Editing Lucian (section)

==Legacy==
===Byzantine===
Lucian is mentioned only sporadically between his death and the ninth century, even among pagan authors.{{sfn|Messis|2021|p=14}} The first author to mention him is [[Lactantius]].{{sfn|Marciniak|2016|p=209}} He is made a character in the sixth-century letters of [[Aristaenetus]]. In the same century, portions of his ''On Slander'' were translated into [[Syriac language|Syriac]] as part of a monastic compendium.{{sfn|Messis|2021|p=15}} He was reassessed positively in the ninth century by the first generation of Byzantine humanists, such as [[Leo the Mathematician]], [[Basil of Adada]] and [[Photios]].{{sfn|Messis|2021|pp=15–16}} In his ''[[Bibliotheca (Photius)|Bibliotheca]]'', Photios notes that Lucian "ridicules pagan things in almost all his texts", is never serious and never reveals his own opinion.{{sfn|Messis|2021|p=16}}

In the tenth century, Lucian was known in some circles as an anti-Christian writer, as seen in the works of [[Arethas of Caesarea]] and the ''[[Suda]]'' encyclopedia.{{sfn|Robinson|1979|p=68}} The author of the ''Suda'' concludes that Lucian's soul is burning in [[Hell]] for his negative remarks about Christians in the ''Passing of Peregrinus''.{{sfn|Richter|2017|page=327}} In general, however, the Byzantine reception of Lucian was positive.{{sfn|Robinson|1979|p=68}} He was perhaps the only ancient author openly hostile to Christianity to be received positively by the Byzantines.{{sfn|Marciniak|2016|p=209}} He was regarded as not merely a pagan, but an [[atheist]].{{sfn|Marciniak|2016|p=210}}  Even so, "Lucian the atheist gave way to Lucian the master of style."{{sfn|Marciniak|2016|p=217}} From the eleventh century,{{sfn|Messis|2021|p=22}} he was a part of the school curriculum.{{sfn|Robinson|1979|p=68}}{{sfn|Marciniak|2016|p=212}}

There was a "Lucianic revival" in the twelfth century. The preeminent Lucianic author of this period, who imitated Lucian's style in his own works, was [[Theodore Prodromos]].{{sfn|Marciniak|2016|p=218}} In the [[Norman–Arab–Byzantine culture]] of twelfth-century [[Kingdom of Sicily|Sicily]], Lucian influenced the Greek authors [[Philagathus of Cerami]] and [[Eugenius of Palermo]].{{sfn|Messis|2021|p=27}}

===Renaissance and Reformation===
[[File:Sandro Botticelli La calumnia de Apeles.jpg|thumb|upright=1.35|right |''[[Calumny of Apelles (Botticelli)|The Calumny of Apelles]]'' by [[Sandro Botticelli]], based on a description of a painting by the Greek painter [[Apelles of Kos]] found in Lucian's ''[[ekphrasis]]'' ''On Calumny'']]
In the West, Lucian's writings were mostly forgotten during the [[Middle Ages]].{{sfn|Marsh|2010|page=544}}{{sfn|Marsh|1998|pages=2–3}} When they were rediscovered in the West around 1400, they immediately became popular with the [[Renaissance humanists]].{{sfn|Marsh|2010|page=544}}{{sfn|Marsh|1998|pages=2–3}} By 1400, there were just as many Latin translations of the works of Lucian as there were for the writings of [[Plato]] and [[Plutarch]].{{sfn|Marsh|2010|page=544}} By ridiculing [[plutocracy]] as absurd, Lucian helped facilitate one of Renaissance humanism's most basic themes.{{sfn|Turner|1967|page=99}} His ''Dialogues of the Dead'' were especially popular and were widely used for moral instruction.{{sfn|Marsh|1998|pages=2–3}} As a result of this popularity, Lucian's writings had a profound influence on writers from the Renaissance and the [[Early modern Europe|Early Modern period]].{{sfn|Marsh|2010|pages=862–865}}{{snf|Casson|1962|pages=xvii–xviii}}{{sfn|Marsh|1998|pages=2–3}}

Many early modern European writers adopted Lucian's lighthearted tone, his technique of relating a fantastic voyage through a familiar dialogue, and his trick of constructing proper names with deliberately humorous etymological meanings.{{sfn|Turner|1967|page=99}} During the [[Protestant Reformation]], Lucian provided literary precedent for writers making fun of [[Catholic clergy]].{{sfn|Turner|1967|page=99}} [[Desiderius Erasmus]]'s ''[[In Praise of Folly|Encomium Moriae]]'' (1509) displays Lucianic influences.{{sfn|Turner|1967|page=99}} Perhaps the most notable example of Lucian's impact in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries was on the French writer [[François Rabelais]], particularly in his [[Pentalogy|set of five novels]], ''[[Gargantua and Pantagruel]]'', which was first published in 1532.  Rabelais also is thought to be responsible for a primary introduction of Lucian to the French [[Renaissance]] and beyond through his translations of Lucian's works.<ref>Pattard, Jean. ''Rebelais Works''. Champion Publishers.  1909.  pp. 204–215</ref><ref>Screech, M.A.  ''Rebelais''. Ithaca; Cornell Press. 1979. pp. 7–11.</ref>{{sfn|Marsh|1998|page=71}}

