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28 - The Alexander Romance

from Part IV - The Ancient World’s Memory of Alexander

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  04 January 2024

By
Christian Thrue Djurslev
Edited by
Daniel Ogden
Daniel Ogden
Affiliation:
University of Exeter
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Summary

The so-called Alexander Romance is the most widely read text about Alexander from the ancient world. An unknown author composed this fantastical piece of Greek historical fiction, which narrates Alexander’s entire life, deeds, and death in an extraordinary fashion. The three books of inventive prose narrative, embedded with about 280 lines of verse, are bookended by stories of the king’s conception (1.1–14) and funeral (3.34). Here the text is appreciated in its ancient context, with the provision of an overview of its central issues, potential solutions to them, and possible future directions for study. Several significant matters are focused on: the constitution of the original Greek text of the Alexander Romance; its problematic dating; its contents and structure; its various sources; its characterization of Alexander; its generic classification; and the possible contexts for its original composition.

Keywords

Greek prose fictionbiographical writingancient narrativeHellenistic and imperial literaturePseudo-Callisthenesclassical philology
Type
Chapter
Information
The Cambridge Companion to Alexander the Great , pp. 452 - 470
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2024

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