Journal | Armeniaca
Journal issue | 2 | 2023
Research Article | Shaping Readerly Taste
Shaping Readerly Taste
Paratextuality in the Publishing Mission of Mxit‘ar of Sebastia
Abstract
Making use of theoretical insights from “History of the Book” scholarship, this paper examines the way in which Mkhit‘ar of Sebastia made use of paratexts (title pages, frontispieces, dedications, epigraphs, prefaces, illustrations, headings, epilogues, appendices, etc.) in his ‘publishing mission’ (to use Sahak Djemdjemian’s appelation) to shape readerly taste and influence the way in which his books were read, received, and interpreted. Through introductory poems, illustrations, and playful word games, he presented himself as a second Mashtots and his own students like the famous 5th-c. disciples of that vardapet, who were meant to transmit and create in the same Armenian Christian literary tradition, under the aegis of the Roman Catholic Church.
Submitted: March 3, 2023 | Accepted: May 12, 2023 | Published Nov. 22, 2023 | Language: en
Keywords Mxit‘ar of Sebastia • Paratextuality • History of the book • Mxit‘arist congregation • Reader response
Copyright © 2023 Jesse Arlen. This is an open-access work distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction is permitted, provided that the original author(s) and the copyright owner(s) are credited and that the original publication is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. The license allows for commercial use. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
Permalink http://doi.org/10.30687/arm/2974-6051/2023/01/006
