Editing Lucian (section)

==Works==
{{Main|List of works by Lucian}}

Over eighty works attributed to Lucian have survived.{{sfn|Moeser|2002|page=88}}{{sfn|Van Voorst|2000|page=58}}{{sfn|Marsh|1998|page=1}}{{sfn|Russell|1986|page=671}} These works belong to a diverse variety of styles and genres,{{sfn|Moeser|2002|page=88}}{{sfn|Marsh|1998|pages=1–2}}{{sfn|Russell|1986|pages=671–672}} and include comic dialogues, rhetorical essays, and prose fiction.{{sfn|Moeser|2002|page=88}}{{sfn|Marsh|1998|pages=1–2}} Lucian's writings were targeted towards a highly educated, upper-class Greek audience{{sfn|Marsh|1998|page=2}} and make almost constant allusions to Greek cultural history,{{sfn|Marsh|1998|page=2}} leading the classical scholar R. Bracht Branham to label Lucian's highly sophisticated style "the comedy of tradition".{{sfn|Marsh|1998|page=2}} By the time Lucian's writings were rediscovered during the [[Renaissance]], most of the works of literature referenced in them had been lost or forgotten,{{sfn|Marsh|1998|page=2}} making it difficult for readers of later periods to understand his works.{{sfn|Marsh|1998|page=2}}

===''A True Story''===
{{Main|A True Story}}
[[File:William Strang spider battle in 1894 True History.jpg|thumb|upright=0.8|Illustration from 1894 by [[William Strang]] depicting a battle scene from Book One of Lucian's novel ''[[A True Story]]'']]

Lucian was one of the earliest novelists in [[Western world|Western]] civilization. In ''[[A True Story]]'' ({{lang|grc|italic=yes|Ἀληθῆ διηγήματα}}), a fictional narrative work written in prose, he parodies some of the fantastic tales told by [[Homer]] in the ''[[Odyssey]]'' and also the not-so-fantastic tales from the historian [[Thucydides]].{{sfn|Robinson|1979|pp=23–25}}<ref>Bartley, A. (2003) "The Implications of the Reception of Thucydides within Lucian's 'Vera Historia'", Hermes Heft, 131, pp. 222–234.</ref> He anticipated modern [[science fiction]] themes including voyages to the moon and Venus, [[extraterrestrial life]], interplanetary warfare, and artificial life, nearly two millennia before [[Jules Verne]] and [[H. G. Wells]]. The novel is often regarded as the earliest known work of science fiction.{{sfn|Grewell|2001|pp=30f}}<ref>Fredericks, S.C.: [http://www.depauw.edu/sfs/backissues/8/fredericks8art.htm “Lucian's True History as SF”], ''Science Fiction Studies'', Vol. 3, No. 1 (March 1976), pp. 49–60.</ref><ref>Swanson, Roy Arthur: [http://www.depauw.edu/sfs/backissues/10/swanson10art.htm "The True, the False, and the Truly False: Lucian's Philosophical Science Fiction"], ''Science Fiction Studies'', Vol. 3, No. 3 (November 1976), pp. 227–239.</ref>{{sfn|Georgiadou|Larmour|1998|page=46}}{{sfn|Georgiadou|Larmour|1998|loc=Introduction}}<ref>Gunn, James E.: ''The New Encyclopedia of Science Fiction'', Publisher: Viking 1988, {{ISBN|978-0-670-81041-3}}, p. 249.</ref>

The novel begins with an explanation that the story is not at all "true" and that everything in it is, in fact, a complete and utter lie.{{sfn|Casson|1962|pages=13–15}}{{sfn|Georgiadou|Larmour|1998|pages=51–52}} The narrative begins with Lucian and his fellow travelers journeying out past the [[Pillars of Heracles]].{{sfn|Casson|1962|page=15}}{{sfn|Georgiadou|Larmour|1998|pages=53–155}} Blown off course by a storm, they come to an island with a river of wine filled with fish and bears, a marker indicating that [[Heracles]] and [[Dionysus]] have traveled to this point, and trees that look like women.{{sfn|Casson|1962|pages=15–17}}{{sfn|Georgiadou|Larmour|1998|pages=53–155}} Shortly after leaving the island, they are caught up by a whirlwind and taken to the [[Moon]],{{sfn|Casson|1962|pages=17–18}}{{sfn|Georgiadou|Larmour|1998|pages=53–155}} where they find themselves embroiled in a full-scale war between the king of the Moon and the king of the Sun over colonization of the [[Venus|Morning Star]].{{sfn|Casson|1962|page=18}}{{sfn|Georgiadou|Larmour|1998|pages=53–155}} Both armies include bizarre hybrid lifeforms.{{sfn|Casson|1962|pages=18–21}}{{sfn|Georgiadou|Larmour|1998|pages=53–155}} The armies of the Sun win the war by clouding over the Moon and blocking out the Sun's light.{{sfn|Casson|1962|page=22}}{{sfn|Georgiadou|Larmour|1998|pages=53–155}} Both parties then come to a peace agreement.{{sfn|Casson|1962|pages=22–23}} Lucian then describes life on the Moon and how it is different from life on Earth.{{sfn|Casson|1962|pages=23–25}}{{sfn|Georgiadou|Larmour|1998|pages=53–155}}

