Gary Alan Fine and Bill Ellis
- Published in print:
- 2010
- Published Online:
- September 2010
- ISBN:
- 9780199736317
- eISBN:
- 9780199866458
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199736317.001.0001
- Subject:
- Political Science, International Relations and Politics
Now that increased internationalism has challenged the traditional worldviews of many Americans, concerns and fears abound concerning the potential danger posed by contact with foreigners. During the ...
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Now that increased internationalism has challenged the traditional worldviews of many Americans, concerns and fears abound concerning the potential danger posed by contact with foreigners. During the period when rapid change occurs, this new relationship with the rest of the world is initially explored through rumors and legends. Some of these stories are fantastic; many of them are inaccurate; but all of them reflect Americans' first hesitant steps to understand their new place on the globe. This book calls for a close and fair reading of several cycles of rumors on their own terms: as a culture's first efforts to express difficult and painful opinions about the transformation it feels itself undergoing. This book surveys the ways in which the impact of Islamist terrorism and increased Latino immigration have been seen through a filter of stereotype and conspiracy theory. It also presents ways in which tourism and the dangers of international trade also expose Americans' attitudes toward foreigners. Finally, it shows how Americans, in turn, are the targets of similar rumors abroad, as illustrated by widespread claims of organ trafficking. Rumors can't simply be dismissed as trivial or ignorant, the book concludes, but as our best source of what Americans define as the real practical issues facing the nation as it enters a world increasingly made smaller by trade and communication.Less
Now that increased internationalism has challenged the traditional worldviews of many Americans, concerns and fears abound concerning the potential danger posed by contact with foreigners. During the period when rapid change occurs, this new relationship with the rest of the world is initially explored through rumors and legends. Some of these stories are fantastic; many of them are inaccurate; but all of them reflect Americans' first hesitant steps to understand their new place on the globe. This book calls for a close and fair reading of several cycles of rumors on their own terms: as a culture's first efforts to express difficult and painful opinions about the transformation it feels itself undergoing. This book surveys the ways in which the impact of Islamist terrorism and increased Latino immigration have been seen through a filter of stereotype and conspiracy theory. It also presents ways in which tourism and the dangers of international trade also expose Americans' attitudes toward foreigners. Finally, it shows how Americans, in turn, are the targets of similar rumors abroad, as illustrated by widespread claims of organ trafficking. Rumors can't simply be dismissed as trivial or ignorant, the book concludes, but as our best source of what Americans define as the real practical issues facing the nation as it enters a world increasingly made smaller by trade and communication.
James W. Laine
- Published in print:
- 2003
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780195141269
- eISBN:
- 9780199849543
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195141269.001.0001
- Subject:
- Religion, Hinduism
Shivaji was a noble and virtuous hero from 17th-century western India. His legend is well known and has been retold, in several different versions, as it serves as an important part of Hindu ...
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Shivaji was a noble and virtuous hero from 17th-century western India. His legend is well known and has been retold, in several different versions, as it serves as an important part of Hindu nationalist ideology. His legend expresses deeply held convictions about what Hinduism is, and how it is opposed to Islam. Through presenting specific points about the similarities of themes and the contexts in which this legend has been set, this book traces the origin and development of the Shivaji legend, examining its meaning for those who have composed and read it, and paints a complex picture of the past four centuries of national identity, awareness of themes present during colonization, the influence of an author's experience in his narrations, and, most importantly, Hindu-Muslim relations.Less
Shivaji was a noble and virtuous hero from 17th-century western India. His legend is well known and has been retold, in several different versions, as it serves as an important part of Hindu nationalist ideology. His legend expresses deeply held convictions about what Hinduism is, and how it is opposed to Islam. Through presenting specific points about the similarities of themes and the contexts in which this legend has been set, this book traces the origin and development of the Shivaji legend, examining its meaning for those who have composed and read it, and paints a complex picture of the past four centuries of national identity, awareness of themes present during colonization, the influence of an author's experience in his narrations, and, most importantly, Hindu-Muslim relations.
James W. Laine
- Published in print:
- 2003
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780195141269
- eISBN:
- 9780199849543
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195141269.003.0001
- Subject:
- Religion, Hinduism
The legend of Shivaji contains several narratives on his victories, raids, and escapes that always showcase his nobility and virtue. These stories are well known in Maharashtra, and they seem to ...
