JOURNAL ARTICLE

POLEMICAL POETRY IN LATE ANTIQUITY: THE RISE OF A EUNUCH CONSUL IN BOOK 1 OF CLAUDIAN'S IN EUTROPIUM.

  • Published In: Acta Classica, 2023, v. 66. P. 227 1 of 3

  • Database: Humanities Source Ultimate 2 of 3

  • Authored By: Charles, Michael B.; Anagnostou-Laoutides, Eva 3 of 3

Abstract

The article examines Claudian's use of Stoic and Epicurean ideas to mount a vitriolic attack against Eutropius, the eunuch consul serving under the Eastern emperor Arcadius. Employed by Stilicho, the pre-eminent military commander of the Western emperor Honorius, Claudian, in Book 1 of the In Eutropium, synthesizes Stoic and Epicurean tropes about bodily afflictions that reveal one's moral character. Claiming that Eutropius, a eunuch who had spent many years as a slave, is a monstrous proof of an offence committed against nature/God, Claudian's polemic plays on the fears of his largely Christian audience about an imminent divine punishment, which the split of the Empire between Theodosius' sons confirms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Additional Information

  • Source:Acta Classica. 2023/01, Vol. 66, p227
  • Document Type:Article
  • Subject Area:History
  • Publication Date:2023
  • ISSN:00651141
  • DOI:10.1353/acl.2022.a914030
  • Accession Number:174283073
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