This article is about a novel by Iain Pears. For Cicero's classical text, see Somnium Scipionis.
The Dream of Scipio is a novel by Iain Pears. It is set in Provence at three different critical moments of Western civilization—the collapse of the Roman Empire in the fifth century, the Black Death in the fourteenth, the Second World War in the twentieth—through which the fortunes of three men are followed:
The story of each man is woven through the narrative, all linked by the Dream of Scipio, written by Manlius (not Cicero's eponymous classical text) and rediscovered by Olivier and Julien. Inspired by the teachings of Sophia, a Neoplatonist philosopher and the daughter of a student of Hypatia, Manlius composes the text to justify the decisions he takes when facing attack by the Visigoths and Burgundians, with little support from Rome. Religious issues, and how politics have influenced religious tolerance, shape all three stories: the roots of twentieth-century antisemitism are traced and linked to other political decisions to use Jews as scapegoats. The three stories are united by an extended deliberation how one resolves ethical conflicts, emotional commitments, and the quest for the true meaning of human life.
The story is narrated by an omniscient narrator, who tells the reader many things which the characters have no way of knowing such as how Olivier de Noyen, diligently searching for ancient manuscripts, narrowly missed finding the only copy of the correspondence between Manlius and Sophia, which could have become a classic comparable to the letters of Abelard and Héloïse, and how this manuscript was irrevocably lost in a fire fifty years later; or how after Julien Barneuve's death, the photo of his Jewish beloved was carelessly thrown away while the woman herself was sent by the Nazis to Auschwitz.
Manlius's text appears similar to one by Macrobius, a fifth-century Neoplatonist philosopher. For example, the tenth chapter of Macrobius's commentary on Cicero's Dream of Scipio discusses how humans are dead when living, and vice versa, and how the soul ascends after its death on this Earth.
The story of Sophia, and the nonromantic part of her relationship with Manlius, bears a striking resemblance to the life of Hypatia, a Neoplatonist philosopher who was murdered by a Christian mob. Like Sophia, Hypatia also maintained a correspondence with a Christian bishop named Synesius of Cyrene, and although she was not a Christian, Hypatia was well respected for her intellect and poise by both Christians and non-Christians.
The name "Olivier de Noyen" might be a nod to Chrétien de Troyes. Although Chrétien lived two centuries before Olivier and in another region of France, he is described as having "the peculiar fortune of becoming the best known of the old French poets to students of medieval literature, and of remaining practically unknown to any one else."[1]
Marcel Laplace shares a similarity with Maurice Papon in being one of the few civil servants to continue working as such after a successful stint in the Vichy government.
Gersonides (Rabbi Levi ben Gershom), the Jewish philosopher who acts as Olivier de Noyen's mentor, is an actual historical figure, well known as both a Jewish religious scholar and as a scientist (the Lunar Rabbi Levi crater is called for him). However, his encounter with Pope Clement VI (also a historical figure) during the Black Death, depicted in the book, is entirely fictional. In fact, it is disputed among historians whether Gersonides was still alive at that time. Gersonides' servant Rebecca, Olivier's beloved, is also completely fictional.
Referencesedit
^"DeTroyes, C. (12th Century). FOUR ARTHURIAN ROMANCES: EREC ET ENIDE, CLIGES, YVAIN, AND LANCELOT. Produced by Douglas B. Killings, 2007". Gutenberg.org. Retrieved 29 June 2013.
External linksedit
Dream of Scipio official website
January 01, 1970
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This article is about a novel by Iain Pears For Cicero s classical text see Somnium Scipionis This article needs additional citations for verification Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources Unsourced material may be challenged and removed Find sources The Dream of Scipio novel news newspapers books scholar JSTOR June 2018 Learn how and when to remove this message The Dream of Scipio is a novel by Iain Pears It is set in Provence at three different critical moments of Western civilization the collapse of the Roman Empire in the fifth century the Black Death in the fourteenth the Second World War in the twentieth through which the fortunes of three men are followed Manlius Hippomanes a Roman Gallic aristocrat obsessed with the preservation of Roman civilization Olivier de Noyen a poet and scholar active in the Papal Court at Avignon Julien Barneuve an intellectual who cooperates with the Vichy governmentThe Dream of ScipioFirst edition UK AuthorIain PearsCountryUnited KingdomLanguageEnglishGenreHistorical MysteryPublisherJonathan Cape UK Riverhead Books US Knopf Canada Publication date2002Media typePrint Hardcover amp Paperback Pages416 ppISBN1 57322 986 5OCLC52363188 The story of each man is woven through the narrative all linked by the Dream of Scipio written by Manlius not Cicero s eponymous classical text and rediscovered by Olivier and Julien Inspired by the teachings of Sophia a Neoplatonist philosopher and the daughter of a student of Hypatia Manlius composes the text to justify the decisions he takes when facing attack by the Visigoths and Burgundians with little support from Rome Religious issues and how politics have influenced religious tolerance shape all three stories the roots of twentieth century antisemitism are traced and linked to other political decisions to use Jews as scapegoats The three stories are united by an extended deliberation how one resolves ethical conflicts emotional commitments and the quest for the true meaning of human life The story is narrated by an omniscient narrator who tells the reader many things which the characters have no way of knowing such as how Olivier de Noyen diligently searching for ancient manuscripts narrowly missed finding the only copy of the correspondence between Manlius and Sophia which could have become a classic comparable to the letters of Abelard and Heloise and how this manuscript was irrevocably lost in a fire fifty years later or how after Julien Barneuve s death the photo of his Jewish beloved was carelessly thrown away while the woman herself was sent by the Nazis to Auschwitz Possible relations to historical figures editThis section includes a list of general references but it lacks sufficient corresponding inline citations Please help to improve this section by introducing more precise citations July 2023 Learn how and when to remove this message Manlius s text appears similar to one by Macrobius a fifth century Neoplatonist philosopher For example the tenth chapter of Macrobius s commentary on Cicero s Dream of Scipio discusses how humans are dead when living and vice versa and how the soul ascends after its death on this Earth The story of Sophia and the nonromantic part of her relationship with Manlius bears a striking resemblance to the life of Hypatia a Neoplatonist philosopher who was murdered by a Christian mob Like Sophia Hypatia also maintained a correspondence with a Christian bishop named Synesius of Cyrene and although she was not a Christian Hypatia was well respected for her intellect and poise by both Christians and non Christians The name Olivier de Noyen might be a nod to Chretien de Troyes Although Chretien lived two centuries before Olivier and in another region of France he is described as having the peculiar fortune of becoming the best known of the old French poets to students of medieval literature and of remaining practically unknown to any one else 1 Marcel Laplace shares a similarity with Maurice Papon in being one of the few civil servants to continue working as such after a successful stint in the Vichy government Gersonides Rabbi Levi ben Gershom the Jewish philosopher who acts as Olivier de Noyen s mentor is an actual historical figure well known as both a Jewish religious scholar and as a scientist the Lunar Rabbi Levi crater is called for him However his encounter with Pope Clement VI also a historical figure during the Black Death depicted in the book is entirely fictional In fact it is disputed among historians whether Gersonides was still alive at that time Gersonides servant Rebecca Olivier s beloved is also completely fictional References edit DeTroyes C 12th Century FOUR ARTHURIAN ROMANCES EREC ET ENIDE CLIGES YVAIN AND LANCELOT Produced by Douglas B Killings 2007 Gutenberg org Retrieved 29 June 2013 External links editDream of Scipio official website Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title The Dream of Scipio novel amp oldid 1166822486, wikipedia, 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