Barbara Goff and Michael Simpson
- Published in print:
- 2007
- Published Online:
- January 2008
- ISBN:
- 9780199217182
- eISBN:
- 9780191712388
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199217182.003.0003
- Subject:
- Classical Studies, Literary Studies: Classical, Early, and Medieval
This chapter reads Ola Rotimi's The Gods are Not to Blame as an allegory of colonization and decolonization and revises the established reading of the play as a representation of the Nigerian Civil ...
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This chapter reads Ola Rotimi's The Gods are Not to Blame as an allegory of colonization and decolonization and revises the established reading of the play as a representation of the Nigerian Civil War. The protagonist's patricide is understood as the slaying of the colonial father at the moment of independence, and the ensuing incest is the intimate embrace between the hero of national liberation and what the despatched colonizer leaves behind, namely his culture. This relationship is incestuous because the liberating hero is already a partial product of colonial culture. Political decolonization is thus staged as the easy part, while cultural decolonization is dramatized as impossible because the incestuous embrace produces issue. This issue is not only the children in the play but also the play itself. As such, the play is a product of an indigenous and a colonial culture. Ethnic aggression, as both colonization and civil war, is thus characterised as fighting oneself.Less
This chapter reads Ola Rotimi's The Gods are Not to Blame as an allegory of colonization and decolonization and revises the established reading of the play as a representation of the Nigerian Civil War. The protagonist's patricide is understood as the slaying of the colonial father at the moment of independence, and the ensuing incest is the intimate embrace between the hero of national liberation and what the despatched colonizer leaves behind, namely his culture. This relationship is incestuous because the liberating hero is already a partial product of colonial culture. Political decolonization is thus staged as the easy part, while cultural decolonization is dramatized as impossible because the incestuous embrace produces issue. This issue is not only the children in the play but also the play itself. As such, the play is a product of an indigenous and a colonial culture. Ethnic aggression, as both colonization and civil war, is thus characterised as fighting oneself.
Marion Elizabeth Rodgers
- Published in print:
- 2006
- Published Online:
- September 2007
- ISBN:
- 9780195072389
- eISBN:
- 9780199787982
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195072389.003.0033
- Subject:
- Literature, 19th-century and Victorian Literature
Sara Haardt's health crisis in 1929 occurred when Mencken was immersed in the writing of Treatise on the Gods, a culmination of his thinking on the nature and origin of religion. The book was ...
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Sara Haardt's health crisis in 1929 occurred when Mencken was immersed in the writing of Treatise on the Gods, a culmination of his thinking on the nature and origin of religion. The book was controversial, especially for its comments on the Jewish race. He gave a revealing interview, not expecting that in the next few years a series of events would alienate some of his closest Jewish friends.Less
Sara Haardt's health crisis in 1929 occurred when Mencken was immersed in the writing of Treatise on the Gods, a culmination of his thinking on the nature and origin of religion. The book was controversial, especially for its comments on the Jewish race. He gave a revealing interview, not expecting that in the next few years a series of events would alienate some of his closest Jewish friends.
Jan Bremmer and Andrew Erskine (eds)
- Published in print:
- 2010
- Published Online:
- September 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780748637980
- eISBN:
- 9780748670758
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Edinburgh University Press
- DOI:
- 10.3366/edinburgh/9780748637980.001.0001
- Subject:
- Classical Studies, Ancient Religions
This book explores the Greek gods from Homer to Late Antiquity. The Greek gods are still very much present in modern consciousness. Yet even though Apollo and Dionysos, Artemis and Aphrodite, Zeus ...
