Was Greek Thought Religious?: On the Use and Abuse of Hellenism, from Rome to Romanticism

by L. Ruprecht

Overview

The Greeks are on trial. They have been for generations, if not millennia, from Rome in the First century, to Romanticism in the Nineteenth. We debate the place of the Greeks in the university curriculum, in New World culture - we even debate the place of the Greeks in the European Union. This book notices the lingering and half-hidden presence of the Greeks in some strange places - everywhere from the U.S. Supreme Court to the Modern Olympic Games - and in doing so makes an important new contribution to a very old debate.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780312295639
Publisher:	Palgrave Macmillan US
Publication date:	07/31/2002
Edition description:	2002
Pages:	268
Product dimensions:	6.10(w) x 9.25(h) x 0.02(d)

About the Author

Louis A. Ruprecht Jr. is William M. Suttles Chair of Religious Studies at Georgia State University, USA

Table of Contents

Was Greek Thought Religious?: The View From the Courts The Son Supplants the Father: Seduction, Socratic Piety and the Life of Virtue Pausanias at Olympia: The Greece Inside Rome The Short Career of Julian, the Apostate: Hellenism as Culture, not Religion Icons and Incarnation: Hellenism Becomes Heresy 'A Mingle-Mangle of Heathenisme': Renaissance Theater, Renegade Theater Childe Harold's Heyday: Lord Byron and the Levant Lunatics From Greece to Germany, From Aegina to Munich: Charles Cockerell and the Discovery of the Aegina Marbles The Ethos of Olympism: Greek Religion for Modern Times

Editorial Reviews

'Was Greek Thought Religious? will raise eyebrows, and even hackles, in some quarters, but it represents an unprecedented contribution to the public debate, still simmering, about why the Greeks, or Hellenes, matter, whether in law courts or in sporting arenas...' - Bruce B. Lawrence, Nancy and Jeffrey Marcus Professor of Religion and Chair, Duke University

'An enjoyable read, sure to inform readers seeking specific context and example for the impact of Hellenic ideals...' - P.B. Harvey, Choice

From the Publisher

Ruprecht (humanities, Mercer U.) interrogates the way that ancient Hellenic thought and culture has been appropriated by other cultures, from the Roman Empire to the United States, in recognized and unrecognized ways. Touching on the religious ritual of the modern Olympics, the hidden Hellenic religious themes embodied in the "Greek Temple" of the Supreme Court and its ideologies, and other iconic tropes, he argues that appropriations of Greek philosophy attempted to hide the religious nature of Greek life while appropriations of Greek art demonstrate their religiosity. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

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