The Homeric 'hymn to Demeter' (ebook)

Argumento de The Homeric 'hymn to Demeter' (ebook)

The Homeric Hymn to Demeter, composed in the late seventh or early sixth century B.C.E., is a key to understanding the psychological and religious world of ancient Greek women. The poem tells how Hades, lord of the underworld, abducted the goddess Persephone and how her grieving mother, Demeter, the goddess of grain, forced the gods to allow Persephone to return to her for part of each year. Helene Foley presents the Greek text and an annotated translation of this poem, together with selected essays that give the reader a rich understanding of the Hymn's structure and artistry, its role in the religious life of the ancient world, and its meaning for the modern world.

"Foley's attempt to connect the psychological, cosmological, and theological themes in the Hymn is her greatest success."--Victoria Pedrick, The Classical Journal

"Foley's book is the first full-length study in English of the Hymn.... It is a welcome and much-needed work.... Foley's analysis of the Hymn is an excellent demonstration of how it can be interpreted in the light of the [Eleusinian] Mysteries."--Ann C. Suter, New England Classical Newsletter and Journal

"Foley synthesizes important insights of the articles she reprints and of much other scholarship besides, and builds on them to construct a comprehensive and persuasive reading of her own."--William G. Thalmann, Bryn Mawr Classical Review0List of Illustrations Preface and Acknowledgments Pt. 1 The Text and Translation, Commentary, and Background 1 Text and Translation of the Homeric Hymn to Demeter 2 Commentary on the Homeric Hymn to Demeter 28 Background: The Eleusinian Mysteries and Women's Rites for Demeter 65 Pt. 2 Interpretive Essay on the Homeric Hymn to Demeter 77 Interpreting the Hymn to Demeter 83 The "Theology" Of the Mysteries 84 Variants of the Myth and the Importance of the Version in the Hymn to Demeter 97 Female Experience in the Hymn to Demeter 103 Marriage 104 Gender Conflict and the Cosmological Tradition 112 The Mother/Daughter Romance 118 The Psychology of the Mysteries 137 The Hymn to Demeter and the Polis 142 Christianity and the Hymn to Demeter 150 The Influence of the Hymn to Demeter and Its Myth 151 App. Eleusis and Athens 169 App. The Hymn to Demeter as a Panhellenic Poem 175 Pt. 3 Further Interpretation: Contributed Articles 179 Withdrawal and Return: An Epic Story Pattern in the Homeric Hymn to Demeter and in the Homeric Poems 181 Some Functions of the Demophoon Episode in the Homeric Hymn to Demeter 190 Concerning the Homeric Hymn to Demeter 198 Politics and Pomegranates: An Interpretation of the Homeric Hymn to Demeter 212 Family Structure and Feminine Personality 243 Bibliography 267 Index Locorum 283 General Index 289