DOCSLIB.ORG

Caelum Ascendit Ratio: the Divinizing Role of Knowledge in Didactic Poetry from Hesiod to Manilius

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Caelum Ascendit Ratio: the Divinizing Role of Knowledge in Didactic Poetry from Hesiod to Manilius CAELUM ASCENDIT RATIO: THE DIVINIZING ROLE OF KNOWLEDGE IN DIDACTIC POETRY FROM HESIOD TO MANILIUS Zackary P. Rider A dissertation submitted to the faculty at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the Department of Classics. Chapel Hill 2016 Approved by: James J. O’Hara Sharon L. James William H. Race James B. Rives Zoe Stamatopoulou ©2016 Zackary P. Rider ALL RIGHTS RESERVED ii ABSTRACT Zackary P. Rider: Caelum Ascendit Ratio: The Divinizing Role of Knowledge in Didactic Poetry from Hesiod to Manilius (Under the direction of James J. O’Hara) In this dissertation, I seek to refine our understanding of the genre of didactic poetry in antiquity through examination of the relationship between knowledge and divinity as it is presented by Greek and Latin didactic poets. Focusing on the poetic portrayal of the didactic student, I argue for a continuity in the didactic poetic discourse based on a conception of the divinizing power of knowledge, and show the (quasi-)deification of the student to be a recurrent generic feature. This “deification” can take different forms, ranging from a qualified return to the mythological Golden Age where humans “lived like the gods,” as seen in Hesiod’s Just City, to the philosophical conception of ὁμοίωσις θεῷ, in which the promotion of the rational part of the soul brings humanity closer to divinity. Despite this diversity of forms, each poet can be seen self-consciously working within a shared tradition, portraying new articulations on this divinizing role in ways meant to recall poetic predecessors and offer students the potential for “a life like the gods.” Chapter 1 provides an overview of this divinization or return to a state like that of the Golden Age as it is portrayed by the Greek didactic poets Hesiod, Empedocles, and Aratus. Chapter 2 looks at Lucretius’ De Rerum Natura, examining how Lucretius combines poetic and philosophical models to argue for the deification of the Epicurean student and especially iii Epicurus himself. Chapter 3 turns to Vergil’s Georgics to show the ways in which Vergil’s polyvalent text plays with its readers’ expectations to assert and reject simultaneously the possibility for his student to achieve a “life like the gods.” Chapter 4 concludes the dissertation with a study of Manilius’ Astronomica, showing how the poet exploits contradictions in his predecessors for his own ends while arguing for the inherent divinity of humanity. iv To my mother, who wanted it done even more than I did. v ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Thanks go first and foremost to my advisor, James O’Hara, without whose advice and support this dissertation would not have seen the light of day. Jim was always ready to respond to my countless worried emails or listen to me work out uncertain aspects of my argument, and always did so with patience and good humor. Anyone familiar with his work will see the influence of his ideas on every page of this project. I would also like to thank my readers, Sharon James, Bill Race, James Rives, and Zoe Stamatopoulou, whose erudition and aid allowed me to speak comfortably and (one hopes) intelligently on subjects outside of my field of expertise, and whose thoughtful comments made this a much better work. Jim Lesher provided useful comments on my chapter on Greek didactic. Members of our department’s occasional dissertation writing group—Robyn Le Blanc, Hans Hansen, Katie Simons, Erika Weiberg, and John Esposito—saw some of the earliest sections of the dissertation in draft form and offered a helpful reminder that misery loves company. Much of this project was completed at the American Academy in Rome, where I spent the year thanks to the Berthe M. Marti Fellowship, and I am grateful to the fellows, residents, and staff of that institution for a welcoming and rewarding experience. Finally, words cannot express my debt to Ali Zawoyski and especially to my mother, Terri Rauhaus. Throughout this process, they have been unstinting in their support and optimism, and never failed to provide needed morale boosts. My interest in didaxis is largely a result of my mother’s own commitment to education, and this dissertation is dedicated to her. vi TABLE OF CONTENTS INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................1 The Didactic Question.........................................................................................................1 Divine Options.....................................................................................................................3 The Present Study................................................................................................................8 CHAPTER 1: THE GREEK DIDACTIC BACKGROUND IN HESIOD, EMPEDOCLES, AND ARATUS..................................................................................................12 Hesiod................................................................................................................................13 Empedocles........................................................................................................................23 Aratus.................................................................................................................................32 Conclusion.........................................................................................................................46 CHAPTER 2: LUCRETIUS..........................................................................................................47 First Beginnings.................................................................................................................50 The Hymn to Venus...............................................................................................51 The Opposition to Religio......................................................................................57 Allusive Argumentation.....................................................................................................63 Epicurus.............................................................................................................................69 The Gods of Religio...........................................................................................................82 