A Companion to the Ancient Novel, First Edition. Edited by Edmund P. Cueva and Shannon N. Byrne. © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Published 2014 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. From the Epic to the Novelistic Hero Some Patterns of a Metamorphosis Luca Graverini CHAPTER 18 One of the most notable features of the novel of all times is its ability to absorb typical elements of other literary genres and adjust them to its own purposes. Among those literary genres, epic poetry certainly holds, for ancient novels, the place of honor: ancient fiction writers constantly took inspiration from Homer and Vergil to shape their narra- tives, and modern scholars frequently and willingly adopt Hegel’s definition of prose narrative as “bourgeois epic” (a general overview and initial bibliography on the vast theme of the relationship between epic and novel can be found in Graverini- Keulen-Barchiesi 2006, 36ff.). The unquestionable continuity between epic and novel, however, should not allow us to forget differences and variations, especially when they appear to trace a coherent pattern that leads from one literary genre to the other. A par- ticularly fruitful approach to this problem is the analysis of the relationship between epic and novelistic characters, since the construction of a character is perhaps what best defines a narrative: the Odyssey, after all, is Odysseus’ story, like Chariton’s novel is the story of Callirhoe 1 —and already the presence of a heroine (or of a couple of heroes) instead of a single male says much about the differences between the Chaereas and Callirhoe and the Odyssey, and between novel and epic in general. The construction of a novelistic character is a complex and sophisticated process that involves imitation of the epic model, but also change and innovation from it: most characters are, in a way, like Odysseus and Achilles, but none of them is, or could be, a faithful replica of those archetypes. Homer’s heroes themselves would be out of place in the new world of the novel, and if, for example, Chaereas or Clitophon tried tout court to bring Achilles back to life in their words and acts, they would probably end up as Don Quixote, who is a complete misfit to the “real” world he lives in. What follows will be an analysis of the various narrative strategies adopted by ancient novelists to make Achilles, Odysseus, and their companions feel at home in a new world and in a new literary genre. 0002030059.INDD 288 8/12/2013 5:44:58 PM UNCORRECTED PROOFS