DOCSLIB.ORG

Of Gods and Men

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Of Gods and Men HISTORY OF UROLOGY Of gods and men BY JONATHAN CHARLES GODDARD n this series of articles I am going to show a healing temple was founded you some of the exhibits contained in the there in his name. Museum of Urology, hosted on the BAUS According to legend, Apollo Iwebsite (www.baus.org.uk). had a son with the mortal One of the most fascinating aspects of Coronis, the daughter of early Ancient Greek culture is the fuid Phlegyas, Prince of Thessaly; mingling between history and myth. Deep this son was Aesculapius. in the mists of time, names appear in the Unfortunately, Coronis was history of medicine of healers who may unfaithful to Apollo (or was have been real people, or not; may have rumoured to have been) and for been based on real people or indeed several this, Artemis, Apollo’s twin sister, people; or even just based on an idea or murdered her. With her dying school of thought. Some, and this is what I breath, Coronis told Apollo she love about the Ancient World, we are told, was carrying his child and he were related to, or were actually, gods. cut Aesculapius from her womb, Aesculapius is a name closely associated saving him; a caesarean section with medicine in Greece. It is unclear if a prior to Caesar! man with that name, who practised healing, The orphaned Aesculapius ever walked the earth. His name is linked was adopted and brought up by with a ‘school’ of medicine and religious Chiron the centaur (a mythical healing. His symbol, a snake wound around half man, half horse) who was Figure 2L: Hippocrates, as depicted on a small modern plaster bust. a staf, remains one of the emblems of skilled in medicine and taught modern medicine today (Figure 1). the young Aesculapius all he knew. developed in his name. Healing temples Aesculapius is mentioned in Homer’s epic were built called Aesculapia. Here, the sick poem the Iliad and his sons Machaon and came to see the priests (not doctors) and Podalirius were also skilled healers and are to sleep in the temple overnight. During said to have taken part in the Trojan War. their sleep, they hoped to dream of the god Machaon was wounded by Paris, Prince of who would come to them and heal them, or Troy, but survived to be one of the Greek tell them how they could be healed. If they heroes who hid inside the Wooden Horse. improved, the god had healed them, if not, He was said to have healed Philoctetes, maybe they were just not pious enough. the archer and owner of Hercules’s bow, There is some extant evidence of these of his appalling snakebite, thus allowing episodes in Greek poems and plays and Philoctates to return to Troy, slay Paris some stories were carved into stone stelae and help win the war. Machaon was at the Aesculapia at Epidaurus. subsequently killed at Troy. For example, a man came to the Homer also recorded an incident of Aesculapia with an abscess in his abdomen. urological trauma in the Iliad. Harpalion, This is an unusual description and one fghting for the Trojans, attacked Meneleus, wonders if it was a renal abscess pointing younger brother of Agamemnon, but into his loin. He dreamt that the god came Figure 1: Aesculapius, as depicted on the medal of the 16th International Medical Congress, held in Budapest, 1909. was unable to break his shield. As he to him and commanded his servants to hold retreated, he was shot with a bronze arrow him down and drain the abscess. When Aesculapius was said to be the son of by Meriones. The arrow pierced the right he awoke his pain had gone, his abscess Apollo. Apollo was a god, the son of Zeus, buttock, passed through the greater sciatic was drained and there was blood on the king of all the gods. He was the god of light, notch rupturing the bladder to exit under foor. If one were disinclined to believe the springtime and crops, and the god of the pubis. The wound was fatal. in the divine healing of Aesculapius, one healing. It is said Apollo was born at Delos; Podalirius, Aesculapius’s other son, may think he was perhaps sedated and survived the Trojan War but his ship was the priests did indeed drain the abscess, wrecked on the coast of Caria. There he maybe for the good. healed Syrna, the daughter of the king, and The descendants of Podalirius, son of subsequently married her, establishing the Aesculapius, settled in Rhodes, Cnidus “The writings of city of Syrnus (named afer his wife); more of and Cos. On the latter two islands, great Podalirius’s family later. medical schools emerged. The most Hippocrates contain many At some point, Aesculapius was deifed famous doctor of the school of Cos was early references to urology” and became a god and a healing cult Hippocrates. Hippocrates is thought to have 2 Urology News | JULY/AUGUST 2020| VOL 24 NO 5 | www.urologynews.uk.com HISTORY OF UROLOGY been born around 460BC into a medical Cos was Herophilus of Chalcedon (c.335 Unfortunately, I’m not able to tell you family (Figure 2). He was described by his – c.280BC). He became a doctor at the that all urologists are directly descended contemporary, Plato, as Hippocrates of Cos, great school of medicine in Alexandria in from gods. But Hippocrates does allow the Aesculepiad. Some felt this implied that the C3rdBC. It appears he studied human us to claim that we work in the oldest he and his family were medical priests of anatomy, very likely by dissection of human surgical specialty and when we do remove the temple of Aesculapius, but this doesn’t as well as animal corpses and possibly bladder stones we are carrying out the ft with his subsequent works, which were by vivisection of criminals. It has been oldest elective operation, one that was not based on magic and religion. The suggested he gave the frst description of the done on the shores of the Aegean Sea other theory suggests that Hippocrates prostate: “glands which poured a humor into under the watchful gaze of the gods was of the family of Aesculapius, via the the urinary passages of the male to excite of Mount Olympus. line of Podalirius, one suggestion being the sexual act.” Herophilius called these that he was the 17th direct descendent of glands parastatai adenoeides or glandular Aesculapius himself. assistants. It is more likely Herophilus was The writings of Hippocrates contain describing the seminal vesicles. many early references to urology. He Although the Greeks may not have been notes that wounds to the bladder, like truly aware of the prostate gland as an SECTION EDITOR that of poor Harpalion, were always fatal. anatomical concept, the presence of some This statement, adhered to for centuries, sof tissue mass at the base of the bladder probably delayed the use of the suprapubic and urethra must have been appreciated approach for bladder stones by hundreds by the Greco-Roman surgeons as they of years. Although Hippocrates advised attempted to pass catheters or dilators to against opening the abdomen, the drainage relieve bladder outfow obstruction. of pointing renal abscesses was encouraged, The prostate would also have been like our patient who dreamed his cure in the encountered as surgeons cut for the stone Aesculapia at Epidaurus. via the perineum. This procedure, perineal Hippocrates also noticed that, “Diseases lithotomy, also appears in Hippocrates, in Jonathan Charles Goddard, about the kidneys and bladder are cured fact in the Oath. The phrase, “I will not cut Curator of the Museum of Urology, hosted by BAUS; with difculty in old men” indicating some for the stone,” has been interpreted to mean Consultant Urological Surgeon, Leicester General recognition of the efects of the enlarged general physicians and surgeons should Hospital, Leicester, UK. prostate and ageing bladder we see so not attempt this difcult and dangerous E: [email protected] commonly now. Interestingly, one product procedure, but refer it to specialist stone of the Hippocratic School of medicine at surgeons, now known as urologists. Urology News | JULY/AUGUST 2020| VOL 24 NO 5 | www.urologynews.uk.com 3.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • The Iliad Homer
    The Iliad Homer BOOK I. How Agamemnon and Achilles fell out at the siege of Troy; and Achilles withdrew himself from battle, and won from Zeus a pledge that his wrong should be avenged on Agamemnon and the Achaians. Sing, goddess, the wrath of Achilles Peleus’ son, the ruinous wrath that brought on the Achaians woes innumerable, and hurled down into Hades many strong souls of heroes, and gave their bodies to be a prey to dogs and all winged fowls; and so the counsel of Zeus wrought out its accomplishment from the day when first strife parted Atreides king of men and noble Achilles. Who among the gods set the twain at strife and variance? Apollo, the son of Leto and of Zeus; for he in anger at the king sent a sore plague upon the host, so that the folk began to perish, because Atreides had done dishonour to Chryses the priest. For the priest had come to the Achaians’ fleet ships to win his daughter’s freedom, and brought a ransom beyond telling; and bare in his hands the fillet of Apollo the Far- darter upon a golden staff; and made his prayer unto all the Achaians, and most of all to the two sons of Atreus, orderers of the host; “Ye sons of Atreus and all ye well-greaved Achaians, now may the gods that dwell in the mansions of Olympus grant you to lay waste the city of Priam, and to fare happily homeward; only set ye my dear child free, and accept the ransom in reverence to the son of Zeus, far-darting Apollo.” The Iliad Homer Then all the other Achaians cried assent, to reverence the priest and accept his goodly ransom; yet the thing pleased not the heart of Agamemnon son of Atreus, but he roughly sent him away, and laid stern charge upon him, saying: “Let me not find thee, old man, amid the hollow ships, whether tarrying now or returning again hereafter, lest the staff and fillet of the god avail thee naught.
