Journal articles on the topic 'Emperors – Fiction'

What is the meaning of the “Europe” and the idea of unity? For when did a “united” Europe exist? Back when German emperors ineffectively tried to enforce their rule on a territory which was none too large anyway? Or when they were entangled in a dispute with the papacy? Or during the crusades against the Catharists? Or maybe during the Reformation or during the French Revolution when new coalitions of opponents arose? During the Napoleonic Wars which in themselves pay testimony to ruptures and conflicts? The 20th century alone brought two wars. The first already signified, as Jan Patocka once declared, the suicide of Europe. Perhaps, then, Europe does not exist at all anymore? Maybe the politicians’ visions are less than credible? There is no doubt that the idea of a united Europe is a project which affirms the great, creative power of the imagination. Modernity has given birth to very strong temptations which glorify the imagination.

This article reads the two Spanish versions of the Flores romance as ideologically embedded in the conflict and contact between Christians and Muslims in medieval Iberia, as well as after the "Reconquista" of 1492 and the subsequent renegotiation of Spanish-Morisco relations. It argues that the printed version of the romance, published in 1512 and frequently reprinted, imagines a fictional resolution to the problem of the Moriscos' socio-political status by making its Morisco protagonist an emperor of Rome. It contrasts this successful fiction with a failed contemporary forgery that had a similar goal: the Lead Books of Granada.

The object of the study is early Christian apologetics as a socio-cultural phenomenon. In modern science, the issue related to the audience of early Christian apologies is actively discussed. A number of apologies of the second century, as is known, are addressed directly to the rulers of the Roman Empire themselves. But is such an addressee genuine? Or is there a masterfully executed literary stylization in front of us? The subject of our research is the apology of Aristide. Aristide, according to ancient church historians, was the first apologist of Christianity who submitted his work to the Emperor Hadrian. However, the Syriac translation of the apology indicates the Emperor Antoninus Pius as the addressee. Thus, we are faced with two questions: 1) which of the two emperors was the addressee in the original apology; 2) is the imperial addressee real or is he a literary fiction? In the course of the study, the author came to the following conclusions. Firstly, we have no reason to prefer the Syriac version of the apology to all the data of the church-historical tradition. This data is confirmed by the Armenian translation of the apology. It should also be pointed out that the Syrian addressee contains a number of errors and resembles, rather, a later interpolation. Secondly, the content of the apology convinces that it is designed for an educated pagan, and not for a Christian. And there is every reason to believe that the Emperor Hadrian really acted as such an addressee. At the same time, it should be noted that the apology does not represent an official petition addressed to the emperor, we have before us a literary work written in the protreptic genre.

Abstract This paper examines the reactions to the trauma of the Ming-Qing dynastic transition in the novellas of a writer known only as “Xiaoxiang mijinduzhe” (The Hazy Crossing Ferryman of Xiaoxiang). His works provide an informative contrast to the more celebrated loyalist literature of the same era: they express unease at foreign rule but do not show an idealistic loyalism to the Ming. Though the Yongle period (1402–1424) of the Ming is held up as a lost golden age, the post-Yongle Ming dynasty is portrayed as an era of corruption and chaos, presided over by incompetent and/or dissolute emperors. The novellas also reflect on the lessons of the transition on a deeper level, questioning the long-standing cultural preference for the civil arts over the martial arts. While the novellas acknowledge the poignancy of the passing of an era, they also strike hopeful notes for the future under the Qing.

AbstractThis brief response to the essays by Darrell Bock, Craig Keener, and Robert Webb unfolds in three parts. First, I maintain that arguments about the historical Jesus can be productive only among those who already agree on a number of contested questions about historiographical method and the nature of the Gospels. Therefore, debates about the historical Jesus that occur between the 'evangelical' camp (which sees the canonical Gospels as fully reliable historically) and the 'traditional' camp (which sees the Gospels as blends of fact and fiction) are futile. Second, I propose a thought experiment designed to test our historical assessment of ancient biographies that portray their hero like the Gospels portray Jesus. I argue that the results of this experiment undermine Keener's conclusion that the historical reliability of the Gospels should be regarded as equal to that of ancient biographies of Roman emperors. Third, I pose the question of whether the methodological naturalism proposed by Webb allows us to conclude that events reported in the Gospels are unhistorical. I argue that either answer to that question reduces the appeal of methodological naturalism for historical-Jesus scholars.

In the late sixteenth century, thriving private maritime trade brought forth maritime trouble to the late Ming state. In times of rampant “Japanese” piracy and Hideyoshi’s invasion of Korea, Chinese literati composed unofficial histories and vernacular fiction on China’s foreign relations. Among them, Yan Congjian 嚴從簡 wrote Shuyu zhouzi lu 殊域周咨錄 (Records of Surrounding Strange Realms) (1574), He Qiaoyuan 何喬遠 compiled Wang Xiangji 王享記 (Records of the Emperors’ Tributes) (1597–1620), Luo Yuejiong 羅曰褧 penned Xianbin lu 咸賓錄 (Records of Tributary Guests) (1597), and Luo Maodeng 羅懋登 composed a vernacular novel Sanbao taijian xiyangji tongsu yanyi 三寶太監西洋記通俗演義 (Vernacular Romance of Eunuch Sanbao’s Voyages on the Indian Ocean) (1598). This article examines how the imminent maritime realities reminded the late Ming authors of one cross-border war and two genocides in Java and Sanfoqi during Yuan and early and mid-Ming times. These transgressions that violated Chinese official tributary order became memorable and made Sino-Java relations a definite point of comparison for the late Ming maritime piracy problems. This article argues that the cultural memory of Sino-Java military and diplomatic exchange enabled the authors to lament and condemn the executed pirates Wang Zhi and Chen Zuyi. The four authors imbue their narratives with personal anxieties and nationalistic sentiments. While the historical narratives tend to moralize and idealize China’s tributary world order, the vernacular fiction paints a more realistic picture of the late Ming state by involving heterogeneous voices of the “other.” Collectively, the four narratives represent various images of the Ming Empire, revealing the authors’ deep apprehension of the Mings’ identity, their political criticism of the state, and their divergent and even self-conflicted views toward maritime commerce, immigrants, and people of different races.

