Dream scenes in ancient epic

Dream scenes bridge the gap between reality and mythology in ancient epic. They open channels of communication between the living and the dead, as well as between gods and mortals. Epicists also use dream scenes to connect past, present, and future timelines; characters do not only recall old friends and family members in their dreams, but also receive omens and warnings upon which to act. Conceptions of what constitutes a 'dream scene', however, have evolved over the past century: while Arend (1933) suggests that only sleeping characters dream, recently Hanson (1980) and Dodson (2009) demonstrate that waking visions are structurally and narratively indistinguishable from those which take place during sleep. Homeric dream scenes establish key patterns upon which later epicists build. Dreams often centre upon instructions which the dream-figure - most often a character on familiar terms with the dreamer - delivers; while their purpose is at times couched in symbolism and pathos, all dreams in epic - unlike their real-life counter-parts - contain information significant to the overall plot. As a result, dream scenes effectively emphasise intratextual connections. Lucan thus contrasts the dreams of Caesar and Pompey so as to trace their changing fortunes within the Bellum Ciuile, and Silius Italicus similarly charts Hannibal's rise and fall through three highly symbolic dreams. Dream scenes are also richly intertextual; later receptions frequently cite and subvert earlier models. Vergil and QuintusSmyrnaeus both play upon the dreams of Homer'sOdyssey, the former in explicit terms by reinterpreting the 'gate of horn and ivory' metaphor and the latter implicitly by drawing parallels between Hecuba and Penelope. Statius in turn builds upon the dream scenes of theAeneid, imbuing them with added violence to underscore the divisive reality which his characters inhabit. Ovid, on the contrary, utilises dreams to build a world in which boundaries - most notably that between truth and fiction - are blurred. The formulaic core which underpins dream scenes moreover facilitates subversive receptions. Medea dreams of her future in both Apollonius of Rhodes' and Valerius Flaccus' interpretations of her myth; however, the former's characterisation of her as a naïve and fearful girl contrasts with her portrayal as a prophetic and tragic heroine by the latter. These transmutations indicate the versatility of epic dream scenes, which, though always recognisable across works and eras, are treated so idiosyncratically by each author that they emblematise individual approaches to the epic genre itself

Art · Dream · EPIC · Literature · Metaphor · Mythology · Pathos · Theology · Vision · Classical Antiquity Studies · Historical, Religious, and Philosophical Studies · History · Philosophy · Psychology