ABSTRACT
Indriyanto, Kristiawan, 2016, Greek and the Other: Narrative Analysis of
Pseudo-Callisthenes’ Alexander Romance and Anna Comnena’s Alexiad. Yogyakarta: The Graduate Program in English Language Studies, Sanata Dharma University.
This thesis explores how colonial ideology is reflected in
Pseudo-Callisthenes’ Alexander Romance and Anna Comnena’s Alexiad. Greek colonialism which took place during antiquity until medieval era had certain parallel with modern colonialism of the European powers. As Alexander Romance and Alexiad were written during different time periods the focus is to compare and contrast the similarities and differences in ideological paradigm.
This thesis uses two main theories to analyze these two texts, narratology and postcolonialism. Narratology is used to probe the ideological position of both the narrator of Alexander Romance and Anna as the Greek through textual analysis. Several narratological concepts used are focalization, prolepsis, and pause. The use of these devices reflect the ideological position of the narrators. Secondly, several postcolonial concepts theorized by Said related with colonialism, imperialism, and the Other are used. As this thesis analyzes selected Greek texts, several concepts
related more with the Greeks are also used, mainly the Greeks’ conceptualization of
the barbarian. Based on these two theories, this thesis concludes that the narrators narrate Alexander Romance and Alexiad from the perspective of the Greek as colonizer.
The primary similarities between Alexander Romance and Alexiad are mainly linked with how the narrators proclaim the superiority of the Greeks through the deeds of Alexander and Alexius which are contrasted with the inferiority of the barbarian kings. While Alexander and Alexius are depicted as a model example of a Greek, their enemies are depicted stereotypically as ignorant and cowardly barbarian kings. The narrators claim that as Greeks, Alexander and Alexius is more intelligent and braver than their opponents, which become the reason for their victory. As both texts are separated by different time periods, there are also differences in ideological perspectives. Firstly, Greek colonialism during antiquity is fueled by religious drive in form of prophecies, on the contrary prophecies is discontinued during Byzantine period. Secondly, Alexander Romance emphasizes more on the conquest of Alexander, not only towards the real barbarians of Persia and India but also towards the mythical barbarians, such as the centaurs. On the contrary, Alexiad gives more emphasizes on how the barbarians are Hellenized in the depiction of semi-barbarians.
ABSTRAK
Indriyanto, Kristiawan, 2016, Greek and the Other: Narrative Analysis of
Pseudo-Callisthenes’ Alexander Romance and Anna Comnena’s Alexiad. Yogyakarta: Program Pasca Sarjana Kajian Bahasa Inggris, Universitas Sanata Dharma
Tesis ini membahas bagaimana ideologi kolonial tercermin dalam Alexander Romance yang ditulis Pseudo-Callisthenes and Alexiad karangan Anna Comnena. Kolonialisme Yunani yang berlangung selama zaman kuno hingga zaman pertengahan memiliki beberapa persamaan dengan kolonialisme Eropa modern. Karena kedua teks tersebut ditulis pada zaman yang berbeda, fokus tesis ini adalah membandingkan persamaan dan perbedaan dalam paradigma ideologis.
Tesis ini menggunakan dua teori inti untuk menganalisa kedua teks tersebut, narratologi dan poskolonialisme. Teori pertama, narratologi digunakan untuk menyelidiki posisi ideologis pengisah dari Alexander Romance dan Anna sebagai orang Yunani melalui analisa tekstual. Beberapa konsep narratologi yang digunakan adalah fokalisasi, prolepsis, dan jeda (pause). Penggunaan beberapa konsep narratologi ini merefleksikan posisi ideologis kedua pengisah. Teori kedua, beberapa konsep poskolonialisme yang diteorikan oleh Edward Said terkait dengan kolonialisme, imperialism dan liyan. Karena tesis ini menganalisa beberapa teks Yunani, tesis ini juga menggunakan beberapa konsep bagaimana orang Yunani mengkonseptualisasi orang barbar. Berdasarkan kedua teori pokok ini, tesis ini berkesimpulan bahwa kedua pengisah menceritakan Alexander Romance dan Alexiad dari sudut pandang Yunani sebagai penjajah.
Persamaan paling pokok antara Alexander Romance dan Alexiad adalah bagaimana kedua pengisah menyatakan keunggulan orang Yunani melalui perbuatan Alexander dan Alexius yang dibandingkan dengan inferioritas raja barbar. Alexander dan Alexius digambarkan sebagai sosok-sosok ideal orang Yunani, sedangkan lawan-lawan mereka digambarkan secara stereotipikal, sebagai raja barbar yang bodoh dan penakut. Pengisah-pengisah di kedua teks itu beranggapan bahwa Alexander and Alexius lebih pintar dan lebih berani dari lawan-lawan mereka sehingga mereka dapat menaklukkan raja-raja barbar. Karena kedua teks ini dipisahkan oleh perbedaan zaman, juga terdapat perbedaan dalam sudut pandang ideologis. Pertama, kolonialisme Yunani di zaman kuno dilandaskan oleh ramalan dewa-dewi, sebaliknya ramalan tidak lagi dipergunakan pada zaman Byzantium. Kedua, Alexander Romance lebih memberikan fokus bagaimana Alexander menaklukan kaum barbar, bukan hanya terhadap kaum barbar sebenarnya seperti orang Persia dan orang India tetapi juga kaum barbar mistis, seperti Kentaur. Sebaliknya, Alexiad lebih berfokus kepada kaum barbar mengadopsi gaya hidup Hellenisme.
GREEK AND THE OTHER: NARRATIVE ANALYSIS ON PSEUDO
CALLISTHENES’ ALEXANDER ROMANCE AND ANNA COMNENA’S
ALEXIAD
A THESIS
Presented as Partial Fulfillment of the Requirement to Obtain the Magister Humaniora (M. Hum.) in English Language Studies
by
Kristiawan Indriyanto
Student Number: 146332017
THE GRADUATE PROGRAM OF ENGLISH LANGUAGE STUDIES SANATA DHARMA UNIVERSITY
GREEK AND THE OTHER: NARRATIVE ANALYSIS ON PSEUDO
CALLISTHENES’ ALEXANDER ROMANCE AND ANNA COMNENA’S
ALEXIAD
A THESIS
Presented as Partial Fulfillment of the Requirement for the Degree of Magister Humaniora (M.Hum) in English Language Studies
by
Kristiawan Indriyanto
Student Number: 146332017
THE GRADUATE PROGRAM OF ENGLISH LANGUAGE STUDIES SANATA DHARMA UNIVERSITY
MOTTO
GOTT MIT UNS
GOD WITH US
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
First of all, I thank Jesus Christ for His blessing and guidance for the
accomplishment of my thesis. I give my gratitude toward my thesis advisor, Paulus
Sarwoto, Ph.D for his insight, help, and correction during the writing of this thesis. I
also thank my lecturers in English Language Studies especially Patrisius Mutiara
Andalas, SJ., S.S., S.T.D. Dra. Novita Dewi, M.S., M.A. (Hons), Ph.D and the late
Prof. Dr. Bakdi Soemanto, S.U. Through their classes and discussions, I learn a lot.
Furthermore, I thank my examiner, Arti Wulandari, Ph.D.