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The legend of Shivaji contains several narratives on his victories, raids, and escapes that always showcase his nobility and virtue. These stories are well known in Maharashtra, and they seem to point out how Shivaji is to be seen as an epitome as he possesses the region's utmost ideals. Shivaji is seen not just a man with profound courage and bravery but also as an administrator, someone who advocates social reform, a patriotic, and even as a mystic. This book attempts to understand the kind of hero Shivaji was in a Maharashtrian setting, and look into how the growth of this legend can be associated with Maharashtrian Hindu identity by examining the narrative of the legend, identifying clues of how Shivaji became an epic hero, and looking at the challenges that such a narrative may encounter.Less
The legend of Shivaji contains several narratives on his victories, raids, and escapes that always showcase his nobility and virtue. These stories are well known in Maharashtra, and they seem to point out how Shivaji is to be seen as an epitome as he possesses the region's utmost ideals. Shivaji is seen not just a man with profound courage and bravery but also as an administrator, someone who advocates social reform, a patriotic, and even as a mystic. This book attempts to understand the kind of hero Shivaji was in a Maharashtrian setting, and look into how the growth of this legend can be associated with Maharashtrian Hindu identity by examining the narrative of the legend, identifying clues of how Shivaji became an epic hero, and looking at the challenges that such a narrative may encounter.
Gary Alan Fine and Bill Ellis
- Published in print:
- 2010
- Published Online:
- September 2010
- ISBN:
- 9780199736317
- eISBN:
- 9780199866458
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199736317.003.0001
- Subject:
- Political Science, International Relations and Politics
Rumor and legend are a culture's way of dealing with rapid changes in its worldview, such as has occurred in an America increasingly impacted by contact with the international world. Terrorism, ...
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Rumor and legend are a culture's way of dealing with rapid changes in its worldview, such as has occurred in an America increasingly impacted by contact with the international world. Terrorism, immigration, tourism, and foreign trade are topics that have inspired cycles of rumors in the United States, while organ trafficking has done the same in developing nations. Both types of rumor are fundamentally political, as they allow common people to express issues that otherwise would be too disturbing to face and press for social change. The chapter introduces the importance of plausibility (stories that fit existing beliefs about foreigners) and credibility (stories that are based on some concrete truth and affirmed by respected authorities). It is necessary to confront these rumors directly, rather than dismissing them as trivial or ignorant, for they reveal how people actually see the changing world around them.Less
Rumor and legend are a culture's way of dealing with rapid changes in its worldview, such as has occurred in an America increasingly impacted by contact with the international world. Terrorism, immigration, tourism, and foreign trade are topics that have inspired cycles of rumors in the United States, while organ trafficking has done the same in developing nations. Both types of rumor are fundamentally political, as they allow common people to express issues that otherwise would be too disturbing to face and press for social change. The chapter introduces the importance of plausibility (stories that fit existing beliefs about foreigners) and credibility (stories that are based on some concrete truth and affirmed by respected authorities). It is necessary to confront these rumors directly, rather than dismissing them as trivial or ignorant, for they reveal how people actually see the changing world around them.
Lowell Edmunds
- Published in print:
- 2015
- Published Online:
- October 2017
- ISBN:
- 9780691165127
- eISBN:
- 9781400874224
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Princeton University Press
- DOI:
- 10.23943/princeton/9780691165127.003.0001
- Subject:
- Literature, Folk Literature
This introductory chapter undertakes a comparison between a folktale and a Greek myth. It attempts to define the folktale through two avenues concerning genre and terminology as well as mode of ...
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This introductory chapter undertakes a comparison between a folktale and a Greek myth. It attempts to define the folktale through two avenues concerning genre and terminology as well as mode of communication. Here, the chapter relates the folktale of “The Abduction of the Beautiful Wife” to the Greek epics such as the Iliad, eventually focusing the discussion on the story of Helen of Troy. To aid in the discussion, the chapter introduces the comparative circle, which begins from the perception of a similarity between the target text and some other text, and proceeds from this second text to a third and so forth, until the scholar constructing the circle decides to return to the explicandum.Less
This introductory chapter undertakes a comparison between a folktale and a Greek myth. It attempts to define the folktale through two avenues concerning genre and terminology as well as mode of communication. Here, the chapter relates the folktale of “The Abduction of the Beautiful Wife” to the Greek epics such as the Iliad, eventually focusing the discussion on the story of Helen of Troy. To aid in the discussion, the chapter introduces the comparative circle, which begins from the perception of a similarity between the target text and some other text, and proceeds from this second text to a third and so forth, until the scholar constructing the circle decides to return to the explicandum.
