Beauty and the gods : a history from Homer to Plato / Hugo Shakeshaft.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Shakeshaft, Hugo, 1990- author.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Gods, Greek.

Mythology, Greek.

Heroes--Mythology--Greece.

Heroes.

Aesthetics, Ancient.

Aesthetics--History.

Aesthetics.

Physical Description:

xix, 498 pages : illustrations (chiefly color), maps (some color), plans ; 25 cm

Other Title:

History from Homer to Plato

Place of Publication:

Princeton : Princeton University Press, [2025]

Summary:

"A history of the origins of the classical ideal of beauty in archaic Greece. 'To look like a Greek god' is proverbial for beauty today just as it was for Homer nearly three thousand years ago. In this book, Hugo Shakeshaft tells the untold story of beauty's inextricable link with the divine in this formative era of ancient Greek history (c.750-480 BCE). Through in-depth analysis of a wide array of ancient sources, the book offers a panoramic view of the Archaic Greek world in arguing that ideas of beauty were fundamental to how Greeks thought about and worshipped their gods. Surveying everything from Homeric epic, lyric poetry, and votive inscriptions to vase-paintings, sculpture, and the architecture of Greek temples, Shakeshaft reveals how ideas and experiences of beauty structured human relations with the divine in Archaic Greece. Comparisons are made throughout the book with the literature, art, and architecture of the diverse cultures of the ancient Near East to clarify its insights into Archaic Greece. These comparisons highlight that the association of beauty and the divine has been at the heart of many societies throughout human history, despite its oversight in the lively debate about beauty in academia and the art world in the twenty-first century. With a novel contribution to this debate and the history of aesthetics, the book uncovers an aspect of ancient Greek history with an enduring legacy, showing how we still live with the cultural dialogue which originated in this period"-- Provided by publisher.

"How ideas and experiences of beauty informed human relationships with the divine in ancient Greece. Beginning with the earliest Greek literature, the epics of Homer and Hesiod, beauty was seen as having a special connection with the divine. The gods of ancient Greece were defined by their exceptional beauty; even today, 'to look like a Greek god' is proverbial for human beauty. In Beauty and the Gods, Hugo Shakeshaft explores the relationship between the beautiful and divine in ancient Greece, principally in the Archaic period (ca. 750-480 BCE). Analysing evidence that ranges from poetry, art, and philosophical texts to architecture and the natural landscape, Shakeshaft shows how ideas and experiences of beauty shaped Greek relations with the divine. With a powerful call for the place of beauty and aesthetics in the writing of history, Shakeshaft uncovers the cultural dialogue between beauty and the gods in a variety of contexts in the Archaic Greek world: in forms of divine worship; in poetry, music, and dance; in attitudes to the natural environment; and in architecture and art. This early chapter of Greek history, he argues, holds an unrecognised key to understanding some long-running threads in the histories of religion, art, and aesthetics, from Plato's aesthetic theories to beauty's status in contemporary discourse. Beauty's deep past and divine connection in ancient Greece can help us see beauty now in sharper focus"-- Provided by publisher.

Contents:

Introduction. Historical Aesthetics ; Beauty Ancient and New ; Piecing Together Beauty and the Gods ; The Terminology for Beauty in Greek ; The Structure of the Book

1. The Teachings of Epic. Cosmogonic Beauty ; Beauties of the Olympian Pantheon ; Theologies of Human Beauty ; Epiphany ; The Power of Beauty ; Hiera kala

2. The Lovely Gifts of the Muses. Divine Beauty in Mousikē ; Godlike Beauty in Mousikē ; The Desirable Chorus ; The Beauty of the Hymn

3. Full of Gods. Poetic Landscapes ; Sacred Places Set Apart ; Springs, Rivers, and Streams of Beautiful Maidens ; Delightful Groves, Erotic Gardens, and Soft Meadow Flowers

4. To Roof a Pleasing Shrine. The Poetics of Archaic Sacred Architecture ; The Temple of Poseidon at lsthmia ; The Politics of Beauty in Archaic Temple Building ; Temple C at Selinus ; Beauty and the Transformation of Archaic Sacred Architecture ; An Aesthetic Revolution

5. Objects of Delight. The Mantiklos Statuette, or How to Please a God ; Inscribing Beauty : Delightful and Divine Possessions ; Votives for Orthia : The Good, the Beautiful, and the Ugly ; Kouroi and Korai : Beauty, Charis, and the Value of Godlikeness

Conclusion: Vital Beauty and Beyond. Phidias : From Homer to Sanford Biggers' Oracle ; Plato : An Ascent from Archaic Roots.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages 433-490) and index.

Other Format:

Online version: Shakeshaft, Hugo, 1990- Beauty and the gods.

ISBN:

9780691250205

0691250200

OCLC:

1458997642