Word of mouth: Fama and its personifications in art and literature from ancient Rome to the Middle Ages

457 Pages·2017·20.12 MB·English

by  Gianni Guastella

WORD OF MOUTH

Word of Mouth
fi
Fama and Its Personi cations in
Art and Literature from Ancient
Rome to the Middle Ages
GIANNI GUASTELLA
1
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Preface
ThisbookwasbornfromthefascinationIhavealwayshadwiththemysteri-
ouswayinwhichnewsandalsomanystoriesariseandtakeshape,spreading
across a vast, anonymous web of communicative exchanges by ‘word of
mouth’ before they acquire a kind of stability (which reaches its peak in the
fixedformofwrittentexts).Evenwhenwetelleachotherwhatishappeningto
us or around us, or discuss an event that is occurring far away, that same
elusive word often carries out an important role, as it is the most practical
andeffectivewaytotransferinformationincontextsgovernedbyinformality
and mutual trust. The magmatic evolution of news and stories through the
exchangeoftalkpassedalongbywordofmouthisthereforeoneofthemost
common and indispensable communicative experiences in which we are
engaged on a daily basis, yet it also passes by almost unnoticed when not
beingoutrightdisparaged.Thisisunsurprisinginasocietylikeours,which—
in spite of the revolution caused by the technological innovations of the last
fiftyyears—continuestoassignanabsolute,paradigmaticvaluetothewritten
word. In this way, orality is relegated to one of the minor forms of commu-
nicationdespiteitsimportantandpervasiveroleintheexchangeofallkindsof
information.Moreover,speakingisanactthatcanonlybesubjectedtoprecise
anddetailedobservationwithdifficulty;becauseofitsephemeralnature,ithas
long been excluded from the group of sources that people can trust when
reconstructingevents—especiallypastevents.Speechcangenerallybetreated
as a document only if it has been reduced to a fixed, reproducible form,
through writing or another recording technique: in other words, only if it
hasbeenmadetobecomesomethingotherthanitself.
Forme,studyingwhattheRomanscalledfamaprimarilymeansattempting
tolookbeyondthestabilityofwrittentexts—althoughthisisinevitablydone
usingthosetexts—to thedynamicuniverseinhabitedby ‘wordofmouth’.At
theveryleast,itcanhelpusunderstandwhatkindofvaluewritersinantiquity
assignedtoinformationthatispassedalonginthisway.
Subjectingthistopictoasystematicstudywouldhavebeenunrealistic,not
only because of the intangibility of the trail left by ‘talk’ in ancient texts that
have reached us, but also due to the staggering variety of the testimonies
available for consideration. I found a reliable anchor for my research in two
great personifications of fama, which attempt to give ‘body’ to this intricate
tangle of circulating talk: Virgil’s monster, which spreads rumours about the
relationship between Dido and Aeneas, and the ruler of the chaotic palace
where Ovid imagines all the news in the world gathering. In both cases, the
vi Preface
figuresareverydifferentfromtheemblematicFamathatappearsincountless
works of art from the fifteenth century on: I am referring to the well-known
winged female figure who soars into the air and uses her golden trumpets to
spreadthefameofillustriousmen.Explaininghowancientrepresentationsof
Fama and this figure of celebrity differ was a later step in my research. The
root of this difference lies within the very meaning of the Latin term fama,
which can indicate the two separate fields of rumour and renown, linked by
the same mechanism that diffuses information (speaking, fari). In this book,
I have concentrated on the foundational schema born from these different
realmsandtheirpersonifications,whichgavewaytoanenormousnumberof
variationsthroughoutliteraryandartistictradition.
In studying the core figures of Fama, I hope to have at least succeeded in
offering an interpretative key useful for anyone who wishes to tackle the
diverse panorama of its later representations. Despite the many scholarly
contributions that have recently been dedicated to this subject, the theme of
fama remains inexhaustibly complex. To fully observe the unpredictable
pathways along which word of mouth travels, it would be necessary to
successfully break into Fama’s fantastical dwellings. But this is something
only artists can achieve. Just think of Chaucer, who projected an image of
himself onto the character of ‘Geffrey’, brought to the House of Fame in a
dream; or of the composer Beat Furrer, who staged his work FAMA (2005),
transporting the audience to the middle of a kind of sound theatre directly
inspiredbyOvid’sHouseofFama.
It is a pleasure to extend my gratitude to everyone who has supported me
during this project over the past few years. I would like to begin with
Alessandro Barchiesi and Salvatore Settis, who believed in the value of my
project, encouraged me to work on it, and helped me bring it to completion.
During various stages of this book’s development Stefano Anastasio, Ilaria
Betocchi, Mino Gabriele, Ilaria Marchesi, Simone Marchesi, Paolo Pirillo,
Leonardo Romagnoli, Manuela Rossi, and Vera Silvani generously advised
and helped me to locate documents, edit the chapters, select images, and
obtain reproduction and translation rights. I would also like to thank Sonia
Cavicchioli and Alessandro Pagnini, who discussed parts of my project with
me;and,inparticular,RobertoBartaliniandAnnaBuia,whoreadthesepages
and provided me with opinions and observations that became indispensable
forbetterfocusingvariousaspectsofmyargument.Ireceivedsomeinvaluable
commentsandusefulbibliographicalsuggestionsfromGraziaMariaFachechi,
Laura Gibbs, Nicola Lanzarone, Sonia Maffei, Tiziano Manca, Francesca
Mencacci, Gabriella Moretti, Roberta Mucciarelli, Emanuele Papi, Paolo
Ponzù Donato, and Antonio Stramaglia. My most sincere thanks to all of
them.IalsowishtothankthetwoanonymousreadersfromOxfordUniversity
Presswhogavemeadvicethathelpedmereworkpartsofthisbook.
Preface vii
Of all the institutions that enabled me to carry out my research, the
Warburg Institute Library was, without doubt, the most important for me.
Even in an age dominated by the infinite richness of interconnections made
possible by the Internet, Aby Warburg’s classification system remains a
formidabletoolofinspirationandsupportforinterdisciplinaryresearch.
This book was originally designed and written for an Italian audience.
I wish to extend special thanks to Erin Brady, who not only translated my
original text, but also regularly discussed it with me, considerably improving
itsstructureandhelpingmetomakethepresentationofmyargumentclearer
inseveralways.IamalsosincerelygratefultomysisterManuela,whohelped
meeditthetextandbibliographicalreferencesandtoVirginiaCatmurforher
precioushelpproofreadingandcopy-editing.
Abooklikethisone,whichdiscussesthehiddenandinexhaustiblevitality
oftalk,isalsocontinuouslyenhancedbycountlessconversationswithfriends
andstudentsovertheyears.Itisimpossibletoaccountforthisdensenetwork
of contributions and ideas, which often inadvertently became mine even as
Ilosttrackofthosewhosuggestedthemtome.IwishIcouldproperlythank
everyonewhodiscussedthevariousthemesofthisbookwithme,butallIcan
doisapologizetothemif,afterallthistime,Iwasunabletorememberexactly
howtheycontributedtothisproject.
Finally,ImustexpressmygratitudetoSilvia,whohelpedmegiveshapeto
many of the reflections I propose in these pages using the very same intelli-
gence, generosity, and inexhaustible energy with which she gives meaning to
my life each day. Without her, this book could never have been written. It is
dedicatedtoher.
G.G.
Florence
31December2015

