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The Paradox of Literary Emotion: An Ancient Greek Perspective and Some Modern Implications
Resumo
Abstract: Fifth-century BCE Greek writers (e.g., Isocrates, Pseudo-Andocides) complain that the Athenians might have been more deeply moved by tragedies than by horrific contemporary events. My essay suggests that literary narratives could indeed produce this effect on us through several features. (1) The feeling of personal safety, threatened sometimes by our showing compassion to others (e.g. Euripides’ plays, Thucydides; modern refugee debates) remains intact when we engage in fiction. (2) The proximity to literary characters becomes enhanced by literary narratives (pro ommaton, focalization), in contrast to impersonal journalistic reports. (3) The universality ascribed to a literary piece (Aristotle’s Poetics) could contribute to our emotional immersion into the world of fiction to the detriment of the surrounding reality. While each section starts from ancient Greek authors, the essay will underline some similarities between the classical and the modern ways of engaging with literary narratives.
Keywords: Emotional paradox; universality of literature; focalization; historical narrative; journalism versus literary narrative.
Resumo: Escritores gregos do século V a.C. (por exemplo: Isócrates, PseudoAndocides) reclamam de os atenienses poderem ter sido mais afetados pelas tragédias do que pelos terríveis acontecimentos contemporâneos a eles. Meu ensaio sugere que narrativas literárias poderiam de fato produzir esse efeito em nós por meio de vários atributos. São eles: (1) Nosso sentimento de segurança pessoal, ameaçado algumas vezes quando mostramos compaixão pelos outros (por exemplo, nas peças de Eurípides, em Tucídides; nos debates atuais sobre refugiados), permanece intacto quando engajamos em ficção. (2) A proximidade com personagens literários torna-se intensificada pelas narrativas literárias (pro ommaton, focalização), em contraste com relatos jornalísticos impessoais. (3) A universalidade que nós atribuímos a uma peça literária (Poética de Aristóteles) poderia contribuir para nossa imersão emocional em um mundo de ficção em detrimento da realidade circundante. Enquanto cada sessão começa fundando-se em autores antigos, o ensaio irá enfatizar algumas similaridades entre os modos clássico e moderno de engajamento com narrativas literárias.
Palavras-chave: paradoxo emocional; universalidade da literatura; focalização; narrativa histórica; jornalismo versus narrativa literária.
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DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.17851/1983-3636.13.2.263-283
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Direitos autorais 2018 Dana LaCourse Munteanu
Este obra está licenciado com uma Licença Creative Commons Atribuição 4.0 Internacional.
Nuntius Antiquus
ISSN 2179-7064 (impressa) / ISSN 1983-3636 (eletrônica)
Esta obra está licenciada com uma Licença Creative Commons Atribuição 4.0 Internacional.