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Victim of Eros: The Poetics of Sex in Theocritus' First Idyll.
- Source :
-
American Journal of Philology . Spring2022, Vol. 143 Issue 1, p35-74. 40p. - Publication Year :
- 2022
-
Abstract
- This article proposes a new interpretation of the "sufferings of Daphnis" as they are sung by the shepherd Thyrsis in Theocritus' first Idyll. While the common view is that Daphnis' wasting was caused by a stubborn commitment to fidelity or to chastity, this paper argues that it is rather a symptom of his sexual impairment. The argument rests on two main elements: the connections between Daphnis and other figures acting as Aphrodite's consorts, and the presence of lexical clues pointing to the sexual character of the cowherd's illness. Finally, I argue that Theocritus' enigmatic account of Daphnis' fate in the first Idyll is consistent with the pervading metapoetic discourse of the poem: impotence serves to highlight Daphnis' fecundity as the founder of bucolic song. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
Details
- Language :
- English
- ISSN :
- 00029475
- Volume :
- 143
- Issue :
- 1
- Database :
- Academic Search Index
- Journal :
- American Journal of Philology
- Publication Type :
- Review
- Accession number :
- 157011137
- Full Text :
- https://doi.org/10.1353/ajp.2022.0003