After returning to Earth, the adventurers are swallowed by a 200-mile-long whale,{{sfn|Casson|1962|pages=27–28}}{{sfn|Georgiadou|Larmour|1998|pages=156–177}} in whose belly they discover a variety of fish people, whom they wage war against and triumph over.{{sfn|Casson|1962|pages=27–33}}{{sfn|Georgiadou|Larmour|1998|pages=156–177}} They kill the whale by starting a bonfire and escape by propping its mouth open.{{sfn|Casson|1962|page=34}}{{sfn|Georgiadou|Larmour|1998|pages=156–177}} Next, they encounter a sea of milk, an island of cheese, and the [[Fortunate Isles|Island of the Blessed]].{{sfn|Casson|1962|pages=35–37}}{{sfn|Georgiadou|Larmour|1998|pages=156–178}} There, Lucian meets the heroes of the [[Trojan War]], other mythical men and animals, as well as Homer and [[Pythagoras]].{{sfn|Casson|1962|pages=35–45}}{{sfn|Georgiadou|Larmour|1998|pages=178–232}} They find sinners being punished, the worst of them being the ones who had written books with lies and fantasies, including [[Herodotus]] and [[Ctesias]].{{sfn|Casson|1962|page=46}}{{sfn|Georgiadou|Larmour|1998|pages=178–232}} After leaving the Island of the Blessed, they deliver a letter to [[Calypso (mythology)|Calypso]] given to them by [[Odysseus]] explaining that he wishes he had stayed with her so he could have lived eternally.{{sfn|Casson|1962|pages=45–49}}{{sfn|Georgiadou|Larmour|1998|pages=178–232}} They then discover a chasm in the Ocean, but eventually sail around it, discover a far-off continent and decide to explore it.{{sfn|Casson|1962|pages=49–54}}{{sfn|Georgiadou|Larmour|1998|pages=178–232}} The book ends abruptly with Lucian stating that their future adventures will be described in the upcoming sequels,{{sfn|Casson|1962|page=54}}{{sfn|Georgiadou|Larmour|1998|pages=232–233}} a promise which a disappointed ''[[scholia]]st'' described as "the biggest lie of all".{{sfn|Casson|1962|page=57}}

===Satirical dialogues===
In his ''Double Indictment'', Lucian declares that his proudest literary achievement is the invention of the "satirical dialogue",{{sfn|Marsh|1998|page=42}} which was modeled on the earlier [[Platonic dialogue]], but was comedic in tone rather than philosophical.{{sfn|Marsh|1998|page=42}} The ''prolaliai'' to his ''[[Dialogues of the Courtesans]]'' suggests that Lucian acted out his dialogues himself as part of a comedic routine.{{sfn|Gilhuly|2006|page=275}} Lucian's ''[[Dialogues of the Dead]]'' ({{lang|grc|italic=yes|Νεκρικοὶ Διάλογοι}}) is a satirical work centering around the [[Cynicism (philosophy)|Cynic]] philosophers [[Diogenes]] and his pupil [[Menippus]], who lived modestly while they were alive and are now living comfortably in the abysmal conditions of the Underworld, while those who had lived lives of luxury are in torment when faced by the same conditions.{{sfn|Macleod|1961|p={{pn|date=January 2024}}}} The dialogue draws on earlier literary precursors, including the ''[[nekyia]]'' in Book XI of Homer's ''Odyssey'',{{sfn|Marsh|1998|pages=43–44}} but also adds new elements not found in them.{{sfn|Marsh|1998|page=44}} Homer's ''nekyia'' describes transgressors against the gods being punished for their sins, but Lucian embellished this idea by having cruel and greedy persons also be punished.{{sfn|Marsh|1998|page=44}}

[[File:Statue Hermes Chiaramonti.jpg|thumb|upright=0.8|[[Hermes]], the messenger of the gods, is a major recurring character throughout many of Lucian's dialogues.{{sfn|Marsh|1998|page=88}}]]