Everybody must have heard the Andersen’s tale The Emperor’s new clothes. It tells about a vain Emperor who would get new and more elegant clothes made all the time. One day, two adept impostors visited the Emperor, declared themselves accomplished weavers and offered to craft a new suit for His Majesty with a textiles with the magical property of being invisible to those not at the height of their own charge or else unforgivably stupid. The weavers received the assignment and wove throughout the days before the parade that was organized to display the new garment. They pretended to weave on an empty loom and worked with such an ability that none of the Emperor’s civil employees, who were asked to supervise the job of the weavers, had the courage to admit that they could not see anything at all. Meanwhile, the news about the special properties of the burlap spread throughout the Empire. On the parade day, the Emperor wore his new invisible dress and exited the parade. There was not a soul who did not praise the beauty of the new dress. Everyone but a child who, unaware of the deceit, said: “the King is naked!” The trick was revealed but, despite that, the Emperor stood up forthrightly dissimulating the shame. Is this not a perfect example of how ideology works, that is, of how the socio-symbolic web is not at all based on facts but rather on predetermined symbolic fictions? The purpose of this essay is to analyse ideological mechanisms in relation to subjective fantasy. Andersen’s tale, presents in parodist form both the fact that, through the working of symbolic adjustments, we always have a pre-understanding of reality, and the fact that such reality has an intrinsically perverse and cynical core. In fact, even when the deceit is revealed, we keep acting as if this order were already effective.

В статье представлена рецензия на монографию Я.В. Драйверса The Forgotten Reign of the Emperor Jovian (363–364): History and Fiction. Отмечается методологическая новизна подхода автора и противоречивость некоторых суждений и выводов. This article presents a review of The Forgotten Reign of the Emperor Jovian(363–364): History and Fiction by J.W. Drijvers. It emphasizes both the methodological novelty of his approaches and the controversial nature of some of his judgments and conclusions.

In Jewang Ungi, the founding years and overall durations of all mentioned dynasties are provided. Particularly, for prehistoric myths and legends such as Pan Gu(盤古), Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors(三皇五帝), Dangun(檀君), and Kija(箕子), specific years are included. Furthermore, this section presents references to support these years. The inclusion of years serves the purpose of establishing a clear timeline of historical dynasties and enhancing the credibility of the work. By presenting references from myths, legends, and the field of ancient history, the author aims to demonstrate that Jewang Ungi is not a work of fiction but rather a means to increase its authenticity and reliability, especially in the realms of myths, legends, and ancient history. In the context of ancient Korean history, Jewang Ungi introduces several new elements not found in other historical texts. It primarily focuses on the founding myths of Gojoseon(古朝鮮) and the transfer of power in the King Jun(準王) tradition, offering a fresh perspective on historical recognition. Additionally, Jewang Ungi presents new information regarding the Three Han Kingdoms(三韓), Koguryo(高句麗), Baekje(百濟), and Balhae(渤海) that is not found in the Samguk Sagi(三國史記) and Samguk Yusa(三國遺事). These unique contents suggest a significant difference from our present-day sources and thus add value to Jewang Ungi as historical documentation. In Jewang Ungi, specifically the section on Chinese history, the legitimacy of various Chinese dynasties is determined. Yi Seunghyu's theory of legitimacy emphasized the prevailing reality while also acknowledging the significance of Chinese culture and civilization. This perspective was shaped by the historical context of that time and the experiences Yi Seunghyu went through in his life. Jewang Ungi consistently emphasized the guiding Principles of Confucius in writing the Annals(春秋筆法), which was a shared principle among the officials and literati of the Goryeo period. Yi Seunghyu, as a scholar himself, approached Jewang Ungi from a Confucian scholarly standpoint. However, it is insufficient to summarize his historical perspective based solely on Confucian ideology. Considering the openness and diversity of Goryeo society and its intellectual discourse, it is more appropriate to recognize Yi Seunghyu's historical perspective as one characterized by flexible inclusiveness and plurality.

In his 1989 article entitled “Apologetic Literature and Ambassadorial Activities,” William R. Schoedel considers “aspects of the form of apologetic literature in the early church and Judaism.” More specifically, he attempts to discover possible models for the literary character of the Christian apologies, and in particular theEmbassyof Athenagoras, in the various kinds of addresses that ambassadors delivered before the emperor when presenting appeals and requests. Examples of such addresses include the ambassadorial speech discussed by the third-century rhetorician Menander Rhetor, the legal oration as exemplified by Philostratus in his treatment of the trial of Apollonius of Tyana, and the imperiallibellusor petition. Schoedel draws two clear conclusions from this investigation. The first is that the literary form of Athenagoras'sEmbassyis an “apologetically grounded petition,” that is, a “mixed form that as such appears to have no real precedent in the Greco-Roman literary tradition.” The second is that “there is good reason to think that [it] was written to be presented to the emperor or delivered before him.” The present article will explore the ideas and arguments that led Schoedel to each of his conclusions and will offer an alternative interpretation of the evidence in each case.

We know that Cicero successfully defended Sextus Roscius on a charge of parricide in 80 B.C.; we know that Vespasian became emperor after the civil wars of A.D. 69, and founded the Flavian dynasty which ended with his son Domitian's death in A.D. 96.

The current paper focuses on the literary mechanisms that Marguerite Yourcenar used to (re)construct the historical personality of the Roman emperor Hadrian in the fictional autobiography, Memoirs of Hadrian. We analyze how M. Yourcenar represents an effort to reconstruct a historical period and a historical personality through the intersection of true events and fiction in the form of a fictional autobiography, supported by documentary work, in this particular novel. Hadrian’s imaginary letter to his protégé and student, the future emperor Marcus Aurelius, is not only a writing of ancient history, but also a modern chronicle of one man’s efforts to free himself from the constraints of human destiny. The mechanisms of writing a memoir provide the main character with the opportunity to (re)write History, his personal biography. Different narrative forms (“I”, “he”, “we”) allow the author of the novel not only to give voice to the main character, but also to follow the development of the initial intention - from writing a letter to his heir to thinking about existence, i.e. from the individual to the general plan of humanity. Therefore, through the reconstruction of Hadrian’s life and his age, we show that Marguerite Yourcenar’s ambition is not only to illuminate the gallery of masks of a powerful historical figure, but also to overcome them and to capture in words the fragility of a man who enters death with his eyes open.

Historical events and figures tend to escape people’s memory as time goes by. In some cases, they are replaced by popular culture adaptations, e.g., video games, fiction, films, etc. Such adaptations may be beneficial to historical memory, preserving their historical models for posterity. Sometimes, adaptation become part of fictional history. “Fate/Grand Order” is a game released by Type-Moon in 2015 (Japan). Its fictional universe makes an active use of various characters of folklore and history, e.g., Joan of Arc, King Arthur, etc. The aim of the study is to examine the adaptation of Anastasia Romanova in the game “Fate/Grand Order”. The adaptation analysis scheme proposed by Linda Hutcheon, as well as the comparative method to cross-reference dialogs, illustrations, skills, craft essence in the game with photographs and biography of the real Anastasia Romanova were used. It is proved that Anastasia the Duchess of the Permafrost Empire from “Fate/Grand Order” is indeed an adaptation of the real Anastasia Romanova, the fourth daughter of the last Russian Emperor Nicolas II, although somewhat modified to match the traditional imagery of the Japanese popular culture.