Contents
Illustrations xi
Abbreviations xv
Introduction 1
0.1. HendrikGoltzius,FameandVirtue(1586) 1
0.2. Πρόσωπον/Persona 5
0.3. FormsofFama 9
1. FlyingInformation 13
1.1. MovementinSpace 13
1.2. WingedBodies,DivineMessengers 20
1.3. Ἔπεαπτερόεντα:TheFlightoftheWord 30
1.4. ‘Cetélégrapheestunmystèresocial’ 35
1.5. AnUncertainPointofDeparture,NoDestination 43
1.6. MysteriousTestimonies 48
2. Lat.Fama 53
2.1. Famaafandodicta 53
3. TrueandFalse 67
3.1. InCourt 67
3.2. Arumoribus,contrarumores 76
3.3. Fama,nomenincerti 83
4. ProducersandPerformersofRumour 91
4.1. ModernTheoriesonRumourandGossip 91
4.2. TheMultimediaTransmissionofInformation 100
4.3. TheInstabilityofRumours 108
4.4. Famaandrumor 115
5. Authority 125
5.1. Auctor 125
5.2. BelievingSomeone’sWords 134
5.3. ACuriousMessenger 147
6. GivingRumouraBody 153
6.1. Homer,Hesiod 153
6.2. TheCultofΦήμη 159
6.3. FamaEmbodied 167
6.4. FamaDisembodied 177