I would also thank both my parents, Prof. Dr. Teguh Prasetyo, S.H., M,Si. and
Sri Indarti, S.H., for their kindness and support during my study. Many thanks are
also attributed toward my friends in English Language Studies, especially from the B
Class of 2014 and Literature Batch. I would like to thank my friends in Literature
Batch, mas Adit, Pras, Ruly, Anggi, mas Tama, mbak Anis, mbak Rini, mbak Dian,
mbak Melania, mbak Teti. During our class we all learn a lot. I also give my gratitude
to my other friends who worked together to finish our thesis, Martha, Sari, Dangin,
mbak Vita, mas Bayu and mas Ajay from IRB. I am also thankful toward the senior
members of 2014 Batch, Pak Marwan, Pak Kosmas, and Pak Firmus for their
wisdom. I also thank my friends in DOTA 2 Dictator Team, Pandu, Uya, Bryan,
Richard, Li, We, Theo, Bli Putu, Anto. Lastly, I also thank the academic staff of ELS,
TABLE OF CONTENTS
TITLE PAGE ... i
APPROVAL PAGE ... ii
DEFENCE APPROVAL PAGE ... iii
MOTTO ... iv
STATEMENT OF WORK ORIGINALITY ... v
LEMBAR PERNYATAAN PERSETUJUAN PUBLIKASI KARYA ILMIAH UNTUK KEPENTINGAN AKADEMIS ... vi
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ... vii
TABLE OF CONTENTS ... viii
ABSTRACT ... xi
ABSTRAK ... xii
CHAPTER I: INTRODUCTION ... 1
A. Background of the Study ... 1
1. Justification of the Study ... 1
2. Historical Background ... 7
3. Objects of Study ... 10
B. Problem Formulation ... 16
C. Benefit of the Study ... 16
D. Thesis Outline ... 17
CHAPTER II : LITERATURE REVIEW ... 18
A. Review of Related Studies ... 18
B. Review of Related Theories ... 27
1. Narratology ... 28
a. Classical and Postclassical Narratology ... 28
b. Ideology in Narrative Devices ... 30
b.1 Ideology and Ideology in Narration ... 30
b.2 Ideology in Focalization ... 32
c. Narratology in Non-Fictional Text ... 37
2. Postcolonial Theories ... 39
a. Colonialism, Colonial Complicity, and Imperialism ... 40
b. The Other and the Greek’s Barbarian Other ... 44
b.1 Said’s Analysis on European Concept of the Other ... 44
b.2 The Greek’s Concept of the Barbarian ... 46
CHAPTER III : IDEOLOGICAL SIMILARITIES BETWEEN ALEXANDER ROMANCE AND ALEXIAD ... 50
A. Comparison between Alexander and Alexius through the Narrators’ Focalization ... 51
1. Glorification of Alexander and Alexius as Noble Greek (Agathos) ... 51
2. Alexander and Alexius’ Hellenic Virtues... 54
a. Intelligence (xunesis) ... 55
b. Bravery (andreia) ... 59
c. Self-restrain (sophrosune)... 62
B. Comparison between Barbarian Kings through the Narrators’ Focalization ... 66
1. Depiction of Darius as Stereotypical Barbarian King ... 67
2. Depiction of Apelchasem as Stereotypical Barbarian King. ... 75
CHAPTER IV : IDEOLOGICAL DIFFERENCES BETWEEN ALEXANDER ROMANCE AND ALEXIAD ... 79
A. The Presence and Absence of Prolepsis ... 79
1. The Presence of Prolepsis and the Myth of Colonial Complicity in Alexander Romance ... 80
a. Prolepsis in Sarepeum Prophecy ... 81
b. Prolepsis in Ammonian Prophecy ... 86
2. The Absence of Prolepsis in Alexiad ... 90
B. Different Barbarians by Different Narrators’ Focalization ... 95
1. Alexander Romance’s Depiction of Mythical Barbarians ... 96
2. Alexiad’s Depiction of Semi-Barbarians ... 101
a. Depiction of the Varangians ... 102
CHAPTER V : CONCLUSION ... 109
BIBLIOGRAPHY ... 115
APPENDICES ... 121
APPENDIX 1: SUMMARY OF ALEXANDER ROMANCE ... 121
ABSTRACT
Indriyanto, Kristiawan, 2016, Greek and the Other: Narrative Analysis of Pseudo-Callisthenes’ Alexander Romance and Anna Comnena’s Alexiad. Yogyakarta: The Graduate Program in English Language Studies, Sanata Dharma University.
This thesis explores how colonial ideology is reflected in Pseudo-Callisthenes’ Alexander Romance and Anna Comnena’s Alexiad. Greek colonialism which took place during antiquity until medieval era had certain parallel with modern colonialism of the European powers. As Alexander Romance and Alexiad were written during different time periods the focus is to compare and contrast the similarities and differences in ideological paradigm.
This thesis uses two main theories to analyze these two texts, narratology and postcolonialism. Narratology is used to probe the ideological position of both the narrator of Alexander Romance and Anna as the Greek through textual analysis. Several narratological concepts used are focalization, prolepsis, and pause. The use of these devices reflect the ideological position of the narrators. Secondly, several postcolonial concepts theorized by Said related with colonialism, imperialism, and the Other are used. As this thesis analyzes selected Greek texts, several concepts related more with the Greeks are also used, mainly the Greeks’ conceptualization of the barbarian. Based on these two theories, this thesis concludes that the narrators narrate Alexander Romance and Alexiad from the perspective of the Greek as colonizer.
The primary similarities between Alexander Romance and Alexiad are mainly linked with how the narrators proclaim the superiority of the Greeks through the deeds of Alexander and Alexius which are contrasted with the inferiority of the barbarian kings. While Alexander and Alexius are depicted as a model example of a Greek, their enemies are depicted stereotypically as ignorant and cowardly barbarian kings. The narrators claim that as Greeks, Alexander and Alexius is more intelligent and braver than their opponents, which become the reason for their victory. As both texts are separated by different time periods, there are also differences in ideological perspectives. Firstly, Greek colonialism during antiquity is fueled by religious drive in form of prophecies, on the contrary prophecies is discontinued during Byzantine period. Secondly, Alexander Romance emphasizes more on the conquest of Alexander, not only towards the real barbarians of Persia and India but also towards the mythical barbarians, such as the centaurs. On the contrary, Alexiad gives more emphasizes on how the barbarians are Hellenized in the depiction of semi-barbarians.
ABSTRAK
Indriyanto, Kristiawan, 2016, Greek and the Other: Narrative Analysis of
Pseudo-Callisthenes’ Alexander Romance and Anna Comnena’s Alexiad. Yogyakarta:
Program Pasca Sarjana Kajian Bahasa Inggris, Universitas Sanata Dharma
Tesis ini membahas bagaimana ideologi kolonial tercermin dalam Alexander Romance yang ditulis Pseudo-Callisthenes and Alexiad karangan Anna Comnena. Kolonialisme Yunani yang berlangung selama zaman kuno hingga zaman pertengahan memiliki beberapa persamaan dengan kolonialisme Eropa modern. Karena kedua teks tersebut ditulis pada zaman yang berbeda, fokus tesis ini adalah membandingkan persamaan dan perbedaan dalam paradigma ideologis.