This research focuses on the ideology behind the death rites of a Roman emperor. Here I analyze the inventive rhetorical features concerning the subject as visual culture, loci, descriptive formulas and cultural codes. It refers in particular to literature that concerns the death of the Roman emperor, which is analyzed from the point of view of rhetoric and iconography. So I find a fiction or a dubious “reality”, through introducing a witness who confirms the veracity of deification.

Abstract Reading Sui Jingchen's song suite “Gaozu Returns to His Home Village” against early sources, this article explores how Sui's work selects and inverts the elements that ground definitive historical accounts of rulership to refashion a familiar narrative in a theatrical mode. The sanqu's use of performance tropes expands the scope of criticism in this humorous piece past concerns about Yuan rulership, or even the imperial institution, to broader questions of representational instability and uncertainty. These shifts implicate readers in a social and political critique and engage issues often associated with early modern fiction and drama, including authenticity, imposture, and interpolations of author, character, player, reader, and audience.

The article is devoted to interpretation of historical facts in Umberto Eco's novel " Baudolino ". The subject of interpretation in the novel is medieval history, in particular, the reign of the emperor Frederick Barbarossa. Eco uses the typical for the historical novel method, which is the combination of facts from chronicles and fictional elements; the events are shown by the eyes of an invented character Baudolino. Emphasizing the connection between history and modernity, Eco proposes to revise the stereotypes associated with the mentioned historical period. The portraits of historical figures are borrowed from the chronicles, however in the novel they get more emotional in the perception of the protagonist, typical cliches are replaced by individuality. The opposition of italian communes to the government of Frederick also becomes a part of Baudolino's personal history. The interpretation of many events is based on legendary sources, including local tales of the italian city Alessandria, the legends of Grail and of Prester John. The legendary material fills in the gaps in medieval history. Many events (in particular, the participation of Barbarossa in the Third Crusade) correspond to the chronicles in the descriptive part, however they acquire a fictional motivation. The mystery of the emperor's death is solved in a detective key. The novel presents various doctrines elaborated in the imperial office of Frederick, their authorship is attributed to Baudolino. In the novel «Baudolino» Umberto Eco not only interprets creatively certain facts of the past, but he also practices the postmodern concept of history, according to which the past is unknowable as objective and ultimate truth and therefore it exists only in the form of a narrative. The past and the present have no fundamental difference, the history is always interpreted from the perspective of the present.

Abstract The Vita Heliogabali in the Historia Augusta consists of a political-biographical first section (1.4––18.3), generally considered to be historically useful, followed by a fantastic catalogue of the emperor's legendary excesses (18.4––33.8), generally dismissed as pure fiction. While most of these eccentricities are probably inventions of the ““rogue scholar,”” it is argued that the grand recital of imperial antics, more than just a detachable appendix, serves a demonstrable ideological purpose and is informed by a unifying rationale, which in turn helps explain the ““Lampridian”” Elagabalus as historiographical construct. Within the sequence of Antonine biographies Elagabalus, ultimus Antinonorum, marks the climax in a progressive tendency towards tyranny and is accordingly styled as transcendental despot; multiple topoi from the literary tradition provide the generic coordinates for this larger-than-life portrait. Food and sex in particular, both typical elements in this context, are inflated in Heliog. into major thematic systems to signal the emperor's tyrant status, to bring out his distinctive attention to aesthetics, and to enhance the Life's literary cohesion.

The article aims to confirm the hypothesis presented in 2011 that the chuanqi tale “Xue Zhao” by Pei Xing (9th century) contains a sequence of motifs characteristic of the international tale type “Sleeping Beauty” (no. 410 in the Aarne – Thompson Index). The role of the Daoist Celestial master Shen (Shen Yuan / Shen Yuanzhi) as a helper is considered. The author provides some data on the image of Master Shen as the companion of Emperor Xuanzong on his lunar journey in Tang fiction. The article proves the existence of parallel characters to Shen Yuan in the early Western European versions of “Sleeping Beauty”.

This article discusses the approaches of the historian Tsuda Sōkichi to the study of the myths about the gods described in the historical and mythological records “Kojik” and “Nihon chok”. Tsuda Sōkichi left his mark on Japanese historical science as a scientist who applied new methods to the study of ancient myths. The historian applied the accumulated knowledge gained as a result of studying the advanced Western research methods proposed by B. Chamberlain, L. Ranke, and took a fresh look at the ancient historical sources “Kojik” and “Nihon shok”.During the Meiji period, the state established control over historical research and an official ideology developed around the figure of the emperor. In particular, the events of the era of the gods, described in the oldest written monuments, were believed to be the confirmation of the divine origin of the imperial family. However, the historian doubted the truth of the events relating to the era of the god, and made an attempt to clarify the origins of the myths. S. Tsuda does not consider myths to be entirely fictional stories, suggesting that they could be based on real events, but he denies the reality of the existence of godsThe historian compared the myths in the two monuments and singled out the main storyline, dedicated to the emperor’s ancestral gods, and the secondary one. Using the comparative method, the historian draws a conclusion about the Chinese influence on the official mythology of the ancient Japanese state, and also determines other reasons for the changes in the plots of myths. S. Tsuda sees the origins of myths in folk tales and considers them important ethnographic material. The historian identified several functions of myths: political, moral (or religious), the function of explaining physical phenomena and the origin of toponyms and names. The key function of myths, in his opinion, is precisely the political one, since the narrative of myths is built around the divine descendants of the emperor. The purpose of the myths was to strengthen the imperial family among the nobility,nto exalt his figure, and te creatn the image of a “righteous” ruler by proving blood relationship with the main goddess of the Japanese pantheon Amaterasu.

The thorny and mystery full course of life the fine Russian surgeon, professor Vladimir Nikolaevich Derevenko, the course became the subject of historical discussion and different fictions sequel to attract attention of the investigators multitude. In important measure it connected with the close relations between the doctor and the last Russian emperor's family right up to fatal death on July of 1918. It necessary, to note the scantiness of authentic biographical facts, presented in accessible sources and literature. This publication competently extended the personal biographical state in the context of dramatic Russian history.

