The Formation of the Aretological Catalogue as a Literary Form in the Greek Literature of Antiquity
From Homer to the New Testament
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 21780121 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Oleksandr Levko (0000-0002-1259-0410, Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv, Kyiv, Ukraine), Олександр Левко (Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2026 |
| Issue | 40 |
| Pages | 66-72 |
| Publication date | 2026-06-01 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Bulletin of Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv Literary Studies Linguistics Folklore Studies (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 1728-2659 • E-ISSN: 2709-8494 |
| Publisher | Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv (PUBLISHER • UA) |
| DOI | 10.17721/1728-2659.2026.40.9 |
| OpenAlex | W7163392527 |
| Language | EN |
| References cited | 16 |
Background. This article investigates the formation and functioning of aretological (ethical) catalogues in Ancient Greek, Hellenistic Jewish, and Early Christian literature. Ethical catalogues are treated as a component of the “discourse of virtues.” The aim of the article is to trace the genesis and development of the aretological catalogue from the archaic Greek tradition to the New Testament, to identify its rhetorical, stylistic, and didactic functions, and to demonstrate the interaction between Greek philosophical, Jewish, and Christian ethical models in New Testament texts. Methods. The study is based on an interdisciplinary approach combining literary and linguistic methods with biblical hermeneutics. It employs comparative, contrastive, and narratological methods, as well as contextual, stylistic, semantic, pragmatic, and intertextual analysis. Results. It is shown that the catalogue form emerges already in Ancient Greek epic and drama as a means of typification and rhetorical intensification, and that in the classical period, in the form of lists of virtues, it becomes integrated into philosophical discourse, particularly in the works of Plato and Aristotle. In the Hellenistic period, aretological catalogues become an autonomous didactic instrument, closely connected with Stoic ethics and epideictic rhetoric, and enter the Hellenistic Jewish tradition (Wisdom of Solomon, Philo of Alexandria). In the Bible and the New Testament, they function as a key device of moral paraenesis and codify models of desirable and undesirable behavior. Semantic changes in the names of virtues and vices in Hellenistic Jewish and Early Christian texts are identified, and the evolution of their meanings within aretological catalogues is traced. The article also presents, for the first time in Ukrainian, fragments of Hellenistic Jewish ethical discourse (Philo of Alexandria). Conclusions. Aretological catalogues are formed as a literary genre through the dialogue of different cultures: Greek, Jewish, and Early Christian. Among their main discursive functions are the suggestive, didactic, rhetorical, and epideictic functions. Further research prospects include the study of semantic and cultural transformations of ethical concepts in translations of classical and biblical texts into Latin and modern, particularly Slavic, languages, and their influence on the formation of ethical lexicons in modern languages
Byzantine Studies and History · Historical and Linguistic Studies · Religious, Philosophical, and Educational Studies
| Citation velocity | historical |
|---|---|
| Highly cited | No |