La poesia ellenistica e la storia. Considerazioni sullo stato dell'arte e sulle prospettive di ricerca

In the last decades scholars have acknowledged a major importance to the study of Hellenistic poetry in its context. Therefore, cultural embeddedness has replaced learned isolation as a leading keyword in hermeneutics. Papers presented at the conference "Mythe et pouvoir à l’époque hellénistique" provide an insight into the contribution of poetic texts to the study of Hellenistic political, cultural, and religious history as well as into some methodological issues related to the interpretation of Hellenistic poetry in context. My discussion encompasses the role of myths in shaping identity, legitimating power, and corroborating geopolitical claims, as well as the close interaction between social environment and the updating of stories and genres of the Greek narrative tradition.

Keywords
Hellenistic poetry - social context - power legitimation - cultural memory - tradition / innovation / reception