The Trials of Orpheus

Author: Jenny C Mann
Publisher: Princeton University Press
ISBN: 0691219249
Category : Literary Criticism
Languages : en
Pages : 296

Book Description
A revealing look at how the Orpheus myth helped Renaissance writers and thinkers understand the force of eloquence In ancient Greek mythology, the lyrical songs of Orpheus charmed the gods, and compelled animals, rocks, and trees to obey his commands. This mythic power inspired Renaissance philosophers and poets as they attempted to discover the hidden powers of verbal eloquence. They wanted to know: How do words produce action? In The Trials of Orpheus, Jenny Mann examines the key role the Orpheus story played in helping early modern writers and thinkers understand the mechanisms of rhetorical force. Mann demonstrates that the forms and figures of ancient poetry indelibly shaped the principles of sixteenth- and seventeenth-century scientific knowledge. Mann explores how Ovid's version of the Orpheus myth gave English poets and natural philosophers the lexicon with which to explain language's ability to move individuals without physical contact. These writers and thinkers came to see eloquence as an aesthetic force capable of binding, drawing, softening, and scattering audiences. Bringing together a range of examples from drama, poetry, and philosophy by Bacon, Lodge, Marlowe, Montaigne, Shakespeare, and others, Mann demonstrates that the fascination with Orpheus produced some of the most canonical literature of the age. Delving into the impact of ancient Greek thought and poetry in the early modern era, The Trials of Orpheus sheds light on how the powers of rhetoric became a focus of English thought and literature.

Orpheus and Eurydice

Author: Edward Eaton
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781936381487
Category : Performing Arts
Languages : en
Pages : 70

Book Description
When Eurydice finds herself in Hades, she is mocked and tormented by demons. Can she be rescued by her husband Orpheus before her last spark of humanity is destroyed? Can they overcome the wrath of the Queen of the Dead? Dramatic Verse (Play in 6 Scenes) from Dragonfly Publishing, Inc.]

Orpheus Girl

Author: Brynne Rebele-Henry
Publisher: Soho Press
ISBN: 1641290757
Category : Young Adult Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 176

Book Description
In her debut novel, award-winning poet Brynne Rebele-Henry re-imagines the Orpheus myth as a love story between two teenage girls who are sent to conversion therapy after being caught together in an intimate moment. Abandoned by a single mother she never knew, 16-year-old Raya—obsessed with ancient myths—lives with her grandmother in a small conservative Texas town. For years Raya has fought to hide her feelings for her best friend and true love, Sarah. When the two are outed, they are sent to Friendly Saviors: a re-education camp meant to “fix” them and make them heterosexual. Upon arrival, Raya vows to assume the role of Orpheus, to return to the world of the living with her love—and after she, Sarah, and the other teen residents are subjected to abusive and brutal “treatments” by the staff, Raya only becomes more determined to escape. In a haunting voice reminiscent of Sylvia Plath and the contemporary lyricism of David Levithan, Brynne Rebele-Henry weaves a powerful inversion of the Orpheus myth informed by the disturbing real-world truths of conversion therapy. Orpheus Girl is a story of dysfunctional families, trauma, first love, heartbreak, and ultimately, the fierce adolescent resilience that has the power to triumph over darkness and ignorance. CW: There are scenes in this book that depict self-harm, homophobia, transphobia, and violence against LGBTQ characters.

Orpheus

Author: Ann Wroe
Publisher: Random House
ISBN: 1446400905
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 276

Book Description
For at least two and a half millennia, the figure of Orpheus has haunted humanity. Half-man, half-god, musician, magician, theologian, poet and lover, his story never leaves us. He may be myth, but his lyre still sounds, entrancing everything that hears it: animals, trees, water, stones, and men. In this extraordinary work Ann Wroe goes in search of Orpheus, from the forests where he walked and the mountains where he worshipped to the artefacts, texts and philosophies built up round him. She traces the man, and the power he represents, through the myriad versions of a fantastical life: his birth in Thrace, his studies in Egypt, his voyage with the Argonauts to fetch the Golden Fleece, his love for Eurydice and journey to Hades, and his terrible death. We see him tantalising Cicero and Plato, and breathing new music into Gluck and Monteverdi; occupying the mind of Jung and the surreal dreams of Cocteau; scandalising the Fathers of the early Church, and filling Rilke with poems like a whirlwind. He emerges as not simply another mythical figure but the force of creation itself, singing the song of light out of darkness and life out of death.