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This book explores the Greek gods from Homer to Late Antiquity. The Greek gods are still very much present in modern consciousness. Yet even though Apollo and Dionysos, Artemis and Aphrodite, Zeus and Hermes are household names, it is much less clear what these divinities stood for in Ancient Greece. In fact they have been rather neglected in modern scholarship which has tended to focus on other aspects of Greek religion such as ritual and myth. The book brings together a term of international scholars with the aim of remedying the situation and generating new approaches to the study of the nature and development of the Greek gods. It looks at the individual gods but it also asks to what extent cult, myth and literary genre determine the nature of a divinity. How do the Greek gods function in a polytheistic pantheon and what is their connection to heroes? What is the influence of philosophy? What does archaeology tell us about the gods? In what ways do the gods of late antiquity differ from those of classical Greece? The aim of this book is to present a comprehensive view of the gods as they functioned in Greek culture until the triumph of Christianity.Less
This book explores the Greek gods from Homer to Late Antiquity. The Greek gods are still very much present in modern consciousness. Yet even though Apollo and Dionysos, Artemis and Aphrodite, Zeus and Hermes are household names, it is much less clear what these divinities stood for in Ancient Greece. In fact they have been rather neglected in modern scholarship which has tended to focus on other aspects of Greek religion such as ritual and myth. The book brings together a term of international scholars with the aim of remedying the situation and generating new approaches to the study of the nature and development of the Greek gods. It looks at the individual gods but it also asks to what extent cult, myth and literary genre determine the nature of a divinity. How do the Greek gods function in a polytheistic pantheon and what is their connection to heroes? What is the influence of philosophy? What does archaeology tell us about the gods? In what ways do the gods of late antiquity differ from those of classical Greece? The aim of this book is to present a comprehensive view of the gods as they functioned in Greek culture until the triumph of Christianity.
Jan N. Bremmer and Andrew Erskine
- Published in print:
- 2010
- Published Online:
- September 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780748637980
- eISBN:
- 9780748670758
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Edinburgh University Press
- DOI:
- 10.3366/edinburgh/9780748637980.003.0001
- Subject:
- Classical Studies, Ancient Religions
Jan Bremmer explores the historiography of the Greek gods over the past century or so. He begins with the Indo-European and Mycenean prehistory of the Greek gods, pointing out that no modern history ...
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Jan Bremmer explores the historiography of the Greek gods over the past century or so. He begins with the Indo-European and Mycenean prehistory of the Greek gods, pointing out that no modern history of Greek religion contained such an overview until Walter Burkert’s history was published in 1977. He then examines in turn the contributions to the study of the Greek gods made by four of the best histories of Greek religion from the twentieth century, namely those of Ulrich von Wilamowitz-Moellendorf, Louis Gernet, Martin Nilsson and Burkert himself.Less
Jan Bremmer explores the historiography of the Greek gods over the past century or so. He begins with the Indo-European and Mycenean prehistory of the Greek gods, pointing out that no modern history of Greek religion contained such an overview until Walter Burkert’s history was published in 1977. He then examines in turn the contributions to the study of the Greek gods made by four of the best histories of Greek religion from the twentieth century, namely those of Ulrich von Wilamowitz-Moellendorf, Louis Gernet, Martin Nilsson and Burkert himself.
Jan N. Bremmer and Andrew Erskine
- Published in print:
- 2010
- Published Online:
- September 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780748637980
- eISBN:
- 9780748670758
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Edinburgh University Press
- DOI:
- 10.3366/edinburgh/9780748637980.003.0002
- Subject:
- Classical Studies, Ancient Religions
The Greeks were polytheists who believed in a multitude of gods. In the modern discussion of Greek religion the gods take second place to ritual, and the study of individual gods is privileged over ...
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The Greeks were polytheists who believed in a multitude of gods. In the modern discussion of Greek religion the gods take second place to ritual, and the study of individual gods is privileged over attempts to define their general characteristics qua gods. While studies of the functions and personalities of gods like Apollo, Demeter, Dionysos or Herakles abound, no comprehensive treatment of the generic properties of the Greek gods exists. The question “What is Greek god?” is considered too ‘theological’ and therefore shunned. This chapter examines four divine qualities that are shared by all the Greek gods—their immortality, anthropomorphism, foreknowledge, and finally their power.Less
The Greeks were polytheists who believed in a multitude of gods. In the modern discussion of Greek religion the gods take second place to ritual, and the study of individual gods is privileged over attempts to define their general characteristics qua gods. While studies of the functions and personalities of gods like Apollo, Demeter, Dionysos or Herakles abound, no comprehensive treatment of the generic properties of the Greek gods exists. The question “What is Greek god?” is considered too ‘theological’ and therefore shunned. This chapter examines four divine qualities that are shared by all the Greek gods—their immortality, anthropomorphism, foreknowledge, and finally their power.
Jan N. Bremmer and Andrew Erskine
- Published in print:
- 2010
- Published Online:
- September 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780748637980
- eISBN:
- 9780748670758
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Edinburgh University Press
- DOI:
- 10.3366/edinburgh/9780748637980.003.0003
- Subject:
- Classical Studies, Ancient Religions
The notion of ‚Twelve Gods’ in Greek religion can be traced back no further than the late 6th century BC. It should probably be seen not as a fixed set of twelve (in fact our evidence suggests the ...