During a visit to Shanghai in August 2019, I attempted to use the auto-ethnographic method to answer a few general questions: what is the image of China in Kafka’s literary imagination, what is Kafkaesque in Shanghai, and what is Shanghai-esque in Kafka? Because the combination of theoretical interest, spontaneous ethnographic observations, and personal reflections proved insufficient to respond to these questions, I also analyzed Kafka’s ‘Chinese’ stories, namely The Great Wall of China, In the Penal Colony, The Message from The Emperor, An Old Manuscript, and The Letters to Felice, and two Kafkaesque phenomena in China: the Shanghai World Expo and the Chinese Ghost Cities. I concluded that Kafka’s fiction contains certain Orientalist elements and that, through the perspective of contemporary material Kafkaesque phenomena, are more western than the West.

During a visit to Shanghai in August 2019, I attempted to use the auto-ethnographic method to answer a few general questions: what is the image of China in Kafka’s literary imagination, what is Kafkaesque in Shanghai, and what is Shanghai-esque in Kafka? Because the combination of theoretical interest, spontaneous ethnographic observations, and personal reflections proved insufficient to respond to these questions, I also analyzed Kafka’s ‘Chinese’ stories, namely The Great Wall of China, In the Penal Colony, The Message from The Emperor, An Old Manuscript, and The Letters to Felice, and two Kafkaesque phenomena in China: the Shanghai World Expo and the Chinese Ghost Cities. I concluded that Kafka’s fiction contains certain Orientalist elements and that, through the perspective of contemporary material Kafkaesque phenomena, are more western than the West.

Numerous scholars have taken the popular stance against Roman emperor Nero’s actions. In the style of fictional narrative, this article argues for the defense of Nero against the widely held opinion. The article is written under the guise of Seneca, his tutor and advisor (and later murder victim). It is written in the genre of biography and in the format of a letter addressed to Cassius Dio.

The article analyzes the views of Russian classics on the Orthodox empire, proves the deep understanding of the term ‘statehood’ by the writers and poets. Much attention is paid by the author of the article to the problem of the harmonious balance between law and mercy. In Russia the sovereign was treated not as a person who established rules and could violate justice, but as the highest judge on earth, who had the opportunity to act not according to the law but according to a special mercy. The paper provides the view of modern lawyers on the principle of mercy in Russian law. The absence of legislative enshrinement of this principle is regarded by the author of the article as the preservation in today's Russia of the proportions between the legal formalization of norms and the existing Orthodox covenants and holy traditions. The paper indicates an inaccurate understanding of the views of many writers on the figure of the emperor. Science has not completely refuted the myths about Pushkin as an opponent of autocracy and a supporter of democratic freedoms or Nekrasov as a revolutionary-minded poet, created in the Soviet era but still supported by some researchers. A comparison of Tolstoy’s fiction works and his non-fiction writings shows the writer's ambivalent attitude toward the highest authority. However, Tolstoy condemns not the very organization of power structures, but rather the arbitrariness encouraged by people at the local level, who do not cope with their duties and welter in vice. In the literary worlds of Tolstoy, the idea of ​​the only way to correct injustices committed at the state level is associated with the image of the emperor. Using a number of examples, the article proves that, with a deep vision of the problems of public life, faults and errors of officials at various levels, our classics realized the value of a single strong centralized power of the sovereign.

The first part of the article examines the background of the concept of ‘canard’, applied in France to popular non-periodical publications which reported incidents (often fictional), and to fictional news published in political daily newspapers. According to the testimony of various writers, including Balzac, such fictional news (‘canards’) in the first half of the nineteenth century was often associated with Russia. The second part of the article treats one of these ‘canards’, as reflected in two newspaper publications, ‘Press’ (Presse) and ‘Century’ (Siècle) in June 1844. These publications claimed that Emperor Nicholas I, who visited London at the end of May, went from there to Paris. The article shows why the Royal voyage to Paris could not have taken place and the reasons for the appearance of this ‘canard’ on the pages of the Paris newspaper.

In this article we consider the category of fiction in political discourse - its language expression and the reasons for its appearance. In the process of research, we found out that one of the most important language means of expressing fiction in political discourse is metaphor and all its manifestations in the text. Metaphors convey a special, fantastic perception of the world. But, besides metaphors, the use of metonymy, hyperbole, litotes, comparisons, epithets, etc. also helps to form the category of the fantastic. We will consider the use of elements of the fantastic in political discourse on the example of the famous book “Maxims and Thoughts of Saint Helena Prisoner” in which Count de Las Cases, who voluntarily followed Napoleon Bonaparte in his exile, captured the emperor's statements, his aphorisms, fragments of political speeches, etc. Napoleon Bonaparte created authorial myths about himself, his rule and his army (the Great Army, Grande Armee), captured in his political speeches, letters, maxims and appeals to soldiers and contemporaries. From a literary and linguistic point of view, the very form chosen by Napoleon to express his political and philosophical judgments - maxims, aphorisms - is of interest. The result of our research is that the category of the fantastic in the political discourse of the Napoleonic era is the place to be and includes the use of metaphors, epithets, hyperbole, grotesques, personification, special comparisons and repetitions, as well as allusions, reminiscences, explicit and hidden quoting.

Abstract: This article considers twenty-first-century Mozambican works of fiction that contest the foundational status of nineteenth-century Gazan emperor Ngungunyane (circa 1850–1906) to Mozambique's postcolonial nationalism as a symbolic representation of ongoing imperial patriarchy. A century after Ngungunyane's defeat by the Portuguese, Ungulani Ba Ka Khosa published Ualalapi , widely read as a devastating critique of Mozambique's FRELIMO party's postcolonial politics as a continuation of Ngungunyane's bloody reign. A series of subsequent works respond to Ualalapi 's critique: Mia Couto's As areias do imperador trilogy, Khosa's As mulheres do imperador , and Paulina Chiziane's As andorinhas . These works deploy female protagonists and narrative experimentation to respond to Ngungunyane's famous final speech in Ualalapi . I argue that each of the contemporary works break the speech's imperial logic in different ways. Khosa, Couto, and Chiziane show that an excess of empire pervades contemporary rewritings of this history. These works draw on female voices and a constellation of anti-imperial communities of Black women—what philosopher María Lugones has theorized as a coalition and through Michelle M. Wright has analyzed through the dialogic—to break colonial-postcolonial continuities of power and imagine different futures in their wake.

