The tradition of historical literature begun by Herodotus and Thucydides molded the early Greek novel. As the genre evolved, however, Greek novels moved away from their historical roots to become more heavily influenced by mythological traditions. Edmund Cueva's new book examines the literary uses to which the ancient novelists put their mythological material. His work offers a stimulating discussion of myths and their rise to prominence as the key feature of the fully developed Greek novel. He also takes into account the impact of the Roman conquest on the development of the Greek novel, the last true literary creation of the Greek world. The Myths of Fiction will interest scholars of Greek literarure, imperial history, literary myth, intertextuality, and comparative literature.

Contents
Introduction 1
ONE Chariton, History, and Myth 15
TWO Xenophon, History, and Mythological Allusions 35
THREE Longus, Myth, and History 44
FOUR Thematic Myths, Pan, and Achilles Tatius 62
FIVE The Analogue of the Hero of Heliodorus’s Aethiopica 83
Conclusion 91
Appendixes
Appendix1 99
Appendix 2 103
Notes 107
Bibliography 137
Index 147