Ancient Greek Myth in Modern Greek Poetry

Originally published in 1996, this volume contains essays by scholars, critics and translators and includes themes such as the myth in the Cretan Renaissance and the use of ancient myth by 19th and 20th Century poets. Some essays deal with individual mythical figures such as Odysseus, Orpheus, Prometheus and Aphrodite, while others deal with the problematic issue of the use of myth by Greek women poets. The discussion is completed by comparing attitudes to the ancient Greeks as embodied in English and modern Greek poetry.

Peter Mackridge was Professor of Modern Greek at Oxford University.

1. Introduction Peter Mackridge 2. From the Poem 'For Constantine Trypanis' Peter Levi 3. The Function of Myth in Cretan Renaissance Poetry: The Cases of Achelis and Kornaros David Holton 4. The Idea of the Hero in Ancient and Nineteenth-Century Greek Poetry N. J. Richardson 5. Palamas and the Ancient Myth of the Poet David Ricks 6. Cavafy's Mythical Ephebes Sarah Ekdawi 7. An Approach to the Meaning of Myth in the Poetry of Sikelianos Philip Sherrard 8. Seferis and the Myth of Adonis Katerina Krikos-Davis 9. Ritsos's Orestes: The Politics of Myth and the Anarchy of Rhetoric Dimitris Tziovas 10. Nostos and the Poet's Vision in Seferis and Ritsos Edmund Keeley 11. The Theme of the Second Odyssey in Cavafy and Sinopoulos Michael Pieris 12. 'Helen or Penelope?' Women Writers, Myth and the Problem of Gender Roles Christopher Robinson 13. Bruised Necks and Crumpled Petticoats: What's Left of Myth in Contemporary Greek Women's Poetry Karen Van Dyck 14. Aphrodite at War: The Wartime Poetry of Embirikos, Kaknavatos, Papatsonis and Seferis Roderick Beaton 15. The Changing Face of Orpheus: From Greek Romanticism to the Prague Spring Elli Philokyprou 16. The Prometheus Myth in Modern Greek Poetry and Drama: An Outline and Two Examples Yorgis Yatromanolakis 17. The Anxiety of Influence in Greek and English Poetry Peter Bien. Index of Mythical Characters.