Theoretically, the Byzantine Emperor was, just like in the times of the Roman Empire, chosen on the basis of his personal qualities and merits ? by the grace of God, of course. Practically, the factors which determined the ascension of a person to the throne were much more complex, the methods of gaining power being multifarious. In consequence, the political philosophy was confronted with the question of whether it is virtue (aret?) or origin (g?noz) that defines an Emperor. Independently of this rather theoretical question, however, and despite the claims that the personal qualities are decisive in the choice of the Emperor, the origin of the ruler played an important role in the consciousness of the Byzantines of all epochs. This is why great attention was paid to the creation of family trees, especially in the cases when the Emperor was of low origin (homo novus) or when it was for some reason necessary to strengthen his legitimacy. The choice of the genealogy was not random: since it carried a clear political message, it was of utmost importance with whom the Emperor in power would be associated and whose historical deeds or legendary personality would serve as a moral model. Also important is the fact that the search of a "good family" was as a rule triggered by the need to confirm one's own virtue. Thus, genealogies often reflect a certain system of values, usually emphasizing morality, courage in war, care for the welfare of the country, piety, etc. The choice of the archetype depended, of course, on the needs of the ruler for whom the genealogy was created. All this allows us to consider legendary genealogies as an expression of the imperial ideology. Notwithstanding their chronological diversity, the Byzantine imperial genealogies display very similar characteristics, i.e. they contain stereotypical elements, many of which had been established already in the first centuries of the Eastern Empire. In the early Byzantine period, when Christianity was still young, Emperors were frequently associated with pagan gods and semi gods, like Jupiter, Mars or Hercules. The Roman tradition of the eastern part of the Empire is also reflected in the fictive genealogies, so that the Emperors often chose Western Emperors or illustrious personalities and families of the Republican Era as their ancestors. The convention of establishing genealogical relations with the past rulers or their families (e.g. Claudius Gothicus, Trajan, the Flavii) served on one hand to create the impression of continuity and legitimacy, and on the other, to affirm the proclaimed system of values, since individual Roman Emperors had by that time become the prototypes of certain values (so Nerva stood for tranquility, Titus for philanthropy, Antoninus for high morality, Hadrian for justice and legality, Trajan for a successful military leader). In the same fashion, the creation of the family ties with persons from the Roman republican past, like the members of the family of the Scipios or Gnaeus Pompeius, was instrumental in the emphasizing of not only noble origin but also virtue. Interestingly enough, whereas the bonds with the Roman state are permanently evoked, the exempla from the Greek history play only a minor role in legendary genealogies (mostly Corinthians and Spartans, sometimes even mythical nations, like Homer's Pheacians). The central position of the Roman ideology is also reflected in the tendency to establish direct geographical connections between the origin of the ruler and either Rome itself or one of the Western provinces, so that the motif of migration is often found in the genealogies. On the other hand, Byzantine writers sometimes tended to boast with their knowledge of the history of the Ancient Orient, connecting famous personalities (like Artaxerxes) or dynasties (Achaemenids, Arsacids) with the Emperor whose genealogy they were composing. A special place in legendary genealogies is occupied by Constantine the Great. Almost as a rule, the genealogies postulate a kinship with him, often confirming it with the alleged physical resemblance. Depending on the purpose of the genealogy, certain purported features of Constantine's character were emphasized, so that he is alternately mentioned as a protector of the Christian faith, a triumphant military leader, or as a wise administrator of the Empire. Apart from that, the motifs of founding the new Capital and the migration of the Roman patrician families to Constantinople represent important topoi in this literary genre. The two most fascinating specimens of legendary genealogies in the Byzantine literature ? those of Basil I the Macedonian and Nikephoros III Botaneiates ? show that the choice of the elements of which the genealogy is composed (personality, family, dynasty) is at the same time a strong indication of the reason why it was composed in the first place. The genealogy of Basil the Macedonian was doubtlessly conceived by more than one person. It is quite certain that the idea to compose it originally came from Photios and was taken over by Basil's descendents ? his son Leo VI and his grandson Constantine VII Porphyrogennetos. The core of Basil's legendary genealogy is the story of his origin from the Parthian-Armenian dynasty of Arsacids (an indication of the Armenian origin of the founder of the Macedonian dynasty?). Constantine Porphyrogennetos elaborated this story further, describing in some detail the fate of Arsac's descendents, to whom Basil was allegedly related on his father's side, in the Byzantine Empire. This, of course, does not mean that he forgot to create connections between his grandfather and the standard legendary ancestors, like Constantine the Great (on Basil's mother's side) and Alexander the Great (the common ancestors of both Basil's parents). This apocryphal family tree certainly has its roots in the fact that the founder of the Macedonian dynasty was a parvenu of low origin, whose ascent to the throne was maculated by the murder of his predecessor and benefactor Michael III: apart from providing Basil with the noble origin, the genealogy was supposed to strengthen his right to the crown. One should keep in mind, though, that Basil's genealogy was written in the time of "Macedonian renaissance", so that its content is doubtlessly partly a product of the erudition of the compilers. In the course of time, legendary genealogies were enriched with new elements, stemming from the Byzantine history in the narrower sense of the word. The genealogy of Nikephoros III Botaneiates, compiled by Michael Attaleiates in the second half of the 11th century, is a good illustration to this. In contrast to Basil the Macedonian's genealogy, it is interwoven with real historical data, so that it cannot be called 'legendary' in its entirety. It would probably be more appropriate to call it a genealogy of both the Phokades and the Botaneiatai, since its core is made up of an invented story of the origin of the famous Byzantine family of Phokades, from which the family of Botaneiatai purportedly stems. The genealogy is clearly divided into three parts. In the first part, Attaleiates develops a theory according to which the Phokades are descendents of the Roman patrician families of Fabii and Scipios. The second part is devoted to the elaboration of the genealogical connection between the Phokades and the Botaneiatai, a tour deforce achieved by the claim that the latter are direct descendents of Nikephoros II Phokas, who is not only the central figure of this part in his capacity as an ancestor of Nikephoros III, but also as a model of a virtuous Emperor. Comparable to the habit of other writers to single out one or another characteristic trait of Constantine the Great according to their needs, Attaleiates concentrates on Nikephoros Phokas' military qualities, which are similar to those possessed by his "descendent" Botaneiates, and emphasizes the physical resemblance between the two rulers. In all likelihood, the part on the genealogy of the Phokades, as well as the story of Nikephoros Phokas, were taken over from an earlier tradition dealing with this renowned family, which Attaleiates implicitly mentions when he says that he had used 'an old book' and some other writings. As indicated above, the last, third, part of the genealogy, devoted to the deeds of Nikephoros Botaneiates' father and grandfather, does not fit the narrow definition of a legendary genealogy, despite the exaggerations Attaleiates uses in order to satisfy the demands of the genre. The description of Nikephoros Botaneiates' family tree represents merely an excursus within Attaleiates' History, but its composition has nevertheless an internal coherence and logic. Namely, all parts of the genealogy (the histories of the Fabii/Scipios, Phokades, and Botaneiatai) have one characteristic in common: the stories of the military deeds of the members of these families are used as an illustration of the military virtues of Nikephoros III. Since the hidden intention of the panegyric for Nikephoros III Botaneiates is to justify his usurpation of the throne, it is clear that a genealogy in this form ? especially the section pertaining to Nikephoros Phokas and his kinship with the usurper's father and grandfather ? represents a good basis for a legalistic interpretation of the coup d'?tat of 1078. The permeation of legendary genealogies with the Byzantine history is not confined only to individual Emperors which, like Nikephoros II Phokas, get assigned the role of the ancestor and moral model: some aristocratic families, most often the Phokades and the Doukai, also became moral exempla, serving to prove the reputation and the nobility of the ruler. As in the case of the Phokades, there is also a legendary tradition surrounding the family of Doukai, which made them a kind of model family: Being related to them became a measure of nobility, since it allowed the less prominent families to occupy a more distinguished place on the hierarchy of the Byzantine nobility. The prominence certain family names achieved ? mostly those of the families which created a dynasty ? led from the beginning of the 12th century until the fall of the Empire to free adoption and combination of more different surnames (mostly Doukai, Komnenoi, Angeloi, Palaiologoi, Kantakouzenoi, etc.). This, in turn, led to the creation of fictitious family trees. This kind of apocryphal construction of one's own origin was characteristic not only of the Byzantine culture but rather represented a very common phenomenon in the medieval world. In the medieval Serbia, for instance, its dissemination was fostered by the translation of the writings of the Byzantine chroniclers (Georgios Monachos, John Malalas, Constantine Manasses, and John Zonaras), so that legendary genealogies, written according to the Byzantine pattern, became an expression of the wish to include one's own history into the flow of the world history. Finally, a note on the reception of this genealogical line of thought. Parallel to the fictitious genealogies, there also existed a consciousness about them: Just like the development and the functional load of genealogies reveals a lot about the attitudes of the Byzantines towards power, so do the Byzantine writers who often criticize and ridicule the genealogies of individual Emperors. .

