Dr Francesca Bezzone

Completed PhD: Dr Francesca Bezzone (2013)

Deconstructing the Man, creating the Saint: The literary sanctification of Saint Germanus in the Vita Germani Auctore Constantio

This study is centred on the analysis of the evolving figure of Saint Germanus in the Vita Germani Auctore Constantio, from mortal, mundane man at the beginning of the text to fully sanctified figure in its last chapters. My aim is to propose a new reading of the text, based on literary, semantic, liturgical and theological analysis, where the sanctification of Germanus is made all the more evident through intra-textual details and inter-textual comparisons with other hagiographies of the time, such as the Vita Martini, the Vita Amatoris and the hagiographical work of Jerome.

Supervisor: Dr Mark Stansbury

Reserach area: the Latin tradition