    [Show full text]
  • HOMERIC-ILIAD.Pdf
    Homeric Iliad Translated by Samuel Butler Revised by Soo-Young Kim, Kelly McCray, Gregory Nagy, and Timothy Power Contents Rhapsody 1 Rhapsody 2 Rhapsody 3 Rhapsody 4 Rhapsody 5 Rhapsody 6 Rhapsody 7 Rhapsody 8 Rhapsody 9 Rhapsody 10 Rhapsody 11 Rhapsody 12 Rhapsody 13 Rhapsody 14 Rhapsody 15 Rhapsody 16 Rhapsody 17 Rhapsody 18 Rhapsody 19 Rhapsody 20 Rhapsody 21 Rhapsody 22 Rhapsody 23 Rhapsody 24 Homeric Iliad Rhapsody 1 Translated by Samuel Butler Revised by Soo-Young Kim, Kelly McCray, Gregory Nagy, and Timothy Power [1] Anger [mēnis], goddess, sing it, of Achilles, son of Peleus— 2 disastrous [oulomenē] anger that made countless pains [algea] for the Achaeans, 3 and many steadfast lives [psūkhai] it drove down to Hādēs, 4 heroes’ lives, but their bodies it made prizes for dogs [5] and for all birds, and the Will of Zeus was reaching its fulfillment [telos]— 6 sing starting from the point where the two—I now see it—first had a falling out, engaging in strife [eris], 7 I mean, [Agamemnon] the son of Atreus, lord of men, and radiant Achilles. 8 So, which one of the gods was it who impelled the two to fight with each other in strife [eris]? 9 It was [Apollo] the son of Leto and of Zeus. For he [= Apollo], infuriated at the king [= Agamemnon], [10] caused an evil disease to arise throughout the mass of warriors, and the people were getting destroyed, because the son of Atreus had dishonored Khrysēs his priest. Now Khrysēs had come to the ships of the Achaeans to free his daughter, and had brought with him a great ransom [apoina]: moreover he bore in his hand the scepter of Apollo wreathed with a suppliant’s wreath [15] and he besought the Achaeans, but most of all the two sons of Atreus, who were their chiefs.
    [Show full text]
  • Sophocles' Philoctetes Roisman, Hanna M Greek, Roman and Byzantine Studies; Summer 1997; 38, 2; Proquest Pg
    The appropriation of a son: Sophocles' Philoctetes Roisman, Hanna M Greek, Roman and Byzantine Studies; Summer 1997; 38, 2; ProQuest pg. 127 The Appropriation of a Son: Sophocles' Philoctetes Hanna M. Roisman ANHOOD in archaic and classical Greece-as in modern times-is generally manifested not so much in relation­ M ships with women as in relationships with other men, especially in the relationship between father and son. The Greek male is expected to produce sons who will continue his oikos (e.g. Soph. Ant. 641-45; Eur. Ale. 62lf, 654-57). Further, as Hesiod makes clear, sons should resemble their fathers in both looks and conduct, especially the latter (Op. 182,235; ef Ii. 6.476-81; Theophr. Char. 5.5). Such resemblance earns the father public esteem and proves his manliness; the lack of it may be cause for disparagement and calls his manliness into question. 1 We learn from Ajax and Philoctetes that Sophocles follows the Hesiodic imperative that sons should resemble their fathers in their natures and their accomplishments. Ajax sees himself as an unworthy son, having lost Achilles' arms to Odysseus, and prefers to commit suicide rather than face his father, Telamon, who took part in Heracles' expedition to Troy and got Hesione, the best part of the booty, as a reward (Aj. 430-40,462-65, 470ff, 1300-303; Diod. 4.32.5). At the same time, he expects his son, Eurysaces, to be like himself in nature, valor, and in everything else ('ttl.~' aA.A.' OIlOlO~, Aj. 545-51). Sophocles' Philoctetes, on the other hand, presents the strug­ gle between Odysseus and Philoctetes for the 'paternity' of Neoptolemus, as each tries to mold the young man in his own 1 Even in contemporary Greece the intense male rivalry for proving oneself takes place among men alone, while women and flocks serve as the object of this rivalry.