Lucian's ''True Story'' inspired both [[Sir Thomas More]]'s ''[[Utopia (More book)|Utopia]]'' (1516){{snf|Casson|1962|page=xvii}} and [[Jonathan Swift]]'s ''[[Gulliver's Travels]]'' (1726).{{snf|Marsh|2010|page=510}} [[Sandro Botticelli]]'s paintings ''[[Calumny of Apelles (Botticelli)|The Calumny of Apelles]]'' and ''[[Pallas and the Centaur]]'' are both based on descriptions of paintings found in Lucian's works.{{snf|Casson|1962|pages=xvii–xviii}} Lucian's prose narrative ''Timon the Misanthrope'' was the inspiration for William Shakespeare's tragedy ''[[Timon of Athens]]''{{snf|Casson|1962|page=xvii}}<ref>Armstrong, A. Macc. "Timon of Athens – A Legendary Figure?", ''Greece & Rome'', 2nd Ser., Vol. 34, No. 1 (April 1987), pp.&nbsp;7–11.</ref> and the scene from ''[[Hamlet]]'' with the gravediggers echoes several scenes from ''Dialogues of the Dead''.{{snf|Casson|1962|page=xvii}} [[Christopher Marlowe]]'s famous verse "Was this the face that launched a thousand ships/And burnt the topless towers of Ilium?" is a paraphrase of Lucian:<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Heckscher |first=W. S. |date=1938 |title="Was This the Face...?" |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/749995 |journal=Journal of the Warburg Institute |volume=1 |issue=4 |pages=295–297 |doi=10.2307/749995 |jstor=749995 |issn=0959-2024}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Henderson |first=Jeffrey |title=Dialogues Of The Dead |url=https://www.loebclassics.com/view/lucian-dialogues_dead/1961/pb_LCL431.23.xml?readMode=recto |access-date=2024-07-30 |website=Loeb Classical Library |at=Section XVIII |language=en}}</ref> 

{{Blockquote|text=ΕΡΜΗΣ: Τουτὶ τὸ κρανίον ἡ Ἑλένη ἐστίν.<br/>
ΜΕΝΙΠΠΟΣ: Εἶτα διὰ τοῦτο αἱ χίλιαι νῆες ἐπληρώθησαν ἐξ ἁπάσης τῆς Ἑλλάδος καὶ τοσοῦτοι ἔπεσον Ἕλληνές τε καὶ βάρβαροι καὶ τοσαῦται πόλεις ἀνάστατοι γεγόνασιν; <br/><br/>
Hermes: This skull is Helen.<br/>
Menippos: And for this a thousand ships carried warriors from every part of Greece, Greeks and barbarians were slain, and cities made desolate?|author=Lucian|title=Dialogues of the Dead|source=XVIII}}

[[Francis Bacon]] called Lucian a "contemplative atheist".{{sfn|Turner|1967|page=99}}

===Early modern period===
[[File:Nordkirchen-100415-12241-Lucian.jpg|thumb|Monument commemorating Lucian of Samosata from [[Nordkirchen]], Germany]]

[[Henry Fielding]], the author of ''[[The History of Tom Jones, a Foundling]]'' (1749), owned a complete set of Lucian's writings in nine volumes.{{sfn|Branham|2010|page=863}} He deliberately imitated Lucian in his ''Journey from This World and into the Next''{{sfn|Branham|2010|page=863}} and, in ''[[The Life and Death of Jonathan Wild, the Great]]'' (1743), he describes Lucian as "almost ... like the true father of humour"{{sfn|Branham|2010|page=863}} and lists him alongside [[Miguel de Cervantes]] and Jonathan Swift as a true master of satire.{{sfn|Branham|2010|page=863}} In ''The Convent Garden Journal'', Fielding directly states in regard to Lucian that he had modeled his style "upon that very author".{{sfn|Branham|2010|page=863}} [[Nicolas Boileau-Despréaux]], [[François Fénelon]], [[Bernard Le Bovier de Fontenelle]], and [[Voltaire]] all wrote adaptations of Lucian's ''Dialogues of the Dead''.{{sfn|Branham|2010|page=864}} According to Turner, Voltaire's ''[[Candide]]'' (1759) displays the characteristically Lucianic theme of "refuting philosophical theory by reality".{{sfn|Turner|1967|page=99}} Voltaire also wrote ''The Conversation between Lucian, Erasmus and Rabelais in the Elysian Fields'',{{sfn|Turner|1967|page=99}} a dialogue in which he treats Lucian as "one of his masters in the strategy of intellectual revolution".{{sfn|Turner|1967|page=99}}

