Characters and characterisation in the epic cycle

The aim of this thesis is to use the various characters who play a part in the Epic Cycle as a tool with which to understand more about the Cycle and the pre-Homeric oral tradition. In Part 1, I use characters as a way to approach the different sources of information we have for the Epic Cycle, namely the Bibliotheca of Apollodorus and the various fragments from later writers and scholiasts. I take the view that these sources are, on the whole, less valuable than Proclus’ epitomes. By looking at the characters unique to these accounts, I assess the value and utility of Apollodorus and the fragments for our knowledge of the Epic Cycle. Nevertheless, the thesis also raises questions about the status of Proclus’ epitomes and the extent to which they give us access to the ‘authentic’ Epic Cycle. Part 2 is dedicated to the individual characters who play a part in the narrative of Proclus’ epitomes. Using a mixture of methodological tools from the camps of both Neoanalysis and Oral Theory, I attempt to trace out a full account of how these different characters were depicted in the tradition of the Trojan War. By using the information given by both Proclus, the fragments, and the Homeric poems, the aim is to build as full a picture as possible of the position and characterisation of these characters in the pre-Homeric oral tradition of the Trojan War. The individuals discussed are both major (Achilles, Diomedes, Odysseus, and the Trojan Princes) and minor (Protesilaus, Philoctetes, Polypoites, Leonteus, and Palamedes).