    [Show full text]
  • Dares Phrygius' De Excidio Trojae Historia: Philological Commentary and Translation
    Faculteit Letteren & Wijsbegeerte Dares Phrygius' De Excidio Trojae Historia: Philological Commentary and Translation Jonathan Cornil Scriptie voorgedragen tot het bekomen van de graad van Master in de Taal- en letterkunde (Latijn – Engels) 2011-2012 Promotor: Prof. Dr. W. Verbaal ii Table of Contents Table of Contents iii Foreword v Introduction vii Chapter I. De Excidio Trojae Historia: Philological and Historical Comments 1 A. Dares and His Historia: Shrouded in Mystery 2 1. Who Was ‘Dares the Phrygian’? 2 2. The Role of Cornelius Nepos 6 3. Time of Origin and Literary Environment 9 4. Analysing the Formal Characteristics 11 B. Dares as an Example of ‘Rewriting’ 15 1. Homeric Criticism and the Trojan Legacy in the Middle Ages 15 2. Dares’ Problematic Connection with Dictys Cretensis 20 3. Comments on the ‘Lost Greek Original’ 27 4. Conclusion 31 Chapter II. Translations 33 A. Translating Dares: Frustra Laborat, Qui Omnibus Placere Studet 34 1. Investigating DETH’s Style 34 2. My Own Translations: a Brief Comparison 39 3. A Concise Analysis of R.M. Frazer’s Translation 42 B. Translation I 50 C. Translation II 73 D. Notes 94 Bibliography 95 Appendix: the Latin DETH 99 iii iv Foreword About two years ago, I happened to be researching Cornelius Nepos’ biography of Miltiades as part of an assignment for a class devoted to the study of translating Greek and Latin texts. After heaping together everything I could find about him in the library, I came to the conclusion that I still needed more information. So I decided to embrace my identity as a loyal member of the ‘Internet generation’ and began my virtual journey through the World Wide Web in search of articles on Nepos.
    [Show full text]
  • Ebook Download Troy: Lord of the Silver Bow No.1: Lord of The
    TROY: LORD OF THE SILVER BOW NO.1: LORD OF THE SILVER BOW PDF, EPUB, EBOOK David Gemmell | 640 pages | 04 Apr 2006 | Transworld Publishers Ltd | 9780552151115 | English | London, United Kingdom Lord of the Silver Bow | David Gemmell Wiki | Fandom DG: My imagination always runs wild—for which I am more than thankful. Andromache is a great character. When authors talk of great characters, what they really mean is easy. Some characters are tough to write. The author has to constantly stop and work out what they will say or do. With the great characters, this problem disappears. Their dialogue flows instantly, their actions likewise. A friend of mine calls them "Ricks Bar characters," from the film Casablanca. Some characters you have to build, like a sculptor carving them from rock. Q:You present Agammemnon and the Mykene as arrogant, brutal warmongers, which is pretty much how Homer depicts them too. DG: Alexander the Great is remembered the same way. They had developed universities, in order for young people from peasant families to be educated. They had an international postal service, so that letters could be sent all over the empire. They had a form of social security so that their people did not starve during famines. They wanted to share their knowledge, and so built a great library containing works of history, science, and religion. They had interpreters there so that foreigners could learn the secrets they has so patiently gathered. The entire works of Zoroaster were kept there, inscribed with gold on sheepskin. Alexander, while drunk, thought it would be great fun to burn it all down.
