Clive Skidmore
- Published in print:
- 1996
- Published Online:
- May 2014
- ISBN:
- 9780859894777
- eISBN:
- 9781781380673
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Liverpool University Press
- DOI:
- 10.5949/liverpool/9780859894777.001.0001
- Subject:
- Classical Studies, Literary Studies: Classical, Early, and Medieval
This book presents a collection of historical anecdotes written during the reign of the Emperor Tiberius in the first century ad. The book aims to redefine the significance of the work of Valerius ...
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This book presents a collection of historical anecdotes written during the reign of the Emperor Tiberius in the first century ad. The book aims to redefine the significance of the work of Valerius Maximus, author of The Memorable Deeds of the Men of Rome and Foreign Nations. It argues that modern scholarship's view of Valerius' work as a mere source-book for rhetoricians is misconceived. The popularity of the work during the Middle Ages and Renaissance was due to its value to the readers of those times as a source of moral exhortation and guidance that was as relevant to them as it had been to Valerius' contemporaries. The wider appeal of the book lies in its examination of earlier forms of exemplary literature, in its discussion of how Roman literature was communicated to its audience, and in its original theory concerning the identity of Valerius Maximus himself.Less
This book presents a collection of historical anecdotes written during the reign of the Emperor Tiberius in the first century ad. The book aims to redefine the significance of the work of Valerius Maximus, author of The Memorable Deeds of the Men of Rome and Foreign Nations. It argues that modern scholarship's view of Valerius' work as a mere source-book for rhetoricians is misconceived. The popularity of the work during the Middle Ages and Renaissance was due to its value to the readers of those times as a source of moral exhortation and guidance that was as relevant to them as it had been to Valerius' contemporaries. The wider appeal of the book lies in its examination of earlier forms of exemplary literature, in its discussion of how Roman literature was communicated to its audience, and in its original theory concerning the identity of Valerius Maximus himself.
Takeshi Watanabe
- Published in print:
- 2018
- Published Online:
- April 2018
- ISBN:
- 9780190240400
- eISBN:
- 9780190240448
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/oso/9780190240400.003.0003
- Subject:
- History, Asian History, Cultural History
This chapter focuses on solving the mystery of cuisine during the Heian period (794–1185), Japan’s classical age, when court literature, poetry, and arts flourished. While literature from the era ...
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This chapter focuses on solving the mystery of cuisine during the Heian period (794–1185), Japan’s classical age, when court literature, poetry, and arts flourished. While literature from the era often addresses the carnal appetites of courtiers, accounts of actual foods and foodways are largely absent. The chapter puts together Heian-era references to food from various sources, including Buddhist morality tales, historical anecdotes, and poetry, to produce an account of the era’s conflicted attitudes toward food as a source of both guilt and pleasure, and as an important means of mediating human relationships. It also reveals that the foods of classical-era courtiers diverged from the contemporary “hallmarks of Japanese cuisine” such as aesthetics and seasonality, relying heavily on preserved and dried foodstuffs and served on plain, round dishes.Less
This chapter focuses on solving the mystery of cuisine during the Heian period (794–1185), Japan’s classical age, when court literature, poetry, and arts flourished. While literature from the era often addresses the carnal appetites of courtiers, accounts of actual foods and foodways are largely absent. The chapter puts together Heian-era references to food from various sources, including Buddhist morality tales, historical anecdotes, and poetry, to produce an account of the era’s conflicted attitudes toward food as a source of both guilt and pleasure, and as an important means of mediating human relationships. It also reveals that the foods of classical-era courtiers diverged from the contemporary “hallmarks of Japanese cuisine” such as aesthetics and seasonality, relying heavily on preserved and dried foodstuffs and served on plain, round dishes.