In his dialogue ''[[Lover of Lies|The Lover of Lies]]'' ({{lang|grc|italic=yes|Φιλοψευδὴς}}), Lucian satirizes belief in the [[supernatural]] and [[paranormal]]{{sfn|Ogden|2007|pages=1–3}} through a [[framing story]] in which the main narrator, a skeptic named Tychiades, goes to visit an elderly friend named Eukrates.{{sfn|Ogden|2007|pages=3–13}} At Eukrates's house, he encounters a large group of guests who have recently gathered together due to Eukrates suddenly falling ill.{{sfn|Ogden|2007|pages=3–13}} The other guests offer Eukrates a variety of [[folk remedies]] to help him recover.{{sfn|Ogden|2007|pages=3–13}} When Tychiades objects that such remedies do not work, the others all laugh at him{{sfn|Ogden|2007|pages=3–13}} and try to persuade him to believe in the supernatural by telling him stories, which grow increasingly ridiculous as the conversation progresses.{{sfn|Ogden|2007|pages=3–13}} One of the last stories they tell is "[[The Sorcerer's Apprentice]]", which the German playwright [[Goethe]] later adapted into a famous ballad.{{sfn|Ogden|2007|page=1}}{{sfn|Luck|2001|page=141}}

Lucian frequently made fun of philosophers{{sfn|Ferguson|1993|page=332}} and no school was spared from his mockery.{{sfn|Ferguson|1993|page=332}} In the dialogue ''Philosophies for Sale'', Lucian creates an imaginary slave market in which [[Zeus]] puts famous philosophers up for sale, including Pythagoras, Diogenes, [[Heraclitus]], [[Socrates]], [[Chrysippus]], and [[Pyrrho]],{{snf|Casson|1962|pages=314–333}} each of whom attempts to persuade the customers to buy his philosophy.{{snf|Casson|1962|pages=314–333}} In ''The Banquet, or Lapiths'', Lucian points out the hypocrisies of representatives from all the major philosophical schools.{{sfn|Ferguson|1993|page=332}} In ''The Fisherman, or the Dead Come to Life'', Lucian defends his other dialogues by comparing the venerable philosophers of ancient times with their unworthy contemporary followers.{{sfn|Ferguson|1993|page=332}} Lucian was often particularly critical of people who pretended to be philosophers when they really were not{{sfn|Ferguson|1993|page=332}} and his dialogue ''The Runaways'' portrays an imposter Cynic as the antithesis of true philosophy.{{sfn|Ferguson|1993|page=332}} His ''Symposium'' is a parody of Plato's ''[[Symposium (Plato)|Symposium]]'' in which, instead of discussing the nature of love, the philosophers get drunk, tell smutty tales, argue relentlessly over whose school is the best, and eventually break out into a full-scale brawl.{{sfn|Anderson|1976|pages=146–148}} In ''{{Interlanguage link|Icaromenippus|fi|Ikaromenippos}}'', the Cynic philosopher Menippus fashions a set of wings for himself in imitation of the mythical [[Icarus]] and flies to Heaven,{{sfn|Marsh|1998|pages=77–79}} where he receives a guided tour from Zeus himself.{{sfn|Marsh|1998|page=79}} The dialogue ends with Zeus announcing his decision to destroy all philosophers, since all they do is bicker, though he agrees to grant them a temporary reprieve until spring.{{sfn|Marsh|1998|pages=79–80}} ''Nektyomanteia'' is a dialogue written in parallel to ''Icaromenippus'' in which, rather than flying to Heaven, Menippus descends to the underworld to consult the prophet [[Tiresias]].{{sfn|Anderson|1976|pages=139–140}}

