Tradition and Identity in Lycophron

Abstract

Lycophron's «Alexandra» has been called an «obscure poem». Through the difficulties of an enigmatic text that raises questions about its author and date, this paper deals with two fundamental issues: first, if it is possible to call «Alexandra» a drama and set a parallel between this work and 5th century Athenian tragedy; second, how Lycophron deals with the long and well established identity of his characters, and in particular with the identity of Cassandra, whose words we hear throughout the poem. A long mythological tradition together with an enigmatic and elusive text - they both constitute a strange and challenging paradox. A brief analysis of Lycophron's «odyssey» (ll. 648-819) shows how the poet manages to achieve equilibrium while dealing with these two themes: tradition and identity.