[[Denis Diderot]] drew inspiration from the writings of Lucian in his ''Socrates Gone Mad; or, the Dialogues of Diogenes of Sinope'' (1770){{sfn|Branham|2010|page=864}} and his ''Conversations in Elysium'' (1780).{{sfn|Branham|2010|page=864}} Lucian appears as one of two speakers in Diderot's dialogue ''Peregrinus Proteus'' (1791), which was based on ''The Passing of Peregrinus''.{{sfn|Branham|2010|page=864}} Lucian's ''True Story'' inspired [[Cyrano de Bergerac]], whose writings later served as inspiration for [[Jules Verne]].{{snf|Casson|1962|page=xvii}} The German satirist [[Christoph Martin Wieland]] was the first person to translate the complete works of Lucian into [[German language|German]]{{sfn|Branham|2010|page=864}} and he spent his entire career adapting the ideas behind Lucian's writings for a contemporary German audience.{{sfn|Branham|2010|page=864}} [[David Hume]] admired Lucian as a "very moral writer"{{sfn|Turner|1967|page=99}} and quoted him with reverence when discussing ethics or religion.{{sfn|Turner|1967|page=99}} Hume read Lucian's ''Kataplous'' or ''Downward Journey'' when he was on his deathbed.<ref name="Forfurther"/>{{sfn|Turner|1967|page=99}} [[Herman Melville]] references Lucian in Chapter 5 of ''[[The Confidence-Man]]'', Book 26 of [[Pierre: or, The Ambiguities|''Pierre'']], and Chapter 13 of ''[[Israel Potter]]''.

===Modern period===
[[Thomas Carlyle]]'s epithet "[[Phallus]]-Worship", which he used to describe the contemporary literature of French writers such as [[Honoré de Balzac]] and [[George Sand]], was inspired by his reading of Lucian.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Jordan |first=Alexander |date=2020 |title=Thomas Carlyle and Lucian of Samosata |url=https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=a9h&AN=144382595&site=eds-live&scope=site |journal=Scottish Literary Review |volume=12 |issue=1 |pages=51–60}}</ref> ''Kataplous, or Downward Journey'' also served as the source for [[Friedrich Nietzsche]]'s concept of the ''[[Übermensch]]'' or ''Overman''.<ref name="Forfurther">{{cite journal|last= Babich|first= Babette|title = Nietzsche's Zarathustra and Parodic Style: On Lucian's ''Hyperanthropos'' and Nietzsche's ''Übermensch'' |journal= Diogenes|volume=58|number= 4 |date =November 2011 |pages= 58–74|doi = 10.1177/0392192112467410|s2cid= 5727350}}</ref> Nietzsche declaration of a "new and super-human way of laughing – at the expense of everything serious!" echoes the exact wording of [[Tiresias]]'s final advice to the eponymous hero of Lucian's dialogue ''Menippus'': "Laugh a great deal and take nothing seriously."{{sfn|Branham|2010|page=864}} Professional philosophical writers since then have generally ignored Lucian,{{sfn|Turner|1967|page=99}} but Turner comments that "perhaps his spirit is still alive in those who, like [[Bertrand Russell]], are prepared to flavor philosophy with wit."{{sfn|Turner|1967|page=99}}

Many 19th century and early 20th century classicists viewed Lucian's works negatively.{{sfn|Richter|2017|page=327}} The German classicist [[Eduard Norden]] admitted that he had, as a foolish youth, wasted time reading the works of Lucian,{{sfn|Richter|2017|page=327}} but, as an adult, had come to realize that Lucian was nothing more than an "Oriental without depth or character ... who has no soul and degrades the most soulful language".{{sfn|Richter|2017|page=327}} [[Rudolf Helm]], one of the leading scholars on Lucian in the early twentieth century, labelled Lucian as a "thoughtless Syrian" who "possesses none of the soul of a tragedian"{{sfn|Richter|2017|page=327}} and compared him to the poet [[Heinrich Heine]], who was known as the "mockingbird in the German poetry forest".{{sfn|Richter|2017|page=327}} In his 1906 publication ''Lukian und Menipp'' ("Lucian and Menippus"), Helm argued that Lucian's claims of generic originality, especially his claim of having invented the comic dialogue, were actually lies intended to cover up his almost complete dependence on [[Menippus]], whom he argued was the true inventor of the genre.{{sfn|Richter|2017|page=333}}

Lucian's Syrian identity received renewed attention in the early twenty-first century as Lucian became seen as what Richter calls "a sort of Second Sophistic answer to early twenty-first-century questions about cultural and ethnic hybridity".{{sfn|Richter|2017|page=327}} Richter states that [[Postcolonialism|Postcolonial critics]] have come to embrace Lucian as "an early imperial paradigm of the 'ethno-cultural hybrid.{{'"}}{{sfn|Richter|2017|page=327}}