ENGLISH

Cinema and Classical Texts: Apollo's New Light

By Martin M. Winkler

Book information

Year
2009
ISBN
0521518601, 9780521518604, 9780511480843
LCC
PN1995.3 .W56 2009
Open Library ID
OL17103209M
Language
english
Format
PDF
Filesize
3 MB (3163194 bytes)
Edition
1
Pages
362\363
Topic
Art Cinema
Time added
2011-06-04 13:46:07

Description

Apollo was the ancient god of light and the divine patron of the arts. He is therefore a fitting metaphor for cinematography, which is the modern art of writing with moving light. This book interprets films as visual texts and provides the first systematic theoretical and practical demonstration of the affinities between Greco-Roman literature and the cinema. It examines major themes from classical myth and history such as film portrayals of gods, exemplified by Apollo and the Muses; Oedipus, antiquity's most influential mythic-tragic hero; the question of heroism and patriotism in war; and the representation of women like Helen of Troy and Cleopatra as products of male desire and fantasy. Covering a wide range of European and American directors, genres, and classical authors, this study provides an innovative perspective on the two disciplines of classics and cinema and demonstrates our most influential medium's unlimited range when it adapts ancient texts.

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