THE CATHOLIC UNIVERSITY OF AMERICA Callimachus and Callimacheanism in the Poetry of Gregory of Nazianzus A DISSERTATION Submitted to the Faculty of the Department of Greek and Latin School of Arts and Sciences Of The Catholic University of America In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements For the Degree Doctor of Philosophy © Copyright All Rights Reserved By Matthew Alexander Theris Poulos Washington, D.C. 2019 Callimachus and Callimacheanism in the Poetry of Gregory of Nazianzus Matthew Alexander Theris Poulos, PhD Director: William McCarthy, PhD In this study, I analyze the poetics of Gregory of Nazianzus (ca. 330–390 AD), who was one of the first Christian poets writing in Greek to leave an extensive corpus of poetry (about 17,000 lines). Gregory work is striking not only for its breadth but also for its wide variety of themes and metrical schemes. As my focal point, I have chosen Gregory’s reception and adaptation of the poetry and poetics of Callimachus of Cyrene (ca. 290–230 BC). Callimachus was the first poet in the western tradition to enunciate an aesthetic and came to typify for subsequent authors an approach to poetry that privileged finely-wrought, compressed, and erudite compositions. I argue that for Gregory, Callimachus’ works are more than simply one more source to exploit for nice turns of phrase; rather, Callimachus pervasively shapes Gregory’s entire approach to poetic composition. This is seen not only in Gregory’s allusions to Callimachean works, which are numerous and occur quite frequently in programmatic contexts, but also in features of Gregory’s work like poikilia (variety) and a strong authorial persona that have their best precedent in Callimachus’ variegated oeuvre. In chapter one, I survey Callimachus’ reception in the second and third centuries AD. By examining the three most extensive works of hexametric didactic extant from this period (Dionysius’ Periegesis, Oppian’s Halieutica, and ps.-Oppian’s Cynegetica), I argue that Callimachus is a uniquely useful influence for probing how later poets create their poetic personae and enunciate their own aesthetic. Chapters 2–5 treat Gregory’s poetry. I have organized them around four traits that scholars have consistently associated with Callimachean poetry: originality, fineness (leptotēs), erudition, and self-awareness. In chapter two, I show how Gregory adapts the untrodden path motif found in the prologue to Callimachus’ Aetia. I contend that Gregory’s formal experimentation should be regarded as a deliberate embrace of Callimachean polyeideia. Chapter three has as its subject Gregory’s poetic style. I show that for Gregory, Callimachus typifies the concise and technically capable poet, as Gregory consistently advocates for concise speech through allusions to Callimachus’ works. In the fourth chapter, I attend to Gregory’s erudition. His self-proclaimed mastery of both pagan and Christian literature is a foundational aspect of his poetic persona. Though the patent didactic intent in some of Gregory’s verse is at odds with Callimachus’ practice, I argue that when Gregory deploys erudition for polemical and cultural ends he fits neatly within the tradition of Alexandrian didactic. In chapter five, I consider Gregory’s poetic self-awareness. I argue that, following Callimachean precedent, Gregory created sequences of multiple poems thematically linked by ring-compositions and self-allusions. I conclude that Gregory edited his poems much more extensively than has previously been recognized. My work illuminates on the one hand how pervasively Callimachus shapes Gregory’s approach to poetic composition. Yet I have also identified a number of significant ways in which Gregory consciously departs from his Callimachean model. This dissertation by Matthew Alexander Theris Poulos fulfills the dissertation requirement for the doctoral degree in Greek and Latin approved by William McCarthy, PhD, as Director, and by Sarah Ferrario, PhD, and Rev. Gregory Gilbert, PhD, as Readers. __________________________________________________ William McCarthy, PhD, Director __________________________________________________ Sarah Ferrario, PhD, Reader __________________________________________________ Rev. Gregory Gilbert, PhD, Reader ii Acknowledgments ἐν παντὶ εὐχαριστεῖτε (1 Thes. 5:18) It is with a warm heart that I discharge the duty of thanking those who have contributed to this work. I begin, as is fitting, with the professors who have most shaped my scholarly career. While I was an undergraduate at North Carolina State University, I profited enormously from the guidance of William Adler. It was he with whom I first read patristic authors in Greek, and it was he who introduced me to the delights of Byzantine manuscripts. At Catholic University of America, I must first thank my