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- Title
Sąmojo užkulas Kražių jėzuitų epigramose.
- Authors
Koženiauskienė, Regina
- Abstract
Juvenes ridentes is an apt description for the students that studied at Kražiai Jesuit College in the seventeenth century and were the authors of the final papers in the class of rhetoric. This article deals with epigrams, one of the tasks they had to complete. The authors, who wrote 112 epigrams in Polish and Latin, refer to their work as uczciwe żarty, that is, respectful wit or, metaphorically, the seasoning with which they hope to add flavour to the bland dishes of fasting. The Jesuits of Kražiai indisputably continue the so-called Martial's tradition of epigrams. They were also strongly influenced by prominent local Polish and Lithuanian poets of later times, such as Matthias Casimirus Sarbievius with his theory of conceit and the irresistible example of the epigrams (Fraszki) by Jan Kochanowski, 'the heart of Polish poetry'. The genre of the epigram does not have a strictly delineated exclusively characteristic autonomy. This form of rhetoric, which is the smallest and one of the hardest, reflects the broad field of the use of the theory of general rhetoric, various types of oratory and its main functions, a multitude of rhetoric figures and ways of argumentation, and patterns of versification. As the content of the epigrams by the Jesuit students shows, the immense variety of themes encompasses a myriad of the most unexpected everyday situations. In rhetoric, the possibilities of creating intellectual wit are plentiful. The students are capable of a lively use of pun, ambiguity, the vicious circle, boomerang, the ways of changing the direction of an argument, and of the play between the literal and figurative meanings of a saying. Epigrams perform all main functions mentioned in the theory of rhetoric. Their most talented authors can persuade (persuadere), achieve an aesthetical impact, enthral, provide admiration (delectare), and surprise (admirare). The laconic epigrams that end in moral edification in the form of a witty and fluent original maxim are especially memorable.
- Subjects
SEVENTEENTH century; ORATORY; AMBIGUITY; RHETORIC; POETS; FASTING
- Publication
Early Lithuanian Literature / Senoji Lietuvos literatūra, 2020, Issue 49, p46
- ISSN
1822-3656
- Publication type
Article