The Transvestite Achilles: Gender and Genre in Statius' Achilleid

ISBN-13: 9780521851459 / Angielski / Twarda / 2005 / 370 str.

P. J. Heslin

Opis

As we follow Achilles' metamorphosis from wild boy to demure girl to lover to hero, Statius brilliantly illustrates a series of contrasting codes of behavior: male and female, epic and elegiac. This first full-length study of the poem addresses not only the narrative itself, but also sets the myth of Achilles on Scyros within a broad interpretive framework. The exploration ranges from the reception of the Achilleid in Baroque opera to the anthropological parallels that have emerged to explain Achilles' transvestism.

Recenzje

'[The author's] profound familiarity with classical literature enables him to approach the issue from a wide perspective and pay attention to versatile conventions and details. Through structural and linguistic analysis the author is able to expose Statius' subtle and humoristic treatment of classical literature. … Heslin's profound orientation on the subject enables the reader to consider the Achilleid not only as a successful epic narrative, but also as a reflection of the whole range of classical literature preceding the imperial era - a respectful nod to the great classical authors, and a witty parody of genre-related clichés. … All in all, Heslin's survey is an admirable pursuit to fill the void concerning the study of the Achilleid by classical scholars.' De novis libris iudicia

Spis treści

Introduction; 1. Opening nights at the opera 1641–1741; 2. The design of the Achilleid; 3. Womanhood, rhetoric, and performance; 4. Semivir, Semifer, Semideus; 5. Transvestism in myth and ritual; 6. Rape, repetition, and romance; 7. Conclusion.