The Cult of Castor and Pollux in Ancient Rome
The Cult of Castor and Pollux in Ancient Rome

Author: Amber Gartrell

Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Published: 2021-04-29

Total Pages: 424

ISBN-13: 1108800254

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The Dioscuri first appeared at the Battle of Lake Regillus in 496 BC to save the new Republic. Receiving a temple in the Forum in gratitude, the gods continued to play an important role in Roman life for centuries and took on new responsibilities as the needs of the society evolved. Protectors of elite horsemen, boxers and sailors, they also served as guarantors of the Republic's continuation and, eventually, as models for potential future emperors. Over the course of centuries, the cult and its temples underwent many changes. In this book, Amber Gartrell explores the evolution of the cult. Drawing on a range of methodological approaches and a wide range of ancient evidence, she focuses on four key aspects: the gods' two temples in Rome, their epiphanies, their protection of varied groups, and their role as divine parallels for imperial heirs, revealing how religion, politics and society interacted and influenced each other.

More Than Allegory
More Than Allegory

Author: Bernardo Kastrup

Publisher: John Hunt Publishing

Published: 2016-04-29

Total Pages: 249

ISBN-13: 1785352881

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This book is a three-part journey into the rabbit hole we call the nature of reality. Its ultimate destination is a plausible, living validation of transcendence. Each of its three parts is like a turn of a spiral, exploring recurring ideas through the prisms of religious myth, truth and belief, respectively. With each turn, the book seeks to convey a more nuanced and complete understanding of the many facets of transcendence. Part I puts forward the controversial notion that many religious myths are actually true; and not just allegorically so. Part II argues that our own inner storytelling plays a surprising role in creating the seeming concreteness of things and the tangibility of history. Part III suggests, in the form of a myth, how deeply ingrained belief systems create the world we live in. The three themes, myth, truth and belief, flow into and interpenetrate each other throughout the book.

The Fragility of Power
The Fragility of Power

Author: Stefano Rebeggiani

Publisher: Oxford University Press

Published: 2018-09-10

Total Pages: 334

ISBN-13: 0190882921

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Statius' narrative of the fraternal strife of the Theban brothers Eteocles and Polynices has had a profound influence on Western literature and fascinated generations of scholars and readers. This book studies in detail the poem's view of power and its interaction with historical contexts. Written under Domitian and in the aftermath of the civil war of 69 CE, the Thebaid uses the veil of myth to reflect on the political reality of imperial Rome. The poem offers its contemporary readers, including the emperor, a cautionary tale of kingship and power. Rooted in a pessimistic view of human beings and human relationships, the Thebaid reflects on the harsh necessity of monarchical power as the only antidote to a world always on the verge of returning to chaos. While humans, and especially kings, are fragile and often the prey of irrational passions, the Thebaid expresses the hope that an illuminated sovereign endowed with clementia (mercy) may offer a solution to the political crisis of the Roman empire. Statius' narrative also responds to Domitian's problematic interaction with the emperor Nero, whom Domitian regarded as both a negative model and a secret source of inspiration. With The Fragility of Power, Stefano Rebeggiani offers thoughtful parallels between the actions of the Thebaid and the intellectual activities and political views formulated by the groups of Roman aristocrats who survived Nero's repression. He argues that the poem draws inspiration from an initial phase in Domitian's regime characterized by a positive relationship between the emperor and the Roman elite. Statius creates a number of innovative strategies to negotiate elements of continuity between Domitian and Nero, so as to show that, while Domitian recuperated aspects of Nero's self-presentation, he was no second Nero. Statius' poem interacts with aspects of imperial ideology under Domitian: Statius' allusions to the stories of Phaethon and Hercules engage Domitian's use of solar symbols and his association with Hercules. This book also shows that the Thebaid adapts previous texts (in particular Lucan's Bellum Civile) in order to connect the mythical subject of its narrative with the historical experience of civil war in Rome in 69 CE. By moving past recent solely aesthetic readings of the Thebaid, The Fragility of Power offers a serious and thoughtful addition to the recent scholarship in Statian studies.

The Gymnasium of Virtue
The Gymnasium of Virtue

Author: Nigel M. Kennell

Publisher: Univ of North Carolina Press

Published: 1995

Total Pages: 262

ISBN-13: 9780807822197

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From antiquity to the present, the ancient city of Sparta has been seen as a model either of discipline, obedience, and virtue or of totalitarianism, conformity, and tyranny. But virtually all observers, regardless of their image of the city, have agreed that the government-run educational system, or agoge, formed the cornerstone of the distinctive Spartan way of life. The Gymnasium of Virtue is the first book devoted exclusively to the study of education in ancient Sparta, covering the period from the sixth century B.C. to the fourth century A.D. In placing the agoge in its proper historical and cultural context, Nigel Kennell refutes the popular notion that classical Spartan education was a conservative amalgam of "primitive" customs not found elsewhere in Greece. He argues instead that later political and cultural movements made the system appear to be more distinctive than it actually had been, as a means of asserting Sparta's claim to be a unique society. Using epigraphical, literary, and archaeological evidence, Kennell describes the development of all aspects of Spartan education, including the age-grade system and the physical contests that were integral to the system, among them the notorious endurance contest, at which naked boys were flogged in public. He shows that Spartan education reached its apogee in the early Roman Empire, when Spartans sought to distinguish themselves from other Greeks. Specifically, Kennell attributes many of the changes instituted in the later period to one person - the philosopher Sphaerus the Borysthenite, who was an adviser to the revolutionary king Cleomenes III in the third century B.C.

Shattered Union (An action packed science fiction adventure)
Shattered Union (An action packed science fiction adventure)

Author: Steve P. Vincent

Publisher: Steve P. Vincent

Published: 2023-03-28

Total Pages: 226

ISBN-13:

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Continue this explosive science fiction series by USA Today Bestselling author Steve P. Vincent… A final victory won. A new threat in the shadows. Sergeant Talon Stiler is finally back home, a hero after he sent the hated alien Dioscuri packing and saved humanity from the brink of disaster. But in his experience, peace doesn’t often last long in the great expanse of the galaxy. On Shellanth, one of the industrial powerhouses of the Terran Union, Stiler will soon find not everyone is keen on his newfound status. Facing threats in front of him - and from behind - he soon finds himself in another battle for the future of the Union. And this enemy makes the Dioscuri look tame… If you like James S.A. Corey’s The Expanse series, or novels by Frank Herbert, Kevin J. Anderson or Iian Banks, you’ll be right at home in The Frontier Saga.