Allyson M. Poska
- Published in print:
- 2005
- Published Online:
- January 2010
- ISBN:
- 9780199265312
- eISBN:
- 9780191708763
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199265312.003.06
- Subject:
- History, European Early Modern History
The authority afforded to women in early modern Galicia was shaped and perpetuated through local folklore and legends. Over the centuries, Galicians formulated a wide variety of images of powerful ...
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The authority afforded to women in early modern Galicia was shaped and perpetuated through local folklore and legends. Over the centuries, Galicians formulated a wide variety of images of powerful women from Reina Loba, who according to legend, permitted the Christianization of the region, to María Pita to whom they attribute the valiant defense of the city of A Coruña against British forces. Popular saints' lives were reformulated to reflect the region's gender norms. Long-standing beliefs in the power of witches in the region reveal significant gender tensions in a culture so reliant on female power. The cultural images of powerful women reiterated in local legends and songs not only provided role models for female behavior, but also perpetuated notions of female authority during periods of demographic and economic change.Less
The authority afforded to women in early modern Galicia was shaped and perpetuated through local folklore and legends. Over the centuries, Galicians formulated a wide variety of images of powerful women from Reina Loba, who according to legend, permitted the Christianization of the region, to María Pita to whom they attribute the valiant defense of the city of A Coruña against British forces. Popular saints' lives were reformulated to reflect the region's gender norms. Long-standing beliefs in the power of witches in the region reveal significant gender tensions in a culture so reliant on female power. The cultural images of powerful women reiterated in local legends and songs not only provided role models for female behavior, but also perpetuated notions of female authority during periods of demographic and economic change.
Anna J. Clark
- Published in print:
- 2007
- Published Online:
- January 2008
- ISBN:
- 9780199226825
- eISBN:
- 9780191710278
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199226825.003.0004
- Subject:
- Classical Studies, European History: BCE to 500CE
This chapter focuses on the late second and early first centuries bc and considers the temple foundations and refoundations that are attested for this period, including the competition of Marius with ...
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This chapter focuses on the late second and early first centuries bc and considers the temple foundations and refoundations that are attested for this period, including the competition of Marius with Catulus and with Sulla. Many of these cluster around the Forum and Capitol. The most important hill in Rome was reshaped in terms of divine qualities, creating and recharging both cognitive and physical spaces. The chapter also explores the flowering of numismatic imagery in the same years, from the 130s bc. This opening up of the coin-field as a resource was itself presided over by moneta, and other divine qualities, represented as female figure, head, or attribute with accompanying legend, began to form a fruitful means of framing and expressing a variety of numismatic messages.Less
This chapter focuses on the late second and early first centuries bc and considers the temple foundations and refoundations that are attested for this period, including the competition of Marius with Catulus and with Sulla. Many of these cluster around the Forum and Capitol. The most important hill in Rome was reshaped in terms of divine qualities, creating and recharging both cognitive and physical spaces. The chapter also explores the flowering of numismatic imagery in the same years, from the 130s bc. This opening up of the coin-field as a resource was itself presided over by moneta, and other divine qualities, represented as female figure, head, or attribute with accompanying legend, began to form a fruitful means of framing and expressing a variety of numismatic messages.
Juliana Dresvina
- Published in print:
- 2016
- Published Online:
- January 2017
- ISBN:
- 9780197265963
- eISBN:
- 9780191772061
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- British Academy
- DOI:
- 10.5871/bacad/9780197265963.001.0001
- Subject:
- History, European Early Modern History
This is the first comprehensive interdisciplinary study of the cult of St Margaret of Antioch in medieval England. Margaret was one of the most famous female saints of both the Catholic world and of ...
