Scylla
Myth, Metaphor, Paradox

This book uses the example of a famous sea-monster from Greek myth to offer a new way of understanding mythical symbols.

Marianne Govers Hopman (Author)

9781107026766, Cambridge University Press

Hardback, published 3 January 2013

317 pages, 28 b/w illus.
23.5 x 15.7 x 2 cm, 0.64 kg

'The first book length study of Scylla and Hopman does a real service through her meticulous collation of material.' The Times Literary Supplement

What's in a name? Using the example of a famous monster from Greek myth, this book challenges the dominant view that a mythical symbol denotes a single, clear-cut 'figure' and proposes instead to define the name 'Scylla' as a combination of three concepts - sea, dog and woman - whose articulation changes over time. While archaic and classical Greek versions usually emphasize the metaphorical coherence of Scylla's components, the name is increasingly treated as a well-defined but also paradoxical construct from the late fourth century BCE onward. Proceeding through detailed analyses of Greek and Roman texts and images, Professor Hopman shows how the same name can variously express anxieties about the sea, dogs, aggressive women and shy maidens, thus offering an empirical response to the semiotic puzzle raised by non-referential proper names.

Introduction
Part I. Scylla in the Odyssey: 1. The impregnable monster
2. A poetic hazard
3. The gullet of the sea
4. Puzzles and riddles
Part II. Scylla in Classical Greece: 5. A feminine composite
6. Scylla as Femme Fatale
7. The untamed maiden
Part III. Scylla in Hellenistic Greece and Rome: 8. Rationalizing the monster
9. Organizing the tradition
10. Roman versions of a Greek myth
11. Psychology and re-semanticization in Ovid's Metamorphoses
Epilogue.

Subject Areas: Folklore, myths & legends [JFHF], Ancient religions & mythologies [HRKP], Social & cultural history [HBTB], Classical history / classical civilisation [HBLA1], Ancient history: to c 500 CE [HBLA]