Chariton's Callirhoe, subtitled Love Story in Syracuse, is the oldest extant novel. It is a fast-paced historical romance with ageless charm.
Chariton narrates the adventures of an exceptionally beautiful young bride named Callirhoe, beginning with her abduction by pirates--adventures that take her as far as the court of the Persian king Artaxerxes and involve shipwrecks, several ardent suitors, an embarrassing pregnancy, the hazards of war, and a happy ending. Animated dialogue captures dramatic situations, and the novelist takes us on picturesque travels. His skill makes us enthralled spectators of plots and counterplots, at trials and a crucifixion, inside a harem, among the admiring crowd at weddings, and at battles on land and sea.
This enchanting tale is here made available for the first time in an English translation facing the Greek text. In his Introduction G. P. Goold establishes the book's date in the first century CE and relates it to other ancient fiction.
G. P. Goold was William Lampson Professor of Latin Language and Literature at Yale University, and General Editor of the Loeb Classical Library (1974-1999).
Title: Callirhoe (Loeb Classical Library 481) (Loeb Classical Library *CONTINS TO info@harvardup.co.uk)
Author: Goold, G. P.,Chariton, Chariton
ISBN: 9780674995307
Binding:
Publisher: Harvard University Press
Publication Date: 1996-01-14
Number of Pages: 448
Weight: 0.2722 kg
The new Loeb edition of Chariton by professor George Goold provides the best available text of Chariton and a useful translation and introduction...At a time when interest in the ancient novel is growing rapidly a Loeb of Chariton is particularly welcome. The translation is literal enough not to confuse the reader who uses it as an aid to understanding the Greek; the format of the series often appeals to students and amateur classicists who use it in this way, so this clarity is a great merit...At the same time, the translation is smooth and readable...There is a good index to the translation and introduction, and allusions are generously referenced in footnotes. -- John Birchall * Scholia Reviews *
Goold gives us the most satisfactory text of the novel currently available. * Greece and Rome *
One of the hottest properties in Classics today is the ancient novel...and we might hope that now, under the enlightened editorship of G.P. Goold, the Loeb Classical Library is prepared to respond substantively to this new interest...The high quality and usefulness of this edition of Chariton should persuade teachers that it can be both utilis et dulcis in the classroom. -- Gareth Schmeling * The Classical Outlook *