The Divine Plato Among Greeks and Romans: Banquet Literature and the Making of Cultural Memory in the Graeco-Roman Empire Anthony Andurand, Corinne Bonnet
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The divine Plato among Greeks and Romans: Banquet literature and the making of cultural memory in the Graeco-Roman Empire Anthony Andurand, Corinne Bonnet To cite this version: Anthony Andurand, Corinne Bonnet. The divine Plato among Greeks and Romans: Banquet literature and the making of cultural memory in the Graeco-Roman Empire. Archimède : archéologie et histoire ancienne, UMR7044 - Archimède, 2019, La République “ gréco-romaine ” des lettres : construction des réseaux savants et circulation des savoirs dans l’Empire romain, HS N°1, pp.42-53. halshs-02091579 HAL Id: halshs-02091579 https://halshs.archives-ouvertes.fr/halshs-02091579 Submitted on 5 Apr 2019 HAL is a multi-disciplinary open access L’archive ouverte pluridisciplinaire HAL, est archive for the deposit and dissemination of sci- destinée au dépôt et à la diffusion de documents entific research documents, whether they are pub- scientifiques de niveau recherche, publiés ou non, lished or not. 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REVUE , RCHIMeDE ARCHÉOLOGIE ET HISTOIRE ANCIENNE HO, RS SERIE THE DIVINE PLATO AMONG GREEKS AND ROMANS: BANQUET LITERATURE AND THE MAKING OF CULTURAL MEMORY IN THE GRAECO-ROMAN EMPIRE [1] Anthony ANDURAND Corinne BONNET Docteur en Sciences de l’Antiquité Professeur d’Histoire grecque Université Toulouse – Jean Jaurès Université Toulouse – Jean Jaurès EA 4601 PLH-ERASME EA 4601 PLH-ERASME [email protected] [email protected] RÉSUMÉ Les grandes fi gures exemplaires et les épisodes mémorables du passé de la Grèce et de Rome constituent un des matériaux à partir desquels Paradigmatic fi gures and memorable episodes from s’élaborent, au présent, les discussions mises the Greek and Roman past are one of the key mate- en scène dans les Propos de table. Dans cette rials which underlie the discussions performed in polyphonie savante, largement fondée sur le Plutarch’s Quaestiones convivales. In this learned dialogue avec les Anciens (hoi palaioi), la fi gure polyphony, largely based on the conversation with du « divin » Platon (Per., 8.2), « le premier des ancient authors (hoi palaioi), the “divine Plato” (Per., philosophes par la réputation et par l’autorité » (QC, 8, 2), celebrated as “a philosopher pre-eminent in 700B), occupe une place de premier plan, celle d’une reputation and in infl uence” (QC, 700B), assumes sorte de « saint patron » d’un hellénisme dilaté à the role of a “patron saint” of a new Mediterranean- l’échelle de l’Empire. Dans les prologues placés au wide Greek culture. In the opening prologues as in seuil de chaque livre comme dans la succession des the narrative sequences and the intellectual and séquences narratives et les pratiques savantes et ritual practices outlined in this work, Plato emerges rituelles qu’elles décrivent, le philosophe s’affi rme as one of the main references of Plutarch’s sym- en eff et comme l’une des références privilégiées potic community. Through de la société plutarquéenne des banquets savants. the analysis of this tutelary À travers l’analyse de cette fi gure tutélaire et de la fi gure and its cultural sig- signifi cation dont elle est investie dans les Propos nifi cance in the Quaestiones de table, cette contribution se propose de mettre en convivales, this paper aims lumière les opérations et les at emphasising the dynamics stratégies que mobilise, dans l’espace d’une République KEYWORDS and strategies which support MOTS-CLШS « gréco-romaine » des lettres, Plutarch, the making of a shared cul- Plutarque, Plato, tural memory within the la fabrique d’une mémoire Platon, Greek culture, Graeco-Roman “Republic of savante partagée, ancrée dans hellénisme, Roman Empire, des fi gures « mythiques ». Empire romain, symposium. Letters”. symposium. Article accepté après évaluation par deux experts selon le principe du double anonymat 42 ARCHIMÈDE ARCHÉOLOGIE ET HISTOIRE ANCIENNE HORS SÉRIE N°1 2018 - p. 42 à 53 Sympotic literature off ers excellent material for collection of memories written down at the request outlining the development and consolidation of a of Plutarch’s Roman friend, Sosius Senecio (to whom “Graeco-Roman Empire” – defi ned as a “fait de culture the text is also dedicated). According to the pro- grecque et de pouvoir romain” [2] – with special empha- gramme outlined in the fi rst prologue, this work aims sis on intellectual circles and communities. From at “collecting” (συναγαγεῖν) the “learned discussions” Plutarch to Athenaeus, the symposium is conceived of (φιλολογηθέντα) held by Plutarch and some of his as a strategic and performative space for sharing and friends and acquaintances during banquets which took mediation, as a “city of scholars” that delineates the place “both at Rome in your company and among main features of an all-embracing cultural memory, us in Greece (ἔν τε Ῥώμῃ μεθ᾽ὑμῶν καὶ παρ᾽ ἡμῖν nurtured by knowledge and connivance. In terms of ἐν τῇ Ἑλλάδι), with table and goblet before