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This is the first comprehensive interdisciplinary study of the cult of St Margaret of Antioch in medieval England. Margaret was one of the most famous female saints of both the Catholic world and of Eastern Christianity (as St Marina). Her legend is remembered by her confrontation with a dragon-shaped devil, who allegedly swallowed Margaret and then burst asunder. This episode became firmly established in iconography, making her one of the most frequently represented saints. Margaret was supposedly martyred in the late third century, but apart from the historically problematic legend there is no evidence concerning her in other contemporary sources. The sudden appearance of her name in liturgical manuscripts in the late eighth century is connected with the coeval dispersal of her relics. The cult grew in England from Anglo-Saxon times, with over 200 churches dedicated to Margaret (second only to Mary among female saints), with hundreds of her images and copies of her life known within the country. This monograph examines Greek, Latin, Old English, Middle English, and Anglo-Norman versions of Margaret’s life, their mouvance and cultural context, providing editions of the hitherto unpublished texts. In considering these versions, the iconographic evidence, their patronage, and audience, the monograph traces the changes in St Margaret’s story through the eight centuries before the Reformation. It also considers the further trajectory of the legend as reflected in popular fairy tales and contemporary cultural stereotypes. Special attention is given to the interpretation of St Margaret’s demonic encounter, central to the legend’s iconography and theology.Less
This is the first comprehensive interdisciplinary study of the cult of St Margaret of Antioch in medieval England. Margaret was one of the most famous female saints of both the Catholic world and of Eastern Christianity (as St Marina). Her legend is remembered by her confrontation with a dragon-shaped devil, who allegedly swallowed Margaret and then burst asunder. This episode became firmly established in iconography, making her one of the most frequently represented saints. Margaret was supposedly martyred in the late third century, but apart from the historically problematic legend there is no evidence concerning her in other contemporary sources. The sudden appearance of her name in liturgical manuscripts in the late eighth century is connected with the coeval dispersal of her relics. The cult grew in England from Anglo-Saxon times, with over 200 churches dedicated to Margaret (second only to Mary among female saints), with hundreds of her images and copies of her life known within the country. This monograph examines Greek, Latin, Old English, Middle English, and Anglo-Norman versions of Margaret’s life, their mouvance and cultural context, providing editions of the hitherto unpublished texts. In considering these versions, the iconographic evidence, their patronage, and audience, the monograph traces the changes in St Margaret’s story through the eight centuries before the Reformation. It also considers the further trajectory of the legend as reflected in popular fairy tales and contemporary cultural stereotypes. Special attention is given to the interpretation of St Margaret’s demonic encounter, central to the legend’s iconography and theology.
Kevin van Bladel
- Published in print:
- 2009
- Published Online:
- September 2009
- ISBN:
- 9780195376135
- eISBN:
- 9780199871636
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195376135.003.0006
- Subject:
- Classical Studies, Ancient Religions
This final chapter summarizes the results of the source-based investigations conducted through the previous five chapters and presents an outline of the history of the legend of Hermes in Arabic and ...
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This final chapter summarizes the results of the source-based investigations conducted through the previous five chapters and presents an outline of the history of the legend of Hermes in Arabic and its reception. The myth of the Arabic Hermes is a synthesis of late antique traditions, with later accretions, that had a fruitful and wide-ranging career in Arabic letters lasting until recent times. The account of Hermes’ identity turns out to have had an importance partially independent of the Hermetica themselves. It is also now possible to correct a present-day misunderstanding of early Arabic literature: there never was an “Islamic Hermeticism.” This is a false modern category. Rather, the accounts of Hermes held an interest for all Arabic scholars with an interest in the ancient, pre-Islamic past and recondite book learning, regardless of their different doctrines.Less
This final chapter summarizes the results of the source-based investigations conducted through the previous five chapters and presents an outline of the history of the legend of Hermes in Arabic and its reception. The myth of the Arabic Hermes is a synthesis of late antique traditions, with later accretions, that had a fruitful and wide-ranging career in Arabic letters lasting until recent times. The account of Hermes’ identity turns out to have had an importance partially independent of the Hermetica themselves. It is also now possible to correct a present-day misunderstanding of early Arabic literature: there never was an “Islamic Hermeticism.” This is a false modern category. Rather, the accounts of Hermes held an interest for all Arabic scholars with an interest in the ancient, pre-Islamic past and recondite book learning, regardless of their different doctrines.
Mauricio Drelichman and Hans-Joachim Voth
- Published in print:
- 2014
- Published Online:
- October 2017
- ISBN:
- 9780691151496
- eISBN:
- 9781400848430
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Princeton University Press
- DOI:
- 10.23943/princeton/9780691151496.003.0010
- Subject:
- Economics and Finance, Economic History
This epilogue argues that Castile was solvent throughout Philip II's reign. A complex web of contractual obligations designed to ensure repayment governed the relationship between the king and his ...
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This epilogue argues that Castile was solvent throughout Philip II's reign. A complex web of contractual obligations designed to ensure repayment governed the relationship between the king and his bankers. The same contracts allowed great flexibility for both the Crown and bankers when liquidity was tight. The risk of potential defaults was not a surprise; their likelihood was priced into the loan contracts. As a consequence, virtually every banking family turned a profit over the long term, while the king benefited from their services to run the largest empire that had yet existed. The epilogue then looks at the economic history version of Spain's Black Legend. The economic history version of the Black Legend emerged from a combination of two narratives: a rich historical tradition analyzing the decline of Spain as an economic and military power from the seventeenth century onward, combined with new institutional analysis highlighting the unconstrained power of the monarch.Less
This epilogue argues that Castile was solvent throughout Philip II's reign. A complex web of contractual obligations designed to ensure repayment governed the relationship between the king and his bankers. The same contracts allowed great flexibility for both the Crown and bankers when liquidity was tight. The risk of potential defaults was not a surprise; their likelihood was priced into the loan contracts. As a consequence, virtually every banking family turned a profit over the long term, while the king benefited from their services to run the largest empire that had yet existed. The epilogue then looks at the economic history version of Spain's Black Legend. The economic history version of the Black Legend emerged from a combination of two narratives: a rich historical tradition analyzing the decline of Spain as an economic and military power from the seventeenth century onward, combined with new institutional analysis highlighting the unconstrained power of the monarch.