    [Show full text]
  • Cleon's Zombie in the First Parabasis of the Clouds
    Cleon’s Zombie in the First Parabasis of the Clouds (591-4) It is common knowledge among classicists that the Clouds we possess today is not the original version staged by Aristophanes in 423 BCE but a revised edition that circulated some years later. An important piece of evidence for this claim comes from the first parabasis of the play, where the chorus addresses the Athenian audience and criticizes them severely for falling short of the high ideas of the play (510-626). Additionally, the chorus charges the Athenians with the inability to notice and interpret properly the signs given by the clouds themselves as well as the celestial bodies concerning Cleon’s generalship: despite the lightning and the thunder caused by the frowning clouds, despite the very bad weather which made it seem like there was a lunar and a solar eclipse, the Athenians elected Cleon to his generalship. All this refers to Cleon’s election as one of the ten generals in 424 BCE, in the latter half of which Aristophanes probably wrote the play (Dover 1968). The text continues as follows: “If you convict that vulture Cleon of bribery and theft, then clamp his neck in the pillory, your situation will be as it was before, and everything will turn out better for the city, in spite of your mistake” (591-4; transl. Henderson ). The tense used by Aristophanes indicates that this part of the text belongs to the earlier version of the Clouds, since Cleon was killed in the battle of Amphipolis in 422 BCE and such an utterance would make no sense in the theater after the summer of 422 BCE (Dover 1968; Henderson 1993).
    [Show full text]
  • Nick Susa Epic Mythomemology – the Iliad Book 1: Achilles Was Fighting
    Nick Susa Epic Mythomemology – The Iliad Book 1: Achilles was fighting alongside Agamemnon, the King of Argos, during the Trojan war. After winning a battle each was given a war prize, a woman. Achilles was given Briseis, and Agamemnon was given Chryseis. However, the father of Chryseis, Chryses, who was also a priest of Apollo, wasn’t ready to part with his daughter and came with a ransom for his daughter for King Agamemnon. Agamemnon refused the ransom in favor of keeping Chryseis and threatened the priest. Horrified and upset the priest (Chryses) calls upon Apollo and asks him to put a plague upon the Achaean armies, one of which Agamemnon leads. For nine days the armies were struck with a plague, on the tenth Achilles called a meeting to find the reason for the plague. Calchas, a prophet and follower of Apollo, being protected by Achilles, explains that Agamemnon refusing the ransom was the reason for the plague and he must return the girl and make a sacrifice of one hundred cows to Apollo in order to end the plague. Agamemnon decides to appease Apollo, but only if he can take away Achilles war prize, Briseis. Achilles doesn’t believe that Agamemnon should gain Briseis, so the two begin to argue. Achilles decides that he and his men shall not fight in the war because of Agamemnon’s actions. After Agamemnon takes Briseis away, Achilles cries and prays to his mother, Thetis, asking her to have Zeus grant the Achaean armies many loses. Zeus was not around to be asked though, but after twelve days, he returns and promises to Thetis that he will grant the Trojans many victories and the Achaeans many losses.
    [Show full text]
  • Trojan War - Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia Trojan War from Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia for the 1997 Film, See Trojan War (Film)
    5/14/2014 Trojan War - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Trojan War From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia For the 1997 film, see Trojan War (film). In Greek mythology, the Trojan War was waged against the city of Troy by the Achaeans (Greeks) after Paris of Troy took Helen Trojan War from her husband Menelaus king of Sparta. The war is one of the most important events in Greek mythology and has been narrated through many works of Greek literature, most notably through Homer's Iliad. The Iliad relates a part of the last year of the siege of Troy; its sequel, the Odyssey describes Odysseus's journey home. Other parts of the war are described in a cycle of epic poems, which have survived through fragments. Episodes from the war provided material for Greek tragedy and other works of Greek literature, and for Roman poets including Virgil and Ovid. The war originated from a quarrel between the goddesses Athena, Hera, and Aphrodite, after Eris, the goddess of strife and discord, gave them a golden apple, sometimes known as the Apple of Discord, marked "for the fairest". Zeus sent the goddesses to Paris, who judged that Aphrodite, as the "fairest", should receive the apple. In exchange, Aphrodite made Helen, the most beautiful Achilles tending the wounded Patroclus of all women and wife of Menelaus, fall in love with Paris, who (Attic red-figure kylix, c. 500 BC) took her to Troy. Agamemnon, king of Mycenae and the brother of Helen's husband Menelaus, led an expedition of Achaean The war troops to Troy and besieged the city for ten years because of Paris' Setting: Troy (modern Hisarlik, Turkey) insult.
