Sep 2, 20243 min read

The Origins of Love Stories

Moray Luke fishskin bag with a Jackie Collins novel

Paradise to me is an all inclusive resort with a good romance novel with a strong heroine.

One of my favourite escapist authors is Jackie Collins. Her life story is better than her books. Collins who began her career as an actress, turning novelist taking inspiration from her life in showbusiness (to note her sister actress sister Joan is comparably as fabulous as her).

Her novels are often set with glamorous women being ruthless with a little love intertwined.

Whilst being more of a non fiction reader (about ancient history of course), one of the biggest reaches I have is that if heroines from classics were like Jackie Collins novels, then the most Collin-esque must be Clytemnestra. Clytemnestra is most famous for orchestrating the murder of Agamemnon upon his return from the Trojan War. She sought revenge for the sacrifice of their daughter, Iphigenia, whom Agamemnon killed to appease the gods. Complex and nuanced, a woman who defies societal expectations and takes control of her own fate.

In this essay we explore the origins of love stories.

John Collins depiction of heroine Clytemnestra

Helen of Troy could also be a Collins character. Helen of Troy, a heroine of Homer’s Illiad, with her unwavering beauty and elopement to Paris is one of the most ‘glamourous’ characters to come out of folklore in general.

In fact so many heroines of Greco-Roman literature could be protagonists of modern romance adaptations.

Regarding Homer’s Iliad, people point out that it's one of the first Western novels, however I disagree. The Illiad took form in spoken poetry in which anonymous poets contributed to. Or as it's called in scholarship, ‘oral tradition’.

Daphnis and Chloe is seen as one of the 5 main ancient Romance novel. Written by Longus its synopsis is that its based on two orphans who were adopted and raised by shepherds. As they grow up together in the beautiful countryside, they gradually fall in love. You also have stories like Xenophon’s Ephesian Tale, which follows the turbulent love affair between Habrocomes and Anthia. Their relationship is fraught with obstacles, including abductions and shipwrecks but their love towards each other never dies. If they are primarily Romance novels is debatable, they involve some combination of the same basic ingredients, not solely about love but travel, and adventure.

Daphnis and Chloe, 1881, Elizabeth Jane Gardener

The Renaissance

Many things paved the way for the Greco-Roman revival during the Renaissance .One of the factors in this is the Carolingian dynasty. Charlemagne, the leader of the Holy Roman empire, made classical education more accessible. Charlemagne's reforms even lead to a new type of typeface, the Carolingian minuscule, that helped scholars preserve ancient Latin scripts. Humanism was a huge movement too. Rooted in the study of classical antiquity, particularly the works of ancient Greek and Roman philosophers, writers, and artists, humanists revived the study of ancient texts, particularly those written in Latin and Greek. Not only was there a huge Greco Roman revival in texts but also in art. Women were represented as virtues, beauty, piety and piety.

The printing press.

The advent of the printing press was a huge influence too and scripts and manuscripts were turned in to books. Whilst the printing press was invented in Germany, its Venice who gets the reputation for boosting its popularity. Take for example the manuscript of Daphnis and Chloe was published in 1598 by the Guinti family.

However during the Renaissance, Daphnis and Chloe is seen as more of a pastoral romance (idealising rural life) rather than a romance novel. While the original Daphnis and Chloe contained some explicit descriptions and erotic elements, these were often toned down in Renaissance translations and adaptations due to Christianity’s heavy influence during this time.

Its argued there were not really many Romance novels before the 18th century. Sure we have Don Quixote, its Eliza Haywood who laid the ground for the first English novel. However its my opinion, that 18th century author Eliza Haywood is history’s contemporary of Jackie Collins. In Love in Excess, Haywood explores sensual complexities of romantic relationships. And it features themes of desire which was ground breaking for a time wherein opportunities for women to participate in public life were limited, education for women was a low priority. I can only conclude that Eliza Haywood walked so Jackie Collins could run.

Whilst Clytemnestra and Chloe are seen as heroines of the ancient era, it's only in the 18th century wherein women's desires got vocalised in print.