Eros: The Myth Of Ancient Greek Sexuality

by Bruce S Thornton

Overview

Eros: The Myth of Ancient Greek Sexuality is a controversial book that lays bare the meanings Greeks gave to sex. Contrary to the romantic idealization of sex dominating our culture, the Greeks saw eros as a powerful force of nature, potentially dangerous, and in need of control by society: Eros the Destroyer, not Cupid the Insipid, fired the Greek

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780367315511
Publisher:	Taylor & Francis
Publication date:	08/28/2019
Pages:	304
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x (d)

About the Author

Bruce S. Thornton is professor of classics and chairman of the Department of Foreign Languages at California State University at Fresno.

Table of Contents

Introduction: "Custom the King of All" — Part 1 The "Controlless Core" — 1 The "Tyrant of Gods and Men" — 2 The Golden Child of the Bloody Foam — 3 Pandora's "Foul Tribe of Women" — 4 Monsters of Appetite — Part 2 The "Fancied Sway" — 5 Taming the Beasts — 6 Erotic Technology — 7 Wives and the Order of the House — 8 Eros the Pedagogue — Conclusion: Dissing Eros and Aphrodite

Editorial Reviews

A reeamination of love and sexuality in ancient Greece, based on the ancient sources, rather than on modern theory and popular preconception. Contrary to the romantic idealization of sex dominating our culture, the Greeks saw eros as a powerful, destructive force of nature in need of control by society<-->a view that is reflected in Greek imagery and metaphor, and in the Greeks' attitudes toward women and homosexuals. Annotation c. by Book News, Inc., Portland, Or.

Booknews