Chirstopher P. Jones, New Heroes in Antiquity: From Achilles to Antinoos. Cambridge, Massachusetts; London: Harvard University Press, 2010. ix, 123 p.
Excerpts at books. google.
Editor’s Presentation:
The heroes and heroines of ancient times inhabited an area between gods and humans. In this detailed but brilliantly expansive analysis, Christopher Jones takes literary heroes like Achilles and moves on to the ancient record of those exceptional men and women who were respected after their deaths. He wonders why and how mortals were heroized, and what exactly it means to become a hero in terms of devout action and belief. This shows that the growing popularity of the heroization of the dead—fallen warriors, members of their family circle, magnanimous citizens—does not constitute a decline of a past practice but an adaptation to new contexts and tactics of thought. The most notable example of this procedure is that of Antinoos, Hadrian’s beloved, who now harkens back to an ancient culture of heroization. other ordinary young people who died prematurely. This all-new and superbly written book saves the hero from literary metaphor and vividly restores heroism to the truth of ancient life.
Table of Contents:
© All texts and documents contained on this site are, unless otherwise indicated, protected by a Creative Common license.