Ancient & Classical in Literary Theory & Criticism & Fiction & Literature eBooks

Penelope’s Bones

A New History of Homer’s World through the Women Written Out of It

by Emily Hauser ...

Weaving together literary and archaeological evidence, Emily Hauser illuminates the rich, intriguing lives of the real women behind Homer’s Iliad and Odyssey.Achilles. Agamemnon. Odysseus. Hector. The lives of these and many other men in the greatest epics of ancient Greece have been pored over endlessly in the past three millennia. But these are not just tales about heroic men. There are scores ... Read more

$2.99 USD

Weaving together literary and archaeological evidence, Emily Hauser illuminates the rich, intriguing lives of the real women behind Homer’s Iliad and Odyssey.Achilles. Agamemnon. Odysseus. Hector. The lives of these and many other men in the greatest epics of ancient Greece have been pored over endlessly in the past three millennia. But these are not just tales about heroic men. There are scores
... Read more
Monstrous Tales

Stories of Strange Creatures and Fearsome Beasts from around the World

Monstrous Tales is a collection of traditional folktales about bewitching and bloodthirsty creatures.Translated and transcribed in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, these tales celebrate the diversity of—and surprising resonances among—folklore traditions around the world.Welcome to a world of magical adventure: a mysterious wolf pursues a bridegroom through a dark forest, a princess is ... Read more

$1.99 USD

Monstrous Tales is a collection of traditional folktales about bewitching and bloodthirsty creatures.Translated and transcribed in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, these tales celebrate the diversity of—and surprising resonances among—folklore traditions around the world.Welcome to a world of magical adventure: a mysterious wolf pursues a bridegroom through a dark forest, a princess is
... Read more
Annals

by Tacitus ...

Translated by Cynthia Damon ...

A compelling new translation of Tacitus' Annals, one of the greatest accounts of ancient Rome, by Cynthia Damon.Tacitus' Annals recounts the major historical events from the years shortly before the death of Augustus to the death of Nero in AD 68. With clarity and vivid intensity Tacitus describes the reign of terror under the corrupt Tiberius, the great fire of Rome during the time of Nero and ... Read more

$14.29 USD

A compelling new translation of Tacitus' Annals, one of the greatest accounts of ancient Rome, by Cynthia Damon.Tacitus' Annals recounts the major historical events from the years shortly before the death of Augustus to the death of Nero in AD 68. With clarity and vivid intensity Tacitus describes the reign of terror under the corrupt Tiberius, the great fire of Rome during the time of Nero and
... Read more
Talking Classics

The Shock of the Old

by Mary Beard ...

The incomparable Mary Beard is back, and she’s talking all things classics.Why the ongoing fascination with the ancient world? This witty, approachable book asks why—for better or (sometimes) worse—antiquity continues to exert such a powerful hold on the contemporary imagination. Recalling a formative childhood encounter with a four-thousand-year-old piece of bread in a museum, Beard introduces ... Read more

Was $10.79 USD Now $8.69 USD

The incomparable Mary Beard is back, and she’s talking all things classics.Why the ongoing fascination with the ancient world? This witty, approachable book asks why—for better or (sometimes) worse—antiquity continues to exert such a powerful hold on the contemporary imagination. Recalling a formative childhood encounter with a four-thousand-year-old piece of bread in a museum, Beard introduces
... Read more
The Interpretation of Fairy Tales

Revised Edition

by Marie-Louise von Franz ...

Series series C. G. Jung Foundation Books Series
A Jungian psychologist argues how careful analyses of fairy tales like Beauty and the Beast can lead to a deeper understanding of human psychologyOf the various types of mythological literature, fairy tales are the simplest and purest expressions of the collective unconscious and thus offer the clearest understanding of the basic patterns of the human psyche. Every people or nation has its own way ... Read more

$17.99 USD

A Jungian psychologist argues how careful analyses of fairy tales like Beauty and the Beast can lead to a deeper understanding of human psychologyOf the various types of mythological literature, fairy tales are the simplest and purest expressions of the collective unconscious and thus offer the clearest understanding of the basic patterns of the human psyche. Every people or nation has its own way
... Read more
Eros the Bittersweet

by Anne Carson ...