Richard Kieckhefer
- Published in print:
- 2004
- Published Online:
- July 2005
- ISBN:
- 9780195154665
- eISBN:
- 9780199835676
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0195154665.003.0005
- Subject:
- Religion, Theology
A church that is rich in symbolic associations conveys a strong sense of sacrality—the presence of the holy within the sacred. Different forms of symbolic association in the classic sacramental ...
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A church that is rich in symbolic associations conveys a strong sense of sacrality—the presence of the holy within the sacred. Different forms of symbolic association in the classic sacramental tradition are discussed in connection with Santa Maria Novella at Florence. Orientation (planning a church with the altar at the east end), legends of foundation, and ceremonies of consecration are all seen as ways of cultivating symbolic resonance. The “Cathedral of Huts” at Maciene in Mozambique is seen as one example of how churches reflect a process of indigenization in Africa.Less
A church that is rich in symbolic associations conveys a strong sense of sacrality—the presence of the holy within the sacred. Different forms of symbolic association in the classic sacramental tradition are discussed in connection with Santa Maria Novella at Florence. Orientation (planning a church with the altar at the east end), legends of foundation, and ceremonies of consecration are all seen as ways of cultivating symbolic resonance. The “Cathedral of Huts” at Maciene in Mozambique is seen as one example of how churches reflect a process of indigenization in Africa.
Elliot Kendall
- Published in print:
- 2008
- Published Online:
- September 2008
- ISBN:
- 9780199542642
- eISBN:
- 9780191715419
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199542642.003.0005
- Subject:
- Literature, Early and Medieval Literature
The second of two chapters on the Confessio Amantis frame narrative, this chapter analyses political dimensions of courtly love and the relationship between Venus, Cupid, Genius and Amans, or the ...
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The second of two chapters on the Confessio Amantis frame narrative, this chapter analyses political dimensions of courtly love and the relationship between Venus, Cupid, Genius and Amans, or the lover, in Gower's poem. First, it argues that Gower laicizes penitential discourse in his technical but minimally ecclesiastic representation of confession and of Genius as confessor, which crucially embeds confession in an allegorical, great household narrative of lay lordship and petitioning. The chapter is principally dedicated to interpretation of the poem's closing scenes, in which Venus can be seen to act as the lover's good lord, to bestow on him a livery collar, and to overmatch Cupid's unilateral lordship at the climax of the poem's contest between ‘magnificence’ and ‘reciprocalism’. Venus's and Cupid's politics are illuminated by readings of The Romance of the Rose, Chaucer's Parliament of Fowls and Legend of Good Women, and Sir John Clanvowe's Boke of Cupide.Less
The second of two chapters on the Confessio Amantis frame narrative, this chapter analyses political dimensions of courtly love and the relationship between Venus, Cupid, Genius and Amans, or the lover, in Gower's poem. First, it argues that Gower laicizes penitential discourse in his technical but minimally ecclesiastic representation of confession and of Genius as confessor, which crucially embeds confession in an allegorical, great household narrative of lay lordship and petitioning. The chapter is principally dedicated to interpretation of the poem's closing scenes, in which Venus can be seen to act as the lover's good lord, to bestow on him a livery collar, and to overmatch Cupid's unilateral lordship at the climax of the poem's contest between ‘magnificence’ and ‘reciprocalism’. Venus's and Cupid's politics are illuminated by readings of The Romance of the Rose, Chaucer's Parliament of Fowls and Legend of Good Women, and Sir John Clanvowe's Boke of Cupide.
Colin Morris
- Published in print:
- 1991
- Published Online:
- November 2003
- ISBN:
- 9780198269250
- eISBN:
- 9780191600708
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0198269250.003.0020
- Subject:
- Religion, Church History
The struggles continued to recover Jerusalem and involved attacks on Constantinople and Egypt, without real success. Concentration began to shift towards missionary effort in Asia and Morocco. In ...
