Anticipation and Anachrony in Statius' Thebaid

Applying the latest narratological theory and focusing on the use of anachrony (or 'chronological deviation'), this book explores how Statius competes – successfully – for a place within an established literary canon. Given the tremendous pressure on poets to render familiar stories in unfamiliar and novel ways, how did he achieve this?

When Statius elected to sing of the quarrelsome sons of Oedipus he was acutely aware that this was a well-trod road, one frequently reproduced in a variet...