French Literature Reviews - 2026

A. Gouttefarde, Exile in Archaic and Classical Greek Literature
History, Politics and Society

Amandine Gouttefarde, Exile in Archaic and Classical Greek Literature

Paris: L'Harmattan, "Espaces littéraires" series, 2020.

464 pp.

EAN 9782343213613

42,00 EUR

Publisher's Description:

In archaic and classical Greek literature, exile emerges and evolves within decisive political contexts. From the seventh to the fourth century BC, through tyrannical and oligarchic regimes, but also during democracy, it was a measure both punitive and preventive that served to maintain power, tending to evolve toward a moderation of expulsions, notably through ostracism, while being increasingly regulated by legislation. Beyond this political grounding, representations of exile and exiles contribute to a rich imaginary that is exploited across all literary genres of the period. These representations prompt reflection on the history and state of democracy, as well as on the metaphorical dimension of exile. Furthermore, the misfortunes of exile, the lamentations, or the pollution associated with it coexist with less expected depictions, such as an active and vindictive community of exiles, or archetypes of the 'good' or 'bad' exile. Finally, the abundance of these representations, as well as their vocabulary, makes exile an image highly suited to illustrating prominent political and philosophical concepts in Greek thought.

Amandine Gouttefarde is a high school teacher of Classics, holds a PhD in Greek studies, and is an external member of the EDITTA laboratory at Paris-Sorbonne University. After completing her doctoral thesis on exile in ancient literature, she has focused on the study of exile in contemporary Greek culture, exploring potential parallels between these periods in literary, cinematographic, and musical works. Her research interests include marginality associated with exile in antiquity, the transmission of the concepts of xenitia or double exile arising from Greek expatriation across the centuries, and more generally, the evolution of cultural representations originating from ancient Greece.

Amandine Gouttefarde approaches exile not merely as a historical or legal reality of the Greek polis, but as a deeply generative theme across multiple literary genres. From the seventh to the fourth century BC, mechanisms such as ostracism and formal legislation reflected shifting political structures under tyrannies, oligarchies, and democracies. By analyzing both tragic lamentations and more assertive depictions of exiled communities, the study highlights how the figure of the exile served as a crucial prism for debating justice, civic belonging, and the boundaries of the political community.

This scholarly volume will appeal to researchers and students of classical literature, ancient history, and political philosophy seeking to understand how the Greek imaginary conceptualized displacement and marginality. By bridging historical context with thematic analysis, Gouttefarde illuminates the enduring vocabulary and metaphorical resonance of exile in classical thought. The work also offers valuable perspective for those interested in the long-term transmission of ancient cultural representations and their contemporary echoes in Greek literature and society.