From Ikaria to the stars : classical mythification, ancient and modern

349 Pages·2004·3.683 MB·English

by  Green, Peter

FROM IKARIA TO THE STARS
BYTHESAMEAUTHOR
AncientHistoryandBiography
AlexandertheGreat(1970)
TheYearofSalamis,480–479b.c.(1970)[updatedasTheGreco-PersianWars(1996)]
ArmadafromAthens:TheFailureoftheSicilianExpedition,415–413b.c.(1971)
AConciseHistoryofAncientGreecetotheCloseoftheClassicalEra(1973)
TheParthenon(1973)
AlexanderofMacedon,356–323b.c.:AHistoricalBiography(1974,reprinted1992)
AlexandertoActium:TheHistoricalEvolutionoftheHellenisticAge(1990,rev.ed.1993)
Essays
EssaysinAntiquity(1960)
TheShadowoftheParthenon(1972)
ClassicalBearings(1989)
TranslationsandCommentaries
Juvenal:TheSixteenSatires(1967;3ded.1998)
Ovid:TheEroticPoems(1982)
Ovid:ThePoemsofExile(1994)
ApolloniosRhodios:TheArgonautika(1997)
FROM IK ARIA
TO THE STARS
Classical Mythification,
Ancient and Modern
Peter Green
UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS PRESS
a u s t i n
Thisbookhasbeensupportedbyanendowmentdedicatedtoclassicsandthe
ancientworldandfundedbytheAretéFoundation;theGladysKriebleDelmas
Foundation;theDoughertyFoundation;theJamesR.Dougherty,Jr.Founda-
tion;theRachaelandBenVaughanFoundation;andtheNationalEndowment
fortheHumanities.TheendowmenthasalsobenefitedfromgiftsbyMarkand
JoAnnFinley,LucyShoeMeritt,thelateAnneByrdNalle,andotherindividual
donors.
Copyright©2004byPeterGreen
Allrightsreserved
PrintedintheUnitedStatesofAmerica
Firstedition,2004
Requestsforpermissiontoreproducematerialfromthisworkshouldbesentto
Permissions,UniversityofTexasPress,P.O.Box7819,Austin,TX78713-7819.
(cid:10)Thepaperusedinthisbookmeetstheminimumrequirementsof
ansi/nisoz39.48-1992(r1997)(PermanenceofPaper).
LibraryofCongressCataloging-in-PublicationData
Green,Peter,1924–
FromIkariatothestars:classicalmythification,ancientandmodern/
PeterGreen.—1sted.
p. cm.
Includesbibliographicalreferencesandindex.
isbn0-292-70230-2(hardcover:alk.paper)
1.Mythology,Classical. 2.Myth. I.Title.
bl723.g74 2004
292.1'3—dc22
2003019707
Carin’s,again,withlove
μάλισταδέτ ἔκλυοναὐτοί
’
CONTENTS
Acknowledgments ix
Abbreviations x
Introduction 1
1
‘‘TheseFragmentsHaveIShoredagainstMyRuins’’:ApolloniusRhodius
andtheSocialRevalidationofMythforaNewAge 5
2
TheFlight-PlanofDaedalus 40
3
WorksandDays1–285:Hesiod’sInvisibleAudience 47
4
AthenianHistoryandHistoriansintheFifthCenturyb.c. 67
5
TheMetamorphosisoftheBarbarian:
AthenianPanhellenisminaChangingWorld 104
6
TextandContextintheMatterofXenophon’sExile 133
7
RebookingtheFlute-Girls:AFreshLookattheChronologicalEvidence
fortheFallofAthensandtheEight-MonthRuleoftheThirty 144
8
AVarietyofGreekAppetites 160
9
Alexander’sAlexandria 172
10
TheMuses’Birdcage,ThenandNow 197
11
HowPoliticalWastheStoa? 210
12
AncientEthics,ModernTherapy 222
13
GettingtoBeaStar:ThePoliticsofCatasterism 234
14
TheInnocenceofProcris:OvidAA3.687–746 250
15
MagicandthePrincipleofApparentCausalityin
Pliny’sNaturalHistory 264
AppendixA
TanglewoodTalesfortheYuppies 281
AppendixB
HomerfortheKiddies 288
Bibliography 297
Index 307
THIS PAGE INTENTIONALLY LEFT BLANK
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Acknowledgmentsforpermissiontoreprintmaterialincludedinthisvolume
aredueto:theUniversityofCaliforniaPressforChapter1;ÉchosduMonde
Classique/ClassicalViewsforChapter2;theUniversityofOklahomaPressfor
Chapter5;OxfordUniversityPressforChapter6;theAncientHistoryBulletin
forChapter7;theTimesLiterarySupplementforChapter8andsomematerial
in Chapter 4; the Getty Museum Press for Chapter 9; Arion for Chapters
10and17;AncientPhilosophyforChapter11;theNewRepublicforChapters12
and16;FenwayCourtandtheTrusteesoftheIsabellaStewartGardnerMu-
seum for Chapter 13; the Classical Journal and the Executive Committee of
theClassicalAssociationoftheMidwestandSouthforChapter14.
Thisalsoseemstomeanappropriateplacetorecordmyindebtednessto
thesuperb,andsuperblywide-ranging,holdings,inclassicsandthehumani-
tiesgenerally,oftheMainLibraryintheUniversityofIowa;toChrisAfrica,
its resourceful and ever-helpful Classics Bibliographer; and to the devoted
staffofitsInterlibraryLoanService,whoconsistentlyfoundme,withquite
dazzlingspeedandefficiency,thosefewrecherchétitlesIneededthatwerenot
inthesystem.Toalltheabove,mygratefulthanks.Butmygreatestdebtof
all, on this occasion more than most—and she knows why—is to my wife,
forwhomthededicationofthisbookis,liketheexchangeofarmorbetween
χάλκεαχρυσείων
DiomedesandGlaukos, ,bronzeforgold.
Alltranslationsaremineunlessotherwiseindicated.
ix