Tesis ini menggunakan dua teori inti untuk menganalisa kedua teks tersebut, narratologi dan poskolonialisme. Teori pertama, narratologi digunakan untuk menyelidiki posisi ideologis pengisah dari Alexander Romance dan Anna sebagai orang Yunani melalui analisa tekstual. Beberapa konsep narratologi yang digunakan adalah fokalisasi, prolepsis, dan jeda (pause). Penggunaan beberapa konsep narratologi ini merefleksikan posisi ideologis kedua pengisah. Teori kedua, beberapa konsep poskolonialisme yang diteorikan oleh Edward Said terkait dengan kolonialisme, imperialism dan liyan. Karena tesis ini menganalisa beberapa teks Yunani, tesis ini juga menggunakan beberapa konsep bagaimana orang Yunani mengkonseptualisasi orang barbar. Berdasarkan kedua teori pokok ini, tesis ini berkesimpulan bahwa kedua pengisah menceritakan Alexander Romance dan Alexiad dari sudut pandang Yunani sebagai penjajah.
Persamaan paling pokok antara Alexander Romance dan Alexiad adalah bagaimana kedua pengisah menyatakan keunggulan orang Yunani melalui perbuatan Alexander dan Alexius yang dibandingkan dengan inferioritas raja barbar. Alexander dan Alexius digambarkan sebagai sosok-sosok ideal orang Yunani, sedangkan lawan-lawan mereka digambarkan secara stereotipikal, sebagai raja barbar yang bodoh dan penakut. Pengisah-pengisah di kedua teks itu beranggapan bahwa Alexander and Alexius lebih pintar dan lebih berani dari lawan-lawan mereka sehingga mereka dapat menaklukkan raja-raja barbar. Karena kedua teks ini dipisahkan oleh perbedaan zaman, juga terdapat perbedaan dalam sudut pandang ideologis. Pertama, kolonialisme Yunani di zaman kuno dilandaskan oleh ramalan dewa-dewi, sebaliknya ramalan tidak lagi dipergunakan pada zaman Byzantium. Kedua, Alexander Romance lebih memberikan fokus bagaimana Alexander menaklukan kaum barbar, bukan hanya terhadap kaum barbar sebenarnya seperti orang Persia dan orang India tetapi juga kaum barbar mistis, seperti Kentaur. Sebaliknya, Alexiad lebih berfokus kepada kaum barbar mengadopsi gaya hidup Hellenisme.
CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION
A. Background of the Study 1. Justification of the Study
Colonialism and imperialism begins even further than the modern Western
imperialism. Irwin St. John Tucker in his A History of Imperialism (1920)
proclaims that,” empire is as old as history itself.”1 A less hyperbolic view is
addressed by Michael W Doyle in Empires (1986). In Doyle’s view,
empires have been key actors in world politics for millennia. They helped create the interdependent civilizations of Europe, India, the Americas, Africa, and East Asia which form much of our cultural heritage. They shaped the political development of practically all the states of the modern world.2
Both theorists recognize the fact that imperialism has started since the dawn of
human civilization. Imperialism is associated with a sense of superiority by the
imperial powers which become their justification to conquer and control the so
called “weaker” civilization. The imperial subjugation causes the loss of
independence in the occupied nation, as the colonizer has total control and
authority in ruling their colonized. Doyle states that
empire, I shall argue, is a system of interaction between two political entities, one of which, the dominant metro pole, exerts political control over the internal and external policy-the effective sovereignty- of the other, the subordinate periphery.3
This thesis seeks to explore the reflection of colonial ideology in selected
Greek texts. Although Greek was not a major power in modern European
1 Tucker, Irwin St. John. A History of Imperialism. (New York: Rand School of Social Science,
1920) p. 134. PDF
imperialism, Greek colonialism during antiquity until medieval era can also show
the embodiment of colonial ideology in their literary texts. While the modern
colonialism is marked more by the colonial empires of Britain, French, Dutch and
also Germany, Greek colonialism occurs during the antiquity until the medieval
era. The primary objects of study are two Greek texts, Pseudo-Callisthenes4’
Alexander Romance and Anna Comnena5’s Alexiad. Pepertua Nkamanyang
addresses how literature, especially narrative is loaded with the cultural
background of its production, he said that
narrative itself functions as a tool for constructing specific cultural contexts (including history/ideology of a given period) since it provides formal structures for reproducing specific cultures from which it emanates.6
Similar with the way modern colonizer proclaim their superiority compared to the
colonized, the Greeks also conceptualized the view of the superiority of Hellenic
culture compared to the barbarian Other through literature.
Even though there are parallels between Greek colonialism and modern
colonialism as literature is used to strengthen the propagation of the superiority of
the colonizer, there exists a major difference. Orientalism, as stated by Edward
Said in his Orientalism (1978) is the main ideological conception behind modern
4Even though Callisthenes, Alexander’s court historian writes Alexander’s history, Callisthenes is
executed before the end of the Indian Campaign. The person who continues Callisthenes’ work
remains unknown, hence the authorship of Alexander Romance is attributed to Pseudo-Callisthenes. In Indian Campaign Alexander led his army into India in 326 BC and defeated King Porus of the Paurava Kingdom. Alexander did not conquer the whole of India, at the River Hyphasis he turned back (mid-326), sailed down the Indus and marched through the Gedrosian desert to the Persian heartland.
5 There is no standardized version of her name, it can be spelled either Anna Comnena (Latinized)
or Anna Komnene (original Greek). This thesis uses Anna Comnena as Dawes’ version as the object of study uses the Latin version.
6 Nkamanyang, Pepertua. Forms and Function of Narration and Focalization in some Selected
imperialism. Said defines Orientalism as the idea of the West for dominating,
restructuring, and having authority over the Orient7, the place of Europe’s greatest
and richest colonies8 in Asia and Africa. On the contrary, the Greeks denoted their
antithesis, whom they considered as barbarian was not merely limited to the East.
The word barbarians denote person or people who have different culture,
language, and custom to what the Greek had. Hence, the anti-Greeks in the
Greek’s perception cover all the non-Greek ethnicity which do not have the same
culture and custom (paideia) to the Greeks.
As a comparative analysis, this thesis focuses on comparing and
contrasting two Greek texts which come from different time period. The first text
is Alexander Romance, depicting the legend of Alexander the Great (356-323
BCE) by Pseudo-Callisthenes. The second text is Alexiad, written by Anna
Comnena. Alexiad tells a story of the life of Anna’s father, Emperor Alexius of
the Byzantine Empire (1057-1118 AD). Both texts portray the Greeks’ conquest
of the non-Greeks through the campaigns of Alexander the Great and Alexius of
Byzantine Empire. As both texts were written by Greeks, the narrators narrate
their story from the perspective of a Greek or through what Marie Louise Pratt
states as “imperial eyes9”. Through postclassical narratology as the main
framework for the analysis, this thesis focuses on how textual features of the text
actually reflect the ideological positioning of the narrator as Greeks. Furthermore,
as both texts were written during the different time periods, the emphasis is on the
comparison between two Greek texts.
