The intertextual relationship between Augustine's Confessions and The Letter to the Romans

[摘要] ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Interest in the exploration of classical texts through the use of modern theoretical frameworks is on the rise, but they are not yet mainstream. The complexity of a quotation rich text such as the Confessions has not yet been thoroughly explored through the lens of a theoretical framework developed specifically for this purpose. This dissertation investigates the concept of intertextuality and proposes a conceptual framework for the analysis of quotations in a classical text, employing the theories of intertextuality as expounded by Julia Kristeva and Roland Barthes. This conceptual framework forms the model for the analysis of the intertextual relationships between Confessions 1 to 8 (the autobiographical narration of Augustine's journey to conversion) and the Letter to the Romans. The dissertation is divided into two sections: the theoretical perspectives and methodology (section A), and the analyses of the intertextual relationships that play a role in Confessions 1-8 (section B).The first chapter of the first section investigates the primary theoretical perspectives in the theories of intertextuality of Kristeva and Barthes, focusing on those aspects that may contribute to a conceptual framework for the analysis of a classical text. The second chapter establishes the methodology for the analysis of the text of the Confessions offered here, including definitions of the terms and concepts that constitute the conceptual framework for this dissertation.The analyses of the intertextual relationships between Romans and Confessions 1-8 are found in the second section. In these chapters the passages in Confessions 1-8 that demonstrate significant similarity to passages in Romans are analysed using the conceptual framework established in the previous section. The analyses in these chapters demonstrate the two primary features which this conceptual framework is best suited to highlight: firstly, the possibility of multiple perspectives on a text, and secondly, the quality of polyvalence that is evident in a quotation rich text such as the Confessions.

[发布机构] Stellenbosch University