Truthfulness, Realism, Historicity: A Study in Late Antique Spiritual Literature

by Peter Turner

Overview

The subject of this book is a wide range of spiritual narrative texts from the third to the sixth centuries A.D.: pagan philosophical biographies, Greek and Latin Christian saints' lives, and autobiographical works by authors such as Julian and Augustine. Unlike traditional readings which seek in these works historical facts, or religious and intellectual attitudes, this book argues that contemporary reality can be found in the interplay between these two types of information. Any historical reality we derive from such works must be seen in terms of the writers' commitment to realism as it would have been understood within a Platonic and/or Christian world view.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781409483199
Publisher:	Ashgate Publishing Ltd
Publication date:	07/28/2013
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
File size:	17 MB
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Table of Contents

Contents: Introduction: Boethius in exile; Part I: Hagiography - a truth telling genre?; From hagiography to charisma. Part II: In search of the first person; A late Antique spiritual lifestyle? Conclusion: Sanctity between belief and self-doubt; Bibliography; Index.

Editorial Reviews

'Turner’s work is truly thought provoking... I believe that Turner’s achievement is a genuine one in that he makes his readers aware of the problems of interpreting late antique literature in a brief and well composed study.' Bryn Mawr Classical Review 'Truthfulness, Realism, Historicity is an ambitious and rewarding attempt to explain the thought world that stands behind much of late antiquity's literary production - more the careful unfolding of a mentalité in the French tradition than social history on the Brownian model. It is also a difficult work, requiring the reader's engagement not only with a broad range of pagan and Christian works in both Greek and Latin, but also a rich and eclectic array of modern literary theory and continental philosophy. Yet Turner's insights repay the intellectual effort.' Journal of Ecclesiastical History '... a richly textured, provocative, lucidly written, and dense book that is beautifully produced. It will prove most useful for graduate students and scholars of late antique hagiography, historians, and religious studies. ... this book offers a satisfying, sensible understanding as to how we might comprehend the miraculous and the holy through late antique eyes.' The Medieval Review '... an examination of a wide range of spiritual narrative texts from the third to the sixth centuries A.D. ... Rather than scrutinizing these works for either historical facts or religious and intellectual attitudes, he argues that a deeper historicity can be found only in the interplay between these types of information.' Studies in Spiritualities

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