Conclusion.........................................................................................................................87 CHAPTER 3: VERGIL’S GEORGICS.........................................................................................88 The Invocation to Octavian................................................................................................92 vii The Agricultural Life and the Golden Age........................................................................96 The Golden Age Inverted.................................................................................................109 The Education of Aristaeus..............................................................................................114 Conclusion.......................................................................................................................125 CHAPTER 4: MANILIUS...........................................................................................................126 Caesar deus ipse...............................................................................................................129 The Iron Age Redeemed..................................................................................................134 Hermetic Thought and the Divinity of Humanity............................................................149 Conclusion.......................................................................................................................159 CONCLUSION............................................................................................................................160 WORKS CITED..........................................................................................................................163 viii Introduction The Didactic Question The problem of identifying the genre now known as “didactic” in its ancient framework is well-known.1 After all, there is little ancient evidence for any clear demarcation of the genre. Indeed, the “didactic” poets themselves do not seem to recognize the genre as such, instead identifying their works by the standard criterion of metrical choice. As such, given these poets’ proclivity for hexameter and the meter’s long-standing associations with the epic tradition, the grand majority of “didactic” poems are represented in self-consciously epic terms. Thus Lucretius in the proem to his De Rerum Natura presents his poetic predecessors on “the nature of things” as Ennius and before him Homer (DRN 1.117-126), while Vergil includes his own tribute to Homeric verse near the end of his poem on agricultural instruction. This emphasis on form over content in the self-representation of genre may be seen most clearly in the opening to the second book of Manilius’ Astronomica, wherein the astrological poet gives a catalogue of his antecedent tradition comprising material today seen as markedly divergent, but united by its hexameter form: the epics of Homer (Astr. 2.1-11); the instructional poetry of Hesiod (2.12-24), astronomical poets such as Aratus (2.25-35), and Nicander (2.44-45); bucolic poetry (2.39-42); and even magical texts (2.46-48). 1For systematic
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Universal Mythology: Stories
    Universal Mythology: Stories That Circle The World Lydia L. This installation is about mythology and the commonalities that occur between cultures across the world. According to folklorist Alan Dundes, myths are sacred narratives that explain the evolution of the world and humanity. He defines the sacred narratives as “a story that serves to define the fundamental worldview of a culture by explaining aspects of the natural world, and delineating the psychological and social practices and ideals of a society.” Stories explain how and why the world works and I want to understand the connections in these distant mythologies by exploring their existence and theories that surround them. This painting illustrates the connection between separate cultures through their polytheistic mythologies. It features twelve deities, each from a different mythology/religion. By including these gods, I have allowed for a diversified group of cultures while highlighting characters whose traits consistently appear in many mythologies. It has the Celtic supreme god, Dagda; the Norse trickster god, Loki; the Japanese moon god, Tsukuyomi; the Aztec sun god, Huitzilopochtli; the Incan nature goddess, Pachamama; the Egyptian water goddess, Tefnut; the Polynesian fire goddess, Mahuika; the Inuit hunting goddess, Arnakuagsak; the Greek fate goddesses, the Moirai: Clotho, Lachesis, and Atropos; the Yoruba love goddess, Oshun; the Chinese war god, Chiyou; and the Hindu death god, Yama. The painting was made with acrylic paint on mirror. Connection is an important element in my art, and I incorporate this by using the mirror to bring the audience into the piece, allowing them to see their reflection within the parting of the clouds, whilst viewing the piece.
    [Show full text]
  • Naming the Extrasolar Planets
    Naming the extrasolar planets W. Lyra Max Planck Institute for Astronomy, K¨onigstuhl 17, 69177, Heidelberg, Germany [email protected] Abstract and OGLE-TR-182 b, which does not help educators convey the message that these planets are quite similar to Jupiter. Extrasolar planets are not named and are referred to only In stark contrast, the sentence“planet Apollo is a gas giant by their assigned scientific designation. The reason given like Jupiter” is heavily - yet invisibly - coated with Coper- by the IAU to not name the planets is that it is consid- nicanism. ered impractical as planets are expected to be common. I One reason given by the IAU for not considering naming advance some reasons as to why this logic is flawed, and sug- the extrasolar planets is that it is a task deemed impractical. gest names for the 403 extrasolar planet candidates known One source is quoted as having said “if planets are found to as of Oct 2009. The names follow a scheme of association occur very frequently in the Universe, a system of individual with the constellation that the host star pertains to, and names for planets might well rapidly be found equally im- therefore are mostly drawn from Roman-Greek mythology. practicable as it is for stars, as planet discoveries progress.” Other mythologies may also be used given that a suitable 1. This leads to a second argument. It is indeed impractical association is established. to name all stars. But some stars are named nonetheless. In fact, all other classes of astronomical bodies are named.