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The notion of ‚Twelve Gods’ in Greek religion can be traced back no further than the late 6th century BC. It should probably be seen not as a fixed set of twelve (in fact our evidence suggests the identity of the twelve varied from place to place), but rather as a common symbol for the pantheon. Scholars have in the past attempted to derive the Greek Twelve from month-deities in Egypt, or, more frequently, from groups of twelve deities found in Anatolia, especially Lycia. This chapter argues that it makes more sense to see the Twelve as a key symbol of Greek identity, associated with the polis (often located in the agora) and with the frontiers of the Greek world (e.g. the cult of the Twelve at Chalkedon on the border between Europe and Asia). Both associations, paradoxically, are seen most clearly in a text from Xanthos in Lycia commemorating an altar to the Twelve set up by the local Dynast Kheriga in the late 5th century BC.Less
The notion of ‚Twelve Gods’ in Greek religion can be traced back no further than the late 6th century BC. It should probably be seen not as a fixed set of twelve (in fact our evidence suggests the identity of the twelve varied from place to place), but rather as a common symbol for the pantheon. Scholars have in the past attempted to derive the Greek Twelve from month-deities in Egypt, or, more frequently, from groups of twelve deities found in Anatolia, especially Lycia. This chapter argues that it makes more sense to see the Twelve as a key symbol of Greek identity, associated with the polis (often located in the agora) and with the frontiers of the Greek world (e.g. the cult of the Twelve at Chalkedon on the border between Europe and Asia). Both associations, paradoxically, are seen most clearly in a text from Xanthos in Lycia commemorating an altar to the Twelve set up by the local Dynast Kheriga in the late 5th century BC.
John G. Stackhouse
- Published in print:
- 2008
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780195173581
- eISBN:
- 9780199851683
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195173581.003.0010
- Subject:
- Religion, Theology
This chapter sums up the key findings of this study on Christian realism and what sort of person an individual should be for Jesus Christ in today's society. It proposes a renewed Christian realism ...
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This chapter sums up the key findings of this study on Christian realism and what sort of person an individual should be for Jesus Christ in today's society. It proposes a renewed Christian realism that tries to be true to the nature of things, to the nature of the world and to the nature of God's revelation in the Scripture. The realism poses an alternative to the two options most often offered to modern Christian today including the withdrawal from certain worldly institutions and the wielding of power available in the name of Christ to draw the world under the rule of the Kingdom of God.Less
This chapter sums up the key findings of this study on Christian realism and what sort of person an individual should be for Jesus Christ in today's society. It proposes a renewed Christian realism that tries to be true to the nature of things, to the nature of the world and to the nature of God's revelation in the Scripture. The realism poses an alternative to the two options most often offered to modern Christian today including the withdrawal from certain worldly institutions and the wielding of power available in the name of Christ to draw the world under the rule of the Kingdom of God.
Richard G. Wang
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- September 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780199767687
- eISBN:
- 9780199950607
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199767687.003.0005
- Subject:
- Religion, Religion and Society
Chapter 5 is an in-depth study of Ming princely temple patronage. The Ming princes were most interested in traditional Daoist core temples. At the same time, they engaged in the activities of the ...
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Chapter 5 is an in-depth study of Ming princely temple patronage. The Ming princes were most interested in traditional Daoist core temples. At the same time, they engaged in the activities of the temples of official standing of different degrees. The Ming princes were also attracted to some popular cults believed to be efficacious (ling). In terms of the patterns of temple patronage, the princes were involved in such activities as temple founding, temple renovation, donations of land and other wealth, princely writing of temple inscriptions and name plaques in calligraphy, enclosing temples in their princely estates, the temples as family shrines, Daozang brought to the temples, and the shelter-temples known as Tea Temples founded at Mount Wudang. Their patronage of temples was on average within a short distance. The majority of temples they patronized were concentrated in major cities of political, military, and economic importance in the Ming empire, thus becoming a highly visible component of the urban public landscape. The chapter finally touches upon the interaction between the Ming princely institution and local religious associations (hui) and the princely membership in these hui.Less
Chapter 5 is an in-depth study of Ming princely temple patronage. The Ming princes were most interested in traditional Daoist core temples. At the same time, they engaged in the activities of the temples of official standing of different degrees. The Ming princes were also attracted to some popular cults believed to be efficacious (ling). In terms of the patterns of temple patronage, the princes were involved in such activities as temple founding, temple renovation, donations of land and other wealth, princely writing of temple inscriptions and name plaques in calligraphy, enclosing temples in their princely estates, the temples as family shrines, Daozang brought to the temples, and the shelter-temples known as Tea Temples founded at Mount Wudang. Their patronage of temples was on average within a short distance. The majority of temples they patronized were concentrated in major cities of political, military, and economic importance in the Ming empire, thus becoming a highly visible component of the urban public landscape. The chapter finally touches upon the interaction between the Ming princely institution and local religious associations (hui) and the princely membership in these hui.
