Concepts and Functions of Philhellenism: Aspects of a Transcultural Movement

300 Pages·2021·1.935 MB·English

by  Martin Vöhler, Stella Alekou, Miltos Pechlivanos

Concepts and Functions of Philhellenism
Trends in Classics –
Pathways of Reception
General Editors
Franco Montanari and Antonios Rengakos

Editorial Board
Lorna Hardwick, Craig Kallendorf, Fiona Macintosh,
Miltos Pechlivanos

Associate Editors
Anastasia Bakogianni and Rosanna Lauriola
Volume 7
Concepts and
Functions of
Philhellenism
Aspects of a Transcultural Movement
Edited by
Martin Vöhler, Stella Alekou and Miltos Pechlivanos
ISBN 978-3-11-071571-2
e-ISBN (PDF) 978-3-11-071602-3
e-ISBN (EPUB) 978-3-11-071609-2
ISSN 2629-2556
Library of Congress Control Number: 2020950023
Bibliographic information published by the Deutsche Nationalbibliothek
The Deutsche Nationalbibliothek lists this publication in the Deutsche Nationalbibliografie;
detailed bibliographic data are available on the Internet at http://dnb.dnb.de.
© 2021 Walter de Gruyter GmbH, Berlin/Boston
Cover image: Paul Klee, Hauptweg und Nebenwege
Printing and binding: CPI books GmbH, Leck
www.degruyter.com
Contents
Acknowledgements  VII
Martin Vöhler, Stella Alekou, Miltos Pechlivanos
Concepts and Functions of Philhellenism: Aspects of a Transcultural
Movement  1
Part I: Ancient Philhellenism
Antje Wessels
Shaping the (Hi)story of Innovation: Livius Andronicus as the First Poet of Latin
Literature  9
Spyridon Tzounakas
Ηellenism in Horace’s Literary Criticism  23
Stella Alekou
‘Inappropriate’ Philhellenism in Roman Satire  51
Despina Keramida
Philhellenism, Patronage and Poetics in Martial  77
Martin Vöhler
Enthusiasm and Mimesis in Longinus’ Concept of the Sublime  105
Part II: Philhellenism and the Greek Revolution
Richard Jenkyns
Hellenism and Philhellenism in British Experience  125
Marco Hillemann
Could Leo Become Leonidas Again? The German Philhellene Wilhelm Müller
and his Ambivalent Reception of Lord Byron  141
Domna Moyseos
Philhellenism as an Exploration of Identity and Alterity in the Literary Tradition
of Travels to the East in the 19th Century  155
VI  Contents
Miltos Pechlivanos
Adamantios Korais (Smyrna 1748–Paris 1833), philhellène à sa manière  177
Paraskevas Matalas
Europeans in the Greek Landscape: Idealization, Appropriation,
Disillusionment  195
May Chehab
Philhellenism and Constitutionalism: The First Greek Constitutions  211
Part III: Philhellenism and European Identity
Konstantinos Maras
Building Europe from Below: The Philhellenic Committee Movement as an Early
Form of European Integration  225
Marilisa Mitsou
Philhellenism and Geopolitics: Friedrich Thiersch’s De l’état actuel de la Grèce
(1833) as a European Project  245
Alexis Politis
The Greek ‘Great Idea’ of Irredentism Up Against a Defunct Philhellenism
(1850–1880)  261
Conclusions and Prospects
Glenn W. Most
Ancient Greece and the Identity of Modern Europe  275

List of Contributors  287
Index of Names  289
Acknowledgements
This volume is the result of the research project “Concepts and Functions of Eu-
ropean Philhellenism in the Era of the Restoration (1815–30)” at the University of
Cyprus (2013–15). The final form of this book reflects the shaping, revision, devel-
opment and elaboration of ideas and critical discussions following an Interna-
tional Conference held at the University of Cyprus in 2015, entitled “Philhellenism
and European Identity”.
We are indebted to A.G. Leventis Foundation for the grant awarded for this
research, without which the successful completion of this book would not have
been possible. We are also grateful to the Center for Modern Greece (CeMoG) for
their cooperation. We wish to additionally express our sincere gratitude to the
University of Cyprus, which generously provided its facilities and assistance dur-
ing all research activities related to our project.
We owe a special debt of gratitude to Dr. Despina Keramida, Special Scientist
at the University of Cyprus, for the textual revision and editorial input of all the
chapters that comprise the edited volume. We sincerely thank Ms. Angela Zerbe,
who was responsible for proofreading and language editing of all the chapters
included in the volume.
Berlin/Nicosia/Thessaloniki
May 2020
https://doi.org/10.1515/9783110716023-203