    [Show full text]
  • The Lore of the Stars, for Amateur Campfire Sages
    obscure. Various claims have been made about Babylonian innovations and the similarity between the Greek zodiac and the stories, dating from the third millennium BCE, of Gilgamesh, a legendary Sumerian hero who encountered animals and characters similar to those of the zodiac. Some of the Babylonian constellations may have been popularized in the Greek world through the conquest of The Lore of the Stars, Alexander in the fourth century BCE. Alexander himself sent captured Babylonian texts back For Amateur Campfire Sages to Greece for his tutor Aristotle to interpret. Even earlier than this, Babylonian astronomy by Anders Hove would have been familiar to the Persians, who July 2002 occupied Greece several centuries before Alexander’s day. Although we may properly credit the Greeks with completing the Babylonian work, it is clear that the Babylonians did develop some of the symbols and constellations later adopted by the Greeks for their zodiac. Contrary to the story of the star-counter in Le Petit Prince, there aren’t unnumerable stars Cuneiform tablets using symbols similar to in the night sky, at least so far as we can see those used later for constellations may have with our own eyes. Only about a thousand are some relationship to astronomy, or they may visible. Almost all have names or Greek letter not. Far more tantalizing are the various designations as part of constellations that any- cuneiform tablets outlining astronomical one can learn to recognize. observations used by the Babylonians for Modern astronomers have divided the sky tracking the moon and developing a calendar. into 88 constellations, many of them fictitious— One of these is the MUL.APIN, which describes that is, they cover sky area, but contain no vis- the stars along the paths of the moon and ible stars.
    [Show full text]
  • The Constellation Microscopium, the Microscope Microscopium Is A
    The Constellation Microscopium, the Microscope Microscopium is a small constellation in the southern sky, defined in the 18th century by Nicolas Louis de Lacaille in 1751–52 . Its name is Latin for microscope; it was invented by Lacaille to commemorate the compound microscope, i.e. one that uses more than one lens. The first microscope was invented by the two brothers, Hans and Zacharius Jensen, Dutch spectacle makers of Holland in 1590, who were also involved in the invention of the telescope (see below). Lacaille first showed it on his map of 1756 under the name le Microscope but Latinized this to Microscopium on the second edition published in 1763. He described it as consisting of "a tube above a square box". It contains sixty-nine stars, varying in magnitude from 4.8 to 7, the lucida being Gamma Microscopii of apparent magnitude 4.68. Two star systems have been found to have planets, while another has a debris disk. The stars that now comprise Microscopium may formerly have belonged to the hind feet of Sagittarius. However, this is uncertain as, while its stars seem to be referred to by Al-Sufi as having been seen by Ptolemy, Al-Sufi does not specify their exact positions. Microscopium is bordered Capricornus to the north, Piscis Austrinus and Grus to the west, Sagittarius to the east, Indus to the south, and touching on Telescopium to the southeast. The recommended three-letter abbreviation for the constellation, as adopted Seen in the 1824 star chart set Urania's Mirror (lower left) by the International Astronomical Union in 1922, is 'Mic'.