Series series Dalkey Archive Essentials
Selected by the Modern Library as one of the 100 best nonfiction books of all timeA book about romantic love, Eros the Bittersweet is Anne Carson's exploration of the concept of "eros" in both classical philosophy and literature. Beginning with, "It was Sappho who first called eros 'bittersweet.' No one who has been in love disputes her," Carson examines her subject from numerous points of view, ... Read more

$12.99 USD or Free with Kobo Plus

Selected by the Modern Library as one of the 100 best nonfiction books of all timeA book about romantic love, Eros the Bittersweet is Anne Carson's exploration of the concept of "eros" in both classical philosophy and literature. Beginning with, "It was Sappho who first called eros 'bittersweet.' No one who has been in love disputes her," Carson examines her subject from numerous points of view,
... Read more
Aesop’s Animals

The Science Behind the Fables

by Jo Wimpenny ...

Turns a critical eye on Aesop's Fables to ask whether there is any scientific truth to Aesop's portrayal of his animals.Despite originating more than two-and-a-half thousand years ago, Aesop's Fables are still passed on from parent to child, and are embedded in our collective consciousness. The morals we have learned from these tales continue to inform our judgements, but have the stories also ... Read more

$14.99 USD

Turns a critical eye on Aesop's Fables to ask whether there is any scientific truth to Aesop's portrayal of his animals.Despite originating more than two-and-a-half thousand years ago, Aesop's Fables are still passed on from parent to child, and are embedded in our collective consciousness. The morals we have learned from these tales continue to inform our judgements, but have the stories also
... Read more
The Book of Memory

A Study of Memory in Medieval Culture

by Mary Carruthers ...

Series Book 70 - Cambridge Studies in Medieval Literature
Mary Carruthers's classic study of the training and uses of memory for a variety of purposes in European cultures during the Middle Ages has fundamentally changed the way scholars understand medieval culture. This fully revised and updated second edition considers afresh all the material and conclusions of the first. While responding to new directions in research inspired by the original, this new ... Read more

$36.89 USD

Mary Carruthers's classic study of the training and uses of memory for a variety of purposes in European cultures during the Middle Ages has fundamentally changed the way scholars understand medieval culture. This fully revised and updated second edition considers afresh all the material and conclusions of the first. While responding to new directions in research inspired by the original, this new
... Read more
Divine Might

Goddesses in Greek Myth

by Natalie Haynes ...

New York Times bestselling author Natalie Haynes returns to the world of ancient Greek myth in this scintillating follow-up to Pandora’s Jar.Few writers today have reshaped our view of the ancient Greek myths more than revered bestselling author Natalie Haynes. Divine Might is a female-centered look at Olympus and the Furies, focusing on the powerful Greek goddesses whose prowess, passions, ... Read more

$14.99 USD

New York Times bestselling author Natalie Haynes returns to the world of ancient Greek myth in this scintillating follow-up to Pandora’s Jar.Few writers today have reshaped our view of the ancient Greek myths more than revered bestselling author Natalie Haynes. Divine Might is a female-centered look at Olympus and the Furies, focusing on the powerful Greek goddesses whose prowess, passions,
... Read more
Ireland's Immortals

A History of the Gods of Irish Myth

by Mark Williams ...

A sweeping history of Ireland's native gods, from Iron Age cult and medieval saga to the Celtic Revival and contemporary fictionIreland's Immortals tells the story of one of the world’s great mythologies. The first account of the gods of Irish myth to take in the whole sweep of Irish literature in both the nation’s languages, the book describes how Ireland’s pagan divinities were transformed into ... Read more

$21.59 USD

A sweeping history of Ireland's native gods, from Iron Age cult and medieval saga to the Celtic Revival and contemporary fictionIreland's Immortals tells the story of one of the world’s great mythologies. The first account of the gods of Irish myth to take in the whole sweep of Irish literature in both the nation’s languages, the book describes how Ireland’s pagan divinities were transformed into
... Read more
Turning Away

The Poetics of an Ancient Gesture

by Benjamin A. Saltzman ...