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The struggles continued to recover Jerusalem and involved attacks on Constantinople and Egypt, without real success. Concentration began to shift towards missionary effort in Asia and Morocco. In Europe, there was a sustained effort to instruct and discipline the faithful. Popular religion was as a whole marked by ignorance, discipline, and legend.Less
The struggles continued to recover Jerusalem and involved attacks on Constantinople and Egypt, without real success. Concentration began to shift towards missionary effort in Asia and Morocco. In Europe, there was a sustained effort to instruct and discipline the faithful. Popular religion was as a whole marked by ignorance, discipline, and legend.
Robert DeCaroli
- Published in print:
- 2004
- Published Online:
- January 2005
- ISBN:
- 9780195168389
- eISBN:
- 9780199835133
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0195168380.003.0003
- Subject:
- Religion, Buddhism
After an analysis of the historical periods dealt with in the book and their connections to various relevant textual and artistic forms of evidence, this chapter presents one of the central ...
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After an analysis of the historical periods dealt with in the book and their connections to various relevant textual and artistic forms of evidence, this chapter presents one of the central arguments. Specifically, I claim that Buddhism's interaction with popular religion played a pivotal role in the new faith's expansion and acceptance. By acting as intermediaries between the public and the often capricious whims of local demigods, the Buddhists established a social role for themselves that helped to ensure their continued public support. As evidence of this shift, I have cited or referenced numerous tales and legends featuring encounters between monks and spirit‐deities. And, while these tales are often too fantastic to be used as literal historical sources, the physical evidence provided in the next chapter reveals that they are one part of a larger historical process by which the Buddhists came to associate their beliefs with these pre‐existent deities.Less
After an analysis of the historical periods dealt with in the book and their connections to various relevant textual and artistic forms of evidence, this chapter presents one of the central arguments. Specifically, I claim that Buddhism's interaction with popular religion played a pivotal role in the new faith's expansion and acceptance. By acting as intermediaries between the public and the often capricious whims of local demigods, the Buddhists established a social role for themselves that helped to ensure their continued public support. As evidence of this shift, I have cited or referenced numerous tales and legends featuring encounters between monks and spirit‐deities. And, while these tales are often too fantastic to be used as literal historical sources, the physical evidence provided in the next chapter reveals that they are one part of a larger historical process by which the Buddhists came to associate their beliefs with these pre‐existent deities.
George Steiner
- Published in print:
- 1986
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780192819345
- eISBN:
- 9780191670503
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780192819345.001.0001
- Subject:
- Literature, Mythology and Folklore
This book examines the far-reaching legacy of one of the great myths of classical antiquity. According to Greek legend, Antigone, daughter of Oedipus, secretly buried her brother in defiance of the ...
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This book examines the far-reaching legacy of one of the great myths of classical antiquity. According to Greek legend, Antigone, daughter of Oedipus, secretly buried her brother in defiance of the orders of Creon, King of Thebes. Creon sentenced Antigone to death, but, before the order could be executed, she committed suicide. The theme of the conflict between Antigone and Creon — between the state and the individual, between young and old, between men and women — has captured the Western imagination for more than 2,000 years. Antigone and Creon are as alive in the politics and poetics of our own day as they were in ancient Athens. Here, the book examines the treatment of the Antigone theme in Western art, literature and thought, leading us to look again at the unique influence Greek myths exercised on 20th-century culture.Less
This book examines the far-reaching legacy of one of the great myths of classical antiquity. According to Greek legend, Antigone, daughter of Oedipus, secretly buried her brother in defiance of the orders of Creon, King of Thebes. Creon sentenced Antigone to death, but, before the order could be executed, she committed suicide. The theme of the conflict between Antigone and Creon — between the state and the individual, between young and old, between men and women — has captured the Western imagination for more than 2,000 years. Antigone and Creon are as alive in the politics and poetics of our own day as they were in ancient Athens. Here, the book examines the treatment of the Antigone theme in Western art, literature and thought, leading us to look again at the unique influence Greek myths exercised on 20th-century culture.
R. F. Foster
- Published in print:
- 2007
- Published Online:
- January 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780197264249
- eISBN:
- 9780191734045
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- British Academy
- DOI:
- 10.5871/bacad/9780197264249.003.0012
- Subject:
- History, Cultural History
This lecture traces W. B. Yeats' preoccupation with the changing forms of death throughout his life, from his fin-de-siécle love-poetry to his poems of death. These poems of death were linked to his ...
