Epic Apostrophe from Homer to Nonnus

This contribution explores the use of apostrophe (address by the narrator to the heroic figures) in Nonnus’ Dionysiaca. Nonnus inherits the use of this device from his epic predecessors: the emotional force of apostrophe is present in Homer; apostrophe as a marker of intertextual engagement with other genres (such as hymns or bucolic poetry) can be found in Hellenistic poetry. Most of the apostrophes in Nonnus are found in book 25 of the Dionysiaca, a passage rife with explicit poetological discussion of the relation between the Nonnian narrator and Homer. Apostrophe can here be read as a dramatization of this intertextual dialog with his “father” Homer.