Bachelor thesis | Griekse en Latijnse taal en cultuur (BA)
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This thesis challenges the mainstream consensus on verbal aspect in Classical Greek, which is mainly based on a view of aspect propagated by Bernard Comrie (1976). As an alternative, this thesis...Show moreThis thesis challenges the mainstream consensus on verbal aspect in Classical Greek, which is mainly based on a view of aspect propagated by Bernard Comrie (1976). As an alternative, this thesis combines different strands of linguistic research traditions to paint an alternative picture of aspect: Wolfgang Klein's (1994) notion of topic time, Michael Halliday's (1985) idea of "three interpretational levels" (the referential, the textual, and the interactional), Christiaan Sicking's (1991) suggestion of verbal aspect signalling information status, and the idea of meaning as a polysemous network of uses. With this, I refine and add to important work done by Simon Aerts (2014), who first suggested modelling Greek aspect after Michael Halliday's semiotic theory (1985). After this is worked out in the second and third chapter, this view of aspect is applied to circumstantial participles in Greek.Show less
Bachelor thesis | Griekse en Latijnse taal en cultuur (BA)
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This BA thesis studies Lucretius' seemingly ambiguous attitude towards the possibility of moral progress. On the one hand he adheres to Epicurean physical doctrines, according to which there is no...Show moreThis BA thesis studies Lucretius' seemingly ambiguous attitude towards the possibility of moral progress. On the one hand he adheres to Epicurean physical doctrines, according to which there is no sense of direction in natural development. On the other, he has a passionate belief in the advancement of human intellectual skills and deep faith in Epicureanism as a cure for society. Writing the De rerum natura and explaining the real nature of the universe serves an ethical purpose. Therefore, the possibility of improvement is an underlying assumption of the DRN. The key question is: How does Lucretius incorporate moral progress in an Epicurean non-teleological worldview, based on DRN V lines 925-1457? As a solution to this fundamental ambiguity, I will propose that in Lucretius the human rational capacities make moral progress possible. The social and cultural context in which we should situate Lucretius' work will also be taken into account. Additionally, this thesis will contribute to our understanding of ancient thought on progress, decline and the concept of history.Show less
Bachelor thesis | Griekse en Latijnse taal en cultuur (BA)
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In Plautus's Casina, the title character never once makes a physical appearance. Why does the play omit such a pivotal character from the stage, and what meaning does Casina's absence produce? I...Show moreIn Plautus's Casina, the title character never once makes a physical appearance. Why does the play omit such a pivotal character from the stage, and what meaning does Casina's absence produce? I argue that the play, in leaving an opening where Casina would be expected to be, creates a space used to develop the comedic female subversion of male power at its heart. Using gender theory, Wolfgang Iser's concept of the blank, and an analysis of the metatheatrical dimensions of the play, I show how the purposeful absence of Casina in the end leaves us with a commentary on the interaction of identity and stories, and the power implied in the knowledge thereof.Show less
Bachelor thesis | Griekse en Latijnse taal en cultuur (BA)
closed access
It is known that the density of ancient commentaries is higher in the beginning of the book. I connected this with the mise en page of the Venetus A manuscript, one of the most famous Iliad...Show moreIt is known that the density of ancient commentaries is higher in the beginning of the book. I connected this with the mise en page of the Venetus A manuscript, one of the most famous Iliad manuscripts. The content from different sources is divided over different places on the page. The scribe made his own choices in selecting the content for the manuscript, but was guided by the pedagogical tradition before him, in which the first 12 books of the Iliad were the most important. The amount and content of the scholia is very diverse.Show less