7 Said, Edward. Orientalism. (London: Penguins Book, 1978, Reprint.1995) p. 3. Print. 8 Said, Edward. p. 1.
This thesis briefly explores the status of Alexiad as one of the object of
study. There are two main reasons why this thesis asserts that Alexiad is
comparable with Alexander Romance, although their genre is different. Firstly,
Marjorie Perloff acknowledges how the term literature may not adequately
describe the object of comparative literature, as literary phenomena are no longer
the exclusive focus of comparative literature.10 Furthermore, literary texts are one
discursive practice among many, and that the space of comparison today involves
comparisons between various cultural constructions.11 It shows how in the
contemporary comparative analysis, the comparable materials are expanded.
According to Perloff’s understanding, literature is comparable with historical texts
as both are “cultural constructions”.
Secondly, although Alexiad is categorized as historical narrative or
historiography, it differs from conventional Byzantine histories. John Davis
analyzes how
Alexiad is notable due for its intricate blend of historical and linguistic awareness. On one hand it follows the pattern of serious historical composition, including research, considered assessment of the data and careful arrangement and exposition of the material; on the other, Alexiad also shows a rich mantle of rhetorical and literary artifice…. This work embodied the cultural spirit of the ancient Greco-Roman intellectual tradition.12
10 Perloff, Marjorie. “Literature in the Expanded Field”. Comparative Literature in the Age of
Multiculturalism. (Baltimore: The John Hopkins University Press, 1995) Ed. Charles Bernheimer.
p.176. Print.
11 Perloff, Marjorie. p. 180.
12 Davis, John. “Anna Komnene and Niketas Choniates ‘translated’ “the fourteenth-century
Byzantine metaphrases.” History as Literature in Byzantium: Papers from the Fortieth Spring Symposium of Byzantine Studies, University of Birmingham, April 2007. Ed. R.J. Macrides.
Neville argues also that Alexiad is “an unusual history”, Anna often makes
allusion to the Greek epic Iliad, and Alexiad is also epic in scale.13 Similar with
Neville, Mesko states also that Anna intends more on praising Alexius’ deeds and
the precise narration of the historical events is only secondary.14 Summarizing
several aforementioned opinions, this thesis concludes that Alexiad should not be
classified as historiography, but as a “historical epic15”.
As a basis for the comparison, this thesis uses Siegbert Prawer’s
understanding of comparative literature, quoted in Susan Bassnett’s Comparative
Literature (1993). She states that two subjects of comparative analysis are the
literary representation of that literary representation of named personages and
recurring motifs are subjects of comparative analysis.16 Relating with the
postclassical model of narratology used as the theory of analysis, it can be seen
that narrative devices such as focalization reflected both narrators’ ideological
positioning in how they portray Alexander and Alexius in their narration. In
representing Alexander and Alexius as real persons in literary works, both
narrators emphasize the superiority of Greek compared to barbarian through the
achievements of both Alexander and Alexius.
Furthermore, both Alexander Romance and Alexiad have similarity in
recurring motifs; both texts glorify the legend of two great man in Greek history
13 Neville, Leonora. “Lamentation, History, and Female Authorship in Anna Komnene’s Alexiad”
Greek Roman and Byzantine Studies 53 (2013) p.193. PDF.
14Mesko, Marek. “Anna Komnene’s Narrative of the War against the Scythians.” Graeco-Latina
Brunensia 19 (2014) p. 54. PDF.
15 Herman, David. Jahn, Manfred and Marie-Laure Ryan. Routledge Encyclopedia of Narrative
Theory. (London: Routledge, 2005) p. 214. PDF.
16 Prawer, Siegbert. Quoted in Basnett, Susan. Comparative Literature. (Oxford: Blackwell
by their martial prowess. Alexander and Alexius are portrayed as agathos (noble
man) and possess arête (heroic excellence). Arthur W.H Adkins in his book Merit
and Responsibility: A Study in Greek Values (1975) elaborates more about
agathos and arête. Firstly, agathos is “the most powerful words of commendation
used of a man”17, an agathos is in possession of arête, the qualities most highly
valued at any time by Greek society.18 Agathos is the most admired type of man;
the man who possesses the skills and qualities of the warrior-chieftain in war….be
brave, skillful, and successful in war.19 A successful conqueror is considered to
achieve glory (kleos) by their prowess in war.20 Through the narrators’ voice in
their focalization, both narrators emphasize Alexander and Alexius’ status as
agathos due to their success in war and their various Hellenic virtues. On the
other hand, Alexander and Alexius’ enemies are denigrated as barbarian kings,
tainted by various barbaric flaws.
Even though both texts are similar in several aspects, these two texts also
differ due to the different circumstances and historical background. Alexander
Romance focuses on the conquest of Alexander in the beginning of Hellenistic
Age. Hellenistic Age refer to the era of the enlarged, cosmopolitan Greek world of
appropriately 330 -31 BCE.21. Hellenistic Age22 can therefore be considered as the
17 Adkins, Arthur W.H. Merit and Responsibility: A Study in Greek Values. (Oxford: Oxford
University Press, 1960) Reprinted.1975. p. 30-31. PDF
18 Adkins, Arthur W.H. p. 31 19 Adkins, Arthur W.H. p. 31 20 Adkins, Arthur W.H. p. 32.
21 Sacks, David. Murray, Oswyn, and Margaret Bunson. Encyclopedia of the Ancient Greek World
(New York: Facts on File, 1995) p. 169. PDF
22The differentiation of the term Hellenic and Hellenistic according to the Encyclopedia of Ancient
Greek World is that while Hellenic refers to the Greeks itself, the word Hellenistic come from the
glory days of Greek civilization, where they ruled a large empire populated by
non-Greek ethnicities.
Compared to Alexander Romance, the situation of Byzantium depicted in
Alexiad is marked with discord and turmoil. Before Alexius usurped the throne
during a coup in 1081, the reign of previous emperor Nikophoros III Botaneiates
corresponded with a sharp downturn in Byzantium’s economic and military
fortunes.23 Around 1081, several outside enemies such as the Normans in Italy,
Seljuk Turks in Asia Minor and also internal threat by pretender such as
Nicephorus Bryennius endangered the security of the empire. As stated by
Frankopan,” Byzantium is in a state of effective paralysis at the time of Alexius’
seizure of the throne.”24 To summarize, while both Pseudo-Callisthenes and Anna
emphasize the superiority of Hellenic culture through the achievement of
Alexander and Alexius, there are also differences in the ideological perspectives
due to the different time period, which will be further explored in the analysis.
2. Historical Background
Before moving into further explanation of the figure of
Pseudo-Callisthenes and Anna and their works, there are some information regarding
Greek colonialism. These aspects mainly cover the beginning of Greek
colonialism, colonialism by conquest in the era of Alexander the Great, and about
the interconnection between Greek and Roman culture after Greece was
used to refer to the era and the time period, especially as after Alexander’s conquest Hellenic
culture is not only confined to Greece but spread to the East.
