Paratextual perspectives upon the SC de Pisone patre

Abstract

When Gerard Genette developed his paradigm for the paratextual reading of texts, he focused upon literary texts (and specifically, modern novels) published in book form. He explored two paratextual dimensions. Firstly, he defined peritext as material conventionally included within a book, framing the text itself in the form of ‘liminal devices’ on its thresholds both front and back, including such features (among others) as titles, signs of authorship, dedications, prefaces, notes, and epilogues. Secondly he studied public and private epitext, in the form of additional elements that exist separately from a book itself, such as interviews, reviews, correspondence and diaries. In the Conclusion to his study, Genette acknowledged the possibility of paratext beyond literary contexts, suggesting that paratext might also be found in other media, including music, painting and film, but this is not something that he undertook to explore further. This essay is a first attempt to develop Genette's paratextual approach to texts as an analytical tool for understanding Latin epigraphy. In a broad sense, epigraphers have long recognized that what might be dubbed paratextual elements are central for understanding the full meaning of monumental inscriptions. Arguably, inscriptions are the supreme example of paratexts since by their very nature they bear meaning through their physical appearance and context as much as through their actual words. Examining how an epigraphic text interacts with images, its architectural context within a space, its paragraphing and letter dimensions, and the material used are all part of the epigrapher's toolkit for understanding the public display of writing in the Roman world. This is potentially true of all monumental inscriptions to a lesser or greater degree. There are also, however, some inscriptions which display paratextual elements that are closer to Genette's model, using devices such as titles, appendices and addenda. Such inscriptions may have rhetorical and literary qualities that justify exploring them in similar ways to literary texts.