    [Show full text]
  • Some Evidence of the Worship of Apollo Physician (Ietroos) in Ancient Greece and the Black Sea Coast
    CONTENTS GENERAL ASPECTS OF HISTORY AND PHILOSOPHY OF MEDICINE Herophilus and vivisection: a re-appraisal . 5 J. Ganz HISTORY OF MEDICAL DISCIPLINES Philippe Ricord – prominent venereologist of the XIX century . 13 K.A. Pashkov, M.S. Betekhtin Development of national system of pharmaceutical education in 1920–1930: Moscow medico-pharmaceutical combine . 18 M.S. Sergeeva FROM THE HISTORY OF HEALTHCARE Zemstvo district medicine and charity in Russia . 29 L.E. Gorelova, T.I. Surovtseva The formation of factory legislation on health protection in Europe and Russia in the 19th to early 20th centuries . 35 I.V. Karpenko FROM THE HISTORY OF RUSSIAN MEDICINE Stages of formation and further development of domestic cardiology. Part 1 . 40 V.I. Borodulin, S.P. Glyantsev, A.V. Topolianskiy On the Biography of Professor and Psychiatrist Anatoly Kotsovsky (1864−1937) . 48 K.K. Vasylyev, Yu.K. Vasylyev Professor of surgery at the University of Moscow I.P. Aleksinsky: his life and work in Russia and in emigration . 55 O.A. Trefi lova, I.A. Rozanov INTERDISCIPLINARY RESEARCH Some evidence of the worship of Apollo Physician (Ietroos) in ancient Greece and the Black Sea Coast . 73 E.S. Naumova SPECIFIC QUESTIONS IN THE HISTORY OF MEDICINE Physiological and pathophysiological aspects in Herophilos writings . 81 L.D. Maltseva SOURCE Continuity in the views of Hippocrates and Galen on the nature of the human body . 89 D.A. Balalykin 4 INTERDISCIPLINARY RESEARCH Some evidence of the worship of Apollo Physician (Ietroos) in ancient Greece and the Black Sea Coast E.S. Naumova I.M. Sechenov First Moscow Medical University, The Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation Based on the analysis of some contexts of ancient authors and epigraphic material we are talking about the place that takes the function of Apollo Ietroos in a complex set of Apollo`s functions.
    [Show full text]
  • CLA 2323A Greek Mythology
    Outline of the Iliad CLCV 2000A Classical Mythology Book 1 C. Hektor finds Andromache and Astyanax (369-502) I. The Quarrel (1-430) V. Paris and Hektor return to the fighting (503-529) II. Return of Chryseis to her home (430-492) Book 7 III. Balancing scene among the gods (493-611) I. Hektor and Paris return to battle (1-16) Book 2 II. Duel between Hektor and Aias (17-322) I. Agamemnon tests the army (1-154) III. Fighting halted to bury the dead (323-482) A. Odysseus recalls the troops (155-210) A. Greeks dig walls around ships (323-344) B. Thersites episode (211-332) B. Paris refuses to return Helen but offers other gifts (345-397) C. Nestor’s counsel (333-483) C. Greeks refuse Paris’ gifts (398-420) II. Catalogue of Greek Ships (484-785) D. Cremation of dead, Greeks build walls (421-482) III. Catalogue of Trojan troops (786-877) Book 8 Book 3 I. Assembly of gods; Zeus forbids gods to take part in battle (1-52) I. Truce by single combat between Paris and Menelaos (1-120) II. A day of fighting (53-349) II. The Teichoskopeia (Helen’s ‘View from the Wall’) (121-244) A. Battle begins with the scales of Zeus (53-65) III. The duel and the rescue (245-382) B. Nestor threatened by Hektor, rescued by Diomedes (78-166) IV. Helen and Paris (383-461) C. Advance of Trojans under Hektor (167-216) Book 4 D. Agamemnon rallies troops (217-334) I. Pandaros breaks the truce (1-122) E.