The purpose of this work is to reveal the peculiarities of perception of historical archival newsreels on the example of pre-revolutionary non-fiction films. The objective of the study is to identify the qualities of pre-revolutionary newsreels that influenced the mass audience before the revolution and compare them with those qualities that come out on top when perceived by modern viewers. In the work, an analytical approach is used as a method, which is based on theoretical provisions arising from the consideration of the specifics of newsreels as a special type of cinematography. The formation of Russian non-fiction cinema at an early stage is also considered, the techniques used in its development are revealed, and the extant evidence of the perception of newsreels in the first cinemas is studied. Films considered are : "The Sovereign Emperor, the Empress Empress and the Heir Tsarevich are pleased to taste sailor food on the imperial yacht "Standard" during their stay in the Skerries in 1908" (1908), "Asbestos mining in the Urals" (1911) and "The opening of the bridge across the Volga in the center of Rzhev" (1911). The results of the study confirm the influence of the so-called visual turn that occurred and indicate a fundamental difference in the perception of visual information compared to verbal. When analyzing the preserved film materials, including documentaries, it is noticeable that now these ephemeral screen images convey the breath of authentic life, and we look at the screen not to learn any story, but to feel the atmosphere of being of those people. The novelty of the undertaken research lies in the development of a model of perception of pre-revolutionary newsreels both in general terms and from the point of view of a specific audience before and now.

Private Law in the ‘Augustan History’SummaryThe author of Historia Augusta (The Augustan History) had some knowledge of the law. He knew, for instance, that the emperor had to issue his consent for an act of adrogation to be valid, but failed to describe its procedure correctly. He knew that the lex Fufia Caninia limited manumission to a maximum of one hundred slaves, but he did not know that this law was applicable only to testamentary manumissions.The biographer displayed his knowledge but distorted and fabricated history. However, as his acquaintance with the law was limited and pertained to the law in force at a much later period, it was wrong on the particulars in force earlier. In-depth analysis of the Historia Augusta with reference to Roman law may be helpful in telling fact from fiction in this extraordinary work.

The persecution of Christians was stopped after capture of Valerian in June 260. During the forty-three years from 260 to 303 the Christian Church had a relatively comfortable conditions to growth. According to Eusebius of Ceasarea and Lactantius the emperor Aurelian (270-275) wanted to renew the persecution in the last few months of his reign. The emperor was assassinated by a conspiracy of his higher officers and he didn’t realize this plans. We have several accounts of martyrdoms which took place under Aurelian in Italy, Asia Minor, Palestine, Dalmatia and Gaul. The reliability of many of this martyrdoms is doubled. Some of this martyrs were genuine, but they hadn’t been punished during the rule of Aurelian. For example Felix was executed either rule of Valerian or Aurelian. Sometimes authors of acts of martyr confused Aurelian with Marcus Aurelius. The following names of martyrs are fictious. The dates of the martyrdoms don’t fit to chronology for thè end of Aurelian’s rule.

The work, Dialogue between the Emperor Hadrian and Epictetus the Philosopher, is a fictional dialogue consisting of seventy-three questions and answers, probably written in the 2nd or 3rd century AD. It features the Roman emperor Hadrian as the questioning pupil and the Stoic philosopher Epictetus as the responding teacher. Most of the questions can be divided into two main categories. The smaller part is written in the form of riddles. The others are definitions. The questions deal with a variety of topics: things to do with death (e.g. gravedigger, funeral pyre), definitions of various metals (gold, silver, iron), useful things (e.g. letter, picture, sword), relationships and emotional terms (e.g. friendship, hope, love), celestial objects (sun, moon, sky, stars, earth), and realities related to seafaring (sea, ship, sailor), nightlife (sleep, night, pillow) or religion (god, sacrifice). This work was particularly influential in the development of medieval dialogue. The most famous adaptation is the Enfant Sage, which originated in the 13th century somewhere in the region of Provence.

