96 - Cornaros Erotokritos : Its equal cannot be found in the East and or the West

N. Lygeros
Translated from the Greek by Athena Kehagias

Cornaros Erotokritos is not just a lyrical, metrical novel, its a Venetian-Cretan composition, extremely rich and did not randomly become a panhellenic myth. Cornaros created this legend thanks to his great knowledge of the Cretan society.
Cornaros specificity derives not only from the sustainability. of Crete, but also from the combination of East and West. And this is obvious because we find in his works many references to the East and the West, such as the verses: A64, A1234, A1506, V548, V1744, V2129, G1557, D1621. But this dual effect is even more interesting regarding the gkiostres.
The joust of Cornaros consists of a complex mixture of Italian Renaissance literature and Byzantine folklore. At this point the western epic becomes a story of the East and chivalry is converted to romiosini. So in this versatile manner, the poet interprets the past and the destiny of the nation.
Even Cornaros war is characteristic. The original crusade of the West in the French original is transformed to the siege of the East in the cretan script.
And it is the besieged who interest Cornaros,and not the conquerors.
From this point of view is indeed significant that the decisive duel of Rotokritos occurs with a Frank and a relative of the king of the latino Vlachs.
On the other hand, Cornaros vision, which is remaining symbolic due to the forms of his works, with a delicate precision which shows us that the poet possesses scientific knowledge which does not belong in the middle ages, but in renaissance, which are not nostrums of the East but Western researches.
Finally, the most important of Cornaros contributions, is the proof of the existence of a Greek identity in a period of turmoil and at a frontier position.

References:
Sur les connaissances scientifiques dans Erotokritos.
The Lichnos , numéro 62, janvier 1995.
Sur les chiffres 3 et 4 dans Le sacrifice d ‘Abraham et Erotokritos de Kornaros
La Revue Franco-Hellénique, numéro 18, juin 1995.
Sur la présence du chiffre 4 dans Erotokritos.
The Lichnos , numéro 67, avril 1996.
Erotokritos, tournois et contexte énétocrétois.
Bulletin de la Société Historique Alexandre Soutsos, no.2, juillet 1997.
Sur les difficultés de la traduction versifiée de l ‘Erotokritos, roman épicolyrique crétois du XVIIème siècle.
Parterre Verbal, numéro 23, septembre 1997.
Sur l’identité du poète d’Erotokritos.
Le Bulletin Franco-Hellénique, 1998.
Commentaires sur L ‘Erotokritos dans une nouvelle perspective historique d’ Egil Danielsen.
Le Bulletin Franco-Hellénique, 1998.
Sur la symbolique des devises dans le tournoi de l ‘Erotokritos.
The Lichnos 1998.
Le regard séférien sur l ‘Erotokritos de Kornaros.
Parterre Verbal, 1998.