Secret of the Muses Retold: Classical Influences on Italian Authors of the Twentieth Century - Softcover

Kirby, John T.

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0226437485 ISBN 13: 9780226437484

Verlag: UNIV OF CHICAGO PR, 2001

Inhaltsangabe

Precious repositories of ancient wisdom? Musty relics of outmoded culture? Timeless paragons of artistic achievement? Hegemonic tools of intellectual repression? Just what are the classics, anyway, and why do (or should) we still pay so much attention to them? What is the literary canon? What is myth, and how do we use it?

These are some of the questions that gave rise to John Kirby's Secret of the Muses Retold. This new study of works by five twentieth-century Italian writers investigates the abiding influence of the Greek and Roman classics, and their rich legacy in our own day. The result is not only a splendid introduction to contemporary Italian literature, but also a lucid and stimulating meditation on the insights that writers such as Umberto Eco and Italo Calvino have tapped from the wellspring of ancient tradition.

Kirby's book offers an impassioned plea for the recuperation of the humanities in general, and of classical studies in particular. No expertise in Greek, Latin, Italian, or literary theory is presumed, and both traditional and postmodern perspectives are accommodated.

Über diesen Titel

Über die Autorin bzw. den Autor

John T. Kirby is a professor of classics and comparative literature at Purdue University. His other books includeThe Rhetoric of Cicero's Pro Cluentio, The Comparative Reader: A Handlist of Basic Reading in Comparative Literature, andWorld Eras: Classical Greek Civilization, 800-323 B.C.E.

Von der hinteren Coverseite

Precious repositories of ancient wisdom? Musty relics of outmoded culture? Timeless paragons of artistic achievement? Hegemonic tools of intellectual repression? Just what are the classics, anyway, and why do or should we still pay so much attention to them? What is the literary canon? What is myth, and how do we use it?

These are just some of the questions addressed in John Kirby's Secret of the Muses Retold. This study of works by five twentieth-century Italian writers investigates the abiding influence of the Greek and Roman classics, and their rich legacy in our own day. The result is not only a splendid introduction to contemporary Italian literature, but also a stimulating meditation on the insights that writers such as Umberto Eco, Roberto Calasso, Pier Paolo Pasolini, Italo Calvino, and Joseph Tusiani have tapped from the wellspring of ancient tradition.

Aus dem Klappentext

Precious repositories of ancient wisdom? Musty relics of outmoded culture? Timeless paragons of artistic achievement? Hegemonic tools of intellectual repression? Just what are the classics, anyway, and why do or should we still pay so much attention to them? What is the literary canon? What is myth, and how do we use it?

These are just some of the questions addressed in John Kirby's Secret of the Muses Retold. This study of works by five twentieth-century Italian writers investigates the abiding influence of the Greek and Roman classics, and their rich legacy in our own day. The result is not only a splendid introduction to contemporary Italian literature, but also a stimulating meditation on the insights that writers such as Umberto Eco, Roberto Calasso, Pier Paolo Pasolini, Italo Calvino, and Joseph Tusiani have tapped from the wellspring of ancient tradition.

Details zur Ausgabe

• Verlag: UNIV OF CHICAGO PR
• Erscheinungsdatum: 2001
• Sprache: Englisch
• ISBN 10: 0226437485
• ISBN 13: 9780226437484
• Einband: Taschenbuch
• Anzahl der Seiten: 168
• Kontakt zum Hersteller: The University of Chicago Press; https://press.uchicago.edu/index.html; ; 5801 S. Ellis Avenue; Chicago; IL; 60637; USA
• Verantwortliche Person: Nicht verfügbar