What do we know of this lost work, its author, its genre and its original literary and historical context?

Description

Case Study: The new fragments of Sappho- the brothers poem/song.

Your essay should address all of the following questions:

• What do we know of this lost work, its author, its genre and its original literary

and historical context?

• What types of evidence do we possess for this lost work, and what are the special

characteristics and limitations of this evidence? Does this material present any

methodological challenges to the scholar?

• What modern editions, translations and discussions exist, and how useful are they?

• What can be said – or conjectured – about the content of this lost work? Can it be

‘reconstructed’ with any confidence?

• Why, in your view, is this lost work particularly interesting or significant?

This assignment is designed as a cross between a traditional essay, an independent research project and an exercise in literary detective work.