Papazarkadas Nikolaos
- Published in print:
- 2011
- Published Online:
- January 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780199694006
- eISBN:
- 9780191732003
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199694006.003.0002
- Subject:
- Classical Studies, Archaeology: Classical, Ancient Religions
This is the largest and arguably central chapter of the book, in which the author investigates real property administered by the polis of Athens, i.e., by the central government. He offers an ...
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This is the largest and arguably central chapter of the book, in which the author investigates real property administered by the polis of Athens, i.e., by the central government. He offers an exhaustive account of property belonging to Athena, as the poliadic goddess of Athens; to the so-called Other Gods; to new divinities, primarily Amphiaraos and Asklepios; and to the two Eleusinian Goddesses. After a thorough analysis of the Aristotelian Athenian Constitution 47.4-5, the key literary passage on Athenian administration of sacred lands, Papazarkadas investigates the financial mechanisms by which sacred rentals were invested in order to sustain cultic activity. Such schemes show the importance of sacred landholdings for the smooth function of Athenian religion. Finally, the author probes leasing within the wider frame of Athenian finances, especially in the Lykourgan period.Less
This is the largest and arguably central chapter of the book, in which the author investigates real property administered by the polis of Athens, i.e., by the central government. He offers an exhaustive account of property belonging to Athena, as the poliadic goddess of Athens; to the so-called Other Gods; to new divinities, primarily Amphiaraos and Asklepios; and to the two Eleusinian Goddesses. After a thorough analysis of the Aristotelian Athenian Constitution 47.4-5, the key literary passage on Athenian administration of sacred lands, Papazarkadas investigates the financial mechanisms by which sacred rentals were invested in order to sustain cultic activity. Such schemes show the importance of sacred landholdings for the smooth function of Athenian religion. Finally, the author probes leasing within the wider frame of Athenian finances, especially in the Lykourgan period.
Ari Finkelstein
- Published in print:
- 2018
- Published Online:
- May 2019
- ISBN:
- 9780520298729
- eISBN:
- 9780520970779
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University of California Press
- DOI:
- 10.1525/california/9780520298729.003.0005
- Subject:
- Religion, Judaism
Chapter 4 explores Julian’s effort to employ Judean “sacrifice” as an example of Hellenic orthopraxy and to convince Christians that the Eucharist was invalid because it bore no relationship to ...
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Chapter 4 explores Julian’s effort to employ Judean “sacrifice” as an example of Hellenic orthopraxy and to convince Christians that the Eucharist was invalid because it bore no relationship to Hebrew sacrifice. Animal sacrifice was a key plank of Julian’s hellenizing program. It was also rarely found in Antioch, eschewed by both Hellenes and by Christians. In Galileans, Julian employs the theurgic Neoplatonism of Iamblichus of Chalcis to describe Jewish private slaughter as sacrifice. Such sacrifice is meant to stand in for Hellenic sacrificial orthopraxy. In the process, Julian demonstrates that Judean private sacrifice is the direct successor of Hebrew sacrifice on the Day of Atonement, while the Christian Eucharist is new and invalid. The impact of Julian’s argument on Antiochenes is also considered.Less
Chapter 4 explores Julian’s effort to employ Judean “sacrifice” as an example of Hellenic orthopraxy and to convince Christians that the Eucharist was invalid because it bore no relationship to Hebrew sacrifice. Animal sacrifice was a key plank of Julian’s hellenizing program. It was also rarely found in Antioch, eschewed by both Hellenes and by Christians. In Galileans, Julian employs the theurgic Neoplatonism of Iamblichus of Chalcis to describe Jewish private slaughter as sacrifice. Such sacrifice is meant to stand in for Hellenic sacrificial orthopraxy. In the process, Julian demonstrates that Judean private sacrifice is the direct successor of Hebrew sacrifice on the Day of Atonement, while the Christian Eucharist is new and invalid. The impact of Julian’s argument on Antiochenes is also considered.