Martin Vöhler, Stella Alekou, Miltos Pechlivanos
Concepts and Functions of Philhellenism:
Aspects of a Transcultural Movement
The long and complex history of philhellenism spans the period from antiquity
to the present. This is illustrated by the appearance of the composite φιλέλλην
(philéllen) as early as the 5th century BC in the work of Herodotus, who uses the
term with the meaning of “fond of the Hellenes” to characterize foreign princes.
The related abstract noun φιλελληνισμός (philellinismós) is not used until much
later. Since the Greek Revolution (1821–1829) the terms ‘Philhellene’ and ‘Phil-
hellenism’ appear as borrowed words in French, Italian and English as well as in
other European languages. The adaptations reflect increased interest in philhel-
lenism in the 19th century, which is directly linked to the Greek Revolution and
which develops into a pan-European movement.
How is philhellenism able to develop the force and dynamic to transcend na-
tional and epochal limits? To explain this phenomenon, it is not enough to follow
the usual research procedure which begins with the Enlightenment (around 1750)
and from there traces aspects of philhellenism in their particular development. A
fundamentally new approach is needed. The central thesis of this book is that
European philhellenism derives its driving force from antiquity. In Rome a ‘clas-
sical philhellenism’ emerges which can be perceived in literature and which has
been drawn on by European movements since the Enlightenment. Therefore, it is
appropriate to comprehend the multifaceted term in its historical depth and to
trace the various concepts and functions which were shaped by it. Only in this
way can the transcultural force and dynamic of the phenomenon be grasped. The
“Concepts and Functions of Philhellenism” in the book’s title refer to their com-
mon focus in antiquity. Without this point of reference, the transcultural force
and dynamic of the phenomenon cannot be comprehended. In this way, the di-
verse aspects of a transcultural movement come into view, and these will be pre-
sented in this volume. They are bound up with the identity of cultural bodies,
whether they are empires, nations, genres or individuals. The emphasis on this
transcultural aspect and on the literal movement may be what sets this edited
volume apart. The articles collected here stem from an interdisciplinary confer-
ence. They examine the subject not in the form of a systematically structured text-
book, but rather in the exploratory manner of exemplary case studies.
The present volume seeks to portray this multi-faceted phenomenon in its
historical depth by focusing on three main points: (1) the ancient origins, (2) the
https://doi.org/10.1515/9783110716023-001
  Martin Vöhler, Stella Alekou, Miltos Pechlivanos
actualization and politicization of the term at the time of the European Restora-
tion (1815–1830), and (3) the transformation of philhellenism into a pan-Euro-
pean movement in view of the establishment of the Greek state. The objective of
the studies gathered in this work is to clarify the different approaches, concepts
and functions as well as the adaptations, effects, and foundation techniques of
European philhellenism and, in this way, contribute to the understanding of its
variations and possible relations. Clearly, the topic cannot be exhaustively dealt
with here. Thus, there have been omissions, such as the already well-researched,
‘new humanistic rediscovery of Greece’1 between the Renaissance and the Age of
Enlightenment that leads to the reappearance of the classical values as illustrious
remembrances and, consequently, to the renewal of the philhellenic movement.
The focus on the three abovementioned phases should reveal the meaning of
philhellenism in both Greek and European history; this volume will demonstrate
that philhellenism is gradually formed in the European tradition not only by the
Greco-Roman conflictual dialogue, but also, and most importantly, by the depic-
tion of Greece through a Roman lens. The reader will thus be further invited to
examine whether Modern Philhellenism and Europeanness are still intertwined
with Greco-Roman hellenophilia, and to contemplate, historically and conceptu-
ally, the Roman foundations of this movement in European identity.
The aim is to identify the origins and dynamics of this phenomenon in order
to underline its historical depth with a particular focus on antiquity, the Greek
Revolution, and its role in the formation of European identity. Despite the un-
questionable contribution of earlier research on philhellenism in general, which
has considerably enriched the findings of the readings in this volume, the con-
ception of philhellenism as a single, political, pan-European movement that has
its roots in ancient classicism has not yet been fully explored and deserves fur-
ther, more attentive examination. The character of the various chapters in this
book is evidence of this very concern, as the reader is encouraged to attempt an
in-depth comprehension of the historical foundations of the philhellenic move-
ment and its political, cultural and philosophical expressions.
Key aspects of philhellenism – political self-determination, freedom, beauty,
individual greatness – originate in antiquity and have a complex reception his-
tory. The first part of this volume deals with the frame of reference in antiquity in
order to emphasize the fundamental significance of ancient philhellenism (often
neglected by modern philologists) which has proved to be a core element and a
sine qua non of later conceptual illustrations and functions of this movement.
Particular emphasis is given to the examination of ancient hellenophilia within

1 See Güthenke (2008); Vöhler/Cancik (2009).