Few, if any, rulers in twelfth-century Christendom received as much attention by contemporary chroniclers as the Byzantine Emperor Andronikos I Komnenos (1183–85). Even though Andronikos ruled for less than three years, his rise to power, reign of terror, downfall and gruesome death at the hands of the lynch mob of Constantinople struck contemporaries. In contrast to medieval chroniclers, modern historians have shown little interest in this emperor. While some scholarly attention has been paid to the Greek sources in order to reconstruct the historical facts of Andronikos’s reign, there has been little focus on the Greek historians’ perceptions and representations of their ruler. As to the relatively large number of Latin accounts of Andronikos’s reign, these have been either completely disregarded by historians or dismissed as ‘full of imagined conversations and romantic fictions’ and therefore as being of limited value for the reconstruction of historical events. All these accounts, however, are important, among others, in giving great insight into how a harsh and oppressive rule was viewed in both Byzantium and the Latin world in the late twelfth and early thirteenth century. This article examines accusations of tyranny against Andronikos expressed uniformly across Byzantine, French, German–Austrian and English accounts, and explores their meaning and function. To gain a greater appreciation of their significance, these accusations against the Byzantine emperor are subsequently cast against the backdrop of charges of tyranny levelled against other Christian rulers in twelfth-century Christendom. Therefore, the significance of this article extends beyond Constantinople and the Byzantine Empire to the evolution of many other strands of political philosophy of rulership in medieval European history.1

This article presents an analysis of various methods of translating foreign cultural colouring in works of fiction. An exotic culture (Chinese) is mediated by the author’s native language (British English) and then serves as an object of translation for a foreign-language target audience (Russian-speaking). Such a double ethnolinguistic barrier is overcome by translators in different ways, involving various strategies. The analysis focused on Robert van Gulik’s novels The Emperor’s Pearl and Necklace and Calabash from the English-language crime fiction series about Judge Dee, translated into Russian by Zh. Grushanskaya, I. Mansurov and O. Zavyalova with a minimal time gap. The research methodology is based on comparative and contextual analysis as well as analysis of dictionary definitions using lexicographic sources. In addition, the methods of analysis and synthesis, generalization and abstraction, classification, interpretation, and description are applied. Realia as fragments of the linguistic and conceptual worldview of mediaeval China are actively used by van Gulik to create a specific colouring of Chinese culture, exotic for Europeans. From British English into Russian, they are translated by means of various techniques reflecting different translation strategies. The multiple solutions include foreignization with explanatory translation, domestication, omission and elimination of national specifics. The translation variability revealed is determined by the individual translation style due to the levelling of other factors of translation multiplicity, since the time gap between the translations is minimal, the target audience is homogeneous, and the direction of the interlanguage and intercultural contact is one-dimensional. The identified errors in translation solutions deviating from adequacy are caused by pseudo-equivalence traps and incorrect strategies for conveying foreign cultural realia in a doubly mediated translation.

Since the Doubting Antiquity School questionning the existentiality of Whag Je, the studies on the origin of Huaxia are mostly about the time when Whag Je was created. It is said that Whag Je was created at the end of Qing period or early Jin and Han period at the end of Warring States Period. The reason is that Whag Je was described to be more imperial and in details in the literature in later times. What indicates the existentiality of Whag Je includes orally transmitted historical records, epigraph and various historical records on surnames and institutional memory. More imperial appearance of Whag Je observed in literature in later days than in early literature is related to the distribution of letters. The view that Whag Je was created by ‘making ancestors’ is related to the surnames. However, it was verified that Whag Je was not created by ‘making ancestors’ through genealogy literature referred by researchers. It’s difficult to consider that Whag Je was the fictional character because existentiality of Whag Je was indicated by diverse facts including ancestral rite as the institutional memory. Furthermore, Whag Je is the real figure which can’t be created because Sima Qian wrote “Annals of the Five Emperors” as checking diverse kinds of achievements and referring to old rumors, the records on Whag Je in Pre-Qin period were not clearly described and so those records were primary historical records which were not clearly arranged as the old stories.

Abstract: The Syriac Julian Romance, a tripartite fictional account of the reign of the Emperor Julian, was hitherto only partially known from two manuscripts. This article publishes the missing first section from Vat. Sir. 37, a section that narrates the death of Constantius II. The complete text allows us to demonstrate that the narrative was composed by a single author and that the tripartite structure does not reflect three older, separate texts. Further, we identify the Miscellaneous Chronicle of 640 as the source for most of the historical information in the Romance. This implies a new date in the first half of the seventh century, which is supported by other chronological indications in the Romance.

Researchers have long signalled the dynamic transformation of the information society, which has resulted in an increased interest in works belonging to the sphere of non-fiction, including literary reportage, over the past few years. This genre, on the borderline of journalism and literature, returns to the contem- porary humanity a sense of gnoseological certainty. The subject of this article is the texts of the “emperor” and founder of the Polish school of reportage Ryszard Kapuściński in their Ukrainian reception. This is the first attempt to examine the reception of the Polish reporter’s texts by Ukrainians, taking into account the dynamics and factors influencing it. Starting from the 2000s and until now, have been published the translations of “Imperium”, “Travels with Herodotus”, “A Reporter’s Self Portrait”, “The Emperor. Shah of Shahs”, “Another day of life” and finally “Ebony”. Each of these reportages showed the peculiarity of the author’s view of the world, whose basic aim was to sensitise his readers to all signs of otherness. Human dignity, reflection on difficult individual-society relations, identity problems, traumatic memory in various narratives about the Other, are the basic philosophical and ethical categories in Kapuściński’s individual method of describing the contemporary world. By going beyond stereotypes, the Polish reporter, as seen by the Ukrainian audience, shapes the principles of intercultural dialogue as a way of getting to know oneself and others, expanding one’s knowledge of the surrounding world and the values that remain unchanged regardless of historical cataclysms. A detailed emphasis in the article was placed on the reporter’s view of his mission not only to feel the Other and experience something with him, but above all to bring him closer to us so that he ceases to be an Alien.

The article discusses the introductory chapter of the History of One City by M.Ye. Saltykov-Shchedrin and argues that the interpretation of the villainous Roman emperors (Caligula and Nero) by the fictional author of the introduction as a kind of symbolic figures - models for famous rulers - was inspired by the assessment of the “glorious” crimes of the French robber Cartush in the introduction of Matvei Komarov’s book The Story of the Swindler Van’ka Cain . The author of The History of One City , using the model of assimilating a morally flawed domestic historical personality to foreign criminals, replaces the ingenuous admiration characteristic of the pretext with an ironic one. The parallel with the book about Van’ka Kain is not the only echo with the works of Russian literature of the 18th century in the introduction to the chronicle of Saltykov-Shchedrin. The text of introduction also reveals a correlation with the Ode of 1747 by M.V. Lomonosov.