    [Show full text]
  • Educator's Guide: Orion
    Legends of the Night Sky Orion Educator’s Guide Grades K - 8 Written By: Dr. Phil Wymer, Ph.D. & Art Klinger Legends of the Night Sky: Orion Educator’s Guide Table of Contents Introduction………………………………………………………………....3 Constellations; General Overview……………………………………..4 Orion…………………………………………………………………………..22 Scorpius……………………………………………………………………….36 Canis Major…………………………………………………………………..45 Canis Minor…………………………………………………………………..52 Lesson Plans………………………………………………………………….56 Coloring Book…………………………………………………………………….….57 Hand Angles……………………………………………………………………….…64 Constellation Research..…………………………………………………….……71 When and Where to View Orion…………………………………….……..…77 Angles For Locating Orion..…………………………………………...……….78 Overhead Projector Punch Out of Orion……………………………………82 Where on Earth is: Thrace, Lemnos, and Crete?.............................83 Appendix………………………………………………………………………86 Copyright©2003, Audio Visual Imagineering, Inc. 2 Legends of the Night Sky: Orion Educator’s Guide Introduction It is our belief that “Legends of the Night sky: Orion” is the best multi-grade (K – 8), multi-disciplinary education package on the market today. It consists of a humorous 24-minute show and educator’s package. The Orion Educator’s Guide is designed for Planetarians, Teachers, and parents. The information is researched, organized, and laid out so that the educator need not spend hours coming up with lesson plans or labs. This has already been accomplished by certified educators. The guide is written to alleviate the fear of space and the night sky (that many elementary and middle school teachers have) when it comes to that section of the science lesson plan. It is an excellent tool that allows the parents to be a part of the learning experience. The guide is devised in such a way that there are plenty of visuals to assist the educator and student in finding the Winter constellations.
    [Show full text]
  • Cth 821 Course Title: African Traditional Religious Mythology and Cosmology
    NATIONAL OPEN UNIVERSITY OF NIGERIA SCHOOL OF ARTS AND SOCIAL SCIENCES COURSE CODE: CTH 821 COURSE TITLE: AFRICAN TRADITIONAL RELIGIOUS MYTHOLOGY AND COSMOLOGY 1 Course Code: CTH 821 Course Title: African Traditional Religious Mythology and Cosmology Course Developer: Rev. Fr. Dr. Michael .N. Ushe Department of Christian Theology School of Arts and Social Sciences National Open University of Nigeria, Lagos Course Writer: Rev. Fr. Dr. Michael .N. Ushe Department of Christian Theology School of Arts and Social Sciences National Open University of Nigeria, Lagos Programme Leader: Rev. Fr. Dr. Michael .N. Ushe Department of Christian Theology School of Arts and Social Sciences National Open University of Nigeria, Lagos Course Title: CTH 821 AFRICAN TRADITIONAL RELIGIOUS MYTHOLOGY AND COSMOLOGY COURSE DEVELOPER/WRITER: Rev. Fr. Dr. Ushe .N. Michael 2 National Open University of Nigeria, Lagos COURSE MODERATOR: Rev. Fr. Dr. Mike Okoronkwo National Open University of Nigeria, Lagos PROGRAMME LEADER: Rev. Fr. Dr. Ushe .N. Michael National Open University of Nigeria, Lagos CONTENTS PAGE Introduction…………………………………………………………………………………… …...i What you will learn in this course…………………………………………………………….…i-ii 3 Course Aims………………………………………………………..……………………………..ii Course objectives……………………………………………………………………………...iii-iii Working Through this course…………………………………………………………………….iii Course materials…………………………………………………………………………..……iv-v Study Units………………………………………………………………………………………..v Set Textbooks…………………………………………………………………………………….vi Assignment File…………………………………………………………………………………..vi
    [Show full text]
  • Ast 101 Prin of Astronomy Dopirak
    Principles of Astronomy AST K101 (MO1), Three sem. hrs. credits Instructor: Bill Dopirak CRN: 10862 (860)892-5758 Spring 2007 e-mail: [email protected] Three Rivers Community College Mohegan Campus Office Hrs. Norwich, CT 06360 M - 9:30-10:00am, T – 5:00-6:00pm R 5:00-6:00pm, F 12:00-1:00pm (Or by appointment) Required Text: Schneider, S.E. and T.T. Arny. 2007. Pathways to Astronomy. McGraw-Hill: Higher Education Publishing. p.699. Optional Materials: Starry Night© Pro. Star charts, Planisphere, Binoculars Catalog Description: This course covers the ideas that account for the earth and heavenly bodies and their characteristics. This course is designed to develop an appreciation of the beauty and order of the universe. Observational exercises, including star identifications and use of the telescope, are included. Primary Objectives: In addition to understanding the mechanisms involved in ascertaining distance, temperature, and movements of celestial bodies, students will be able to orientate themselves with the night sky by using constellations as guides. Attendance Policy: Students are expected to attend class sessions regularly. If a class is missed due to circumstances beyond your control, please, be sure to notify your instructor and make the necessary arrangements for obtaining the lecture notes. You will be responsible for the material. If 3 classes are missed, a deduction of 5-POINTS will be taking from your final grade. TEN-POINTS will be deducted from your final grade if 5 or more classes are missed. A 5-point bonus will be added to your final grade if 100% attendance is noted.
