Comforting Tears and Suggestive Smiles: To Laugh and Cry in the Komnenian Novel

The stories of the Komnenian novels, written in imitation of ancient Greek models during the mid-twelfth century in Constantinople, display a significant mixture of happiness and sadness, or rather a combination of tears and laughter. While a modern reader may expect tears to represent sadness and laughter happiness, both laughing and crying can take on quite different functions and meanings in ancient and Byzantine novels. Not only tears and laments but also laughter and smiles are here investigated in relation to the workings of Eros. Smiles and laughter often indicate the presence of desire and sometimes create confusion, departing from but at the same time closely adhering to the basically sad story of the loving couple’s misfortunes. Tears and laughter are not opposites in the novels; they work together under the influence of Eros.