Ory Amitay
- Published in print:
- 2010
- Published Online:
- March 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780520266360
- eISBN:
- 9780520948174
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University of California Press
- DOI:
- 10.1525/california/9780520266360.003.0004
- Subject:
- Classical Studies, Archaeology: Classical
In late spring or early summer of 327, Alexander the Great once more crossed the Hindu Kush—his Caucasus—and passed into India. He was congratulated by a number of kinglets from the neighborhood as ...
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In late spring or early summer of 327, Alexander the Great once more crossed the Hindu Kush—his Caucasus—and passed into India. He was congratulated by a number of kinglets from the neighborhood as the third son of Zeus, after Dionysos and Herakles. Herakles freed Prometheus from his shackles somewhere on the Hindu Kush, but for Alexander that was a recent discovery. Dionysos had visited Baktria, as everyone knew from Euripides, but the playwright never suggested that the God had also visited India. Still in the northernmost parts of India, Alexander came to the rock Aornos. He also reached the land of the Siboi (or Sibai), at the confluence of the Hydaspes and the Akesines. Early in 325, two years after the invasion of India, Alexander celebrated the successful conclusion to the campaign against the Malloi and Oxydrakai. The “battle of the Gods” marks the last appearance of Herakles in the historical accounts of Alexander's campaign.Less
In late spring or early summer of 327, Alexander the Great once more crossed the Hindu Kush—his Caucasus—and passed into India. He was congratulated by a number of kinglets from the neighborhood as the third son of Zeus, after Dionysos and Herakles. Herakles freed Prometheus from his shackles somewhere on the Hindu Kush, but for Alexander that was a recent discovery. Dionysos had visited Baktria, as everyone knew from Euripides, but the playwright never suggested that the God had also visited India. Still in the northernmost parts of India, Alexander came to the rock Aornos. He also reached the land of the Siboi (or Sibai), at the confluence of the Hydaspes and the Akesines. Early in 325, two years after the invasion of India, Alexander celebrated the successful conclusion to the campaign against the Malloi and Oxydrakai. The “battle of the Gods” marks the last appearance of Herakles in the historical accounts of Alexander's campaign.
Mercedes Cros Sandoval
- Published in print:
- 2007
- Published Online:
- September 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780813030203
- eISBN:
- 9780813039565
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University Press of Florida
- DOI:
- 10.5744/florida/9780813030203.003.0013
- Subject:
- Society and Culture, Latin American Studies
This chapter discusses the Creator Gods, Obatala and Oduduwa, as they are worshipped in Africa and Cuba. The Obatala is the oldest and most important orisha in the Yoruba pantheon and is one of the ...
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This chapter discusses the Creator Gods, Obatala and Oduduwa, as they are worshipped in Africa and Cuba. The Obatala is the oldest and most important orisha in the Yoruba pantheon and is one of the few gods that is known to all Yoruba-speaking people and their neighbors. The Oduduwa, on the other hand, is worshiped throughout Yorubaland and have contradictory myths and traditions regarding the divinity's gender and character.Less
This chapter discusses the Creator Gods, Obatala and Oduduwa, as they are worshipped in Africa and Cuba. The Obatala is the oldest and most important orisha in the Yoruba pantheon and is one of the few gods that is known to all Yoruba-speaking people and their neighbors. The Oduduwa, on the other hand, is worshiped throughout Yorubaland and have contradictory myths and traditions regarding the divinity's gender and character.
Mercedes Cros Sandoval
- Published in print:
- 2007
- Published Online:
- September 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780813030203
- eISBN:
- 9780813039565
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University Press of Florida
- DOI:
- 10.5744/florida/9780813030203.003.0015
- Subject:
- Society and Culture, Latin American Studies
This chapter discusses the Messenger of the Gods, Elegbara, who is one of the three most revered orishas in Yorubaland in Africa. He is acknowledged as a powerful orisha who carries offerings of ...