23 Frankopan, Peter. “Kinship and the Distribution of Power in Komnenian Byzantium.” The
English Historical Review. 122. (2007) Web, 7 September 2015. PDF
< http://www.jstor.org/stable/20108202> p. 1
conquered by Rome. Even though the Greeks were subjugated by the Romans,
their Hellenic identity did not perish and it fact it continued to flourish until their
Hellenic heritage eventually replaced the Roman aspect during Byzantine period.
In many ways, Greek colonialism in antiquity and medieval era is more
long-lasting than the modern colonial power. Greek colonists traveled all along
the Mediterranean and established many cities which remained until the present
era. Marseille in France, Taranto (Taras) in Italy, and Alexandria in Egypt is a
small example of cities founded by Greek colonists before Common Era. M.H
Hansen in his book Polis: An Introduction to the Ancient Greek City-State (2006)
states that Greek colonies constitute around half of ancient Greek poleis or at least
500 cities in the archaic and classical periods.25 Furthermore, Scheidel estimates
that 40 percent of all ancient Greek resides in colonial city-states.26 This
illustration shows that colonialism is an essential part of Greek ideology to expand
the boundaries outside Greece itself.
At first, Greek colonialism consists of peaceful contact and co-existence
between Greek settlers and traders with the natives. Parmenter makes comparison
between the early Greek colonialism and the early European colonialism of North
America.27 He believes that both is disorganized, involves migrations, and has no
state sponsorship. Greek colonialism began to change during the reign of
Alexander the Great (330 BCE). Peter Green in his book Alexander the Great and
25 Hansen, M.H. Polis: An Introduction to the Ancient Greek City-State. (Oxford, Oxford
University Press, 2006) p. 84. PDF
26 Scheidel, W. “The Greek Demographic Expansion: Models and Comparison.” Journal of
Hellenic Studies 123 (2003) Web, 29 February 2016. http://www.jstor.org/stable/3246263 p. 120-140. PDF
27 Parmenter, Christoper S. Ethnography and the Colonial World in Theocritus and Lucian. MA
the Hellenistic Age (2007) states that Alexander’s conquest of the Persian
Achaemenid Empire defines the start of the Hellenistic Age.28 In this era, Greek
colonialism began to be identified by territorial conquest through warfare instead
of following the early model of colonialism.
After reviewing the beginning of Greek colonialism and colonialism by
conquest during the Hellenistic Age, this thesis explores the Greek identity in the
Byzantine Empire, as Alexiad was written in this period. Modern historians coined
the term Byzantine Empire to refer to the Eastern Roman Empire. The earliest use
is from Hieronymous Wolf, who uses the word Byzantine in his book Corpus
Historiae Byzantinae (1557) to characterize the culture of the Eastern Roman
Empire.29 The name Byzantine derives from the original settlement before
Constantinople, the capital was established which was named Byzantium. The
Eastern Roman Empire, as their territory encompassed the former territorial
conquest of Alexander and hence the Hellenistic world was especially influenced
by their Greek paideia (education, culture, and custom). Vyrnois addresses the
Hellenism of Byzantium, he states:
There are three fundamental aspects of Byzantine identity: (a) language, (b) education, and (c) monarchial institutions. The first two of these are clearly Greek, and directly descended from classical Greece through their Hellenistic forms. The third, the Roman imperial institution, is also in part descended from its Hellenistic precedents.30
Vyronis states that language and education –paideia- of the Byzantines are
derived from classical Greece. He also offers some insight towards the Roman
28 Green, Peter. Alexander the Great and the Hellenistic Age. (London: Weidenfeld & Nicolson,
2007) p. xvi. PDF
29 Stathakopoulos, Dionysios. A Short History of the Byzantine Empire. (London, I.B.Tauris & Co.
Ltd, 2014) p. 204. PDF
imperial tradition, such as the monarchial institutions which are still used by the
Byzantines. In his opinion, the “Roman imperial institution”31 are actually partly
“descended from its Hellenistic precedent”32, mainly related with the
establishment of Hellenistic kingdoms in the aftermath of the conquest of
Alexander. It implies that the establishment of Roman imperial institution,
Imperium Romanum is actually based on the previous model of Greek imperium
of the East in the Hellenistic Age. It indicates that there was continuity between
ancient Greeks during antiquity and Byzantine Greeks. Vyronis concludes:
There was indeed a Greek identity in Byzantium as witnessed by the identification with the Greek language and Greek education on the formal cultural level, but one which the Hellenistic absolutist political tradition in its Roman political form was the characteristic political features.33
3. Objects of Study
In this section, this thesis explores more about the objects of study used,
Alexander Romance and Alexiad. Alexander Romance is a historical fiction about
the legend of Alexander the Great during the 4th century BC. This story depicts
the conquests of Alexander, not only towards the real barbarians such as the
Persians and the Indians but also against mythical barbarians such as the centaurs.
As the story is told from the perspective of a Greek narrator, the narrator glorifies
the successful conquest of Alexander as the proof for the superiority of the
Greeks. This work is considered as one of the most long-lived and influential
work of Greek literature.34 Alexander’s fame and popularity persists until the
31 Vyronis, Speros. p. 31 32 Vyronis, Speros. p. 31 33 Vyronis, Speros. p. 36
34 Callisthenes, Pseudo. The Greek Alexander Romance. (London: Penguins Books, 1991) p. 5.
modern era. In 2009, Alexander was voted as the greatest Greek of all time.35 This
fact illustrates the modern Greeks still consider Alexander as their hero, an
example of model Greek agathos which influenced how they vote Alexander as
the greatest Greek of all time.
The authorship of Alexander Romance is usually attributed to Callisthenes,
a contemporary historian of Alexander. Callisthenes served as Alexander’s court
historian; he annotated Homer’s Illiad that Alexander always reads before he
sleeps.36 Callisthenes followed Alexander’s expedition to Egypt, Persia, but he
was executed before the end of Alexander’s expedition into India. For that reason,
the authorship of Alexander Romance in modern English translation is attributed
to Pseudo Callisthenes, as the person who complete Callisthenes’ work is still
unrecognized.37
The thesis uses the Greek version translated by Richard Stoneman. Greek
Alexander Romance emphasizes Alexander’s divinity by his descend from Greek
gods. He is believed as the son of Ammon and descends from Heracles and Zeus.
The narrator of Alexander Romance uses Alexander’s divine parentage to help
legitimize Alexander’s territorial conquests. This thesis especially focuses on the
use of prophecies or in narratological term prolepsis to argue that this device
reflects the colonial ideology of the narrator through the justification for
Alexander’s conquest.
35“Alexander the Great was voted as the Greatest Greek of All Time.” Web, 17 December 2015. <
http://history-of-macedonia.com/2009/05/19/alexander-the-great-was-voted-as-the-greatest-greek-all-time> PDF
36 Stoneman, Richard. “Primary Sources from the Classical and Early Medieval Periods” A
Companion to Alexander Literature in the Middle Ages. Ed. David Zuwiyya. (Leiden: Brill
Academic Pub, 2011) p. 12. PDF
The second text used is Anna Comnena’s Alexiad which was written
during medieval era (around 1148 AD), more than one millennium after
Alexander Romance. Similar with the narrator of Alexander Romance, Anna also
emphasizes the superiority of the Greeks through her depiction of her father as a
model Greek (agathos). Her father’s success in war is considered by Anna to be
caused by her father’s status as a Greek; Greeks are considered to be more
intelligent than barbarians.