Series series Thinking Literature
A sweeping account of how we are at our most human when we turn away from the pains of the world.Why do we look away from the suffering of others? Why do we cover our faces in shame? Why do we lower our heads in grief? Few gestures are as universal as the averted gaze. Fewer still are as ambivalent and inscrutable. In this incisive study, Benjamin A. Saltzman reveals how the kaleidoscopic ... Read more

$21.59 USD

A sweeping account of how we are at our most human when we turn away from the pains of the world.Why do we look away from the suffering of others? Why do we cover our faces in shame? Why do we lower our heads in grief? Few gestures are as universal as the averted gaze. Fewer still are as ambivalent and inscrutable. In this incisive study, Benjamin A. Saltzman reveals how the kaleidoscopic
... Read more
The Pregnant Male as Myth and Metaphor in Classical Greek Literature

by David D. Leitao ...

This book traces the image of the pregnant male in Greek literature as it evolved over the course of the classical period. The image - as deployed in myth and in metaphor - originated as a representation of paternity and, by extension, 'authorship' of ideas, works of art, legislation, and the like. Only later, with its reception in philosophy in the early fourth century, did it also become a way ... Read more

$51.69 USD

This book traces the image of the pregnant male in Greek literature as it evolved over the course of the classical period. The image - as deployed in myth and in metaphor - originated as a representation of paternity and, by extension, 'authorship' of ideas, works of art, legislation, and the like. Only later, with its reception in philosophy in the early fourth century, did it also become a way
... Read more
The Hero with a Thousand Faces

by Joseph Campbell ...

Series series The Collected Works of Joseph Campbell
Explore the Hero's Journey in stories as old as humanity and as new as last night's dreamThe latest incarnation of Oedipus, the continued romance of Beauty and the Beast, stand this afternoon on the corner of 42nd Street and Fifth Avenue, waiting for the traffic light to change. — Joseph CampbellSince its release in 1949, The Hero with a Thousand Faceshas influenced millions of readers by ... Read more

$12.99 USD or Free with Kobo Plus

Explore the Hero's Journey in stories as old as humanity and as new as last night's dreamThe latest incarnation of Oedipus, the continued romance of Beauty and the Beast, stand this afternoon on the corner of 42nd Street and Fifth Avenue, waiting for the traffic light to change. — Joseph CampbellSince its release in 1949, The Hero with a Thousand Faceshas influenced millions of readers by
... Read more
Early Greek Alphabetic Writing

A Linguistic Approach

by Natalia Elvira Astoreca ...

Series Book 5 - Contexts of and Relations between Early Writing Systems (CREWS)
Despite the flourishing of epichoric studies on the Archaic Greek scripts in the 1960s, embodied by archaeologists Lilian Hamilton Jeffery and Margherita Guarducci, most scholarship on early alphabetic writing in Greece has focused on questions around the origin of ‘the Greek alphabet’ instead of acknowledging the diversity of alphabetic systems that emerged in Geometric and Archaic times. The ... Read more

$23.79 USD or Free with Kobo Plus

Despite the flourishing of epichoric studies on the Archaic Greek scripts in the 1960s, embodied by archaeologists Lilian Hamilton Jeffery and Margherita Guarducci, most scholarship on early alphabetic writing in Greece has focused on questions around the origin of ‘the Greek alphabet’ instead of acknowledging the diversity of alphabetic systems that emerged in Geometric and Archaic times. The
... Read more
Etymology and the Invention of English in Early Modern Literature

by Hannah Crawforth ...

