This paper offers a detailed study of the issue of social formation and social order in Hesiod’s cosmogony.I argue that,according to Hesiod’s genesis theory,order in a society cannot be established organically throu...This paper offers a detailed study of the issue of social formation and social order in Hesiod’s cosmogony.I argue that,according to Hesiod’s genesis theory,order in a society cannot be established organically through social formation.The main difficulty lies in the nature of society itself where the dualistic opposition in the male-female sexual relationship leads to endless conflicts between the two sexes and,further,between generations.To deal with the sexual relationship properly is the key to maintaining a stable social order.In the poem,the mother’s‘dark womb’is presented as a prominent image at every crucial moment of social formation and social(dis)ordering in both the divine and the human worlds.Taking this image as a clue,we can see that the issue of sexuality has a profound impact on social order,and also serves as a key to understanding divinity and humanity in Hesiod’s cosmogony.展开更多
Starting with a personal definition of ＂myth＂, this paper seeks to substantiate the claim that every myth is essentially etiological, in the sense that myths somehow express a cosmogony or an eschatology, whether pa...Starting with a personal definition of ＂myth＂, this paper seeks to substantiate the claim that every myth is essentially etiological, in the sense that myths somehow express a cosmogony or an eschatology, whether particular or universal. In order to do that, this study reassesses Classical and Judeo-Christian mythologies to revisit and contrast the narratives of origin--of the cosmos, of the gods and of men--found in ancient polytheism and in Judeo-Christian monotheism. Taking into consideration how these general and particular cosmogonies convey a specific understanding of the passage of time, this article does not merely recount the cosmogonies, theogonies, and anthropogonies found in the Bible and in the works of authors from Classical Antiquity, but it also incorporates a critical commentary on pieces of art and literature that have reinterpreted such mythical tales in more recent times The result of the research is the disclosure of a sort of universal etiology that may be found in mythology which, as argued, explains the origins of the world, of the gods, and of men so as to satisfy humankind＇s ambition to unveil the mysteries of the cosmos. Myth thus functions in these cases as a vehicle that makes it possible for man to return the fullness of a primordial age, abandoning the fleeting time that entraps him and entering a time still absolute展开更多
基金this paper is funded by projects:(1)Tsinghua University Independent Research Project of Humanities,Grant No.2022THZWJC20(2)The Ministry of Education’s“Chunhui Plan”Cooperative Research Project:A Study of the Family in the Origins of Western Civilization,Grant No.HZKY20220045(3)Major Programs of National Social Science Fund:Translation and Research of Hellenistic Literature,Grant No.22&ZD293.
文摘This paper offers a detailed study of the issue of social formation and social order in Hesiod’s cosmogony.I argue that,according to Hesiod’s genesis theory,order in a society cannot be established organically through social formation.The main difficulty lies in the nature of society itself where the dualistic opposition in the male-female sexual relationship leads to endless conflicts between the two sexes and,further,between generations.To deal with the sexual relationship properly is the key to maintaining a stable social order.In the poem,the mother’s‘dark womb’is presented as a prominent image at every crucial moment of social formation and social(dis)ordering in both the divine and the human worlds.Taking this image as a clue,we can see that the issue of sexuality has a profound impact on social order,and also serves as a key to understanding divinity and humanity in Hesiod’s cosmogony.
文摘Starting with a personal definition of ＂myth＂, this paper seeks to substantiate the claim that every myth is essentially etiological, in the sense that myths somehow express a cosmogony or an eschatology, whether particular or universal. In order to do that, this study reassesses Classical and Judeo-Christian mythologies to revisit and contrast the narratives of origin--of the cosmos, of the gods and of men--found in ancient polytheism and in Judeo-Christian monotheism. Taking into consideration how these general and particular cosmogonies convey a specific understanding of the passage of time, this article does not merely recount the cosmogonies, theogonies, and anthropogonies found in the Bible and in the works of authors from Classical Antiquity, but it also incorporates a critical commentary on pieces of art and literature that have reinterpreted such mythical tales in more recent times The result of the research is the disclosure of a sort of universal etiology that may be found in mythology which, as argued, explains the origins of the world, of the gods, and of men so as to satisfy humankind＇s ambition to unveil the mysteries of the cosmos. Myth thus functions in these cases as a vehicle that makes it possible for man to return the fullness of a primordial age, abandoning the fleeting time that entraps him and entering a time still absolute