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This chapter discusses the Messenger of the Gods, Elegbara, who is one of the three most revered orishas in Yorubaland in Africa. He is acknowledged as a powerful orisha who carries offerings of human beings to the gods, and whose support is indispensable in fulfilling one's life and destiny as well as surviving and succeeding. In Cuba, he is known as Elegguá, and he protects the entrance to houses and controls every road and corner of the world. However, Elegbara/Elegguá is also a trickster, who enjoys indulging in antisocial and destructive behavior.Less
This chapter discusses the Messenger of the Gods, Elegbara, who is one of the three most revered orishas in Yorubaland in Africa. He is acknowledged as a powerful orisha who carries offerings of human beings to the gods, and whose support is indispensable in fulfilling one's life and destiny as well as surviving and succeeding. In Cuba, he is known as Elegguá, and he protects the entrance to houses and controls every road and corner of the world. However, Elegbara/Elegguá is also a trickster, who enjoys indulging in antisocial and destructive behavior.
Mercedes Cros Sandoval
- Published in print:
- 2007
- Published Online:
- September 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780813030203
- eISBN:
- 9780813039565
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University Press of Florida
- DOI:
- 10.5744/florida/9780813030203.003.0018
- Subject:
- Society and Culture, Latin American Studies
This chapter discusses the two Gods of the Sea, Olokun and Yemonja. Yemonja is the goddess of water, wetlands, and the river Ogun, but in Cuba she is called Yemayá and is associated with the Virgin ...
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This chapter discusses the two Gods of the Sea, Olokun and Yemonja. Yemonja is the goddess of water, wetlands, and the river Ogun, but in Cuba she is called Yemayá and is associated with the Virgin de Regla. Nevertheless, she is still believed to be a powerful deity. In Africa and Cuba, Olokun is believed to rule the waters of the ocean and he previously demanded human sacrifices.Less
This chapter discusses the two Gods of the Sea, Olokun and Yemonja. Yemonja is the goddess of water, wetlands, and the river Ogun, but in Cuba she is called Yemayá and is associated with the Virgin de Regla. Nevertheless, she is still believed to be a powerful deity. In Africa and Cuba, Olokun is believed to rule the waters of the ocean and he previously demanded human sacrifices.
Miroslav Verner
- Published in print:
- 2013
- Published Online:
- September 2014
- ISBN:
- 9789774165634
- eISBN:
- 9781617975431
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- American University in Cairo Press
- DOI:
- 10.5743/cairo/9789774165634.003.0001
- Subject:
- Archaeology, Historical Archaeology
Although Karnak was the biggest, dozens and even hundreds of similar?mainly smaller but sometimes very large?temples were built in ancient Egypt. The institution of the temple, in ancient Egypt most ...
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Although Karnak was the biggest, dozens and even hundreds of similar?mainly smaller but sometimes very large?temples were built in ancient Egypt. The institution of the temple, in ancient Egypt most often termed ‘abode of the god,’ was not the embodiment of just one idea; it was the place where many beliefs and conceptions came together and became mutually entwined, while its deeper meaning was known only to those with special knowledge?those who had been initiated into the mysteries of the transformations and purposes of the gods. In different places in Egypt the actual worship of gods in the temples was?for the most part?conducted according to the same pattern, and differing only in details. Rituals connected with often overlapping and intersecting myths, religious festivals, hunting magic, agricultural tasks, or the founding of buildings were numerous. The growing number of temples and the practical demands on the king led quite early on to the delegation of the royal cult duties to priests who substituted for the king, having been also initiated into the mysteries of the rituals. So many festivals were celebrated in Egypt over the year. Not all were equally important and not all were celebrated everywhere in the country.Less
Although Karnak was the biggest, dozens and even hundreds of similar?mainly smaller but sometimes very large?temples were built in ancient Egypt. The institution of the temple, in ancient Egypt most often termed ‘abode of the god,’ was not the embodiment of just one idea; it was the place where many beliefs and conceptions came together and became mutually entwined, while its deeper meaning was known only to those with special knowledge?those who had been initiated into the mysteries of the transformations and purposes of the gods. In different places in Egypt the actual worship of gods in the temples was?for the most part?conducted according to the same pattern, and differing only in details. Rituals connected with often overlapping and intersecting myths, religious festivals, hunting magic, agricultural tasks, or the founding of buildings were numerous. The growing number of temples and the practical demands on the king led quite early on to the delegation of the royal cult duties to priests who substituted for the king, having been also initiated into the mysteries of the rituals. So many festivals were celebrated in Egypt over the year. Not all were equally important and not all were celebrated everywhere in the country.
