Perseus

by Ogden; Daniel

• ISBN13: 9780415427258
• ISBN10: 0415427258
• Format: Nonspecific Binding
• Copyright: 2008-04-25
• Publisher: Routledge

Summary

The son of Zeus, to some a greater hero than Herakles, Perseus has his place amongst the first rank of Greek heroes. With the help of Hermes and Athena he killed Medusa, conquered the mighty Kraken and married the beautiful Andromeda. This volume tells of his enduring myth, its rendition in art and literature, and its reception through the Roman period to the modern day.

Table of Contents

List of illustrations and credits
Ancient authors and Fragments
Why Perseus?	p. 1
Introducing Perseus	p. 3
Key Themes	p. 11
The Family Saga	p. 13
The family saga on stage	p. 13
The impregnation of Danae	p. 18
The chest and its mythological comparanda	p. 19
Acrisius' motivations and the feud with the line of Proetus	p. 22
Perseus' childhood	p. 24
Polydectes' trick	p. 26
The war against Dionysus	p. 28
The death of Perseus	p. 32
Overview	p. 33
Medusa and the Gorgons	p. 34
The origins of the Gorgon-head and of the Medusa story	p. 34
The development of the quest narrative: Aeschylus and Pherecydes	p. 40
Perseus' equipment	p. 43
Where did the Gorgons live?	p. 47
Gorgon weaponry	p. 50
The corruption and punishment of Medusa	p. 55
The female groups: Gorgons, Graeae, Nymphs, Hesperides and Nereids	p. 56
Athena, Perseus, Bellerophon and the dragons	p. 60
Perseus and Jason: quest narratives and myths of maturation	p. 63
Overview	p. 65
Andromeda and the Sea-Monster	p. 67
The origins of the Andromeda tale	p. 67
The tragic Andromeda	p. 69
The imperial Andromeda	p. 72
The catasterisms	p. 74
Eros and eroticism	p. 77
From Arcadia to India: Black Andromeda?	p. 82
The ketos: a natural history	p. 87
The Andromeda tale in context: Hesione and the dragons	p. 93
Folktale comparanda	p. 97
Overview	p. 99
The Use and Abuse of Perseus	p. 100
Perseus in the Argolid	p. 100
Perseus in Seriphos and Larissa	p. 105
Perseus in Athens and Sparta	p. 106
Perseus in Persia	p. 109
Perseus in Egypt	p. 113
Perseus in the Macedonian and Hellenistic dynasties	p. 114
Perseus in Rome and Italy	p. 118
Perseus in Roman Asia Minor	p. 119
Perseus rationalised	p. 121
Overview	p. 126
Perseus Afterwards	p. 129
Perseus After Antiquity	p. 131
From Fulgentius to Freud: three ages in the allegorisation of the Medusa tale	p. 131
The Christian Perseus: St George and Princess Sabra, Roger and Angelica	p. 136
Burne-Jones' Perseus Series	p. 138
Overview	p. 143
Conclusion: The Personality of Perseus	p. 145
Appendices	p. 147
Literary sources for the Perseus cycle	p. 149
Family tree	p. 153
Notes	p. 154
Further reading	p. 167
Bibliography	p. 169
Index	p. 183
Table of Contents provided by Blackwell. All Rights Reserved.