The Greek Gods in Modern Scholarship

Interpretation and Belief in Nineteenth- and Early Twentieth-Century Germany and Britain

Michael D. Konaris

Oxford Classical Monographs

Provides a clear overview of major theories and developments in the study of Greek religion in the nineteenth and early twentieth century
Contributes to the history of German and Victorian Philhellenism and, more broadly, to the intellectual, cultural, and religious history of Germany and Britain of the period
Discusses the work of important German classical scholars, some of whom have not been discussed before in English
Includes an appendix which analyses different theories of interpretation of the Greek gods by focusing on Apollo as a case study

The Greek Gods in Modern Scholarship

Interpretation and Belief in Nineteenth- and Early Twentieth-Century Germany and Britain

Michael D. Konaris

Description

The nineteenth century is a key period in the history of the interpretation of the Greek gods. The Greek Gods in Modern Scholarship examines how German and British scholars of the time drew on philology, archaeology, comparative mythology, anthropology, or sociology to advance radically different theories on the Greek gods and their origins. For some, they had been personifications of natural elements, for others, they had begun as universal gods like the Christian god, yet for others, they went back to totems or were projections of group unity. The volume discusses the views of both well-known figures like K. O. Muller (1797-1840), or Jane Harrison (1850-1928), and of forgotten, but important, scholars like F. G. Welcker (1784-1868). It explores the underlying assumptions and agendas of the rival theories in the light of their intellectual and cultural context, laying stress on how they were connected to broader contemporary debates over fundamental questions such as the origins and nature of religion, or the relation between Western culture and the 'Orient'. It also considers the impact of theories from this period on twentieth- and twenty-first-century scholarship on Greek religion and draws implications for the study of the Greek gods today.

The Greek Gods in Modern Scholarship

Interpretation and Belief in Nineteenth- and Early Twentieth-Century Germany and Britain

Michael D. Konaris

Oxford Classical Monographs

Acknowledgements
Introduction
1. The Tyranny of Nature over the Greek Gods: Variations of Elemental Interpretation
2. Stammesgotter and Universal Gods: The Historical-Critical Approach
3. Ancient Polytheisms and Modern Antagonisms: Hermann Usener's Theory of Sondergotter
4. British Responses
Conclusion
Appendix: Apollo in Twentieth- and Twenty-first Century Scholarship
Bibliography
Index

The Greek Gods in Modern Scholarship

Interpretation and Belief in Nineteenth- and Early Twentieth-Century Germany and Britain

Michael D. Konaris

Oxford Classical Monographs

Author Information

Michael D. Konaris, Postdoctoral Fellow, Centre de Recherches Historiques, EHESS

Michael Konaris is a Postdoctoral Fellow at the Centre de Recherches Historiques, EHESS.

The Greek Gods in Modern Scholarship

Interpretation and Belief in Nineteenth- and Early Twentieth-Century Germany and Britain

Michael D. Konaris

Oxford Classical Monographs

Reviews and Awards

"With the increasing understanding of the 19th century as a formative period in shaping classics as understood today, Konaris' monograph ... arrives opportunely." -- Alain Gough-Olaya, Journal of Hellenic Studies

"This entertaining book charts how leading scholars explained the Greek gods during a period when classical scholarship was burgeoning, the differences and conflicts between them (often arising from unacknowledged emotional conditioning), and how the arguments developed under the impact of new discoveries and disciplines ... it is a real achievement to have drawn all the threads together and yet made the result so readable." --Colin McDonald, Classics for All

"Thanks to Konaris, students of ancient Greek religion now have a first map of the modern development of their discipline, while intellectual historians of the period will have a better handle of the uses to which ancient Greece and the Greek gods were put ... [this book] will sharpen and deepen your understanding of the Greek gods and Greek religion. It can be warmly recommended." --Simon Trépanier, Bryn Mawr Classical Review

"This is a meaty, erudite ... account of several pioneering figures in the modern study of Greek mythology and religion. Konaris' monograph, which does heavy lifting in restoring to visibility some of the "less known scholars who played an important, if unacknowledged, role in the history of the discipline", will certainly be consulted in years to come; there is a wealth of knowledge here." --Dan-El Padilla Peralta, Classical Journal Online

The Greek Gods in Modern Scholarship

Interpretation and Belief in Nineteenth- and Early Twentieth-Century Germany and Britain

Michael D. Konaris

Oxford Classical Monographs

From Our Blog

A history of modern scholarship on Ancient Greek religion

The nineteenth and early twentieth centuries are a key period in the history of modern scholarship on ancient Greek religion. It was in nineteenth-century Germany that the foundations for the modern academic study of Greek religion were laid and the theories formulated by German scholars as well as by their British colleagues in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century exercised a profound influence on the field which would resonate until much later times.

Posted on December 27, 2015

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