Sergio Audano, 'Classici lettori di classici. Da Virgilio a Marguerite Yourcenar, Echo 8', Foggia: Edizioni II Castello, 2012, 314 pp.

BMCR 2013.07.17 on he BMCR blog B yn Maw Classical Re iew 2013.07.17 Se gio Audano, Classici le o i di classici. Da Vi gilio a Ma gue i e You cena . Echo, 8. Foggia: Edizioni II Cas ello, 2012. Pp. 314. ISBN 9788865720806. €20.00 (pb). Re iewed by Rod igo Ve ano, Uni e sidad de Se illa ( e [email protected]) [The able o con en s is lis ed a he end o he e iew.] This book by Se gio Audano b ings oge he six essays and h ee sho no es [“no e di le u a”] conce ning he ecep ion o Classical li e a u e om a numbe o pe spec i es. I is he eigh h olume o he se ies Echo (Collana di s udi e commen i di e a da Gio ani Cip iani). Acco ding o he au ho ’s wo ds, a numbe o he pape s he e included had been o me ly published and a e now he subjec o a mo e ho ough e iew. The opics de eloped h oughou he di e en chap e s a e mani old and a ied, bu all o hem may be said o deal wi h he o une (o mis o une) o classical ex s in hei jou ney h ough he highs and lows o Wes e n his o y, conside ing he ways in which hey ha e been ead and, some imes, mis ead, in o de o a ou ce ain ending ideologies o indi idual in e es s p e alen in hose imes. F om he single Vi gilian e se ha depa s om i s o iginal con ex and a els in he shape o a sen en ia, up o he usage o he impe ial my h o Rome o suppo he ascis in e wa discou se, e e y chap e o his book con ains a li le s o y in which li e a u e is no me ely a subjec , bu a he he main cha ac e pe o ming an ac i e ole. The i s chap e ocuses on he in e p e a ion and ecep ion o a well-known e se o Vi gil: in en as au qui i am excolue e pe a is (Aen. 6.663), a ibu e o a is s — in a wide sense o he wo d — as hose alen ed men who con ibu e wi h hei c ea i i y o ennoble he human condi ion. As he in e p e a ion o he s a emen does lend i sel o di icul y ( o he dei ied s a us o a is s sugges ed by his passage does no easily ha monize wi h Vi gil’s mind), Audano p o ides in he i s pa o his chap e an impo an numbe o pa allel con ex s ( om Cice o, Luc e ius, and Vi gil’s Geo gics), shedding ligh on some hidden in e ex ual dialogues ha help o cla i y such a puzzling ques ion. Mo eo e , he exposi ion highligh s some o he salien poin s in e ms o he his o ical ecep ion o his e se, om Seneca and Silius I alicus o Dan e and Pe a ch. A sho no e conce ning i s use in he Nobel P izes’ mo o b ings he chap e o a close. The second chap e also ollows he jou ney o a single e se ex ac ed om i s o iginal place and sp ead as an isola ed sen ence: ince amo pa iae laudumque inmensa cupido (Aen. 6.823). As Audano s a es, he e se cen es a ound an issue — B u us’ pa icide and he es ablishmen o Roman Republic — ha becomes a ma e o his o ical judgmen so ha he his o y o he in e p e a ion o his passage mo es necessa ily oge he wi h he ideologies employed in e e y case o acili a e suppo . B yn Maw Classical Re iew 2013.07.17 h p://bmc .b ynmaw .edu/2013/2013-07-17.h ml 1 de 3 22/10/2014 10:22 The hi d chap e o Audano’s book con inues he second one, a ending o some o he mos impo an names in ol ed in his his o ical p ocess o exegesis: Augus ine, Thomas, Machia elli, Ba oli and Al ie i. Chap e ou is de o ed solely o Massimo d’Azeglio’s (1798-1866) memo ies, I miei ico di, an au obiog aphical wo k ha gi es ise o a wide ange o mo al conside a ions and poli ical e lec ions conce ning he new concep o I aly. Audano unde akes an analy ical app oach o di e en passages o d’Azeglio’s no es, ocusing on he discussion o he iew o he ‘Classic’ in ca holic educa ion and he ole o ancien Rome om he s andpoin and mindse o a poli ician and commi ed in ellec ual, g owing up in he mids o Eu opean de elopmen s cen ed on na ionalism o ha e a. Mo ing o wa d again in ime, chap e i e s udies he wo k o