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This lecture traces W. B. Yeats' preoccupation with the changing forms of death throughout his life, from his fin-de-siécle love-poetry to his poems of death. These poems of death were linked to his interest in Celtic legend, Irish intellectual influences and conjunctions, and magical ritual and psychic research. The lecture considers Yeats' approach to death in his later work, concluding with his creation of a structured canon of work in the light of his own death and the work that he wrote on his deathbed.Less
This lecture traces W. B. Yeats' preoccupation with the changing forms of death throughout his life, from his fin-de-siécle love-poetry to his poems of death. These poems of death were linked to his interest in Celtic legend, Irish intellectual influences and conjunctions, and magical ritual and psychic research. The lecture considers Yeats' approach to death in his later work, concluding with his creation of a structured canon of work in the light of his own death and the work that he wrote on his deathbed.
Michael Barkun
- Published in print:
- 2003
- Published Online:
- May 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780520238053
- eISBN:
- 9780520939721
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- University of California Press
- DOI:
- 10.1525/california/9780520238053.001.0001
- Subject:
- Religion, Religious Studies
What do UFO believers, Christian millennialists, and right-wing conspiracy theorists have in common? It is well known that some Americans are obsessed with conspiracies. The Kennedy assassination, ...
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What do UFO believers, Christian millennialists, and right-wing conspiracy theorists have in common? It is well known that some Americans are obsessed with conspiracies. The Kennedy assassination, the Oklahoma City bombing, and the 2001 terrorist attacks have all generated elaborate stories of hidden plots. What is far less known is the extent to which conspiracist worldviews have recently become linked in strange and unpredictable ways with other “fringe” notions such as a belief in UFOs, Nostradamus, and the Illuminati. This book, the most comprehensive and authoritative examination of contemporary American conspiracism to date, unravels the extraordinary genealogies and permutations of these increasingly widespread ideas, showing how this web of urban legends has spread among subcultures on the Internet and through mass media, how a new style of conspiracy thinking has recently arisen, and how this phenomenon relates to larger changes in American culture. The author discusses a range of material—involving inner-earth caves, government black helicopters, alien abductions, secret New World Order cabals, and much more—that few realize exists in our culture. Looking closely at the manifestations of these ideas in a wide range of literature and source material from religious and political literature, to New Age and UFO publications, to popular culture phenomena such as The X-Files, and to websites, radio programs, and more, he finds that America is in the throes of an unrivaled period of millenarian activity. His book underscores the importance of understanding why this phenomenon is now spreading into more mainstream segments of American culture.Less
What do UFO believers, Christian millennialists, and right-wing conspiracy theorists have in common? It is well known that some Americans are obsessed with conspiracies. The Kennedy assassination, the Oklahoma City bombing, and the 2001 terrorist attacks have all generated elaborate stories of hidden plots. What is far less known is the extent to which conspiracist worldviews have recently become linked in strange and unpredictable ways with other “fringe” notions such as a belief in UFOs, Nostradamus, and the Illuminati. This book, the most comprehensive and authoritative examination of contemporary American conspiracism to date, unravels the extraordinary genealogies and permutations of these increasingly widespread ideas, showing how this web of urban legends has spread among subcultures on the Internet and through mass media, how a new style of conspiracy thinking has recently arisen, and how this phenomenon relates to larger changes in American culture. The author discusses a range of material—involving inner-earth caves, government black helicopters, alien abductions, secret New World Order cabals, and much more—that few realize exists in our culture. Looking closely at the manifestations of these ideas in a wide range of literature and source material from religious and political literature, to New Age and UFO publications, to popular culture phenomena such as The X-Files, and to websites, radio programs, and more, he finds that America is in the throes of an unrivaled period of millenarian activity. His book underscores the importance of understanding why this phenomenon is now spreading into more mainstream segments of American culture.
Israel Knohl
- Published in print:
- 2000
- Published Online:
- May 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780520215924
- eISBN:
- 9780520928749
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University of California Press
- DOI:
- 10.1525/california/9780520215924.003.0005
- Subject:
- Religion, History of Christianity
In 70 c.e., about forty years after Jesus' death, the Temple in Jerusalem was destroyed. In the Jerusalem Talmud, there is a legend about something that took place on the day of the destruction, ...