Orpheus & Eurydice

Author: Gregory Orr
Publisher: Copper Canyon Press
ISBN: 1619320657
Category : Poetry
Languages : en
Pages : 74

Book Description
How can I celebrate love/ now that I know what it does? So begins this booklength lyric sequence which reinhabits and modernizes the story of Orpheus, the mythic master of the lyre (and father of lyric poetry) and Eurydice, his lover who died and whom Orpheus tried to rescue from Hades. Gregory Orr uses as his touchstone the assertion that myths attempt to narrate a whole human experience, while at the same time serving a purpose which resists explanation. Through poems of passionate and obsessive erotic love, Orr has dramatized the anguished intersection of infinite longings and finite lives and, in the process, explores the very sources of poetry. When Eurydice saw him huddled in a thick cloak, she should have known he was alive, the way he shivered beneath its useless folds. But what she saw was the usual: a stranger confused in a new world. And when she touched him on the shoulder, it was nothing personal, a kindness he misunderstood. To guide someone through the halls of hell is not the same as love. "A reader unfamiliar with Orr’s work may be surprised, at first, by the richness of both action and visual detail that his succinct, spare poems convey. Lyricism can erupt in the midst of desolation."—Boston Globe When Gregory Orr’s Burning the Empty Nest appear, Publisher’s Weekly praised it as an "auspicious debut for a gifted newcomer…he already demonstrates a superior control of his medium." Kirkus Review celebrated it as "an almost unbearably powerful first book of poetry" and enthusiastically reviewed his second book Gathering the Bones Together, noting that "Orr’s power is the eloquence of understatement." Most recently, his City of Salt was a finalist for the Los Angeles Times Book Award. Gregory Orr teaches at the University of Virginia.

The Writing of Orpheus

Author: Marcel Detienne
Publisher: JHU Press
ISBN: 9780801869549
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 228

Book Description
Winner of the Translation Prize for non-fiction from the French-American Foundation. Son of a mortal king and an immortal Muse, Orpheus possessed a gift for music unmatched among humans; with his lyre he could turn the course of rivers, drown the fatal song of the Sirens, and charm the denizens of the underworld. The allure of his music speaks through the myths and stories of the Greeks and Romans, who tell of his mysterious compositions, with lyrics that only the initiated could understand after undergoing secret rites. Where readers of subsequent centuries have been content to understand these mysteries as the stuff of obfuscation or mere folderol, Marcel Detienne finds in the writing of Orpheus a key to the thinking of the ancient Greeks. A profound understanding of ancient Greek myth in its cultural contexts allows Detienne to recover a cultural system from fragments and ephemera—to reproduce, with sensitivity to variation and nuance, the full richness of the mythological repertoire flowing from the writing of Orpheus. His investigation moves from the Orphic writings to broader mysteries: how Greek gods became myths, how myths informed later religious thinking, and how myths have come into play in polemics between competing religions. An eloquent answer to some of the most vexing questions about the myth of Orpheus and its far-reaching ramifications through time and culture, Detienne's work ultimately offers a major rethinking of Greek mythology.

Orpheus and Greek Religion

Author: William Keith Guthrie
Publisher: Princeton University Press
ISBN: 9780691024998
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 354

Book Description
The tales told of Orpheus are legion. He is said to have been an Argonaut--and to have saved Jason's life. Rivers are reported to have stopped their flow to listen to the sounds of his lyre and his voice. Plato cites his poetry and Herodotus refers to "practices that are called Orphic." Did Orpheus, in fact, exist? His influence on Greek thought is undeniable, but his disciples left little of substance behind them. Indeed, their Orphic precepts have been lost to time. W.K.C. Guthrie attempts to uncover and define Orphism by following its circuitous path through ancient history. He tackles this daunting task with the determination of a detective and the analytical rigor of a classical scholar. He ferries his readers with him on a singular voyage of discovery.

