The Returning Hero : nostoi and Traditions of Mediterranean Settlement - Simon Hornblower

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The Returning Hero

nostoi and Traditions of Mediterranean Settlement

By: Simon Hornblower (Editor), Giulia Biffis (Editor)

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Hardcover | 20 November 2018

At a Glance

Hardcover
378 Pages

Dimensions(cm)
22.23 x 14.61 x 3.18

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$386.75

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A recurring and significant theme in ancient Greek literature is that of returns and returning, chiefly - but by no means only - of mythical Greek heroes from Troy. One main, and certainly the most 'marked', ancient Greek word for 'return' is nostos (plural nostoi), from which is derived the English 'nostalgia'. Nostos-related traditions were important ingredients of colonial foundation myths and the theme runs through both ancient Greek prose and poetry from Homer's Odyssey to Lykophron's Alexandra, also leaving traces in the historical record through the archaeological and epigraphical commemoration of nostoi, which played a central part in defining Greek ethnicity and crystallizing personal and communal identities.

This volume offers a truly interdisciplinary exploration of the concept of nostos in ancient Greek culture, which draws on its contributors' expertise in ancient Greek (and Roman) history, literature, archaeology, and religion. The chapters examine both literary and material evidence in order to achieve a better understanding of the nature of Greek settlement in the Mediterranean zone, and of sometimes equivocal Greek and Roman perceptions of home, displacement, and returning. The special problems and vocabulary of exile are explored in the long Introduction, which offers an incisive yet accessible overview of the volume's key themes and sets its range of contributions clearly in context: while two chapters are concerned in different ways with emotions and personal identity, making use of the theoretical tool of place-attachment, another demonstrates that failed nostoi can be more interesting than successful examples. Evidential absence can be as important and illuminating as presence,
and mythical women, underrepresented in this regard, feature extensively in several chapters, which open up a range of new perspectives on nostos.

Industry Reviews

It is a ... volume that will richly repay anyone interested in the various cultural, historical, psychological, and comparative aspects of home, home -- leaving, and returning home in the ancient Mediterranean. * Carla M. Antonaccio, Journal of Historical Geography of the Ancient World *
This is a rich and stimulating collection, which is likely to become a decisive contribution to our understanding of the social and historical background of the mythological tradition of nostoi. * Margalit Finkelberg, The Journal of Hellenic Studies *
A volume that will richly repay anyone interested in the various cultural, historical, psychological, and comparative aspects of home, home-leaving, and returning home in the ancient Mediterranean. * Carla M. Antonaccio, Orbis Terrarum *
... the collection is a stimulating contribution to cultural history... [Translated from German] * William V. Harris, Historische Zeitschrift *
Overall, the volume is strong, with material to engage specialists in nostoi myths, mobility and settlement patterns, and ancient identity formation. * Jessica M. Romney, The Classical Review *
The concept of the returning hero originates with the tales of the Nostoi of the heroes after the Trojan War, and their travels and travails across the Mediterranean; but the volume manages to link these tales to the wider issue of the 'traditions of Mediterranean settlement'. * Kostas Vlassopoulos, University of Crete, Greece & Rome *
The topic is presented through the different viewpoints of scholars specialising in history, literature, myth, and archaeology ... This volume offers a range of interesting ideas on the theme of nostos, chiefly by pointing out how difficult it is to return home after absence, when neither the returner nor the home is the same. * Claire Gruzelier, Classics for All *

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