Focusing on the narrative complexities and visual contexts of Achilles Tatius' work, this study delves into the themes and obsessions surrounding perception and the eye in "Leucippe and Clitophon." Designed for non-specialists, the text includes translations and paraphrases of Greek passages, making it accessible to a wider audience. It offers fresh insights valuable for readers interested in feminist literary criticism and ancient novels, shedding light on the controversial aspects of this ancient Greek narrative.
"A star par excellence, Dolly Parton is one of country music's most likable personalities. Even a hard-rocking punk or orchestral aesthete can't help cracking a smile or singing along with songs like "Jolene" and "9 to 5." More than a mere singer or actress, Parton is a true cultural phenomenon, immediately recognizable and beloved for her talent, tinkling laugh, and steel magnolia spirit. She is also the only female star to have her own themed amusement park: Dollywood in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee. Every year thousands of fans flock to Dollywood to celebrate the icon, and Helen Morales is one of those fans. In Pilgrimage to Dollywood, Morales sets out to discover Parton's Tennessee. Her travels begin at the top celebrity pilgrimage site of Elvis Presley's Graceland, then take her to Loretta Lynn's ranch in Hurricane Mills; the Country Music Hall of Fame and the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville; to Sevierville, Gatlinburg, and the Great Smoky Mountains National Park; and finally to Pigeon Forge, home of the "Dolly Homecoming Parade," featuring the star herself as grand marshall. Morales's adventure allows her to compare the imaginary Tennessee of Parton's lyrics with the real Tennessee where the singer grew up, looking at essential connections between country music, the land, and a way of life. It's also a personal pilgrimage for Morales. Accompanied by her partner, Tony, and their nine-year-old daughter, Athena (who respectively prefer Mozart and Miley Cyrus), Morales, a recent transplant from England, seeks to understand America and American values through the celebrity sites and attractions of Tennessee. This celebration of Dolly and Americana is for anyone with an old country soul who relies on music to help understand the world, and it is guaranteed to make a Dolly Parton fan of anyone who has not yet fallen for her music or charisma."--Amazon.com
The idealized picture of classical antiquity most of us learned in school conveniently glosses over the most brutal parts of the history -- and omits surprising stories of feminist resistance. For each story of misogynist violence, there's another that tells of solidarity and empowerment. And it's time we reclaimed them. Through short, pointed chapters, acclaimed classicist Helen Morales grapples with this legacy and charts a path forward. In a chapter called '#MeToo, or as Daphne Might Say, #EgoQuoque,' Morales reminds us of the myth of Procne and Philomela, two sisters who refused to be silenced by assault and worked together to take down a powerful man. In a chapter called 'Beyonce, Goddess,' Morales shows how Beyonce deliberately challenges the images of "traditional," and traditionally white, goddesses to bring images from African mythology into the canon. By turns witty and inspiring, ANTIGONE RISING offers a much-needed, fascinating new lens on the stories we take for granted.
From Zeus and Europa, to Diana, Pan, and Prometheus, the myths of ancient Greece and Rome seem to exert a timeless power over us. But what do those myths represent, and why are they so enduringly fascinating? Why do they seem to be such a potent way of talking about our selves, our origins, and our desires? This imaginative and stimulating Very Short Introduction goes beyond a simple retelling of the stories to explore the rich history and diverse interpretations of classical mythology. It is a wide-ranging account, examining how classical myths are used and understood in both high art and popular culture, taking the reader from the temples of Crete to skyscrapers in New York, and finding classical myths in a variety of unexpected places: from Arabic poetry and Hollywood films, to psychoanalysis, the Bible, and New Age spiritualism.#167