Doktorvater, William McCarthy. In my first Greek class at CUA, he suggested I have a look at Gregory’s poetry; I have not put Gregory’s work down since. He has supported me in numerous ways over the past seven years, not least in his constant exhortation to stay close to the source texts. Sarah Ferrario, in addition to her input as a reader, provided sage counsel throughout my time at CUA on all manner of issues, whether βιωτικά or φιλολογικά. I am grateful also for the numerous helpful comments of my second reader, Rev. Gregory Gilbert. While the Lead Editorial Assistant to the Library of Early Christianity, I learned from John Petruccione something of the care and attention to detail required to produce scholarly works of value. I am thankful for his counsel and encouragement. Frank Mantello’s appreciation for manuscripts and love of Latin made a deep mark even on this Hellenist. Fabio Pagani has to my profit consistently pushed me to think through methodological issues. My work and my life have been enriched by numerous colleagues and friends at CUA. Pride of place goes to my friend and colleague, Kathleen Kirsch, who has provided invaluable critique at every stage of this work. My writing has profited from the scrupulous attention of, inter alios, Karen Carducci, Sr. Fiat Miola (SSVM), Patricia Craig, John Marshall, Casey Knott and Luigi de Luca. Numerous friends have pitched in to watch my children at one point or another: Patricia Craig, Keturah Kiehl, John and Susannah Marshall, Bohdan Lonchyna, Maria Stouraiti, Niki and Nissa Flanders, and Carl Vennerstrom. I am grateful also to all who participated in CUA’s Dissertation iii Bootcamp during the summer of 2018, and to Kevin Rulo and Bethany Besteman for organizing this stimulating atmosphere in which to work and reflect on the process of research. I have profited greatly from the broader scholarly community. During 2018–19, Christos Simelidis took time away from a busy research project at Dumbarton Oaks to discuss Gregory’s poetry and provided numerous corrections and suggestions on chapters two through five. Ryan Clevenger has helped me think through the broader theological and philosophical currents running through Gregory’s work. I am grateful for discussions with Suzanne Abrams Rebillard and her keen sensitivity to Gregory’s place within the social fabric of the fourth century AD. I have benefitted much from conversations on Gregory and late antique Poetry with James McDonald, Thomas Kuhn-Treichel, Matteo Agnosini, and Gianfranco Agosti, whom I met at a stimulating conference in Heidelberg in 2017. My friends and family have been a constant source of support throughout the crucible of graduate school. I am especially grateful for my fellow parishioners and friends at the Church of the Advent, in Washington, DC, for how well they have cared for me and for my family. Will Craig, Matthew Whittemore, and Brandt Siegel in particular have helped me remember the broader significance of what I do with my mind. My parents, Matt and Tammy, have nourished my love of books from the moment I was born. Both have always sought to embody the ancient wish: πάντα πατρῶν καὶ φέρτερος εἴης. My son, Gregory, and my daughter, Alexandria, have warmed my heart and helped me learn the discipline and patience needed to see a PhD through to completion. I devote this work to the two women who have contributed most to it; first, to my sister, Cassandra, who moved to Washington, DC to help me finish this dissertation. Her support in every aspect, especially her help with our children, cannot be put into words. Finally, to my wife, Brianna. You have unflaggingly stood by my side, supporting me materially and spiritually, in body and in soul. No iv man could ask for a more affectionate, more steadfast, or more capable wife. I love you tenderly and pray our God rewards you richly. Γρηγορίῳ τοδὲ ἔργον ἔθηκα υἱῷ τ’ ἁγίῳ τε καὶ Ἀλεξανδρείᾳ ᾗ µέλεται τὸ γελᾶν. χαίρω ἐγὼ δὲ κάσει, Κασσάνδρῃ, Σαπφόϊ καίνῃ, ἣ µὲν πρὸς τὸ σκότος, νῦν δὲ φάος Χάριτος. ὦ ῥόδον, ὄµµατά µου, γλυκὺς ἵµερος, εὔφρον ἄκοιτι, τοῦτο δέ τοι ῥέξα· τοῦτο δὲ σοί, Βριάνη. Alex Poulos Deo gloria Lent 2019 v Table of Contents Acknowledgments ............................................................................................................................................. iii Abbreviations ..................................................................................................................................................... ix Introduction ........................................................................................................................................................ 1 Gregory’s Life ................................................................................................................................................