This thesis briefly explores Anna as a historical figure. Anna was born at
dawn of Saturday, 1st December 1083.38 She was educated by her father Alexius
Comnenus -Emperor of Byzantine Empire - in Greek literacy, rhetoric, and also
philosophy.39 Shaffer and Marcopoulos compares Anna with Murasaki Shikibu,
the author of The Tale of Genji, they state that both were highly educated persons
in a day when most people were illiterate.40 As a first born child and
Porphyrogénnētos -born in the purple- an honorary rank for Byzantine
prince/princess born in the purple chamber of the Imperial Palace, she expected
herself to ascend the throne as Empress. Unfortunately for her, the birth of John,
her younger brother placed her below John in the succession. After her father’s
death, she tried to place her husband, Nicephorus Bryennius as Emperor and she
as the Empress but her coup attempt was thwarted. Unwilling to execute his elder
38Comnena, Anna. The Alexiad. (London: Routledge, 1928) Reprinted. (Ontario: In Parentheses
Publication, 2000) Trans. Elizabeth A.S Dawes. p. 15. PDF
39 Comnena, Anna. The Alexiad. (London: Penguin Books, 1969) Reprint. Penguin Classics, 2003.
Trans. E.R.A Sewter. p. 5. PDF
40 Shaffer, Lynda N and George J. Marcopouolos. “Murasaki and Comnena : Two Women and
Two Themes in World History.” The History Teacher. 19.4 (1986) Web. 23 May 2016. <
sister, Emperor John ordered Anna to be banished at a monastery. It was the time
where she wrote an account of her father’s reign as emperor.
Lastly, this thesis explores how the Greek texts are translated. As this
thesis analyzes the Greek’s colonial ideology through the medium of translation
from Greek into English, it cannot be denied that the message transferred might
change in the process of translation. Hence, certain consideration is needed to
make sure that the translated texts used do not differ too much with the narrator’s
original ideological position. In other words, more literal translation or
word-by-word translation is preferred. In their book The Theory and Practice of
Translation (1969) [1982] Eugene Nida and Charles R. Taber elaborates two
types of translation, formal equivalence and dynamic equivalence. Nida and Taber
define the characteristics of formal equivalence as
F-E translation attempts to reproduce several formal elements, including: (1) grammatical units, (2) consistency in word use, and (3) meaning in terms of the source context. The reproduction of grammatical units may consist in: (a) translating nouns by nouns, verbs by verbs, etc.; (b) keeping all phrases and sentences intact41
Formal equivalence tries to remain as close to the original text as possible,
without adding the translator’s ideas and thoughts into the translation.42 It can be
seen therefore that translation which employs formal equivalence methods will
have more faithful translation to the original source,
41 Nida, Eugene and Charles R. Taber. The Theory and Practice of Translation. (Leiden: E. J.
Brill, 1969) Reprinted. 1982. p. 165. PDF
42 Shakernia, Shabnam. “Study of Nida’s (formal and dynamic equivalence) and Newmark’s
In her book, Translation in a Postcolonial Context (1999), Maria
Tymoczko explores postcolonial translation of early Irish literature.43 A key point
she addresses is “signature concepts” of a culture, the cultural elements that are
important to both the social organization and the world view of a particular
culture.44 She further adds:
The translation of early Irish literature into English was not only a matter of translating specifically literary elements of the texts within a charged ideological construct; there was also the matter of identifying and conveying the cultural beliefs, values, ideas, and ideals that make for distinct Irish views of the world embodied in the texts.45
It can be stated that in translating text, a translator should make careful
observation to make sure that the specific “signature concepts” of the original text
is able to be transmitted to the target audiences. Similar with what Tymoczko has
stated, Lorna Hardwick and Eva Parisinou in their Translating Words, Translating
Cultures (2000) also propose correlated view:
Greek texts. Hardwick and Parisinou state that the “task facing the translator of
ancient texts” is to articulate “the cultural framework” of a text which similar with
43 Tymoczko, Maria. Translation in a Postcolonial Context. (Michigan: University of Michigan St.
Jerome Publishing, 1999) p. 210. PDF
44 Tymoczko, Maria. p. 213. 45 Tymoczko, Maria. p. 211.
46 Hardwock, Lorna and Eva Parisinou. Translating Words, Translating Cultures. (Oakland:
what Tymoczko coins as “signature concepts.” Hence, it is not only the translation
of early Irish text that should translate the “signature concepts” of Irish into
English, but also the translation of classical Greek texts into English.
The debate in choosing which text to use is more particularly shown in the
translation of Alexiad, as there are two different versions. In choosing which
version of Alexiad to analyze here, this thesis prefers the translation which uses
formal equivalence method. The translated version of Alexiad used here is the
1928 version of Alexiad translated by Elisabeth A.S Dawes.47 Dawes’ version is
the first translation of Alexiad into English, and another translator, E.R.A Sewter
published her translation in 1968. Dawes’ version is preferred because in this
thesis’s perspective, Dawes’ Alexiad better captures the original essence of
Anna’s narration, her colonial ideology that is the main aspect of the thesis. One
review by Paul Halsall also emphasizes the closeness of Dawes’ translation to the
original Greek.48 The review says, “Dawes’ translation was a literal one that kept
very closely to the Greek text.” Halsall also reviews Sewter’ version and he states
that Sewter’s translation is a more fluid version than Dawes’”.49 In her preface,
Sewter herself acknowledges that “she tries to express in contemporary Anglo
-American the ideas and language of a Byzantine princess who wrote some eight
47Dawes’s version is republished by In Parentheses publications in 2000 and available online at
www.yorku.ca/inpar/alexiad_dawes.pdf
48 Hallsall, Paul. <Medieval Sourcebook: Anna Comnena: The Alexiad> Web, 23 May 2016. <
http://legacy.fordham.edu/halsall/basis/AnnaComnena-Alexiad.asp>
hundred years ago”.50 Hence, this thesis uses the version translated by Dawes
which is closer to the original Greek.
B. Problem Formulation
This thesis compares and contrasts the similarities and differences between
the Greek’s colonial ideology in antiquity and medieval era through the narrators’
use of several narrative devices. Although both texts are separated by different
time periods, the imperial and colonial attitude of the Greek persists from
antiquity until the medieval era. While there are similarities, the different
historical background of Alexander Romance and Alexiad also causes difference
in how the colonial ideology is depicted. There are two questions formulated here.
The first question is intended to highlight the similarities of ideology from
Alexander Romance and Alexiad. Second question is to explore the differences in
ideological positioning. This thesis formulates the questions as:
1. How do Alexander Romance and Alexiad depict the similarities of
ideology between ancient Greek and Byzantine Greek?
2. How do Alexander Romance and Alexiad depict the differences of
ideology between ancient Greek and Byzantine Greek?
