Hesiod's concept of a Golden Age, together with analogous myths - Babylonian, Egyptian, Hebrew, etc. - speak to the psychic appeal, perhaps even deep-rooted need, for humans to conceive alternate worlds free from the anguish, toil, and dangers of the one they inhabit. Classical poets and philosophers explored the myth; the Middle Ages imagined it as the land of Cockaigne; Early Modern dramatists incorporated it; Romantic poets and nineteenth-century writers imagined it in various guises. This volume explores the configuration presented by Hesiod and the history of its reception and transformation in European literature and culture. The chapters study how texts written in specific historical moments of European history reshape elements of the myth to explore contemporary issues of concern. The book addresses these issues of cultural hybridization, and, from a transhistorical perspective, provides new insights into the dynamics of epochal shifts. It also looks at similar configurations in non-Western civilizations (China), which complements the spectrum of contributions that covers periods from classical antiquity to the Age of Goethe.
| ISBN: | 9781032814469 |
| Publication date: | 27th December 2024 |
| Author: | Stephen G Nichols, Claudia Olk |
| Publisher: | Routledge an imprint of Taylor & Francis |
| Format: | Hardback |
| Pagination: | 216 pages |
| Series: | Literary Criticism and Cultural Theory |
| Genres: |
Literary studies: ancient, classical and medieval Ancient history Ancient, classical and medieval texts |
Hesiod's concept of a Golden Age, together with analogous myths - Babylonian, Egyptian, Hebrew, etc. - speak to the psychic appeal, perhaps even deep-rooted need, for humans to conceive alternate worlds free from the anguish, toil, and dangers of the one they inhabit. Classical poets and philosophers explored the myth; the Middle Ages imagined it as the land of Cockaigne; Early Modern dramatists incorporated it; Romantic poets and nineteenth-century writers imagined it in various guises. This volume explores the configuration presented by Hesiod and the history of its reception and transformation in European literature and culture. The chapters study how texts written in specific historical moments of European history reshape elements of the myth to explore contemporary issues of concern. The book addresses these issues of cultural hybridization, and, from a transhistorical perspective, provides new insights into the dynamics of epochal shifts. It also looks at similar configurations in non-Western civilizations (China), which complements the spectrum of contributions that covers periods from classical antiquity to the Age of Goethe.
Myths of the Golden Age in European Culture features in the following genres: Literary studies: ancient, classical and medieval, Ancient history, Ancient, classical and medieval texts
Myths of the Golden Age in European Culture is available in Paperback, Hardback
Myths of the Golden Age in European Culture was written by Stephen G Nichols, Claudia Olk and published by Routledge an imprint of Taylor & Francis
Myths of the Golden Age in European Culture has 216 pages
Yes it is part of Literary Criticism and Cultural Theory series
£154.79