    [Show full text]
  • The Nosos of Athens: Disease and Healing in Sophocles' Philoctetes
    The Nosos of Athens: Disease and Healing in Sophocles’ Philoctetes The tragic quality of Philoctetes continues to be a debated topic in scholarship. The play is undoubtedly agonizing in parts, but the deus ex machina of Heracles and the implied victory in Troy do not seem to provide the audience with the same Aristotelian catharsis (Poetics 1449b21- 28) we might expect from Sophoclean drama. Some aspects of Philoctetes recall earlier plot devices in the tragedies of Sophocles, in that a mistake is made, and horrible consequences are suffered: Philoctetes was bitten by a snake, and he suffers from a festering wound. However, the ending of the play, unlike most of Sophocles’ other dramas, is not catastrophic. After retrieving Philoctetes and his bow, Neoptolemus and Odysseus head off to Troy and we understand that they are successful in their goal of fulfilling Helenus’ requirements to take the city. Philoctetes ultimately returns home safely, after being healed by Machaon, son of Asclepius, in Troy. Given this positive ending, what is it about the suffering of Philoctetes in this play that moved the Athenian audience, and continues to move readers today? This presentation focuses on the language of sickness in Philoctetes and the suggested cure for his nosos: Machaon the physician, son of Asclepius. Later tradition (Plutarch and other sources) suggests that Sophocles had a special connection to the cult of Asclepius, but little textual proof of this exists from the fifth century. Robin Mitchell-Boyask’s work posits a place- based connection unrelated to text: he notes the proximity of the temple of Asclepius to the Theater of Dionysus at this time, and the high level of interest in his cult, coinciding with the popularity of Hippocratic medicine (2008:112).
    [Show full text]
  • Sophoclean Tragedy and the Cult of Asclepius Molly C
    University of New Mexico UNM Digital Repository Foreign Languages & Literatures ETDs Electronic Theses and Dissertations Spring 4-2-2018 Drama as Dream: Sophoclean Tragedy and the Cult of Asclepius Molly C. Mata University of New Mexico Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalrepository.unm.edu/fll_etds Part of the Classical Literature and Philology Commons, Comparative Literature Commons, French and Francophone Language and Literature Commons, and the German Language and Literature Commons Recommended Citation Mata, Molly C.. "Drama as Dream: Sophoclean Tragedy and the Cult of Asclepius." (2018). https://digitalrepository.unm.edu/ fll_etds/126 This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by the Electronic Theses and Dissertations at UNM Digital Repository. It has been accepted for inclusion in Foreign Languages & Literatures ETDs by an authorized administrator of UNM Digital Repository. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Molly C. Mata Candidate Foreign Languages and Literatures Department This thesis is approved, and it is acceptable in quality and form for publication: Approved by the Thesis Committee: Professor Monica S. Cyrino, Chairperson Professor Lorenzo F. Garcia, Jr. Professor Osman Umurhan DRAMA AS DREAM: SOPHOCLEAN TRAGEDY AND THE CULT OF ASCLEPIUS by MOLLY C. MATA B.B.A., MANAGEMENT, ANGELO STATE UNIVERSITY 2009 B.A., CLASSICAL STUDIES AND HUMANITIES, UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS AT SAN ANTONIO 2014 THESIS Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of MASTER OF ARTS COMPARATIVE LITERATURE AND CULTURAL STUDIES The University of New Mexico Albuquerque, New Mexico MAY, 2018 Acknowledgements My thesis would not have been completed without the direction, support, and editorial advice of my thesis committee.
    [Show full text]