The Anatomy of Dance Discourse : Literary and Philosophical Approaches to Dance in the Later Graeco-Roman World

"Within the newly thriving field of ancient Greek and Roman performance and dance studies, The Anatomy of Dance Discourse offers a fresh and original perspective on ancient perceptions of dance. Focusing on the second century CE, it provides an overview of the dance discourse of this period and explores the conceptualization of dance across an array of different texts, from Plutarch and Lucian of Samosata, to the apocryphal Acts of John, Longus, and Apuleius. The volume is divided into two Parts: while the second Part discusses ekphraseis of dance performance in prose and poetry of the Roman imperial period, the first delves more deeply into an examination of how both philosophical and literary treatments of dance interacted with other areas of cultural expression, whether language and poetry, rhetoric and art, or philosophy and religion. Its distinctive contribution lies in this juxtaposition of ancient theorizations of dance and philosophical analyses of the medium with literary depictions of dance scenes and performances, and it attends not only to the highly encoded genre of pantomime, which dominated the stage in the Roman empire, but also to acrobatic, non-representational dances. This twofold nature of dance sparked highly sophisticated reflections on the relationship between dance and meaning in the ancient world, and the volume defends the novel claim that in the imperial period it became more and more palpable that dance, unlike painting or sculpture, could be representational or not: a performance of nothing but itself. It argues that dance was understood as a practice in which human beings, whether as dancers or spectators, are confronted with the irreducible reality of their own physical existence, which is constantly changing, and that its way to cognition and action is physical experience." -- Contracoberta Cover 1 The Anatomy of Dance Discourse: Literary and Philosophical Approaches to Dance in the Later Graeco-Roman World 4 Copyright 5 Preface 6 Acknowledgements 8 Contents 10 List of Figures 12 Introduction 14 1. ELEMENTS OF ANCIENT DANCE DISCOURSE 14 2. LITERARY CONTEXTS OF ANCIENT DANCE DISCOURSE 19 3. ART AND TEXT, EKPHRASIS AND DANCE 22 4. MIMESIS, DISPLAY, AND THE CULTURAL FORCE OF DANCE 31 Part I: Frameworks for a Discourse on Dance 36 1: The Grammar of Dance: Plutarch’s Table Talk 9.15 in Context 38 1. DANCE AND LANGUAGE: THE LEGACY OF CHOREIA 40 2. THE PLACE OF DANCE IN PLUTARCH’S TABLE TALK 47 3. PHRASE, POSE, AND POINTING: PICTORIAL AND NON-PICTORIAL REFERENCE 55 4. DEIXIS AND ITS RELATIONSHIP WITH LANGUAGE THEORY 63 5. DEIXIS AS DISPLAY, OR HOW DANCE SURPASSES LANGUAGE 74 2: The Mimesis of Dance between Eloquence and Visual Art 88 1. THE (OSTENSIBLE) PARADIGM OF THE ORATOR 91 2. ICONS OF MIMESIS IN LUCIAN’S ON DANCING 95 3. BODY LANGUAGE AND ITS INTERPRETATION 105 4. DANCE AND THE DISCOURSE ON IMAGES 116 5. INTERACTIONS WITH ‘PERFORMATIVE’ SCULPTURE 123 3: Dance as Method and Experience: Emotional and Epistemic Aspects of Dance 136 1. DANCE DISCOURSE AND THE PROTREPTIC TRADITION IN LUCIAN AND LIBANIUS 137 2. THE ART OF SPECTATORSHIP AND THE DANCE OF THE HEAVENLY BODIES IN PLATO 145 3. POETIC MODELS AND PHILOSOPHICAL DEVELOPMENTS 150 4. DANCE AND INTELLIGENT DESIGN 154 5. DANCE, EXPERIENCE, AND COGNITION IN THE MYSTERIES 162 6. THE DANCE IN ACTS OF JOHN 167 Part II: Ekphraseis of Dances 180 4: (Perceived) Authenticity and the Physical Presence of the Performer 182 1. XENOPHON’S SYMPOSIUM AND NEW MUSIC 185 2. PANDĒMOS MOUSIKĒ AFTER XENOPHON: ARISTOXENUS AND ATHENAEUS 196 3. MYTH AND ITS AUTHENTICATION THROUGH DANCE IN IMPERIAL EPIGRAM 202 4. THE DANCER’S MIMETIC EXCESS 206 5: Dance and Interpretation in Longus and