Anders Cullhed Bücher

The collection features monographs, edited volumes, editions, translations, and commentaries on topics spanning Classical, Medieval, and Modern Latin philology, ancient history, archaeology, ancient philosophy, and the legacy of antiquity into modern times. This series contributes significantly to the exploration of classical literature and research across the entire field of antiquity studies.

Anders Cullhed’s study The Shadow of Creusa explores the early Christian confrontation with pagan culture as a remote anticipation of many later clashes between religious orthodoxy and literary fictionality. After a careful survey of Saint Augustine’s critical attitudes to ancient myth and poetry, summarized as a long drawn-out farewell, Cullhed examines other Late Antique dismissals as well as appropriations of the classical heritage. Macrobius, Martianus Capella and Boethius figure among the Late Antique intellectuals who attempted to save or even restore the old mythology by means of allegorical representation. On the other hand, pious poets such as Paulinus of Nola and Bible epic writers such as Iuvencus or Avitus of Vienne turned against pagan lies, and the mighty arch-bishop of Milan, Saint Ambrose, played off unconditional Christian truth against the last Roman strongholds of cultural pluralism. Thus, The Shadow of Creusa elucidates a cultural conflict which was to leave traces all through the Middle Ages and reach down to our present day.

People of all times and in all cultures have produced and consumed fiction in a variety of forms, not only for entertainment, but also to spread knowledge, religious or political beliefs. Furthermore, fiction has taken part in reflecting and shaping the cultural identity of communities as well as the identity of individuals. This volume aims to explore the concept and the use of fiction from different epochs, in different cultures and in different forms, both ancient and more recent. It covers a broad field of interests, from ancient literature, art, philosophy and theater to Bollywood productions, television series and modern electronic media. Twenty-three scholars from ten countries and from different areas and fields of interests in the Humanities assembled in Stockholm on a conference in August 2012 to exchange views on „Fiction in Global Contexts“. This volume presents the results of their discussions. It contains fresh perspectives on issues and topics such as: the nature of fiction fiction and its relationship to „truth“ the demand for and the function and uses of fiction the development of fiction from ancient to modern times different forms of fiction fiction in social contexts or in a gender perspective