C. Benefit of the Study
This thesis aims to have theoretical benefit which is to increase awareness
towards contemporary/postclassical narratology. Contemporary narratology
particularly highlights how the form and contents of literature are socially
constructed, related with the historical contexts concerning literary texts. Through
50 Comnena, Anna. The Alexiad. London: Penguin Books, 1969. Reprint. Penguin Classics, 2003)
the analysis of several narrative devices originally coined by structuralist
narratology, contemporary narratology examines how the narrative devices reflect
the ideological positioning of the narrator. Furthermore, as this thesis also uses
several postcolonial concepts to analyze Greek colonialism in Alexander Romance
and Alexiad, this study can also be defined as the application of postcolonial
narratology. As stated by Gerald Prince, postcolonial narratology adopts and rely
on the result of postclassical narratology, but would inflect and perhaps enrich it
by wearing a set of postcolonial lenses to look as narrative.51 It can be said
therefore that the analysis of this thesis is conducted with postclassical
narratology as the main framework, which is enhanced by several postcolonial
terminologies.
D. Thesis Outline
This thesis is arranged thematically. Chapter one consists of background
of the study, problem formulation, and benefits of the study. Chapter two covers
the review of related studies and review of related theories. Chapter three analyzes
the similarities in ideology between Alexander Romance and Alexiad. Chapter
four deals with the differences of ideological perspective between Alexander
Romance and Alexiad. The last chapter presents the conclusion of the analysis in
the third and fourth chapter.
51 Prince, Gerald. “On a Postcolonial Narratology.” A Companion to Narrative Theory. (New
CHAPTER II LITERATURE REVIEW
A. Review of Related Studies
Previously, this thesis summarizes background of the study which covers
justifications for the study, historical background, and also objects of the study. On
historical backgrounds, this thesis reviews the development of Greek colonialism
from the early period of colonialism until colonialism through conquest which started
during the reign of Alexander the Great. In this section, the focus is more on
reviewing several previous studies on how the Greeks viewed the non-Greeks as
barbarian. This section emphasizes on how the Greeks conceptualized the idea of
barbarian in several Greek texts as few researches on colonialism in both Alexander
Romance and Alexiad have been conducted. Several articles reviewed here argue that
the concept of colonialism can be found in their reading of several Greek texts, either
on historical accounts or literary texts.
Several studies have been conducted on how the Greek perceives the Other.
Van der Vliet presents this issue in his reading of Strabo’s Geography.52 He asserts
that ethnicity is constructed on the basis of dichotomies, by which ‘us’ and ‘not us’
are distinguished.53 There was also dichotomy in how the Greeks viewed the
non-Greeks ethnicities based on Strabo’s account. The dichotomy was on strict opposition
52Van der Vliet, Edward Ch. L. “The Romans and Us, Strabo’s Geography and the Construction of
Ethnicity.” Mnemosyne. 56. (2003), Web, 7 October 2015. http://www.jstor.org/stable/4433447 p. 257-272.
between hostile and uncivilized native tribes facing Greek colonists. Strabo associates
barbarism (barbaroi) with misery, poverty, a lack of capacity to civilize themselves
and a lack of self-control and moderation.54 Barbarian natives were described to have
a wretched and simple existence. Therefore, uncivilized natives needed the guiding
hand of Greek colonizer in order to improve their living condition. The Greeks
believed that it was their duty to bring Hellenic culture to the untamed ethnicities by
the virtue of being the superior culture. In the Greeks’ perception, barbarian was their
antithesis or the opposite of the Greek.55 Hence, the Greeks considered the
non-Greeks ethnicities as the Other.
Another idea of how barbarian was portrayed in Greek historical account can
also be found in Herodotus’s Histories.56Van Amsterdam explores how Herotodus’s
Histories presents the imagery of untidy hordes, incomprehensible speech, and the
contrasting values between tyrannical Persians against the democratic Greeks.57
When the Greeks managed to hold the Persian’s expansion at Salamis and Platea it
was the victory of the superiority of the Greeks compared to the barbarian, despotic
slave state.58 Similar with what Van Der Vliet asserted before, the Greek perceived
the non-Greeks as their antithesis. In this case, the Greek’s democratic government
was contrasted with the tyrannical monarchy of the Persians. Greek’s victory in the
54 Van der Vliet, Edward Ch. L. p. 257 55 Van der Vliet, Edward Ch. L. p. 261
56 Van Amsterdam, Katrina. “When in Greece, Do as the Persian Don’t: Defining the Identity of the
Greeks Against the Persian Imperial Order.” Hirundo XIII (2013), Web. 3 November 2015.
https://www.mcgill.ca/classics/files/classics/2013-14-02.pdf p. 1-16.
Persian War (480-479 BC) was further used to strengthen the superiority of the
Greeks compared with the Persian Other.
Previous two studies have reviewed the binary opposition between Greeks and
non-Greeks based on the opposition between savagery and civilized and also
democracy against tyranny. Another study explores that the Greeks’ perception
toward the non-Greeks as the Other is not just limited to the East, but to all ethnicities
which do not adopt Greek culture and custom. Holdsworth asserts that Diodorus
Siculus’s Bibliotheca Historia (59 BCE) consists of derogative view toward the
Romans.59 While Siculus acknowledges the achievement of the Romans, he considers
the Romans as barbarian due to the fact that their native language is not Greek but
Latin.60 In the analysis of this thesis, how the Greek considers their Other as all
non-Greek can be found in both Alexander Romance (300 AD) and Alexiad (1148 AD).
The narrator in Alexander Romance and Anna both possess view that not just the
East, but the West is also considered as ruled by barbarian savages.
The idea of barbarism was not only found in Greek historical accounts but
also in Greek literary texts. Edith Hall in her book Inventing the Barbarian: Greek
Self Definition through Tragedy (1986) states that the ideological polarization of
Hellene and barbarian started from the fifth century onwards, and drama is the source
59 Holdsworth, Benjamin, Evans (2009) Reading Romans in Rome: A Reception of Romans in the
Roman Context of Ethnicity and Faith. Doctoral thesis, Durham University. Available at Durham E-Theses Online: http://etheses.dur.ac.uk/214/
for the Greeks’ conceptualization of the non-Greeks worlds.61Based on Hall’s view,
it can be noted that several Greek literary works, especially drama also reflects the
ideological binarism between Greeks and barbarians. Several Greek plays depicted
the dichotomy between civilized Greek and savage barbarian. The opposition
between Greek and barbarian was first found in Aeschylus’s The Persian (472
BCE).62 Written in the aftermath of Persian War, Aeschylus differentiates between
the Hellenes and the Persians. Hellenes live a free and simple life, while the Persian
Barbarians are characterized by oriental despotism and lush opulence.63 Van
Amsterdam states that
Aeschylus’s The Persian and Herodotus’ Histories are written by Greeks for a Greek audience, and as such there is an undercurrent of the advantages of Hellenism over barbarism in the texts. Each expresses themes of order over irrationality, democracy over tyranny, and ultimately Greek over barbarian. It is these themes that became the focal point for the Greeks in creating a political and cultural separation on which to build their own identity.64
Both Greek historical accounts and literary works present the idea of the superiority
of Hellenic culture compared to the barbarian. The superiority of the Greeks was used
as a justification toward the condescending colonial attitude the Greeks possessed
toward their Other.
