Myth and the Polis (Myth and Poetics) - Hardcover

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0801424739 ISBN 13: 9780801424731

Publisher: Cornell University Press, 1991

Synopsis

This fresh and thought-provoking book deepens our understanding of the dynamic relationship between the creation of myth and the development of the ancient Greek polis, or city-state, during crucial periods in archaic and classical Greece. Examining the diverse texts which crystallized Greek oral tradition, nine chapters by a multidisciplinary group of scholars focus both on the role of the community as the shaper and transmitter of myth and on the function of myth and ritual in the development of political authority in Greek society.

Myth and the Polis draws upon current research in such fields such as ancient history, philology, social anthropology, ethnomusicology, comparative literature, psychoanalysis, folklore, and political theory. Taken together, the essays highlight the continuos struggle of Greek archaic and classical communities to keep their myths "true" in spite of the pull of pan-Hellenism.

Shedding new light on the beginnings of Western civilization, Myth and the Polis will be of interest to a wide range of readers, including scholars and students of classics, folklore, myth, and ancient religion, politics, and history.

About this title

About the Author

Dora C. Pozzi is Associate Professor of Classics and Classical Study Coordinator at the University of Houston. John Wickersham is Professor and Chair of Classical Studies at Ursinus College.

Edition details

• Publisher: Cornell University Press
• Publication date: 1991
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0801424739
• ISBN 13: 9780801424731
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 246
• Editor: Pozzi Dora C., Wickersham John M.