When reading the Iliad, one encounters numerous references to the terms "place" or "land." Yet the Greek
word τόπος evidently does not appear in the Homeric lexicon written by Richard J. Cunliffe: the
more common expression found in the Iliad is γαῖα. For example, ἐς πατρίδα γαῖαν in Book 2:140
of the Iliad, which is a reference to the native country (land). Another passage is Iliad 2.699: τότε δ᾽ ἤδη ἔχεν κάτα γαῖα μέλαινα. Hence, rather than employ τόπος, Homer ostensibly wields γαῖα instead. But it's possible that I'm wrong, and I haven't even quoted pasages from the Odyssey to test my hunch.
Checking out some of the Greek lexica, it appears that τόπος occurs in Attic from Aeschylus down: the tragedian Aeschylus lived circa 525-456 BCE.
It seems to me that many of the Greek gods are personifications of preexisting concrete objects.
ReplyDeleteγαῖα could mean living earth - humus.
Φόβος I am fairly certain just meant fear prior to personification.
I would grant that at some point in Greek history, the gods became personifications of some preexisting concrete objects, but was that always the case? For example, Dionysus eventually becomes the personification of wine and the harvest, but what about before that? Aphrodite is the goddess of love and Thanatos is the deity of death.
ReplyDeleteHere is what Autenreigh says about gaia: http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus:text:1999.04.0073:entry=gai=a
Notice also how Hesiod portrays gaia in his Theogony, which is quite old.
https://www.rijksmuseum.nl/en/rijksstudio/subjects/dionysusbacchus
ReplyDeletePrior to wine (which IMO has more to do with Bacchus) it was the god of fertility - a baal.
They vomit so that they can eat, and they eat so that they can vomit. They don’t even consider the dishes which they have assembled from across the earth worthy of digestion. - Seneca the younger.
ReplyDeleteI would love to get more educated on the different conceptions of the gods, I have some resources and I've read some mythology. But it's still rather vague to me (personification of nature, or nature being manifestations of the gods, or the gods being actual concrete persons, etc etc etc).
ReplyDeleteAny resource suggestions?
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b3/Column_temple_Artemis_Ephesos_BM_Sc1206_n3.jpg/330px-Column_temple_Artemis_Ephesos_BM_Sc1206_n3.jpg
ReplyDeleteThis is supposed to be Thanatos. Make of that what you will but I know what he looks like to me.
As I think you know, Duncan, the Romans identified the Greek Dionysus with their deity, Bacchus. But Dionysus was a lot of things rolled into one. To learn more, see The Bacchae, a Greek text with translation by Richard Seaford: his notes really elucidate the historical development of Dionysus. Both Epicurus and Cicero also have interesting takes on the ancient gods.
ReplyDeleteRoman, as for soms recommendations, an oldie but goodie is Gilbert Murray's Five Stages of Greek Religion. There is also the Oxford Handbook of Ancient Greek Religion, Ancient Greek Religion by Jon Mikalson and one standard book for Greek and Roman mythology is Classical Mythology by Morford and Lenardon. See https://www.amazon.com/Classical-Mythology-Mark-Morford/dp/0199997322
Joseph Campbell did a lot of work on world mythology. He wrote the Hero of a Thousand Faces.
I always thought this was an interesting book. Read it many moons ago: https://www.amazon.com/Did-Greeks-Believe-Their-Myths/dp/0226854345/ref=sr_1_1?crid=2BRN9YKXNX0ID&keywords=did+the+greeks+believe+their+myths&qid=1666976450&qu=eyJxc2MiOiIwLjAwIiwicXNhIjoiMC4wMCIsInFzcCI6IjAuMDAifQ%3D%3D&s=books&sprefix=did+the+greeks+believe+their+myths%2Cstripbooks%2C424&sr=1-1
ReplyDeletehttps://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dionysian_Mysteries
ReplyDelete