying Historians: Seven Types of Mendacity
T. P. Wiseman
5. Fiction, Bewitchment and Story Worlds: The Implications of Claims to Truth in Apuleius
Andrew Laird
6. Make-Believe and Make Believe: The Fictionality of the Greek Novels
J. R. Morgan
Epilogue: Towards and Account of the Ancient World’s Concept of Fictive Belief
D. C. Feeney
Bibliography
Index of Passages from Ancient Authors
General Index
Literature and Literary Criticism: General Criticism and Critical Theory
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