he Jewish-I alian w i e Ca lo Le i, a no o ious opponen o Mussolini’s egime condemned o li e in exile in a small illage in sou he n I aly. Audano’s de ailed analysis o Le i’s main wo k, Ch is o si è e ma o a Eboli, shows wi h cla i y how he w i e uses he Vi gilian backg ound o exempli y an an i-my h o Rome. Thus, agains he poli ical app op ia ion o he impe ial his o y o Rome, as well as i s my hical appa a us, by he suppo e s o Mussolini’s go e nmen , Le i emphasizes he s ange condi ion o he T ojan he o — a o eign conque o , an in ade — and de ends he local Volksgeis o he sou he n illage s as he only hei s o au hen ic I aly, in opposi ion o he ascis impe ialis speech g ounded on he legend o Aeneas and he hegemony o Rome wi hin he Augus an pe iod. Chap e six e u ns o compa a i e li e a u e, and aces he es iges o He acli us’ philosophy in he pages o Ma gue i e You cena ’s Mémoi es d’Had ien. Audano po ays a splendid analysis o he complex in e ex ual ela ionships be ween he F ench no elis and he G eek philosophe , in he middle o which s ands he igu e — om bo h his o ical and ic ional pe spec i es — o he Roman empe o . The pic u e is comple ed by he addi ion o he S oic adi ion and i s eading o he He acli ean legacy in he imes o Had ian, a ecep ion phenomenon o which You cena , a decla ed admi e o Zeno’s philosophy, was ce ainly awa e. Th ee mino eading no es close he book, all somehow ela ed o consola o y li e a u e, Audano’s a o i e heme. All h ee exhibi an in elligen exe cise o compa ison o he be e unde s anding o hese ex s and a e de ini ely wo h eading. The olume includes a gene al bibliog aphy ollowed by an index loco um. A numbe o inaccu a e e e ences wi hin he index a e hen co ec ed by he au ho h ough he means o an e a a no e. The pages o Classici le o i de classici a e an in i a ion o expe ience imme sion in o he inne dialogue es ablished by li e a u e ac oss ime. The in o med eade will ind an e udi e analysis o sou ces and an in ense app oach o he use o he quo a ion and i s alues in he cons uc ion o li e a y iden i ies. The eade , in u n, will disco e a window h ough which appea he nume ous ela ions ha lou ish be ween ex s om di e en pe iods and ends. Fo li e a u e is bu one single s eam in which he many oices o hose who ha e e e aken pa ne e ade o silence. Table o Con en s P e azione di Gio anni Cip iani (pp. 5-7) P emessa (pp. 9-18) Saggi: B yn Maw Classical Re iew 2013.07.17 h p://bmc .b ynmaw .edu/2013/2013-07-17.h ml 2 de 3 22/10/2014 10:22 1. Genesi e o una di un e so i giliano: Inuen as au qui ui am excolue e pe a is (Aen. 6, 663) (pp. 21-64) 2. B u o e il longo pe co so di una sen en ia i giliana: Vince amo pa iae laudumque immensa cupido (Aen. 6, 823) – P ima pa e (pp. 65-86) 3. B u o e il longo pe co so di una sen en ia i giliana: Vince amo pa iae laudumque immensa cupido (Aen. 6, 823) – Seconda pa e (pp. 87-162) 4. Legge e l’an ico dopo Al ie i: le ambigui à di Massimo d’Azeglio ne I miei ico di (pp. 163-194) 5. Mi o e an imi o di Roma nella ques ione me idionale: iusi i giliani nel C is o si è e ma o a Eboli di Ca lo Le i (pp. 195-223) 6. E acli o e ’e e no i o no nei Mémoi es d’Had ien di Ma gue i e You cena (pp. 225-242) No e di le u a: 1. Gli eccessi smaniosi del dolo e: iuso epig amma ico di un opos consola o io (pp. 245-251) 2. Due no a su Pe a ca e il gene e consola o io (pp. 253-267) 3. Sac a p o anis misce e: sugges ioni luc eziane nel es o di un mo e o sac o di Nicolò Po po a (pp. 269-277) No a bibliog a ica Indice sele i o dei passi ci a i Read commen s on his e iew o add a commen on he BMCR blog Home Read La es A chi es BMCR Blog Abou BMCR Re iew o BMCR Commen a ies Suppo BMCR BMCR, B yn Maw College, 101 N. Me ion A e., B yn Maw , PA 19010 B yn Maw Classical Re iew 2013.07.17 h p://bmc .b ynmaw .edu/2013/2013-07-17.h ml 3 de 3 22/10/2014 10:22