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In 70 c.e., about forty years after Jesus' death, the Temple in Jerusalem was destroyed. In the Jerusalem Talmud, there is a legend about something that took place on the day of the destruction, which is presented in this chapter. Here the Messiah is called Menahem, son of Hezekiah. The figure of Menahem in this story combines various elements known to us from the traditions concerning the Essene Messiah and Jesus of Nazareth. Menahem, the son of Hezekiah, resembles the Essene Messiah not only in his name but also in his destiny. The figure of Menahem, the hero of our book, was the foundation of the Jewish messianic myth, just as he served as the inspiration for the messianism of Jesus of Nazareth.Less
In 70 c.e., about forty years after Jesus' death, the Temple in Jerusalem was destroyed. In the Jerusalem Talmud, there is a legend about something that took place on the day of the destruction, which is presented in this chapter. Here the Messiah is called Menahem, son of Hezekiah. The figure of Menahem in this story combines various elements known to us from the traditions concerning the Essene Messiah and Jesus of Nazareth. Menahem, the son of Hezekiah, resembles the Essene Messiah not only in his name but also in his destiny. The figure of Menahem, the hero of our book, was the foundation of the Jewish messianic myth, just as he served as the inspiration for the messianism of Jesus of Nazareth.
Moyra Haslett
- Published in print:
- 1997
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780198184324
- eISBN:
- 9780191674198
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198184324.001.0001
- Subject:
- Literature, 19th-century Literature and Romanticism, Poetry
This study is a contextual reading of Byron's epic poem Don Juan which argues that the importance of the Don Juan legend has been considerably underestimated. Contemporary histories — critical, ...
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This study is a contextual reading of Byron's epic poem Don Juan which argues that the importance of the Don Juan legend has been considerably underestimated. Contemporary histories — critical, political, theatrical, and personal — reveal that innocent or neutral readings of the poem were precluded by the figure's notoriety. It demonstrates the invitation which the poem was seen to offer to specific categories of readership — especially those of women and of the working classes — and how their reading not only contributes to the meaning of the text but also makes that reading inherently political. The scope of the book includes other versions of the Don Juan legend. It also engages throughout with a critique of traditional myth-criticism, using instead Lèvi-Strauss's more inclusive definition of what constitutes a myth. It considers those discourses which have spoken of the Don Juan legend — philosophical, psychoanalytical, speech-act — and applies postmodernist and feminist theories to a consideration of both Byron's poem and the legend itself.Less
This study is a contextual reading of Byron's epic poem Don Juan which argues that the importance of the Don Juan legend has been considerably underestimated. Contemporary histories — critical, political, theatrical, and personal — reveal that innocent or neutral readings of the poem were precluded by the figure's notoriety. It demonstrates the invitation which the poem was seen to offer to specific categories of readership — especially those of women and of the working classes — and how their reading not only contributes to the meaning of the text but also makes that reading inherently political. The scope of the book includes other versions of the Don Juan legend. It also engages throughout with a critique of traditional myth-criticism, using instead Lèvi-Strauss's more inclusive definition of what constitutes a myth. It considers those discourses which have spoken of the Don Juan legend — philosophical, psychoanalytical, speech-act — and applies postmodernist and feminist theories to a consideration of both Byron's poem and the legend itself.
Kristina Muxfeldt
- Published in print:
- 2011
- Published Online:
- January 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780199782420
- eISBN:
- 9780199919154
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199782420.003.0002
- Subject:
- Music, History, Western, Opera
Schubert’s unfinished last opera Der Graf von Gleichen was drafted only after the libretto had been banned by the censors. Based on a popular thirteenth-century legend about a man who had two wives ...
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Schubert’s unfinished last opera Der Graf von Gleichen was drafted only after the libretto had been banned by the censors. Based on a popular thirteenth-century legend about a man who had two wives (a happy end sanctioned by the Pope), the story underwent radical alterations in the early nineteenth century, becoming a tragedy in most stage treatments. The chapter shows how Schubert’s opera runs counter to this tendency, insisting on the more typical eighteenth-century lieto fine, which in this case called for a three-way-marriage tableau. Even under Metternich, the theater remained the most public forum available for airing views on controversial subjects (if only obliquely): this story had become a vehicle for debating the legal and conceptual basis of marriage, especially the role of consent, a debate that found its echo on stages everywhere.Less
Schubert’s unfinished last opera Der Graf von Gleichen was drafted only after the libretto had been banned by the censors. Based on a popular thirteenth-century legend about a man who had two wives (a happy end sanctioned by the Pope), the story underwent radical alterations in the early nineteenth century, becoming a tragedy in most stage treatments. The chapter shows how Schubert’s opera runs counter to this tendency, insisting on the more typical eighteenth-century lieto fine, which in this case called for a three-way-marriage tableau. Even under Metternich, the theater remained the most public forum available for airing views on controversial subjects (if only obliquely): this story had become a vehicle for debating the legal and conceptual basis of marriage, especially the role of consent, a debate that found its echo on stages everywhere.
