UID:
almafu_9961152578602883
Format:
1 online resource (360 pages)
ISBN:
1501752359
,
9781501752360
Series Statement:
Myth and poetics ; 2
Content:
This text explores the content, character, & structure of the Homeric Odyssey through a modern psychological lens, focusing on how the epic both represents the workings of the human mind & provides for its audiences - both ancient & modern - a therapeutic model for coping with the exigencies of chance & fate. By reading the Odyssey as an exploration of the constitutive elements of human identity, the function of narrative in defining the self, & the interaction between the individual & their social context, the book addresses enduring questions about the poem, such as the importance of Telemachus's role, why Odysseus must tell his own tale, & the epic's sudden & unexpected closure. Through these dynamics, the book reasons, the Odyssey not only instructs readers about how narrative shapes a sense of agency but also offers solutions for avoiding dangerous stories & destructive patterns of thought.
Note:
Homeric psychology -- Treating Telemachus: education and learned helplessness -- Escape from Ogygia: an isolated man -- Odysseus's Apologoi and narrative therapy -- Odysseus's lies: correspondences, coherence, and narrative agency -- Marginalized agencies and narrative selves -- Penelope's subordinated agency -- The politics of Ithaca: from collective trauma to amnesty's end -- The therapy of oblivion, unforgettable pain and the Odyssey's end -- Conclusion: escaping (the) story's bounds.
Additional Edition:
Online version: Christensen, Joel (Joel P.) The many-minded man. Ithaca [New York] : Cornell University Press, 2020 ISBN 9781501752353
Language:
English
DOI:
10.1515/9781501752360
