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''Daphnis and Chloe'' ( el, Δάφνις καὶ Χλόη, ''Daphnis kai Chloē'') is an
ancient Greek novel Five ancient Greek novels survive complete from antiquity: Chariton's '' Callirhoe'' (mid 1st century), Achilles Tatius' ''Leucippe and Clitophon'' (early 2nd century), Longus' ''Daphnis and Chloe'' (2nd century), Xenophon of Ephesus' '' Ephesia ...
written in the Roman Empire, the only known work of the second-century AD Greek novelist and romance writer Longus.


Setting and style

It is set on the Greek isle of
Lesbos Lesbos or Lesvos ( el, Λέσβος, Lésvos ) is a Greek island located in the northeastern Aegean Sea. It has an area of with approximately of coastline, making it the third largest island in Greece. It is separated from Asia Minor by the na ...
, where scholars assume the author to have lived. Its style is
rhetoric Rhetoric () is the art of persuasion, which along with grammar and logic (or dialectic), is one of the three ancient arts of discourse. Rhetoric aims to study the techniques writers or speakers utilize to inform, persuade, or motivate par ...
al and
pastoral A pastoral lifestyle is that of shepherds herding livestock around open areas of land according to seasons and the changing availability of water and pasture. It lends its name to a genre of literature, art, and music ( pastorale) that depic ...
; its shepherds and shepherdesses are wholly conventional, but the author imparts human interest to this idealized world. ''Daphnis and Chloe'' resembles a modern novel more than does its chief rival among Greek erotic romances, the '' Aethiopica'' of Heliodorus, which is remarkable more for its plot than for its characterization.


Plot summary

''Daphnis and Chloe'' is the story of a boy ( Daphnis) and a girl (Chloe), each of whom is abandoned at birth along with some identifying tokens. A goatherd named Lamon discovers Daphnis, and a shepherd called Dryas finds Chloe. Each decides to raise the child he finds as his own. Daphnis and Chloe grow up together, herding the flocks for their foster parents. They fall in love but, being naive, do not understand what is happening to them. Philetas, a wise old cowherd, explains to them what love is and tells them that the only cure is kissing. They do this. Eventually, Lycaenion, a woman from the city, educates Daphnis in love-making. Daphnis, however, decides not to test his newly acquired skill on Chloe, because Lycaenion tells Daphnis that Chloe "will scream and cry and lie bleeding heavily s if murdered" Throughout the book, Chloe is courted by suitors, two of whom ( Dorcon and Lampis) attempt with varying degrees of success to abduct her. She is also carried off by raiders from a nearby city and saved by the intervention of the god Pan. Meanwhile, Daphnis falls into a pit, gets beaten up, is abducted by pirates, and is very nearly raped by a drunkard. In the end, after being recognised by their birth parents, Daphnis and Chloe get married and live out their bucolic lives in the country.


Characters

The characters in the novel include: *Astylus – Dionysophanes' son *Chloe – the heroine * Daphnis – the hero *Dionysophanes – Daphnis' master and father * Dorcon – the would-be suitor of Chloe *Dryas – Chloe's foster father *
Eros In Greek mythology, Eros (, ; grc, Ἔρως, Érōs, Love, Desire) is the Greek god of love and sex. His Roman counterpart was Cupid ("desire").''Larousse Desk Reference Encyclopedia'', The Book People, Haydock, 1995, p. 215. In the earl ...
– god of love *Eudromus – a messenger *Gnathon – the would-be suitor of Daphnis *Lamon – Daphnis' foster father *Lampis – a cow-herder *Lycaenion – woman who educates Daphnis in love-making *Megacles – Chloe's father *Myrtale – Daphnis' foster mother *Nape – Chloe's foster mother * Pan - god of shepherds and the wild *Philetas – old countryman who advises the heroes about love; likely named after
Philitas of Cos Philitas of Cos (; el, Φιλίτας ὁ Κῷος, ''Philītas ho Kōos''; – ), sometimes spelled Philetas (; , ''Philētas''; see Bibliography below), was a Greek scholar, poet and grammarian during the early Hellenistic period of ancient ...
*Rhode – Chloe's mother


Text tradition

Until the beginning of the nineteenth century, about a page of text was missing; when Paul Louis Courier went to Italy, he found the missing part in one of the ''plutei'' (an ancient Roman reading desk or place for storing manuscripts) of the
Biblioteca Laurenziana The Laurentian Library (Biblioteca Medicea Laurenziana or BML) is a historic library in Florence, Italy, containing more than 11,000 manuscripts and 4,500 early printed books. Built in a cloister of the Medicean Basilica di San Lorenzo di Firenze ...
in Florence. However, as soon as he had copied the text, he upset the ink-stand and spilled ink all over the manuscript. The Italian philologists were incensed, especially those who had studied the pluteus giving "a most exact description" (') of it.