    [Show full text]
  • Permit No Classification Contractor Address Legal # of DU's # of Signs
    Permit Fees Paid - Detail for 4/1/2011 thru 4/30/2011 Electrical Plumbing 3.8% City # of # of Plan Check Building Mechanical Permit No Classification Contractor Address Legal Permit Permit Use & Valuation DU's Signs Fees Permit Fees Permit Fees Fees Fees County Tax BP-10-01912 Addition - Industrial Fischer Construction, Inc 920 S BOISE AVE CNTY-85192-00-917 - - - - - - 2,470,925 Addition - Industrial Total 2,470,925 BP-11-00354 Alter - Dwelling Space Owner/Builder 13 MARMAC DR 109-%%-013-95114-05-013 40.00 97.25 83.25 - 35.70 58.35 3,071 BP-11-00398 Alter - Dwelling Space Owner/Builder 588 MARIANA POINTE DR 491U-01-018-95174-40-018 - 293.25 38.75 23.50 54.00 324.91 17,100 BP-11-00445 Alter - Dwelling Space Owner/Builder 1317 N ARTHUR AVE 065-02-012-95132-08-013 25.19 38.75 23.50 - - 19.00 1,000 BP-11-00492 Alter - Dwelling Space Owner/Builder 2512 BEGONIA CT 439S-01-029-95222-81-029 23.21 35.70 - 23.50 - 17.11 900 BP-11-00571 Alter - Dwelling Space Trans+Form Development, LLC 2617 W REDBUD DR 345E-01-021-95121-22-021 27.17 - - - - - 0 Alter - Dwelling Space Total 115.57 464.95 145.50 47.00 89.70 419.37 22,071 BP-11-00316 Basement Finish FISKE ELECTRIC 1895 HALFMOON CIR 624B-04-049-85093-19-049 - 265.25 63.15 83.25 97.25 285.78 15,041 BP-11-00381 Basement Finish Owner/Builder 216 CALCITE CT 467A-11-013-85184-21-013 - 321.25 23.50 23.50 23.50 377.46 19,866 BP-11-00387 Basement Finish Owner/Builder 4910 AVON AVE 641A-04-002-96344-58-002 - 462.45 69.25 32.65 38.75 593.14 31,218 BP-11-00388 Basement Finish JOHN C'S REMODELING 1865 TRUMPETER
    [Show full text]
  • Renaissance Anthropologies and the Conception of Man Caroline Stark
    RENAISSANCE ANTHROPOLOGIES AND THE CONCEPTION OF MAN Caroline Stark Two sixteenth-century developments are credited with drastically altering the conception of man and his place in the universe, thus marking a fun- damental shift to modernity: the Protestant Reformation and subsequent Counter-Reformation, and the emergence of the New Science. This new conception of man, either as an impotent, sinful creature in need of divine grace or as a creative, active force for improving his own condition and society, would not have been possible without the earlier debate over the condition of man among Renaissance humanists.1 A number of notable humanists, including Petrarch, Facio, Manetti, and Pico della Mirandola,2 responded to the misery of man tradition, as exemplified by Pope Inno- cent III’s treatise on the misery of the human condition,3 by celebrating 1 Giovanni Gentile, Giordano Bruno e il Pensiero del Rinascimento (Florence: Le Let- tere, 1991); Eugenio Garin, “La ‘Dignitas Hominis’ e la Letteratura Patristica,” La Rinascita 1 (1938): 102–46; Giovanni Di Napoli, “ ‘Contemptus Mundi’ e ‘Dignitas Hominis’ nel Rinasci- mento,” Rivista di Filosofia Neoscolastica 48 (1956): 9–41; Paul Oskar Kristeller, Renaissance Concepts of Man, and Other Essays (New York: Harper & Row, 1972); Charles Trinkaus, “The Renaissance Idea of the Dignity of Man,” in Dictionary of the History of Ideas, ed. Philip P. Wiener (New York: Scribner, 1973), 136–47; Craven, Giovanni Pico Della Mirandola, Sym- bol of His Age: Modern Interpretations of a Renaissance Philosopher (Geneva: Droz, 1981): 21–45; Charles Trinkaus, “Themes for a Renaissance Anthropology,” in The Scope of Renais- sance Humanism, ed.