Lucian wrote numerous dialogues making fun of traditional Greek stories about the gods.{{sfn|Ferguson|1993|page=332}}{{sfn|Marsh|1998|pages=76–77}} His ''[[Dialogues of the Gods]]'' ({{lang|grc|italic=yes|Θεῶν Διάλογοι}}) consists of numerous short vignettes parodying a variety of the scenes from [[Greek mythology]].{{sfn|Marsh|1998|page=76}} The dialogues portray the gods as comically weak and prone to all the foibles of human emotion.{{sfn|Marsh|1998|pages=76–77}}{{sfn|Ferguson|1993|page=332}} Zeus in particular is shown to be a "feckless ruler" and a serial adulterer.{{sfn|Marsh|1998|page=77}} Lucian also wrote several other works in a similar vein, including ''Zeus Catechized'', ''Zeus Rants'', and ''The Parliament of the Gods''.{{sfn|Ferguson|1993|page=332}} Throughout all his dialogues, Lucian displays a particular fascination with [[Hermes]], the messenger of the gods,{{sfn|Marsh|1998|page=88}} who frequently appears as a major character in the role of an intermediary who travels between worlds.{{sfn|Marsh|1998|page=88}} ''The Dialogues of the Courtesans'' is a collection of short dialogues involving various courtesans.{{sfn|Gilhuly|2006|pages=274–294}}{{snf|Casson|1962|pages=301–311}} This collection is unique as one of the only surviving works of Greek literature to mention female homosexuality.{{sfn|Gilhuly|2006|pages=274–275}} It is also unusual for mixing Lucian's characters from other dialogues with stock characters from [[New Comedy]];{{sfn|Gilhuly|2006|page=277}} over half of the men mentioned in ''Dialogues of the Courtesans'' are also mentioned in Lucian's other dialogues,{{sfn|Gilhuly|2006|page=277}} but almost all of the courtesans themselves are characters borrowed from the plays of [[Menander]] and other comedic playwrights.{{sfn|Gilhuly|2006|page=277}}

===Treatises and letters===
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| caption1  = Statue of the snake-god [[Glycon]], invented by the oraclemonger [[Alexander of Abonoteichus]], whom Lucian satirizes in his treatise ''Alexander the False Prophet''{{sfn|Gordon|1996|pages=94–115}}
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Lucian's treatise ''Alexander the False Prophet'' describes the rise of Alexander of Abonoteichus, a charlatan who claimed to be the prophet of the serpent-god [[Glycon]].{{sfn|Gordon|1996|pages=94–115}} Though the account is satirical in tone,{{sfn|Gordon|1996|page=114}} it seems to be a largely accurate report of the Glycon cult{{sfn|Gordon|1996|page=114}} and many of Lucian's statements about the cult have been confirmed through archaeological evidence, including coins, statues, and inscriptions.{{sfn|Gordon|1996|page=114}} Lucian describes his own meeting with Alexander in which he posed as a friendly philosopher,{{sfn|Gordon|1996|page=114}} but, when Alexander invited him to kiss his hand, Lucian bit it instead.{{sfn|Gordon|1996|page=114}} Lucian reports that, aside from himself, the only others who dared challenge Alexander's reputation as a true prophet were the [[Epicureans]] (whom he lauds as heroes) and the Christians.{{sfn|Gordon|1996|page=114}}

Lucian's treatise ''[[On the Syrian Goddess]]'' is a detailed description of the cult of the Syrian goddess [[Atargatis]] at Hierapolis (now [[Manbij]]).{{sfn|Andrade|2013|page=288}} It is written in a faux-Ionic Greek and imitates the ethnographic methodology of the Greek historian Herodotus,{{sfn|Andrade|2013|page=288}} which Lucian elsewhere derides as faulty.{{sfn|Andrade|2013|page=288}} For generations, many scholars doubted the authenticity of ''On the Syrian Goddess'' because it seemed too genuinely reverent to have really been written by Lucian.{{sfn|Richter|2017|page=336}} More recently, scholars have come to recognize the book as satirical and have restored its Lucianic authorship.{{sfn|Richter|2017|page=336}}

In the treatise, Lucian satirizes the arbitrary cultural distinctions between "Greeks" and "Assyrians" by emphasizing the manner in which Syrians have adopted Greek customs and thereby effectively become "Greeks" themselves.{{sfn|Andrade|2013|pages=289–292}} The anonymous narrator of the treatise initially seems to be a Greek Sophist,{{sfn|Andrade|2013|page=292}} but, as the treatise progresses, he reveals himself to actually be a native Syrian.{{sfn|Andrade|2013|pages=292–293}} Scholars dispute whether the treatise is an accurate description of Syrian cultural practices because very little is known about Hierapolis other than what is recorded in ''On the Syrian Goddess'' itself.{{sfn|Andrade|2013|page=288}} Coins minted in the late fourth century BC, municipal decrees from [[Seleucid]] rulers, and a late Hellenistic relief carving have confirmed Lucian's statement that the city's original name was ''Manbog'' and that the city was closely associated with the cults of Atargatis and [[Hadad]].{{sfn|Andrade|2013|page=288}} A Jewish [[rabbi]] later listed the temple at Hierapolis as one of the five most important pagan temples in the Near East.{{sfn|Andrade|2013|page=289}}