Influences and adaptations

The first vernacular edition of ''Daphnis and Chloe'' was the French version of
Jacques Amyot Jacques Amyot (; 30 October 15136 February 1593), French Renaissance bishop, scholar, writer and translator, was born of poor parents, at Melun. Biography Amyot found his way to the University of Paris, where he supported himself by serving some ...
, published in 1559. Along with the ''Diana'' of
Jorge de Montemayor ( es, Jorge de Montemayor) (1520? – 26 February 1561) was a Portuguese novelist and poet, who wrote almost exclusively in Spanish. His most famous work is a pastoral prose romance, the ''Diana'' (1559). Biography He was born at Montemor ...
(published in the same year), ''Daphnis and Chloe'' helped inaugurate a European vogue for pastoral fiction in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. ''Daphnis and Chloe'' was the model of ''La Sireine'' of Honoré d'Urfé, the '' Aminta'' of
Torquato Tasso Torquato Tasso ( , also , ; 11 March 154425 April 1595) was an Italian poet of the 16th century, known for his 1591 poem ''Gerusalemme liberata'' ( Jerusalem Delivered), in which he depicts a highly imaginative version of the combats between ...
, and ''The Gentle Shepherd'' of Allan Ramsay. The novel '' Paul et Virginie'' by Jacques-Henri Bernardin de Saint-Pierre echoes the same story. Jacques Amyot's French translation is perhaps better known than the original. The story has been presented in numerous illustrated editions, including a 1937 limited edition with woodcuts by
Aristide Maillol Aristide Joseph Bonaventure Maillol (; December 8, 1861 – September 27, 1944) was a French sculptor, painter, and printmaker.Le Normand-Romain, Antoinette . "Maillol, Aristide". ''Grove Art Online. Oxford Art Online''. Oxford University Pr ...
, and a 1977 edition illustrated by
Marc Chagall Marc Chagall; russian: link=no, Марк Заха́рович Шага́л ; be, Марк Захаравіч Шагал . (born Moishe Shagal; 28 March 1985) was a Russian-French artist. An early modernism, modernist, he was associated with se ...
. Another translation that rivals the original is that of Annibale Caro, one of those writers dearest to lovers of the Tuscan elegances. The 1952 work ''Shiosai'' ('' The Sound of Waves''), written by the Japanese writer
Yukio Mishima , born , was a Japanese author, poet, playwright, actor, model, Shintoist, nationalist, and founder of the , an unarmed civilian militia. Mishima is considered one of the most important Japanese authors of the 20th century. He was considered fo ...
following a visit to Greece, is considered to have been inspired by the Daphnis and Chloe myth. Another work based on it is the 1923 novel '' Le Blé en herbe'' by
Colette Sidonie-Gabrielle Colette (; 28 January 1873 – 3 August 1954), known mononymously as Colette, was a French author and woman of letters. She was also a mime, actress, and journalist. Colette is best known in the English-speaking world for her ...
. The 1987 film '' The Princess Bride'' contains similarities to ''Daphnis and Chloe'' (for example, in both stories the male romantic lead is captured by pirates). Lawrence Rinder, director of the Berkeley Art Museum and Pacific Film Archive, attributes the inspiration for the film to Longus.


Opera

*
Jacques Offenbach Jacques Offenbach (, also , , ; 20 June 18195 October 1880) was a German-born French composer, cellist and impresario of the Romantic music, Romantic period. He is remembered for his nearly 100 operettas of the 1850s to the 1870s, and his uncom ...
wrote a one-act operetta based on the story in 1860. *
Joseph Bodin de Boismortier Joseph Bodin de Boismortier (23 December 1689 – 28 October 1755) was a French baroque composer of instrumental music, cantatas, opéra-ballets, and vocal music. Boismortier was one of the first composers to have no patrons: having obtained a ro ...
wrote a ''Daphnis et Chloé'' pastorale in 3 acts in 1747. *
Jean-Jacques Rousseau Jean-Jacques Rousseau (, ; 28 June 1712 – 2 July 1778) was a Genevan philosopher, writer, and composer. His political philosophy influenced the progress of the Age of Enlightenment throughout Europe, as well as aspects of the French Revol ...
wrote a ''pastorale heroïque'' called ''Daphnis et Chloè'' between 1774 and 1776. The work was never finished, due to his death in 1778.


