Cassandra and the Poetics of Prophecy in Greek and Latin Literature

Working from the example of the mythic prophet Cassandra, this book uses insights from translation theory to uncover the value of female seers' riddling prophecies in the most canonical of ancient Greek and Latin poetry. It will interest students and scholars of classics, translation studies, gender studies, and comparative literature.

List of contents

Introduction: translating Cassandra; 1. Understanding too much: Aeschylus' Agamemnon; 2. Rewriting her-story: Euripides' Trojan Women; 3. A scholarly prophet: Lycophron's Alexandra; 4. Greco-Roman Sibylline scripts: Virgil's Aeneid; 5. Cassandra translated: Seneca's Agamemnon; Conclusion: transposing Cassandra.

About the author

Emily Pillinger is Lecturer in Classics at King's College London. Her research interests range across Latin (and some Greek) poetry and poetics, focusing on themes that describe the power and fragility of both spoken and written communications: she has written on poetry associated with the utterance of prophecies and curses, with letter-writing, and with inscribed monuments. She also works on the reception of the ancient world, and particularly on the influence of Greco-Roman myth and history in music composed after the Second World War.

Summary

Working from the example of the mythic prophet Cassandra, this book uses insights from translation theory to uncover the value of female seers' riddling prophecies in the most canonical of ancient Greek and Latin poetry. It will interest students and scholars of classics, translation studies, gender studies, and comparative literature.

Product details

• Authors: Emily Pillinger, Emily (King's College London) Pillinger, Emily (King''s College London) Pillinger
• Publisher: Cambridge University Press ELT
• Languages: English
• Product format: Paperback / Softback
• Released: 10.11.2022
• EAN: 9781108462990
• ISBN: 978-1-108-46299-0
• No. of pages: 278
• Subjects: Humanities, art, music > History > Antiquity; Social sciences, law, business > Sociology > Sociological theories; Latin, HISTORY / Ancient / General, Translation & interpretation, Literary studies: classical, early & medieval, Literary studies: poetry & poets, Gender studies: women, Gender studies: women and girls, Ancient (Classical) Greek, Literary studies: ancient, classical and medieval, Literary studies: poetry and poets, Translation and interpretation