The Vengeance of Achilles: The Impact of Viewing Context and Reception on Visual Narrative

This paper attempts to prove the significance of the viewing context and reception of an image for the developments in the modes of narration used to depict a scene and subsequently that scene’s iconography. In particular, it will examine the iconographic and narrative evolution of images depicting the vengeance of Achilles in Late Archaic black-figure vase-painting as well as in a series of Roman artworks. It will additionally consider the viewing context and visual reception of those images and discuss the cultural significance for the use of certain modes of narration. Finally, it will compare the modes of narration utilized and the evolution of the iconography of the scene in the Greek and Roman case-studies.