Babylon Under Western Eyes

A Study of Allusion and Myth

Inbunden, Engelska, 2016

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Babylon under Western Eyes examines the mythic legacy of ancient Babylon, the Near Eastern city which has served western culture as a metaphor for power, luxury, and exotic magnificence for more than two thousand years.Sifting through the many references to Babylon in biblical, classical, medieval, and modern texts, Andrew Scheil uses Babylon’s remarkable literary ubiquity as the foundation for a thorough analysis of the dynamics of adaptation and allusion in western literature. Touching on everything from Old English poetry to the contemporary apocalyptic fiction of the “Left Behind” series, Scheil outlines how medieval Christian society and its cultural successors have adopted Babylon as a political metaphor, a degenerate archetype, and a place associated with the sublime.Combining remarkable erudition with a clear and accessible style, Babylon under Western Eyes is the first comprehensive examination of Babylon’s significance within the pantheon of western literature and a testimonial to the continuing influence of biblical, classical, and medieval paradigms in modern culture.

Produktinformation

Utgivningsdatum2016-04-01
Mått162 x 236 x 28 mm
Vikt680 g
FormatInbunden
SpråkEngelska
Antal sidor360
FörlagUniversity of Toronto Press
ISBN9781442637337

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IntroductionPart I: Babylon as Political MetaphorChapter One: The Political Image of Babylon in AntiquityChapter Two: Political Babylon in Late Antiquity and the Early Middle AgesChapter Three: Political Babylon from the Great Schism to the PresentPart II: Babylon as Degenerate ArchetypeChapter Four: The Medieval Genealogy of Babylonian Degeneracy: The Cursed RaceChapter Five: The Post-Medieval Genealogy of Babylonian Degeneracy and the Cursed Race ArchetypePart III: Babylon as Sublime ToposChapter Six: City of RuinsChapter Seven: Babylon and the Coordinates of RomanceConclusion

‘A superb work of multidisciplinary scholarship, Scheil’s study will be of interest in a variety of academic disciplines, as it masterfully weaves together textual and historical analysis… Highly recommended.’- M.Roberts (Choice, vol 54:03:2016) ‘Scheil has done a tremendous job of winnowing a near-endless supply of material down to essential cultural grains… An ambitious, often challenging, and almost always entertaining and engaging monograph.’- Jay Rubenstein (The Medieval Review, December 2016) ‘Babylon under Western Eyes is a fascinating study of an important word that has shaped western culture in powerful ways.’- Alice Ogden Bellis (Modern Philology vol 115:01:2017) "This book is a major achievement and will contribute a great deal to critical conversations in the areas of medievalism and race studies as well as to growing scholarship on genre fiction."- Carl Kears. King's College London (University of Toronto Quarterly, vol 87 3, Summer 2018) "In Babylon under Western Eyes, Andrew Scheil has created a remarkable piece of literary criticism: by following his subject across a range of languages, eras, disciplines, and genres, he traces the history of a metaphor that is simultaneously grounded in historical thinking and that exceeds the sum of its historical parts."- Mary Kate Hurley, Ohio University (Speculum)