Ballet

*
Maurice Ravel Joseph Maurice Ravel (7 March 1875 – 28 December 1937) was a French composer, pianist and conductor. He is often associated with Impressionism along with his elder contemporary Claude Debussy, although both composers rejected the term. In ...
wrote the 1912 ballet ''
Daphnis et Chloé ''Daphnis et Chloé'' is a 1912 ''symphonie chorégraphique'', or choreographic symphony, for orchestra and wordless chorus by Maurice Ravel. It is in three main sections, or ''parties'', and a dozen scenes, most of them dances, and lasts just u ...
'' for
Sergei Diaghilev Sergei Pavlovich Diaghilev ( ; rus, Серге́й Па́влович Дя́гилев, , sʲɪˈrɡʲej ˈpavləvʲɪdʑ ˈdʲæɡʲɪlʲɪf; 19 August 1929), usually referred to outside Russia as Serge Diaghilev, was a Russian art critic, pa ...
's
Ballets Russes The Ballets Russes () was an itinerant ballet company begun in Paris that performed between 1909 and 1929 throughout Europe and on tours to North and South America. The company never performed in Russia, where the Revolution disrupted society. ...
, choreographed by
Michel Fokine Michael Fokine, ''Mikhail Mikhaylovich Fokin'', group=lower-alpha ( – 22 August 1942) was a groundbreaking Imperial Russian choreographer and dancer. Career Early years Fokine was born in Saint Petersburg to a prosperous merchant and a ...
. * The music by Ravel was also used in the ballet of the same name by
Frederick Ashton Sir Frederick William Mallandaine Ashton (17 September 190418 August 1988) was a British ballet dancer and choreographer. He also worked as a director and choreographer in opera, film and revue. Determined to be a dancer despite the oppositi ...
, first performed by the Sadler's Wells Ballet (now
The Royal Ballet The Royal Ballet is a British internationally renowned classical ballet company, based at the Royal Opera House in Covent Garden, London, England. The largest of the five major ballet companies in Great Britain, the Royal Ballet was founded in ...
) at Covent Garden on 5 April 1951, with Margot Fonteyn as Chloe and
Michael Somes Michael George Somes CBE (28 September 191718 November 1994), was an English ballet dancer. He was a principal dancer of The Royal Ballet, London, and the frequent partner of Margot Fonteyn. Early years Somes was born in Horsley, Gloucesters ...
as Daphnis. Decor was by
John Craxton John Leith Craxton RA, (3 October 1922 – 17 November 2009) was an English painter. He was sometimes called a neo-Romantic artist but he preferred to be known as a "kind of Arcadian". Biography Career John was the son of musician Harold ...
. *
John Neumeier John Neumeier (born February 24, 1939) is an American ballet dancer, choreographer, and director. He has been the director and chief choreographer of Hamburg Ballet since 1973. Five years later he founded the Hamburg Ballet School, which also i ...
choreographed the ballet ''Daphnis and Chloe'' for his Frankfurt Ballet company. * Jean-Christophe Maillot created a contemporary and sensual choreography of the ballet ''Daphnis et Chloé'' for Les Ballets de Monte-Carlo. This shorter 35 minute choreography also uses Maurice Ravel's music, but not the whole original ballet. It features Jeroen Verbruggen as Daphnis, Anjara Ballesteros-Cilla as Chloe, Bernice Coppieters as Lycenion and Chris Roelandt as Dorcon, and was directed by Denis Caïozzi and produced by Telmondis, Les Ballets de Monte-Carlo and Mezzo. The ballet premiered on April 1, 2010, at the Grimaldi Forum in Monaco and has since then been broadcast several times on television internationally.


Art

*
Marc Chagall Marc Chagall; russian: link=no, Марк Заха́рович Шага́л ; be, Марк Захаравіч Шагал . (born Moishe Shagal; 28 March 1985) was a Russian-French artist. An early modernism, modernist, he was associated with se ...
produced a series of 42 color lithographs based on the tale of Daphnis and Chloe.


