In this groundbreaking work, Claude Calame argues that the songs sung by choruses of young girls in ancient Greek poetry are more than literary texts; rather, they functioned as initiatory rituals in Greek cult practices. Using semiotic and anthropologic theory, Calame reconstructs the religious and social institutions surrounding the songs, demonstrating their function in an aesthetic education that permitted the young girls to achieve the stature of womanhood and to be integrated into the adult civic community. This first English edition includes an updated bibliography.
In this groundbreaking work, Claude Calame argues that the songs sung by choruses of young girls in ancient Greek poetry are more than literary texts;...
This clearly written, beautifully illustrated book introduces a previously unrecognized Homeric theme, the 'belted hero, ' and argues for its lasting historical, literary, and archaeological significance. The belted hero fuses king, warrior, charioteer, and athlete into a supreme image of political power. The special 'heroic warrior's belts' (zosteres) worn by Agamemnon, Menelaos, and Nestor served as unimpeachable visual emblems of their exalted positions of rank. The feminine counterpart, or zone, presents the woman as superior in the competitive arena of love. Bennett shows that the belted...
This clearly written, beautifully illustrated book introduces a previously unrecognized Homeric theme, the 'belted hero, ' and argues for its lasting ...
Casey DuZ examines the figure of Briseis, the concubine of Achilles in theIliad, as an example of the traditional artistry enabled by a complex and self-contained oral poetic system. Briseis' lament for Patroclus inIliad 19 hints at her role in the larger epic tradition. DuZ argues that Briseis' role in theIliad is enormously compressed, both in relation to theIliad and the entire tradition of the epic cycle. Through a close reading of Homeric passages, Homeric Variations on a Lament by Briseis shows how theIliad refers to expanded and alternative traditions about Briseis even while asserting...
Casey DuZ examines the figure of Briseis, the concubine of Achilles in theIliad, as an example of the traditional artistry enabled by a complex and se...
Thucydides, the patron saint of Realpolitik, continues to be read in many fields outside of classics. Why did his History succeed in setting the pattern for future scholars where Hereodotus's earlier Histories failed? In this fascinating study of the construction of intellectual authority, Gregory Crane argues that Thucydides was successful for two reasons. First, he refined the language of administration: Who was in charge? How much money was spent? How many people were killed? Second, he drew upon the abstract philosophical rhetoric developing in the fifth century, one in which the state...
Thucydides, the patron saint of Realpolitik, continues to be read in many fields outside of classics. Why did his History succeed in setting the patte...