A Song for the Underworld

Author: Adam Alexander Haviaras
Publisher: Adam Alexander Haviaras
ISBN: 198830945X
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 137

Book Description
Long ago, when gods and heroes walked the earth in triumph and tragedy, true love and epic deeds were set among the stars... In the ancient land of Greece, at a time when kings warred and the people suffered, the Fates fixed their timeless eyes upon the son of a muse, and his story inspired hope and beauty in a ravaged world. Raised by the daughters of Zeus in the shadow of Mount Olympus, Orpheus is filled with a love of the world, of creation, and of song. Wherever he goes, whatever he does, he inspires mortals, birds, beasts, and even the Gods with his music. He is blessed with a humility and unmatched skill that make him the greatest musician of the age. However, when the god Apollo tells Orpheus that he has more to learn, the young man leaves the safety of his home to wander the world in search of his destiny. Having travelled alone into the vast northern forests of Thrace, Orpheus discovers that elusive gift granted to few mortals or gods: True Love. In the love and friendship of the nymph, Eurydice, Orpheus comes to understand one of the greatest mysteries of the world. He is inspired in all things, and his music reaches unimagined heights of beauty. But the Fates can be cruel, the world barbarous, and the greatest gifts given, including love, can be taken away. When Eurydice’s light is suddenly extinguished from Orpheus’ life, the musician must make a choice. He can live a life without his only love and let the world tear itself to pieces, or he can make a journey that would terrify even the bravest of heroes to rescue his love and bring her back into the light. Will Orpheus be able to cross the dark plains of the Underworld and bring Eurydice back? Or will he lose his soul, and his love, for daring to challenge the Fates? The only way he can succeed is to plumb the depths of his deepest emotions and play like he has never played before... A Song for the Underworld is an epic retelling of the story of Orpheus and Eurydice from Greek mythology. It is the third book in the Mythologia fantasy series by best-selling and award-winning author and historian, Adam Alexander Haviaras. If you enjoy books by Madeline Miller, Stephen Fry, Natalie Haynes or Jennifer Saint then you will love the Mythologia series. Read A Song for the Underworld today and experience the greatest love story of the ancient world!

The Orpheus Clock

Author: Simon Goodman
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
ISBN: 1451697643
Category : Art
Languages : en
Pages : 368

Book Description
The passionate, true story of one man's quest to reclaim what the Nazis stole from his family--their beloved art collection--and to restore their legacy. Simon Goodman's grandparents came from German Jewish banking dynasties and perished in concentration camps. And that's almost all he knew--his father rarely spoke of their family history or heritage. But when he passed away, and Simon received his father's papers, a story began to emerge. The Gutmanns, as they were known then, rose from a small Bohemian hamlet to become one of Germany's most powerful banking families. They also amassed a world-class art collection that included works by Degas, Renoir, Botticelli, and many others, including a Renaissance clock engraved with scenes from the legend of Orpheus. The Nazi regime snatched everything the Gutmanns had labored to build: their art, their wealth, their social standing, and their very lives. Simon grew up in London with little knowledge of his father's efforts to recover their family's possessions. It was only after his father's death that Simon began to piece together the clues about the stolen legacy and the Nazi looting machine. He learned much of the collection had gone to Hitler and Goring; other works had been smuggled through Switzerland, sold and resold, with many pieces now in famous museums. More still had been recovered by Allied forces only to be stolen again by bureaucrats-- European governments quietly absorbed thousands of works of art into their own collections. Through painstaking detective work across two continents, Simon proved that many pieces belonged to his family, and successfully secured their return-- the first Nazi looting case to be settled in the United States. Goodman's dramatic story reveals a rich family history almost obliterated by the Nazis. It is not only the account of a twenty-year long detective hunt for family treasure, but an unforgettable tale of redemption and restoration.

Fragmenta

Author: Euripides
Publisher: Harvard University Press
ISBN: 9780674996007
Category : Drama
Languages : en
Pages : 652

Book Description
Euripides has been prized in every age for the pathos, terror, surprising plot twists, and intellectual probing of his dramatic creations. In this fifth volume of the new Loeb Classical Library Euripides, David Kovacs presents a freshly edited Greek text and a faithful and deftly worded translation of three plays. For his Helen the poet employs an alternative history in which a virtuous Helen never went to Troy but spent the war years in Egypt, falsely blamed for the adulterous behavior of her divinely created double in Troy. This volume also includes Phoenician Women, Euripides' treatment of the battle between the sons of Oedipus for control of Thebes; and Orestes, a novel retelling of Orestes' lot after he murdered his mother, Clytaemestra. Each play is annotated and prefaced by a helpful introduction.