us.” [5] communities, cultural traditions and practices, the Deeply imbued with the cultural practices and the sympotic microcosm provides a rich observatory for literary traditions of the world of the symposium, the exploring the codes and ramifi cations of a Graeco- Quaestiones convivales draw their inspiration directly Roman “Republic of letters”, shaped by the cultural from the philosopher’s intellectual activity and social model of Greece and the dynamics of Roman power. experience. In a most vivid way, this work features On this basis, this paper investigates the treatment Plutarch’s “small world”, a distinguished company of of exemplary fi gures in Plutarch’s Quaestiones con- intimates, philosophers, scholars, artists, local magis- vivales, by focusing on the specifi c and paradigmatic trates, and high offi cials of the imperial administration fi gure of the “divine Plato” (θεῖος Πλάτων) [ 3]. from various regions of the Roman Empire. Composed in the early second century CE, the The recording of these friendly and select commit- Quaestiones Convivales [4] are presented as a tees devoted to shared knowledge and pleasure is [ 1] This paper is a translation of « Le divin Platon à la the Quaestiones Convivales in early Roman-Empire mis- table des Grecs et des Romains. Dynamiques et enjeux cellanistic literature and its socio-cultural landscape (one de la fabrique d’une mémoire savante dans l’Empire gré- should mention here: SCHMITT-PANTEL 2011: 471-482, co-romain » (to be published in Frédéric Chapot, Johann JACOB 2005, KLOTZ & OIKONOMOPOULOU 2011, VAM- Goeken & Maud Pfaff [ed.], Figures mythiques et dis- VOURY-RUFFY 2012, KNIG 2012: 60-89; more recent- cours religieux dans l’Empire gréco-romain, Turnhout). ly, GEORGIADOU & OIKONOMOPOULOU 2017 also gather We are grateful to the editors who gave us permission several contributions dedicated to the analysis of space to off er an English version of this paper. We also thank and time in the Quaestiones convivales). Cynthia Johnson for her advice and suggestions. [ 5] Plutarch, Quaestiones convivales, I (prologue), [ 2] VEYNE 2005: 10. 612E. The Quaestiones convivales involve a few hundred [ 3] Plutarch, Pericles, 8, 1: “It was from natural sci- characters – identifi able at least by a name – from various ence, as the divine Plato (θεῖος Πλάτων) says, that he geographical origins and intellectual specialities (on the ‘acquired his loftiness of thought and perfectness of exe- prosopography of Plutarch’s circles of sociability: PUECH cution, in addition to his natural gifts’, and by applying 1992; see also the appendices of NIKOLAIDIS 2017: 269- what he learned to the art of speaking, he far excelled all 270, for an overall view of the participants, places and other speakers.” (trans. B. Perrin) hosts in the Quaestiones convivales). The banquets [ 4] Plutarch, Quaestiones convivales. Moralia. Vol. VIII reported in Plutarch’s sympotic “memories” are about and IX, Cambridge – London, 1961-1969 (Loeb Classical sixty in number and located, for the vast majority, in Library), with an English translation by Paul A. Clement the Greek cities of Achaia, particularly in a small area (Books I-III), Herbert B. Hoffl eit (Books IV-VI), Edwin extending from Athens to the Thermopylae, including L. Minar (Books VII-VIII) and F. H. Sandbach (Book IX). the home city of Chaeronea. The “welcome-dinner” Research on Plutarch’s Quaestiones Convivales has re- (ὑποδεκτικόν δεῖπνον) given by Sulla the Carthaginian cently received renewed attention with new questions during one of Plutarch’s stays in Rome (VIII, 7-8) is and topics being addressed, which have now placed this the only symposium that takes place outside Greece long under-explored work at the very forefront of the (even if, as pointed out by NIKOLAIDIS 2017: 264-267, Plutarchan studies. Since the publication of TEODORS- other dinner-parties of the Quaestiones convivales may SON 1989-1996, a large body of academic literature has probably have been hosted in Rome). In this regard, the greatly enriched our understanding of this work. Evalu- combination of the characters’ profi les with the location ating the Quaestiones Convivales in light of the philo- of the banquets provides a relevant way to grasp the sophical Symposium codes and literary traditions, from relational and geographical dynamics of Plutarch’s Plato to Athenaeus (see for instance: FRAZIER 1994, sympotic world, which is both deeply embedded in the ROMERI 2002), scholars have explored the subtle nar- microcosm of the Greek poleis and open to the imperial rative strategies that confi gure the Plutarchan enuncia- world. On these aspects, see the exploratory propositions tion and writing (HARRISON 2000, KNIG 2007). At the we have recently developed using social network analysis: same time, several studies have endeavoured to locate ANDURAND 2015, ANDURAND & BONNET 2016. 43 The Divine Plato among Greeks and Romans: Banquet Literature and the Making of Cultural Memory in the Graeco-Roman Empire supposedly based on the narrator’s and main protag- assigning his book the purpose of collecting, “writing onist’s memory.