Rebekka Schirner’s volume Epic Fear. Affekt und Emotion in den Argonautica des Valerius Flaccus is clearly situated within the field of research that studies feelings and emotions in the works of antiquity; in recent decades, emotions have increasingly become a focus of research in classical studies.
This volume focuses in particular on the Argonautica by Valerius Flaccus, the Roman epic poem which recounts the first mythical overseas voyage from Iolcos in Greece to Colchis on the Black Sea as well as the events in Colchis concerning Medea. It concentrates on the analysis of fear as an aspect of central importance on various levels of representation in the poem. The aim of this study is to elucidate the role of fear, in particular in character development, plot progression and motivation, and in Valerius Flaccus’ poetic technique as a whole. It is a monumental piece of research, rich in examples and accurate in its analysis, which has, however, the merit of remaining readable thanks to its fluency and to its solid internal architecture.
The volume consists of an introduction and three long chapters internally divided into a series of paragraphs, each one focused on a single aspect of the concept ‘fear’. In the introduction, S. clarifies the state of research in the field of emotions and anxiety: she points out that a history of the concept of fear, a feeling that has a notable relevance to human existence, has not yet been written for antiquity, and this study aims to lay the foundations for such a general analysis as well as its specific focus on Valerius. S. then clarifies a definition of anxiety and explains the development of emotions based on the narratological relevance of the concept of fear, drawing on Genette’s theories.
In the first chapter, S. examines the different typologies of ‘fear’, first analysing a typology that assumes a central importance within Valerius Flaccus’ poem from the beginning: fear as an element that connotes tyrannical power is a persistent trait in the poem because the fear of losing power is closely associated with Pelias’ tyranny and shapes his character.
Turning to the social aspect, S. examines fear as a family bond between parents and children in the human and also divine spheres, as well as fears that arise in the relationships between deities and their human protégés, and she cites numerous examples from Valerius’ poem. She then develops the topic of fear as a social bond, and fear as a human constant from an anthropological perspective, especially fear concerning the future. She analyses in detail the episode of the prophecies of Mopsus and Idmon in Valerius’ poem, also comparing it with the Greek model of Apollonius Rhodius. S. then focuses on the multiple causes of fear, fears that transcend human nature and fears that affect individuals and groups.
In ch. 3, S. describes the literary representation of fear in Valerius’ poem: she analyses the lexemes employed in the Argonautica to render this semantic area, and other stylistic principles. She distinguishes between the explicit and implicit thematisation of fear, demonstrating the richness that Valerius infuses into the representation of this emotion. Valerius uses a wide range of words in his poem to express the semantic field of fear and S. analyses the recurrences and areas of use of verbs, adjectives and nouns expressing the concept. The interaction between fear and other emotions is also examined.
The final section of the volume examines fear as part of the poetic technique in the Argonautica: S. examines emotions as an integral component of Valerius’ poetic technique, analysing how the emotion of fear serves structuring and defining functions and its relevance to the thematic unity of the work. Valerius often uses the description of emotions to highlight changes of place or scene in the narration or to underline some passages of the poem. In one paragraph S. also analyses how emotions in general, and fear specifically, have an important function in Valerius’ poem as a link between the micro- and macro- levels of the work. She also highlights the connections between the main narrative threads and individual episodes.
From all the analysis conducted, according to S., it emerges that emotions and fear play a central role in the Argonautica as well as helping specifically to characterise Valerius’ poetic technique compared to his predecessors in the epic genre. The investigation into the feeling of fear in Valerius’ poem also allows S. to discuss some aspects of Valerius Flaccus’ vision of the world that emerges from the poem: that Valerius conceives his era as one that arouses fear and is ambivalent appears definitively from his work.
