From Oroskopia to Ouranoskopia in Greek and Latin Epic

Open Access
Authors
Publication date 2019
Journal SO
Volume | Issue number 93 | 1
Pages (from-to) 12-36
Number of pages 25
Organisations
  • Faculty of Humanities (FGw) - Amsterdam Institute for Humanities Research (AIHR) - Amsterdam School of Historical Studies (ASH)
Abstract This article discusses oroskopia, gods looking at human affairs from a mountain, in terms of a topos with a collective intertextual tradition. That tradition was started by Homer who depicts Zeus looking down from Olympus or nearby Ida. After Homer the mountain Olympus as divine vantage point largely disappears in favour of heaven, and we may speak of ouranoskopia. Gods continue to watch events from local mountains in the vicinity of the action, which usually also have a symbolic force in that they are connected to the god via literary or cultic associations.
Document type Article
Note In special issue: Narrative, Narratology and Intertextuality: New Perspectives on Greek Epic from Homer to Nonnus
Language English
Published at https://doi.org/10.1080/00397679.2019.1641341
Downloads
00397679.2019 (Final published version)
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