Ancient Magic and the Supernatural in the Modern Visual and Performing Arts

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To what extent did mythological figures such as Circe and Medea influence the representation of the powerful oriental enchantress in modern Western art What role did the ancient gods and heroes play in the construction of the imaginary worlds of the modern fantasy genre What is the role of undead creatures like zombies and vampires in mythological films Looking across the millennia, from the distrust of ancient magic and oriental cults, which threatened the new-born Christian religion, to the revival and adaptation of ancient myths and religion in the arts centuries later, this book offers an original analysis of the reception of ancient magic and the supernatural, across a wide variety of different media from comics to film, from painting to opera. Working in a variety of fields across the globe, the authors of these essays deconstruct certain scholarly traditions by proposing original interdisciplinary approaches and collaborations, showing to what extent the visual and performing arts of different periods interlink and shape cultural and social identities.

Reviews

For anyone interested in the reception history of the ancient supernatural, this is both a satisfying selection of papers and a springboard for deeper analysis. -- Cath Milnes * Classics for All Reviews *
This extraordinary collection marks a major development in the field of reception studies, as it uncovers the persistent ambiguity of classical antiquity in the modern imagination as not only the glittering paradigm of Western rational thought but also the dark wellspring of enigmatic and dangerous forces. -- Monica S. Cyrino, Professor of Classics, University of New Mexico, USA
This rich and diverse collection is a powerful reminder that the legacy of antiquity resides not just in a set of comfortable ideals, but that it lurks in some of the darkest and most irrational parts of our imagination. When we dream of the fabulous, the wicked, the monstrous, and the heroic, we are inevitably drawn to figures and motifs drawn from the classical world. As this book shows, we cannot resist these ancient enchantments. -- Alastair J.L. Blanshard, Paul Eliadis Professor of Classics and Ancient History, The University of Queensland, Australia

Author Bio

Filippo Carl is Lecturer in Classics and Ancient History at the University of Exeter, UK. Irene Berti is Research Fellow at the Ruprecht Karls Universitt, Heidelberg, Germany, and a member of the Collaborative Research Centre 'Material Text Cultures, Materiality and Presence of Writing in Non-Typographic Societies'.