The Power of Logoi: The Philopatris Revisited, lecture by Przemyslaw Marciniak (University of Silesia), University of Vienna, January 28, 2019, 6:30 pm

The anonymous Philopatris (Patriot or The Student) does not enjoy great popularity with students of Byzantine literature. They are mostly interested in the date of its composition and its ideological agenda. Only very recently did Anna Peterson shift the focus of the discussion to the way in which the ancient tradition was appropriated in the Philopatris.

This paper proposes a new possible interpretation of this dialogue as a discussion of the power of logoi.

Przemyslaw Marciniak is Professor of Byzantine Literature and Head of Center for Studies on Literature and the Reception of Byzantium at the University of Silesia. His research focuses on 12th-century Byzantine literature, Byzantine performativity, Byzantine humour, and the reception of Byzantine culture in the post-Byzantine period. He is currently a senior fellow at the Freiburg Institute for Advanced Studies. His project is titled "Byzantium and the popular imagination – stereotypes, simplifications and reappraisal."