Classical Tradition and Medieval Literature

Although the Western Roman Empire collapsed in the 5th century AD, medieval European culture was born from the ruins of its civilisation. In the field of wisdom, the Latin literary tradition accompanied and guided the different kingdoms in formation. This volume brings together the contributions of eight specialists on the survival of a literary motif in the Middle Ages and on seven ancient authors: the Trojan Materia, Aristotle, Diogenes of Sinope, Cicero, Valerius Maximus, Seneca, Boethius and Isidore of Seville, so that a panoramic view can be obtained of the influence of the ancient world on the European Middle Ages. The fruit of this collective work aims to be a useful tool for a university or specialised public that needs an up-to-date general picture of the reception and use of the classics in the Middle Ages, as it synthesises previous knowledge, presents new points of view and provides an updated state of the art for each of the subjects dealt with.

Guillermo Alvar Nuño has developed his teaching career at the Université de Franche-Comté (France) and the University of Alcalá. He works on the development of courtly models in medieval Europe (from the perspective of education, food consumption and death), the influence of classical authors in the Middle Ages and the development of Spanish Humanism.

Elisa Borsari teaches Medieval Literature at the University of Córdoba. She holds a PhD from the University of Alcalá (mention of European Doctor and Extraordinary Doctorate Award). She won the Bibliography Award of the National Library of Spain (BNE). Her research interests also include Digital Humanities, Textual Criticism and Editorial Management.