Cinema

* The work was adapted into a 64-minute silent film by Orestis Laskos in 1931, one of the first Greek cinema classics. The movie was originally considered shocking due to the nudity in some of the scenes. * The story was the basis for the 1963 film Μικρές Αφροδίτες (''Mikres Afrodites''), or '' Young Aphrodites'', by the Greek filmmaker
Nikos Koundouros Nikos Koundouros ( el, Νίκος Κούνδουρος; 15 December 1926 – 22 February 2017) was a Greek film director. Biography Koundouros was born in Agios Nikolaos, Crete, in 1926. He studied painting and sculpture at the Athens School ...
, based on a script of Vassilis Vassilikos.


Radio

The work was adapted into a 45-minute radio play in 2006 by
Hattie Naylor Hattie Naylor is an English playwright. Her 2009 ''Ivan and the Dogs'' won the Tinniswood Award for original radio drama and was nominated in the 2010 Olivier Awards for Outstanding Contribution to Theatre. It has since been developed into a film ...
.


Editions

* The first printed edition. * Courier, Paul Louis (1810). Contained a previously unknown passage, after the discovery of a new manuscript. * With English translation. * With English translation revised from that of George Thornley. * With French translation. * With French translation. * Reeve's text is reprinted with the translation and commentary by Morgan (see below).


English translations

* A revised version is printed with Edmonds's text (see above). * * * * * With reprint of Reeve's text and a commentary. * * Side-by-side Greek text and English translation. *Humphreys, Nigel (2015). ''The Love Song of Daphnis and Chloe'', Circaidy Gregory Press. . In the format of an Epic Poem.


See also

Other ancient Greek novelists: *
Chariton Chariton of Aphrodisias ( grc-gre, Χαρίτων ὁ Ἀφροδισιεύς) was the author of an ancient Greek novel probably titled '' Callirhoe'' (based on the subscription in the sole surviving manuscript). However, it is regularly referred t ...
: ''The Loves of Chaereas and Callirhoe'' *
Xenophon of Ephesus Xenophon of Ephesus ( el, Ξενοφῶν ὁ Εφέσιος; fl. 2nd century – 3rd century AD) was a Greek writer.''Suda'' ξ 50 His surviving work is the '' Ephesian Tale of Anthia and Habrocomes'', one of the earliest novels as well as ...
: ''The Ephesian Tale'' * Achilles Tatius: '' Leucippe and Clitophon'' *
Heliodorus of Emesa Heliodorus Emesenus or Heliodorus of Emesa ( grc, Ἡλιόδωρος ὁ Ἐμεσηνός) is the author of the ancient Greek novel called the '' Aethiopica'' () or ''Theagenes and Chariclea'' (), which has been dated to the 220s or 370s AD. Id ...
: ''The Aethiopica''


Footnotes


External links

Editions of the Greek text
''Longi Pastoralium de Daphnide et Chloe Libri IV Graece et Latine''
Ed. Christ. Guil. Mitscherlich, Biponti (Zweibrücken), 1794.
''Longi Pastoralia''
First complete Greek text of ''Daphnis and Chloe'', edited by P.-L. Courier, with a Latin translation by G. R. Lud. de Sinner. Paris, 1829.
''Longi Pastoralia''
Greek text of ''Daphnis and Chloe'' with a Latin translation, edd. Seiler, Schaefer, Boissonade & Brunck. Leipzig, 1843.
''Erotici Scriptores''
Paris, 1856. ''Longi Pastoralia'', Greek text with Latin translation, edited by G A Hirschig, pp. 174–222.

The Bibliotheca Classica Selecta's 2006/07 edition of the Greek text with the French translation of Jacques Amyot revised, corrected and completed by P.-L. Courier. Synopses, analyses, and other studies

An article – written from the standpoint of a cultural entomologist – by Herbert Weidner, Hamburg, Germany.
''Daphnis and Chloe'': Its influence on art and its impact on Goethe
An entry in the ''Encyclopedia of World Biography'' which also notes the work done by William E. McCulloh, Emeritus Professor of Classics at Kenyon College, Ohio, in dating ''Daphnis and Chloe''.
Longus: Life, Influence & Bibliography
An entry in the ''Encyclopedia of the Ancient World''.
J. C. Dunlop's ''History of Fiction''
London, 1888, vol. 1, pp. 45–57. Audiobooks * {{Authority control Ancient Greek novels 2nd-century novels Greek novels adapted into films Mythological lovers