''Macrobii'' ("Long-Livers") is an essay about famous philosophers who lived for many years.{{sfn|Kechagia|2016|pages=183–184}} It describes how long each of them lived, and gives an account of each of their deaths.{{sfn|Kechagia|2016|pages=183–184}} In his treatises ''Teacher of Rhetoric'' and ''On Salaried Posts'', Lucian criticizes the teachings of master rhetoricians.{{sfn|Schlapbach|2018|page=81}} His treatise ''On Dancing'' is a major source of information about Greco-Roman dance.{{sfn|Schlapbach|2018|pages=82–84}} In it, he describes dance as an act of ''[[mimesis]]'' ("imitation"){{sfn|Schlapbach|2018|page=82}} and rationalizes the myth of [[Proteus]] as being nothing more than an account of a highly skilled Egyptian dancer.{{sfn|Schlapbach|2018|pages=82–84}} He also wrote about visual arts in ''Portraits'' and ''On Behalf of Portraits''.{{sfn|Schlapbach|2018|page=81}} Lucian's biography of the philosopher [[Demonax]] eulogizes him as a great philosopher{{sfn|Ferguson|1993|page=332}} and portrays him as a hero of ''[[parrhesia]]'' ("boldness of speech").{{sfn|Ferguson|1993|page=332}} In his treatise, ''[[How to Write History]]'', Lucian criticizes the historical methodology used by writers such as Herodotus and Ctesias,{{sfn|Kempshall|2011|pages=489–491}} who wrote vivid and self-indulgent descriptions of events they had never actually seen.{{sfn|Kempshall|2011|pages=489–491}} Instead, Lucian argues that the historian never embellish his stories and should place his commitment to accuracy above his desire to entertain his audience.{{sfn|Kempshall|2011|page=491}} He also argues the historian should remain absolutely impartial and tell the events as they really happened, even if they are likely to cause disapproval.{{sfn|Kempshall|2011|page=491}} Lucian names Thucydides as a specific example of a historian who models these virtues.{{sfn|Kempshall|2011|page=491}}

In his satirical letter ''[[Passing of Peregrinus]]'' ({{lang|grc|italic=yes|Περὶ τῆς Περεγρίνου Τελευτῆς}}), Lucian describes the death of the controversial Cynic philosopher [[Peregrinus Proteus]],{{sfn|Van Voorst|2000|page=58}} who had publicly [[self-immolation|immolated himself]] on a pyre at the [[ancient Olympic Games|Olympic Games]] of AD 165.{{sfn|Van Voorst|2000|page=58}} The letter is historically significant because it preserves one of the earliest pagan evaluations of Christianity.{{sfn|Van Voorst|2000|pages=58–59}} In the letter, one of Lucian's characters delivers a speech ridiculing Christians for their perceived credulity and ignorance,{{sfn|Van Voorst|2000|page=59}} but he also affords them some level of respect on account of their morality.{{sfn|Van Voorst|2000|page=59}}

In the letter ''Against the Ignorant Book Collector'', Lucian ridicules the common practice whereby Near Easterners collect massive libraries of Greek texts for the sake of appearing "cultured", but without actually reading any of them.{{sfn|Andrade|2013|pages=191–192}}{{sfn|Wallace-Hadrill|1983|page=79}}

===Pseudo-Lucian===
Some of the writings attributed to Lucian, such as the ''[[Amores (Lucian)|Amores]]'' and the ''Ass'', are usually not considered genuine works of Lucian and are normally cited under the name of "Pseudo-Lucian".<ref>*{{cite journal|last1=Jope|first1=James|title=Interpretation and authenticity of the Lucianic Erotes |url=https://muse.jhu.edu/journals/helios/v038/38.1.jope.pdf |journal=Helios|year=2011|volume=38| issue=1 |pages=103–120 |publisher=Texas Tech University Press |doi=10.1353/hel.2011.0004|bibcode=2011Helio..38..103J |s2cid=144874219 |access-date=1 December 2015}}</ref>{{sfn|Vout|2007|page=49}} The ''Ass'' ({{lang|grc|italic=yes|Λούκιος ἢ ῎Oνος}}) is probably a summarized version of a story by Lucian, and contains largely the same basic plot elements as ''[[The Golden Ass]]'' (or ''Metamorphoses'') of [[Apuleius]], but with fewer inset tales and a different ending.<ref>{{cite book |author=Harrison, S. J. |title=Apuleius: A Latin Sophist |orig-year=2000 |edition=paperback |year=2004 |publisher=Oxford University Press |location=Oxford |isbn=978-0-19-927138-2 |pages=9–10}}</ref> ''Amores'' is usually dated to the third or fourth centuries based on stylistic grounds.{{sfn|Vout|2007|page=49}}