Abstract The article brings under scrutiny an understudied dialogical account about the deposition of the patriarch of Constantinople Nicholas IV Mouzalon (1147-51). A close reading shows that this is not an official record of the proceedings but a piece of fiction that deliberately inverts the generic conventions of the two types of texts indicative of the 12th-century literary landscape, namely 1) minutes of church councils and 2) syllogistic theological dialogues. The anonymous author invites the reader to recognize the all-familiar scheme of the Socratic interrogation but eventually departs from it investing the protagonists (Manuel I Komnenos and Mouzalon) with features that distance them from their Platonic models. The text seems to be inextricably linked to Mouzalon’s canonical dilemma: can an archbishop who previously voluntarily fled from his office be appointed archbishop once again? In fact, the author’s primary concern is not the patriarch but the emperor, a judge-logician who is at one and the same time Socrates and more than Socrates, and the new language able to reflect the changing balance between the imperial and ecclesiastical powers in mid- 12th-century Byzantium.

Abstract After the Battle of White Mountain (November 8, 1620), a series of satirical propaganda writings were published against Frederick V of the Palatinate, who had triggered the Thirty Years’ War with his thoughtless takeover of the Bohemian crown. Several of these writings presented themselves as parodic letters of complaint from the ‘Winter King’ to opponents of the war or to (former) allies. In each case, the aim was to ridicule the young monarch’s military inexperience, political ignorance and grotesque hubris. There is a fictitious letter published in both a Latin (Supplex libellus) and German version (Aller vnderthenigiste Supplication) at the beginning of 1621, which was addressed to Emperor Ferdinand II. In complete misjudgment of the military and political situation, Frederick V strives for far-reaching compensation for the defeat he has suffered and has absurd visions in which he even sees himself as a future Roman King. This study first outlines the historical and publicistic context of the letters, then gives a brief summary and finally offers a comparative analysis of the two texts. It pursues a literary approach and investigates the extent to which the satirical intention of the anonymous authors is supported by the choice of letter fiction.

Abstract The „Chronica Danielis“ is a fantastical chronicle dedicated to the mythical Inglexio family, purported to have ruled Milan from the 7th to the 12th centuries. According to this legend, the emperor Frederick I was responsible for the family’s demise: when he destroyed Milan with the help of some Milanese traitors in 1145 (sic!), he either killed the last members of the Inglexio family or deported them to Germany. Jörg W. Busch has proved that the legend of the Inglexio was written during the rule of the della Torre family (1259–1277) to legitimise their power in Milan. The hypothesis is correct, but the „Cronica Federici primi“ – the third part of the text – is not a work of propaganda. On the contrary, it is a fictional reconstruction of the end of the della Torre family’s power after their defeat at Desio in 1277. Specifically, this article analyses the „Cronica Federici primi“ and provides a new edition of the text.

The earliest surviving account of Constantine's last days, April to May 337, was written by Eusebius of Caesarea as instant history, since Eusebius died in May 338 or 339. Parts of this concluding section of the Vita Constantini, for example the paragraphs about the first Christian emperor's baptism and mausoleum, have attracted scholarly curiosity, others less so. Here I would like to investigate systematically, for the first time, the versions of Constantine's abortive Iranian campaign provided by Eusebius and others, and then move on to consider the origins of a famous account of Constantine's baptism. Both exercises will show how oppositional versions of Constantine's last days influenced the formation of conventionally accepted narratives—or, more specifically, how polytheist historiography helped to mould the Nicaean or ‘orthodox’ perspective, parts of which have prevailed to the present day. Discussion of the fictional accounts of Constantine's baptism by ‘Eusebius of Rome’ and Silvester of Rome will also provide an opportunity to underline the truth of Michel van Esbroeck's observation that ‘the historical aspect of propaganda literature eludes positivist history, of which it is, even so, a part’.

The historical novel for children is the kind of Literature that transmits to young readers the historical knowledge in a pleasant and easy way, thanks to its entertaining and recreational character. The fictional heroes in most children's historical novels are social examples for the young readers, who adopt behaviors and motivations through observation. Additionally, the postmodern attestation of History as narration, with the appointment of microhistory - which is favored when the psychography of fictional heroes is on the forthground and when historical facts are interpreted from different perspectives and under various visual angles - spur many writers to provide marginal characters with space as well as speech. Bearing in mind that the byzantine era is a common subject in Children’s Literature and contemporary novelists try to educate children and at the same time bring out Byzantium's charm either by highlighting neglected historic events or by examining already known faces and facts from a fresh angle and given the fact that the concept of intertextuality in literature is a way to build up interpretive communities among young readers, this paper examines Greek writer’s, Penelope Maximos, five historical novels for children entitled as In the years of Alexios Komninos, (Stochastis, 1984), The first crusaders in Byzantium; 1096-1099 AD (Stochastis, 1989), Emmanouil Komninos. The knight emperor (Stochastis, 1990), The downfall of Thessaloniki. In the years of Andronikos Komninos (Stochastis, 1987) and Close to Athenais (Astir, 1972). More specifically, we will focus on the way Maximos attempted to make “visible” fictional characters who were until recently considered of less or least importance; Minors and adults who were being oppresed during the Byzantine era, such as slaves, suddenly become protagonists surrounding historic characters and, thanks to their presence, make the plot roll smoothly. In this paper will be also pointed out the way the writer chose to present to young readers female characters and their efforts not only to express their emotions freely, but also to interfere with Byzantine society and fight for their rights, in order to point out to the juvenile readers paths, thoughts and life idealism.

Abstract A corn modius, excavated in 1915 at Carvoran Roman fort, survives as an enduring testament to the memory sanctions applied to the emperor Domitian after his death. Domitian’s name has been hammered out, even though the rest of the engraved text – which reveals the capacity of this measuring vessel – has been preserved. Taking this case study as its springboard, this article reflects on how artefacts act as battlegrounds for the parallel processes of commemoration and censorship. It exemplifies, moreover, how a modern video-game for school-aged children which Stocks co-designed about Vindolanda, an Imperial-era Roman fort at Hadrian’s Wall, can serve a similar function. By translating the physical realities of that site into virtual images, and challenging players to solve a fictional murder mystery within this simulated environment, the game creates a new means through which students might be led into the past: it allows them to co-create history by selecting narrative paths and engaging intermedially with ancient Vindolanda. Far from being all ‘fun and games’, this process is especially effective as a pedagogical tool: players experience history not as readers, spectators, or listeners, but as visitors, endowed with first-person access to the stories and places of Britain’s Roman past.