Telamonian Ajax: The Myth in Archaic and Classical Greece

Description

Telamonian Ajax provides a complete overview of the development of Telamonian Ajax's myth in archaic and classical Greece. It is a systematic study of the representations of the hero in all kinds of media, such as literature, art, or cultic practice, establishing how and why the constitutive elements of Ajax's myth evolved by examining the way the literary works and visual representations in which he features were influenced by the historical, socio-cultural, and performative contexts of their receptions. Bocksberger's study focuses on three main loci of reception: the Panhellenic figure of Ajax, through a study of early Greek hexameter poetry and archaic art; archaic and classical Aegina; and archaic and classical Athens. By following in the footsteps of Ajax, this study offers a journey across the archaic and classical history of the Saronic Gulf, and exemplifies the manner in which the respective priorities of art, cult, and politics could be negotiated through the re-configuration of a mythological figure. This book establishes the outline of Telamonian Ajax's pre-Homeric gesta in order to understand how it was received in early Greek hexameter poetry, especially in the Iliad. Moreover, it investigates the important political role the hero had in the context of Atheno-Aeginetan rivalry in the sixth and fifth centuries BCE in order to show the profound impact the historical context had on the shaping of his myth. Cover Telamonian Ajax: The Myth in Archaic and Classical Greece Copyright Dedication Acknowledgements Contents List of Figures List of Maps Abbreviations of Modern Reference Works Editions and Abbreviations of Ancient Authors and Works Note on Translation and Transliteration Note on the Images Introduction 1; Ajax from Salamis The Formation of the Epic Tradition: Some Assumptions Mycenaean Substratum Ancient Salamis A Mycenaean Hero? Αἴαντε Ἑπταβόειον σάκος Defining Features of Ajax’s Gesta in Early Hexameter Poetry The Genealogy of Ajax An Invulnerable Hero τὸ ἕρκος Ἀχαιῶν Ajax and Athena Κρίσις, Anger, and Madness: The Suicide of Ajax Unus pro Omnibus, Omnes pro Uno: One or Two Ajaxes? Conclusion 2: Ajax in Aegina Introduction Some Elements of Aeginetan History The Figure of Ajax in Poems for Aeginetan Patrons Ajax in Aegina at the Time of the Persian Wars (490–Early 470s) Ajax in Aegina in the Decade Following Marathon Bacchylides’ Ode 13 Isthmian 6 Ajax in Aegina at the Time of Salamis and Its Aftermath Isthmian 5 Nemean 7 Isthmian 4 Ajax in Aegina in the Early Years of the Pente contaetia: Early 470s–457 Nemean 4 Nemean 3, Nemean 6, and Olympian 8 Ajax in Aegina after Its Subjugation in 457 Pythian 8 Nemean 8 Conclusion 3: Ajax in Athens Introduction Ajax in Archaic Athens Ajax’s Entries in Epic Catalogues Ajax on Attic Pots from the Archaic Period Conclusion Ajax in Athens during the First Half of the Fifth Century Ajax in Democratic Athens The Tribe Aiantis The Philaidae and the Persian Wars The Ὅπλων Κρίσις on Pots Aeschylean Ajax The Award of the Arms The Thracian Women Women of Salamis The Ajax Tetralogy Conclusion Ajax in Athens from the 450s to the End of the Classical Period Sophoclean Ajax Epic Subtext: The Self-Sufficient Hero (1) The Blameless (2) or Failed (3) Hero Conclusion Concluding Remarks The Single-Minded Hero The Ajax Theme Self-Reliance and Impiety Ἀλκή and Δαίς Splendour and Agony Ἁπλότης Epilogue Appendix: Translations of Epigraphs References Index of Greek Words Index inscriptionum Index Locorum General Index