Greek Romances
Greek novels of antiquity had their own taste for romance which was closely connected with conventional values and religious beliefs. The fact that five novels of ancient Greece that have withstood the test of time present romance in conventional ways, basically rooting it in heterosexual marriage so as to remove any possibility of controversial debate. The very concept of Greek romance is grounded in fourth century CE, after which it went on to leave an indelible mark on influential poets like Nonnus and Musaeus. Five important texts that managed to reach us in entirety from that age include Chariton's Callirhoe from the first century and Xenophon's Anthia and Habrocomes; from the second century, Achilles Tatius' Leucippe and Clitophon and Longus' Daphnis and Chloe; and, from the fourth century, Heliodorus' Charicleia and Theagenes.
Interestingly though each narrative was original in central concept, one theme that runs through all novels is the love between a heterosexual couple, trials and tribulations and their reunion at the end. They are all set in an imaginary world which we could refer to as the classical period as it shows no Roman influence. Chariton's and Heliodorus' works for example are explicitly set in the classical period.
These romances gained critical attention mainly because of two dominant themes in the novels: for one, these romances were absolutely heterosexual and young and secondly, there is a theme of travel and return. The happy ending which involved a period of absence, flight or travel added to the charm of young love and thus even though few novels could reach us in complete form, those...
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