Vincent LoBrutto
- Published in print:
- 2019
- Published Online:
- September 2019
- ISBN:
- 9780813177083
- eISBN:
- 9780813177090
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University Press of Kentucky
- DOI:
- 10.5810/kentucky/9780813177083.003.0024
- Subject:
- Film, Television and Radio, Film
When Ridley Scott took on this biblical epic, he initially titled his film Exodus but later added the subtitle Gods and Kings so audiences wouldn’t think it was a remake of Preminger’s 1960 film. The ...
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When Ridley Scott took on this biblical epic, he initially titled his film Exodus but later added the subtitle Gods and Kings so audiences wouldn’t think it was a remake of Preminger’s 1960 film. The character of Moses fascinated Scott, who wanted to add dimension to this towering figure and to understand his actions and beliefs. Scott, an agnostic, defined his approach to the story of Moses and his times by advancing scientific explanations for holy events. The parting of the Red Sea, for example, which is accomplished with dramatic realism in the film, Scott explained as a tsunami. Scott took a radical artistic and religious leap by casting God as a boy who appears and speaks to Moses. Religious communities found fault with the movie, citing a long list of misrepresentations of the Bible.Less
When Ridley Scott took on this biblical epic, he initially titled his film Exodus but later added the subtitle Gods and Kings so audiences wouldn’t think it was a remake of Preminger’s 1960 film. The character of Moses fascinated Scott, who wanted to add dimension to this towering figure and to understand his actions and beliefs. Scott, an agnostic, defined his approach to the story of Moses and his times by advancing scientific explanations for holy events. The parting of the Red Sea, for example, which is accomplished with dramatic realism in the film, Scott explained as a tsunami. Scott took a radical artistic and religious leap by casting God as a boy who appears and speaks to Moses. Religious communities found fault with the movie, citing a long list of misrepresentations of the Bible.
- Published in print:
- 2004
- Published Online:
- March 2013
- ISBN:
- 9780226075358
- eISBN:
- 9780226075389
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University of Chicago Press
- DOI:
- 10.7208/chicago/9780226075389.003.0010
- Subject:
- Classical Studies, Ancient Greek, Roman, and Early Christian Philosophy
This chapter focuses on the various explanations of the gods which were established and developed by the Renaissance. The gods slowly recovered their true forms during the Renaissance. The most ...
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This chapter focuses on the various explanations of the gods which were established and developed by the Renaissance. The gods slowly recovered their true forms during the Renaissance. The most important factors were the influence of printing and the prestige of the illustrated book. The Renaissance scholars restored to the pagan god their true images with the help of direct contact with antiquity, primarily through Greek texts but also through various types of visual representations. The scholars of the Renaissance attempted with all possible ways to integrate mythology into sacred history and Christian theology. Thus, few people living in the Renaissance were able to analyze whether they had found the interpretations they defended in the texts and objects of antiquity or in their own imaginations.Less
This chapter focuses on the various explanations of the gods which were established and developed by the Renaissance. The gods slowly recovered their true forms during the Renaissance. The most important factors were the influence of printing and the prestige of the illustrated book. The Renaissance scholars restored to the pagan god their true images with the help of direct contact with antiquity, primarily through Greek texts but also through various types of visual representations. The scholars of the Renaissance attempted with all possible ways to integrate mythology into sacred history and Christian theology. Thus, few people living in the Renaissance were able to analyze whether they had found the interpretations they defended in the texts and objects of antiquity or in their own imaginations.
Margaret A. Toth
- Published in print:
- 2016
- Published Online:
- May 2017
- ISBN:
- 9780813062815
- eISBN:
- 9780813051772
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University Press of Florida
- DOI:
- 10.5744/florida/9780813062815.003.0011
- Subject:
- Literature, 20th-century Literature and Modernism
Given the excellent scholarship on Edith Wharton and race appearing in the last two decades, surprisingly little critical attention has been given to a racial discourse that pervades much of ...