How did authors such as Jonson, Spenser, Donne and Milton think about the past lives of the words they used? Hannah Crawforth shows how early modern writers were acutely attuned to the religious and political implications of the etymology of English words. She argues that these lexically astute writers actively engaged with the lexicographers, Anglo-Saxonists and etymologists who were carrying out ... Read more

$38.99 USD

How did authors such as Jonson, Spenser, Donne and Milton think about the past lives of the words they used? Hannah Crawforth shows how early modern writers were acutely attuned to the religious and political implications of the etymology of English words. She argues that these lexically astute writers actively engaged with the lexicographers, Anglo-Saxonists and etymologists who were carrying out
... Read more
Otherworld

Nine Tales of Wonder and Romance from Medieval Ireland

by Lisa M. Bitel ...

Nine tales of early Irish literature beautifully retold in a modern, evocative style A mysterious woman appears nightly at the bedside of a prince and sings to him until he falls sick with love for her. A determined hero tracks his beloved through several incarnations, struggling to win her back. A young warrior seeks a woman who turns into a swan. These are the plots of little-known, anonymous ... Read more

$16.19 USD

Nine tales of early Irish literature beautifully retold in a modern, evocative style A mysterious woman appears nightly at the bedside of a prince and sings to him until he falls sick with love for her. A determined hero tracks his beloved through several incarnations, struggling to win her back. A young warrior seeks a woman who turns into a swan. These are the plots of little-known, anonymous
... Read more
Euripides' Medea

A New Translation

by Diane J. Rayor ...

Euripides' Medea comes alive in this new translation that will be useful for both academic study and stage production. Diane J. Rayor's accurate yet accessible translation reflects the play's inherent theatricality and vibrant poetry. The book includes an analytical introduction and comprehensive notes, and an essay on directing Medea by stage director Karen Libman. The play begins after Medea, a ... Read more

$28.69 USD

Euripides' Medea comes alive in this new translation that will be useful for both academic study and stage production. Diane J. Rayor's accurate yet accessible translation reflects the play's inherent theatricality and vibrant poetry. The book includes an analytical introduction and comprehensive notes, and an essay on directing Medea by stage director Karen Libman. The play begins after Medea, a
... Read more
Gilgamesh

A New Verse Translation

A propulsive and lyrical version of ancient Mesopotamia’s greatest adventure–tale, by the bestselling translator of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight.Originating nearly four thousand years ago in ancient Mesopotamia, the epic of Gilgamesh tells the story of a tyrannical king and his wild counterpart, Enkidu, spawned by the gods to rein in the king’s cruel tendencies. They face off in a violent ... Read more

$17.09 USD

A propulsive and lyrical version of ancient Mesopotamia’s greatest adventure–tale, by the bestselling translator of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight.Originating nearly four thousand years ago in ancient Mesopotamia, the epic of Gilgamesh tells the story of a tyrannical king and his wild counterpart, Enkidu, spawned by the gods to rein in the king’s cruel tendencies. They face off in a violent
... Read more
Ka

Stories of the Mind and Gods of India

by Roberto Calasso ...

Series series Vintage International
**In "the very best book about Hindu mythology that anyone has ever written" (The New Republic)Calasso plunges Western readers into the mind of ancient India. He begins with a mystery: Why is the most important god in the Rg Veda, the oldest of India's sacred texts, known by a secret name—"Ka," or Who?What ensues is not an explanation, but an unveiling. Here are the stories of the creation of mind ... Read more

$13.99 USD

**In "the very best book about Hindu mythology that anyone has ever written" (The New Republic)Calasso plunges Western readers into the mind of ancient India. He begins with a mystery: Why is the most important god in the Rg Veda, the oldest of India's sacred texts, known by a secret name—"Ka," or Who?What ensues is not an explanation, but an unveiling. Here are the stories of the creation of mind
... Read more
TROILUS & CRESSIDA

Enriched edition. Including The Classic Biography: The Life of William Shakespeare

by William Shakespeare, Todd Ramsey ...

