Witches, Isis and Narrative: Approaches to Magic in Apuleius' Metamorphoses (Trends in Classics - Supplementary Volumes - Volume 2)

270 Pages·2008·1.42 MB·English

by  Stavros Frangoulidis

Stavros Frangoulidis
Witches, Isis and Narrative
≥
Trends in Classics -
Supplementary Volumes
Edited by
Franco Montanari and Antonios Rengakos
Scientific Committee
Alberto Bernabe´ · Margarethe Billerbeck · Claude Calame
Philip R. Hardie · Stephen J. Harrison · Stephen Hinds
Richard Hunter · Christina Kraus · Giuseppe Mastromarco
Gregory Nagy · Theodore D. Papanghelis · Giusto Picone
Kurt Raaflaub · Bernhard Zimmermann
Volume 2
Walter de Gruyter · Berlin · New York
Witches, Isis and Narrative
Approaches to Magic
in Apuleius’ Metamorphoses
by
Stavros Frangoulidis
Walter de Gruyter · Berlin · New York
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Antonios & Chryssoula

Contents
Acknowledgements .................................... XI
Text and Figure Acknowledgements ......................XIII
Introduction ......................................... 1
Chapter1 The Onos versus Apuleius’ Metamorphoses ........... 13
The arrival at Hypata ................................. 15
Encounter with magic ................................ 27
Wanderings ........................................ 30
Reformation ........................................ 39
Return home / Isis .................................. 41
Chapter2 Lucius versus Socrates and Aristomenes ............ 46
Comparisons ........................................ 48
Frustrating expectations ............................... 61
Chapter3 Lucius’ and Milo’s Tales of Diophanes and Asinius’
Prophecy: Internal Readers and the Author ................. 69
The exchange of tales ................................ 70
Lucius versus Cerdo .................................. 76
The prophecies of Diophanes and Asinius Marcellus ........ 78
Chapter4 Lucius versus Thelyphron....................... 85
Contact with magic .................................. 90
Consequences ....................................... 91
Revelation of events ................................. 98
Playing with expectations .............................. 103
Misfortunes – restoration / prolongation of misfortunes ...... 105
Chapter5 The Tale of Cupid and Psyche as a Mythic Variant of
the Novel ........................................... 108
Apollo’s oracle / Demeas’ letter ......................... 110
Cupid’s palace / Milo’s home .......................... 112
Encounter with the divine / contact with magic ........... 117
VIII Contents
Wanderings ........................................ 120
Reunion / encounter with Isis ......................... 124
Divine wedlock / serving the divine ..................... 126
Chapter6 ‘War’ in Magic and Lovemaking ................. 130
Comparison of the two episodes ........................ 134
Love and war in elegy ................................ 137
Isis as goddess of peace ................................ 144
Appendix: ‘War’ in the Tale of Cupic and Psyche .......... 147
Chapter7 Lucius’ Metamorphosis into an Ass as a Narrative
Device .............................................. 153
Asinine features in Lucius as a human .................... 154
Lucius’ transformation into a lower being ................. 161
The employment of the ass for the creation of comic effect ... 163
Apuleius as a new Aesop .............................. 167
The relation of the ass to Isis’ cult ....................... 169
Isis reverses the metamorphosis ......................... 171
Isis and true knowledge ............................... 173
Chapter8 Rewriting Metamorphoses 1–10: The Isis Book ...... 175
The encounter with religion (Isis) / contact with magic ...... 176
The Ploiaphesia festival / the Laughter festival ............. 179
Initiation into Isiac rites / ‘initiation’ into magic ............ 190
Journey to Rome / adventures ......................... 196
Lesser themes and elements ............................ 198
Chapter9 Transforming the Genre: Apuleius’ Metamorphoses .... 204
The tale of Cupid and Psyche .......................... 211
The immediate frame ................................. 212
The wider frame .................................... 214
Appendix:Lucius’MetamorphicChangeandEntranceintoaNew
Life as a Metaphorical Representation of the Sailing of Isis’ Ship. 217
The archaeological context ............................ 218
Encounter with the goddess ............................ 220
The Ploiaphesia festival ............................... 224
Comparison ........................................ 229
Reconnection with society ............................ 231
Contents IX
Bibliography ......................................... 233
List of Figures ........................................ 250
Index of Passages...................................... 251
General Index ........................................ 253