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The Ancient Aesthetics of Deception: The Ethics of Enchantment from Gorgias to Heliodorus
Hardback
Main Details
Title |
The Ancient Aesthetics of Deception: The Ethics of Enchantment from Gorgias to Heliodorus
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Authors and Contributors |
By (author) Jonas Grethlein
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Physical Properties |
Format:Hardback | Pages:332 | Dimensions(mm): Height 235,Width 158 |
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Category/Genre | Literary theory Literary studies - classical, early and medieval |
ISBN/Barcode |
9781316518816
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Classifications | Dewey:880.09353 |
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Audience | Professional & Vocational | |
Illustrations |
Worked examples or Exercises
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Publishing Details |
Publisher |
Cambridge University Press
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Imprint |
Cambridge University Press
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Publication Date |
16 September 2021 |
Publication Country |
United Kingdom
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Description
The concept of mimesis has dominated reflection on the nature and role, in Greek literature, of representation. Jonas Grethlein, in his ambitious new book, takes this reflection a step further. He argues that, beyond mimesis, there was an important but unacknowledged strand of reflection focused instead on the nuanced idea of apate (often translated into English as 'deceit'), oscillating between notions of 'deception' and 'aesthetic illusion'. Many authors from Gorgias and Plato to Philo, Plutarch and Clement of Alexandria used this key concept to entwine aesthetics with ethics. In creatively exploring the various reconfigurations of apate, and placing these in their socio-historical contexts, the book offers a bold new history of ancient aesthetics. It also explores the present significance of the aesthetics of deception, unlocking the potential of ancient reflection for current debates on the ethical dimension of representation. It will appeal to scholars in classics and literary theory alike.
Author Biography
Jonas Grethlein is Professor of Greek in the Seminar fur Klassische Philologie at the Ruprecht-Karls-Universitat Heidelberg. His publications include The Greeks and their Past: Poetry, Oratory and History in the Fifth Century BCE (Cambridge, 2010), Experience and Teleology in Ancient Historiography: Futures Past from Herodotus to Augustine (Cambridge, 2013) and Aesthetic Experience and Classical Antiquity: The Significance of Form in Narratives and Pictures (Cambridge, 2017).
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