William Shakespeare's play 'Troilus & Cressida' is a complex and dark tragedy that delves into themes of love, war, honor, and betrayal. Set during the Trojan War, the play intricately weaves together the stories of the titular characters, Troilus and Cressida, against the backdrop of a larger conflict. The language is rich and poetic, showcasing Shakespeare's mastery of dramatic dialogue and ... Read more

$1.99 USD or Free with Kobo Plus

William Shakespeare's play 'Troilus & Cressida' is a complex and dark tragedy that delves into themes of love, war, honor, and betrayal. Set during the Trojan War, the play intricately weaves together the stories of the titular characters, Troilus and Cressida, against the backdrop of a larger conflict. The language is rich and poetic, showcasing Shakespeare's mastery of dramatic dialogue and
... Read more
Beneath the Moon

Fairy Tales, Myths, and Divine Stories from Around the World

by Yoshi Yoshitani ...

Powerful and universal retellings of seventy-eight divine stories, legends, and myths from around the world, each accompanied by a gorgeous illustration from acclaimed artist Yoshi Yoshitani.Many of the lessons we learn are shared stories passed among cultures and generations. In this riveting collection of fables and folktales from cultures across the globe, characters from beloved fairytales, ... Read more

$5.99 USD

Powerful and universal retellings of seventy-eight divine stories, legends, and myths from around the world, each accompanied by a gorgeous illustration from acclaimed artist Yoshi Yoshitani.Many of the lessons we learn are shared stories passed among cultures and generations. In this riveting collection of fables and folktales from cultures across the globe, characters from beloved fairytales,
... Read more
Plato and the Stoics

Edited by A. G. Long ...

Plato was central both to the genesis of Stoic theory and to subsequent debates within the Stoa. These essays provide new and detailed explorations of the complex relationship between Plato and the Greek and Roman Stoic traditions, and together they show the directness and independence with which Stoics examined Plato's writing. What were the philosophical incentives to consulting and then ... Read more

$38.59 USD

Plato was central both to the genesis of Stoic theory and to subsequent debates within the Stoa. These essays provide new and detailed explorations of the complex relationship between Plato and the Greek and Roman Stoic traditions, and together they show the directness and independence with which Stoics examined Plato's writing. What were the philosophical incentives to consulting and then
... Read more
The Literature of Wales

by Dafydd Johnston ...

Series Book 1 - Pocket Guides
A concise and authoritative survey of both the Welsh- and English-language literatures of Wales from the earliest period up to the present day. This illustrated guide, containing extracts from original texts with English translations, is a revised version of Professor Dafydd Johnston's volume in the University of Wales's Pocket Guide series, and includes a new chapter on contemporary writing. ... Read more

$18.99 USD or Free with Kobo Plus

A concise and authoritative survey of both the Welsh- and English-language literatures of Wales from the earliest period up to the present day. This illustrated guide, containing extracts from original texts with English translations, is a revised version of Professor Dafydd Johnston's volume in the University of Wales's Pocket Guide series, and includes a new chapter on contemporary writing.
... Read more
Around the Sun

Stories and Symbols from Across the World

by Yoshi Yoshitani ...

Discover the universal allure of the hero’s journey captured in these global folktales, powerfully retold and gorgeously illustrated by the author and artist behind Tarot of the Divine and Beneath the MoonAround the Sun is a storybook comprised of twelve beautifully illustrated folktales from all around the world and across time, each featuring classic tropes such as a Hero, a Challenge, an ... Read more

$9.99 USD

Discover the universal allure of the hero’s journey captured in these global folktales, powerfully retold and gorgeously illustrated by the author and artist behind Tarot of the Divine and Beneath the MoonAround the Sun is a storybook comprised of twelve beautifully illustrated folktales from all around the world and across time, each featuring classic tropes such as a Hero, a Challenge, an
... Read more

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