61 Hall, Edith. Inventing the Barbarian: Greek Self Definition through Tragedy. (Oxford: Oxford
University Press, 1989) p. x. PDF
62 Hall, Edith. p. 73.
63 Heit, Helmut. “Western Identity, Barbarians and the Inheritance of Greek Universalism.” The
European Legacy, 10. 7. (2005), p. 726. Web. 02 September, 2015
<https://www.academia.edu/546983/Western_Identity_Barbarians_and_the_Inheritance_of_Greek_Un iversalism>
The derogative attitude the Greeks had toward their Other was found also in
Odyssey 9. Rinon’s reading on book 9 of Odyssey epic employs Rimmon-Kenan’s
revised theory on Genette’s concept of focalization.65 Rimmon Kenan asserts that
Genette’s original concept is too narrow, she argues that focalizer is attributed also
with certain ideological facet, i.e. the values and how the focalizer perceives the
world.66 In Rinon’s finding, Odyssey as a focalizer has colonial attitude, hence he
proposes the term “colonial focalization.”67 This facet of focalization can be found in
Odyssey’s attitude towards a recently discovered area as a potential area for
settlement. Odyssey believes himself to be protected by the Gods, and in finding a
new world which nobody lives, except for cyclops -one eyed monster- Odyssey
perceives himself as the bringer of civilization. This way of thinking resembles how
the European people perceived the rest of the world during the colonial era with
jargon like “mission to civilize” or in French mission civilistatrice. One French
politician during the Third Republic Era, Ferry states that:
We must believe that if Providence deigned to confer upon us a mission by making us master of the earth, this mission consists not of attempting an impossible fusion of the races but simply by spreading or awakening among the other races the superior notions of which we are the guardian…The superior races have the right vis-à-vis the inferior races, they have the right to civilize them68
65Rinon, Yoav. “The Pivotal Scene: Narration, Colonial Focalization, and the Transition in Odyssey
9.” The American Journals of Philology. 128.3 (2007), p. 301-334. Web. 31 March 2015.
<http://www.jstor.org/stable/4496968>
66 Rimmon-Kenan, Shlomith. Narrative Fiction, Contemporary Fiction. (London: Routledge Taylor &
Francis Group. 1983. Reprinted. 2005) p. 79-81
67 Rinon, Yoav. p. 303.
68 Ferry, Jules. Qtd in Conklin, Alice L. A Mission to Civilize: The Republican Idea of Empire in
Lastly, this thesis reviews the prior studies on Alexander Romance and
Alexiad to highlight the missing space as none of the studies attribute the idea of
colonialism in their reading. A study by McInerley applies narratology to compare
Alexander Romance and the historical account of Alexander written by Arrian. The
focus of his analysis is to argue that Alexander’s legend is enhanced by his portrayal
as divinity in both account.69 McInerely believes that Alexander Romance uses the
theme of hieros gamos, in which a God has sex with a mortal woman. In Alexander
Romance, Alexander’s mother Olympias is impregnated by the God Ammon and she
gives birth to Alexander. Similar portrayal can also be found in Arian’s historical
account of Alexander. In The Campaigns of Alexander, Alexander believes himself to
possess “the blood of Heracles and Perseus in his veins, and too had a feeling than in
some way he was descended from Ammon.”70 McInerley therefore concludes that the
boundaries between historical and fictional Alexander is blurry, as both accounts
portray Alexander as descended from divinity.
The previous study by McInerely does not focus on the idea of Greek
colonialism. McInerely focuses more on similarity between historical Alexander
based on Arrian’s account and fictional account of Alexander in Stoneman’s
Alexander Romance. Both texts emphasize Alexander’s divine lineage by his God
parentage. This thesis aims to expand McInerely’s study by arguing that the narrator
69McInerley, Jeremy. “Arian and The Greek Alexander Romance.” The Classical World. 100.4 (2007).
Web, 2 December 1015. < http://www.jstor.org/stable/25434052> p.424-430
70 Arian. The Campaigns of Alexander. (London: Penguins Book, 1976) Trans. Aubrey De Selincourt.
of Alexander Romance highlights Alexander’s semi divine status to justify the
conquests of Alexander. This is seen mainly by the narrator uses many prophecies; in
narratological perspective, the use of foreshadowing such as prophecies can be
interpreted to hold the narrator’s ideological stance. In this case, the narrator justifies
Alexander’s conquest by using many prophecies to proclaim that Alexander is the
rightful ruler of the world.
The second text, Alexiad has also been analyzed by several scholars. Andrew
R. Dyck focuses on how Anna makes several allusions to Greek antiquity epic Iliad
as can be seen in the similarity of both titles.71 In Dyck’s argument, Anna provides
certain parallel between her father Alexius as the protagonist in Alexiad with certain
hero in Iliad. Alexius is compared to Agamemnon in how Alexius “did not require a
dream to spur him into battle, as Atreus’s son, Agamemnon did.”72 Anna glorifies her
father’s martial prowess in battle by placing him as superior from ancient Greek hero
such as Agamemnon.
While both this thesis and Dyck’s article focus on comparative study between
Alexiad and Greek antiquity text, the focus is different. Dyck emphasizes the
intertextuality between Alexiad and Iliad. The intertextuality is in how Anna alludes
to Greek heroes in Iliad as a comparison for her father’s brilliance. On the other hand,
this thesis compares Alexiad with Alexander Romance to compare the Greeks’
71Dyck. Andrew R. “Iliad and Alexiad: Anna Comnena’s Homeric Reminiscences” Greek, Roman, and
Byzantine Studies 27 (1986). p. 115-116. Web, 28 October 2015. <
http://grbs.library.duke.edu/article/download/5121/5389>
colonial ideology in two eras. Even though the overarching attitude of viewing the
non-Greeks as inferior other remains the same, there are also some ways in which
Hellenism in antiquity differs from medieval. The comparison between antiquity and
medieval colonial ideology will be further explained in the analysis.
Different from Dyck, Vilimonovic uses narrative textual analysis to argue that
Vilimonovic argues that Alexiad actually holds Anna’s resentment of being neglected
in favor of his brother as successor to Emperor Alexius.73 Anna considers herself as
the rightful successor, and her resentment manifests in her narration. Vilimonovic
gives particular emphasis on the passage dealing with the birth of both Anna and
John. In her narration Anna remarks that, “And at dawn on a Saturday a female child
was born to them who were exactly like her father, they said; that child was I.”74
Vilimonovic believes that “who were exactly like her father” is the way Anna rejects
her brother’s claim to the throne, as Anna is more in the image of her father.75 In
Vilimonovic’s finding, Byzantine mosaics commonly depict a chosen imperial heir
who was presented as an inheritor of his/her father’s physical feature.76 Hence Anna
emphasizes her physical appearance which resembles her father, the Emperor.
This study differs from Vilimonovic’s previous study in the focus on the
analysis. Vilimononic asserts that several quotations of Alexiad are a form of
73Vilimonovic, Larisa. “Observation of the Text and Context of Anna Comnena’s Alexiad” Belgrade
Historical Review. V (2014), p. 43-58. Web, 1 June 2015.
<http://www.academia.edu/10361876/Observations_on_the_text_and_context_of_Anna_Komnenes_A lexiad>
74 Comnena, Anna. The Alexiad. Trans. Elizabeth A.S Dawes p. 107, 75 Vilimonovic, Larisa. p. 51
