Articles

Prosimetro e romanzo: Apuleio, Metamorfosi

Authors

  • Alice Bonandini

Abstract

Il contributo indaga la ridotta presenza di scarti prosimetrici nelle Metamorfosi di Apuleio. Vengono presi in esame due dati di contesto: 1. la presenza del prosimetro nella tradizione narrativa antica; 2. l’attitudine di Apuleio alla composizione poetica, testimoniata dai frammenti di tradizione indiretta, ma anche dall’Apologia e dai Florida. Vengono quindi analizzati i due inserti in versi delle Metamorfosi (4,33,1s. e 9,8,2), che sono accomunati dal legame con la tradizione profetica e oracolare, dalla quale si distaccano però per la scelta del metro. L’insieme dei dati raccolti suggerisce che il mancato ricorso al prosimetro sia un dato significativo all’interno della poetica del romanzo apuleiano e del suo rapporto con i modelli.

The article examines the limited occurrence of prosimetrum in Apuleius’ Metamorphoses. Two contextual factors are considered: (1) the presence of prosimetrum within the ancient narrative tradition; and (2) Apuleius’ poetic skill, demonstrated not only by fragments of his lost works, but also by the Apologia and the Florida. The study analyses the two verse insertions (Met. 4,33,1f. and 9,8,2), both related to the prophetic and oracular tradition, from which they nevertheless diverge in their metrical choices. The evidence suggests that the scarcity of prosimetrum is a meaningful feature within the poetics of Apuleius’ novel and its relationship to its models.

Author Biography

Alice Bonandini

Alice Bonandini is Professor of Latin Literature at the University of Genoa (Italy). She is currently preparing a monograph on the Greek and Latin tradition of the myth of Thyestes; her research interests also include Augustan and early imperial literature (especially Ovid), the history of classical scholarship, the ancient drama and classical reception. She has devoted a monograph and several articles to Menippean satire and prosimetrum.

Published

2026-03-12

Issue

2026: AN 21, preliminary version

Section

Articles
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