Nowołacińskie heroidy jezuickie. Mutacje i metamorfozy

Abstract

The aim of the text is to describe the varieties and transformations of the literary genre inspired by Ovid’s Heroides, which occurred in Jesuit works in the early modern period (sixteenth and seventeenth centuries) within a specific geographical area, i.e. especially in Germany and the Netherlands. These considerations are preceded by a short reflection on Christian heroides created by humanist authors in the sixteenth century. The paper discusses mainly volumes covering entire collections containing numerous sacrae heroides and also presents some illustrative examples. The most important authors for the implementation of the genre are presented: Jakob Bidermann, Jean Vincart and Jakob Balde, as well as (more briefly) Balduin Cabillavius. The concepts of each collection and their ideological dominants are discussed. The analyses are complemented by fragments of some elegies quoted in the original along with the Polish translation made by the author.