The early Amazons : : modern and ancient perspectives on a persistent myth / / by Josine H. Blok.

• Superior document: Religions in the Graeco-Roman World, Volume 120
• VerfasserIn: Blok, Josine,
• Place / Publishing House: Leiden, [Netherlands] ;, New York ;, Köln, [Germany] : : E.J. Brill,, 1995.; ©1995
• Year of Publication: 1995
• Language: English
• Series: Religions in the Graeco-Roman world ; Volume 120.
• Physical Description: 1 online resource (516 pages, 12 unnumbered pages of plates) :; illustrations.
• Notes: Bibliographic Level Mode of Issuance: Monograph

The Early Amazons offers a new understanding of the ancient Amazon myth, situating mythical representations in the realm of cultural history. The first section examines how the Amazons have presented a challenge to views on history, myth and gender in classical mythology from the late eighteenth century up to the impact of structuralism. Topics included are nineteenth-century historiography and the interest in linguistics. The second section sheds new light on the culture of archaic Greece, offering a coherent assessment of literary and visual representations. Taking mythical narrative as a form of oral storytelling, it shows the emergence of the Amazon motif and its meaning in the world of epic. Iconographical analysis reveals how the visual arts have made a contribution of their own to the imaginary presence of the Amazons.

Table of Contents

Preliminary material -- INTRODUCTION -- INTERPRETATIONS OF THE AMAZON MYTH IN THE NINETEENTH AND TWENTIETH CENTURIES -- THE HOMERIC FORMULA -- PENTHESILEIA -- PRIAMOS AND BELLEROPHONTES -- HERAKLES AND THE SIXTH-CENTURY DEVELOPMENT OF THE AMAZON MOTIF -- CONCLUSIONS -- BIBLIOGRAPHY -- INDEX -- PLATES -- RELIGIONS IN THE GRAECO-ROMAN WORLD.