Apuleius 214 1. INTERPRETING NATURE THROUGH STORYTELLING 217 2. SHAPING CULTURE THROUGH DANCE 222 3. THE MEANING OF ART 232 4. THE ASS AT THE THEATRE 237 5. LUCIUS’ ABSORPTION 246 6. PERFORMANCE AS AN ACT OF DARING 256 6: Elusive Dancers and the Limits of Art in Nonnus’ Dionysiaka 264 1. DANCE AS AN AESTHETIC PARADIGM IN NONNUS’ DIONYSIAKA 266 2. THE DANCER’S TEMERITY IN DIONYSIAKA 19 276 3. FROM CHANGE TO INTERPRETATION 285 Epilogue: Dance as Experience 296 Bibliography 302 Index 342 A. AUTHORS AND PASSAGES 342 B. NAMES, SUBJECTS, GREEK AND LATIN WORDS 348 Within the newly thriving field of ancient Greek and Roman performance and dance studies. The Anatomy of Dance Discourse offers a fresh and original perspective on ancient perceptions of dance. Focusing mainly on the second century CE, it provides an overview of the dance discourse of this period, explores the conceptualization of dance across an array of different texts-Plutarch, Lucian of Samosata, the apocryphal Acts of John, Longus, and Apuleius-and juxtaposing them with discussions of Xenophon and Nonnus. The volume is divided into two parts: while the second part discusses ekphraseis of dance performance in prose and poetry, the first delves more deeply into an examination of how both philosophical and literary treatments of dance interacted with other areas of cultural expression, whether language and poetry, rhetoric and art, or philosophy and religion. Its distinctive contribution lies in this juxtaposition of ancient theorizations of dance and philosophical analyses of the medium with literary depictions of dance scenes and performances, and it attends not only to the highly encoded genre of pantomime, which dominated the stage in the Roman Empire, but also to acrobatic, non-representational dances. This twofold nature of dance sparked highly sophisticated reflections on the relationship between dance and meaning in the ancient world, and the volume defends the novel claim that in the imperial period it became more and more palpable that dance, unlike painting or sculpture could be representational or not: a performance of nothing but itself. It argues that dance was understood as a practice in which human beings, whether as dancers or spectators, are confronted with the irreducible reality of their own physical existence, which is constantly changing, and that its way to cognition and action is physical experience. Book jacket This book makes an original contribution to the newly thriving field of ancient Greek and Roman performance and dance studies. It offers a better grasp of ancient perceptions and conceptualizations of dance through the lens of literary texts. It gives attention not only to the highly encoded genre of pantomime, which dominates the stages in the Roman Empire, but also to acrobatic, non-representational dances. It is distinctive in its juxtaposition of ancient theorizations of dance with literary depictions of dance scenes. Part I explores the contact zones of ancient dance discourse with other areas of cultural expression, especially language and poetry, rhetoric and art, and philosophy and religion. Part II discusses ekphraseis of dance performances in prose and poetry. The main bulk of the book focuses roughly on the second century CE (discussing Plutarch, Lucian of Samosata, Athenaeus, the apocryphal __Acts of John__, Longus, and Apuleius), with excursions to Xenophon and Nonnus. Dance is performative and dynamic, and its way to cognition and action is physical experience. This book argues that dance was understood as a practice in which human beings, whether as dancers or spectators, are confronted with the irreducible reality of their own physical existence, which is constantly changing. Karin Schlapbach. Includes Bibliographical References (pages 289-328) And Index.