Readers and Reading Culture in the High Roman Empire: A Study of Elite Communities (Classical Culture and Society)

This chapter investigates the question of how best to analyze the question of reading in antiquity. Reading for purposes of this study is seen not as an individual act, but as the negotiated construction of meaning within a particular sociocultural context. The focus of the book is, then, a particular set of contextualized reading communities, investigated from a constructivist angle. ‎C:\Users\14293\Desktop\Readers and Reading Culture in the High Roman Empire- A Study of Elite Communities (William A. Johnson)\0.1-Copyright Page.pdf‎ ‎C:\Users\14293\Desktop\Readers and Reading Culture in the High Roman Empire- A Study of Elite Communities (William A. Johnson)\0.2-Acknowledgments.pdf‎ ‎C:\Users\14293\Desktop\Readers and Reading Culture in the High Roman Empire- A Study of Elite Communities (William A. Johnson)\0.3-Abbreviations.pdf‎ ‎C:\Users\14293\Desktop\Readers and Reading Culture in the High Roman Empire- A Study of Elite Communities (William A. Johnson)\1-Reading as a Sociocultural System.pdf‎ ‎C:\Users\14293\Desktop\Readers and Reading Culture in the High Roman Empire- A Study of Elite Communities (William A. Johnson)\2-Pragmatics of Reading.pdf‎ ‎C:\Users\14293\Desktop\Readers and Reading Culture in the High Roman Empire- A Study of Elite Communities (William A. Johnson)\3-Pliny and the Construction of Reading Communities.pdf‎ ‎C:\Users\14293\Desktop\Readers and Reading Culture in the High Roman Empire- A Study of Elite Communities (William A. Johnson)\4-Pliny, Tacitus, and the Dialogus de oratoribus.pdf‎ ‎C:\Users\14293\Desktop\Readers and Reading Culture in the High Roman Empire- A Study of Elite Communities (William A. Johnson)\5-Doctors and Intellectuals-Galen’s Reading Community.pdf‎ ‎C:\Users\14293\Desktop\Readers and Reading Culture in the High Roman Empire- A Study of Elite Communities (William A. Johnson)\6-Aulus Gellius-The Life of the Litteratus.pdf‎ ‎C:\Users\14293\Desktop\Readers and Reading Culture in the High Roman Empire- A Study of Elite Communities (William A. Johnson)\7-Fronto and Aurelius-Contubernium and Solitary Reader.pdf‎ ‎C:\Users\14293\Desktop\Readers and Reading Culture in the High Roman Empire- A Study of Elite Communities (William A. Johnson)\8-Lucian’s Insucient Intellectual.pdf‎ ‎C:\Users\14293\Desktop\Readers and Reading Culture in the High Roman Empire- A Study of Elite Communities (William A. Johnson)\9-The Papyri-Scholars and Reading Communities in Graeco-Roman Egypt.pdf‎ ‎C:\Users\14293\Desktop\Readers and Reading Culture in the High Roman Empire- A Study of Elite Communities (William A. Johnson)\10-Conclusion.pdf‎ ‎C:\Users\14293\Desktop\Readers and Reading Culture in the High Roman Empire- A Study of Elite Communities (William A. Johnson)\11-References.pdf‎ ‎C:\Users\14293\Desktop\Readers and Reading Culture in the High Roman Empire- A Study of Elite Communities (William A. Johnson)\12-Index.pdf‎ In Readers And Reading Culture In The High Roman Empire, William Johnson Examines The System And Culture Of Reading Among The Elite In Second-century Rome. The Investigation Proceeds In Case-study Fashion Using The Principal Surviving Witnesses, Beginning With The Communities Of Pliny And Tacitus (with A Look At Pliny's Teacher, Quintilian) From The Time Of The Emperor Trajan. Johnson Then Moves On To Explore Elite Reading During The Era Of The Antonines, Including The Medical Community Around Galen, The Philological Community Around Gellius And Fronto (with A Look At The Curious Reading Habits Of Fronto's Pupil Marcus Aurelius), And The Intellectual Communities Lampooned By The Satirist Lucian. Along The Way, Evidence From The Papyri Is Deployed To Help To Understand Better And More Concretely Both The Mechanics Of Reading, And The Social Interactions That Surrounded The Ancient Book. The Result Is A Rich Cultural History Of Individual Reading Communities That Differentiate Themselves In Interesting Ways Even While In Aggregate Showing A Coherent Reading Culture With Fascinating Similarities And Contrasts To The Reading Culture Of Today--publisher Description. Reading As A Sociocultural System -- The Pragmatics Of Reading -- Pliny And The Construction Of Reading Communities -- Pliny, Tacitus, And The Dialogus De Oratoribus -- Doctors And Intellectuals : Galen's Reading Community -- Aulus Gellius : The Life Of The Litteratus -- Fronto And Aurelius : Contubernium And Solitary Reader -- Lucian's Insufficient Intellectual -- The Papyri : Scholars And Reading Communities In Graeco-roman Egypt -- Conclusion. William A. Johnson. Includes Bibliographical References (p. 209-218) And Index. Reading as a sociocultural system -- The pragmatics of reading -- Pliny and the construction of literary culture -- Pliny, Tacitus, and the Dialogus de oratoribus -- Doctors and intellectuals : Galen's reading community -- Aulus Gellius : the life of the litteratus -- Fronto and Aurelius : contubernium and solitary reader -- Lucian's insufficient intellectual -- The papyri : scholars and reading communities in Graeco-Roman Egypt -- Conclusion In 'Readers and Reading Culture in the High Roman Empire', William Johnson examines the system and culture of reading among the elite in 2nd century Rome, with a focus on specific communities witnessed in surviving literary sources and in the papyri. The result is a rich cultural history of individual reading communities