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Given the excellent scholarship on Edith Wharton and race appearing in the last two decades, surprisingly little critical attention has been given to a racial discourse that pervades much of Wharton’s writing: Orientalism. This essay demonstrates that Orientalism informs several of Wharton’s novels and, in the case of late works like Twilight Sleep, The Glimpses of the Moon, Hudson River Bracketed, and The Gods Arrive, shapes them in fundamental and complex—if sometimes inconsistent—ways. Specifically, Wharton uses references to Orientalism as a vehicle through which to identify and critique various ills she perceives in modernist social and aesthetic trends. Attending to Wharton’s engagement with Orientalism, then, opens up new interpretations of her late works, particularly with respect to race, gender, and modernism. Moreover, understanding Wharton’s Orientalism allows us to situate her as a global citizen and grapple with the imperialist views subtending her fiction.Less
Given the excellent scholarship on Edith Wharton and race appearing in the last two decades, surprisingly little critical attention has been given to a racial discourse that pervades much of Wharton’s writing: Orientalism. This essay demonstrates that Orientalism informs several of Wharton’s novels and, in the case of late works like Twilight Sleep, The Glimpses of the Moon, Hudson River Bracketed, and The Gods Arrive, shapes them in fundamental and complex—if sometimes inconsistent—ways. Specifically, Wharton uses references to Orientalism as a vehicle through which to identify and critique various ills she perceives in modernist social and aesthetic trends. Attending to Wharton’s engagement with Orientalism, then, opens up new interpretations of her late works, particularly with respect to race, gender, and modernism. Moreover, understanding Wharton’s Orientalism allows us to situate her as a global citizen and grapple with the imperialist views subtending her fiction.
Shirley Moody-Turner
- Published in print:
- 2013
- Published Online:
- May 2014
- ISBN:
- 9781617038853
- eISBN:
- 9781621039785
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University Press of Mississippi
- DOI:
- 10.14325/mississippi/9781617038853.003.0005
- Subject:
- Literature, Folk Literature
Chapter four argues that Paul Laurence Dunbar, like the Hampton folklorists, had to negotiate the politics of being objectified as a representative embodiment of the African American folklore and/or ...
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Chapter four argues that Paul Laurence Dunbar, like the Hampton folklorists, had to negotiate the politics of being objectified as a representative embodiment of the African American folklore and/or folk communities he chose to represent. In his literary works, masking and dissimilation become his vehicles for exposing the many intertwined literary and cultural conventions that determined the range of black racial representation. In his 1902 novel, The Sport of the Gods, he critiques the idealized notions of folklore through the text’s depiction of tensions within the Southern folk community. He further challenges the construction of folklore as a Southern, rural phenomenon by introducing a new geographic terrain--the urban North--in which to imagine black folklore, thereby introducing into African American literature alternative geographies for locating African American folklore.Less
Chapter four argues that Paul Laurence Dunbar, like the Hampton folklorists, had to negotiate the politics of being objectified as a representative embodiment of the African American folklore and/or folk communities he chose to represent. In his literary works, masking and dissimilation become his vehicles for exposing the many intertwined literary and cultural conventions that determined the range of black racial representation. In his 1902 novel, The Sport of the Gods, he critiques the idealized notions of folklore through the text’s depiction of tensions within the Southern folk community. He further challenges the construction of folklore as a Southern, rural phenomenon by introducing a new geographic terrain--the urban North--in which to imagine black folklore, thereby introducing into African American literature alternative geographies for locating African American folklore.
Nancy Levene
- Published in print:
- 2017
- Published Online:
- May 2018
- ISBN:
- 9780226507361
- eISBN:
- 9780226507675
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University of Chicago Press
- DOI:
- 10.7208/chicago/9780226507675.003.0008
- Subject:
- Religion, Philosophy of Religion
Chapter 8 considers the epoch of modernity in light of a few contemporary scenes. It opens with a consideration of the value of religious freedom in light of the work of this book to reconceive ...
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Chapter 8 considers the epoch of modernity in light of a few contemporary scenes. It opens with a consideration of the value of religious freedom in light of the work of this book to reconceive religion and modernity. It closes with three contemporary scenes of popular debate, using the motifs of Gods and rabbis to bring forward the book’s central questions: What is the dynamism of collective life? Where does this dynamism come to an end? What does religion have to do with it? Who speaks for religion, and what is it that is being spoken of? What are the supports for a democratic polity that is inclusive, specific, tolerant, knowledgeable, and open?Less
Chapter 8 considers the epoch of modernity in light of a few contemporary scenes. It opens with a consideration of the value of religious freedom in light of the work of this book to reconceive religion and modernity. It closes with three contemporary scenes of popular debate, using the motifs of Gods and rabbis to bring forward the book’s central questions: What is the dynamism of collective life? Where does this dynamism come to an end? What does religion have to do with it? Who speaks for religion, and what is it that is being spoken of? What are the supports for a democratic polity that is inclusive, specific, tolerant, knowledgeable, and open?