    [Show full text]
  • These Sky Maps Were Made Using the Freeware UNIX Program "Starchart", from Alan Paeth and Craig Counterman, with Some Postprocessing by Stuart Levy
    These sky maps were made using the freeware UNIX program "starchart", from Alan Paeth and Craig Counterman, with some postprocessing by Stuart Levy. You’re free to use them however you wish. There are five equatorial maps: three covering the equatorial strip from declination −60 to +60 degrees, corresponding roughly to the evening sky in northern winter (eq1), spring (eq2), and summer/autumn (eq3), plus maps covering the north and south polar areas to declination about +/− 25 degrees. Grid lines are drawn at every 15 degrees of declination, and every hour (= 15 degrees at the equator) of right ascension. The equatorial−strip maps use a simple rectangular projection; this shows constellations near the equator with their true shape, but those at declination +/− 30 degrees are stretched horizontally by about 15%, and those at the extreme 60−degree edge are plotted twice as wide as you’ll see them on the sky. The sinusoidal curve spanning the equatorial strip is, of course, the Ecliptic −− the path of the Sun (and approximately that of the planets) through the sky. The polar maps are plotted with stereographic projection. This preserves shapes of small constellations, but enlarges them as they get farther from the pole; at declination 45 degrees they’re about 17% oversized, and at the extreme 25−degree edge about 40% too large. These charts plot stars down to magnitude 5, along with a few of the brighter deep−sky objects −− mostly star clusters and nebulae. Many stars are labelled with their Bayer Greek−letter names. Also here are similarly−plotted maps, based on galactic coordinates.
    [Show full text]
  • Biblical Faith and Natural Theology This Page Intentionally Left Blank Biblical Faith and Natural Theology
    Biblical Faith and Natural Theology This page intentionally left blank Biblical Faith and Natural Theology TheGiffordLecturesfor1991 Delivered in the University of Edinburgh James Barr CLARENDON PRESS · OXFORD Great Clarendon Street, Oxford OX2 6DP Oxford University Press is a department of the University of Oxford It furthers the University's objective of excellence in research, scholarship, and education by publishing worldwide in Oxford New York Auckland Bangkok Buenos Aires Cape Town Chennai Dar es Salaam Delhi Hong Kong Istanbul Karachi Kolkata Kuala Lumpur Madrid Melbourne Mexico City Mumbai Nairobi São Paulo Shanghai Taipei Tokyo Toronto Oxford is a registered trade mark of Oxford University Press in the UK and in certain other countries Published in the United States by Oxford University Press Inc., New York © James Barr 1993 First published in paperback 1994 The moral rights of the authors have been asserted All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, without the prior permission in writing of Oxford University Press, or as expressly permitted by law, or under terms agreed with the appropriate reprographcs rights organization. Enquiries concerning reproduction outside the scope of the above should be sent to the Rights Department, Oxford University Press, at the address above You must not circulate this book in any other binding or cover and you must impose this same condition on any acquirer British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data Data available Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data Biblical faith and natural theology: the Gifford lectures for 1991, delivered in the University of Edinburgh/James Barr.
    [Show full text]
  • Aspects of Cyclic Myth in Chinese and Western Literature
    ASPECTS OF CYCLIC MYTH IN CHINESE AND WESTERN LITERATURE ROBERT SHAN-MU CHEN B.A., Soochow University, 1969 A THESIS SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENT FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF ARTS in the Programme of Comparative Literature We accept this thesis as conforming to the required standard THE UNIVERSITY OF. BRITISH COLUMBIA September, 197? Robert Shan-mu Chen, 1977 i In presenting this thesis in partial fulfilment of the requirements for an advanced degree at the University of British Columbia, I agree that the Library shall make it freely available for reference and study. I further agree that permission for extensive copying of this thesis for scholarly purposes may be granted by the Head of my Department or by his representatives. It is understood that copying or publication of this thesis for financial gain shall not be allowed without my written permission. Robert Shan-mu Chen Department of Comparative Literature The University of British Columbia 2075 Wesbrook Place Vancouver, Canada V6T 1W5 Datp October 20, 1977- J /ABSTRACT This thesis is a comparative study of the history and literary form of the cyclic myth in Chinese and Western European culture. The cyclic myth is seen as a complex of discrete myths and rituals which tend to identify man with the periodic regeneration of nature and celestial bodies in order to ensure personal duration against the flux of time. By comparing the origins and transformations of the cyclic myth in both cultures the essential distinctions between Chinese and Western literature will be re• vealed as both cosmological and ontological.
    [Show full text]