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An Avian and Aphrodisian Reading of Homer's Odyssey
Author(s) -
Friedrich Paul
Publication year - 1997
Publication title -
american anthropologist
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.51
H-Index - 85
eISSN - 1548-1433
pISSN - 0002-7294
DOI - 10.1525/aa.1997.99.2.306
Subject(s) - reading (process) , meaning (existential) , articulation (sociology) , statement (logic) , expression (computer science) , linguistics , natural (archaeology) , literature , history , aesthetics , sociology , epistemology , philosophy , art , archaeology , law , computer science , political science , politics , programming language
The meaning, even the sheer presence, of birds in the Odyssey has been ignored by all but a few scholars. A similar statement could be made about an aphrodisian reading of the text. Yet Homer felt that birds were deeply significant, often as symbols of Aphrodite. Examination of these meanings leads to a unique understanding of essential, underlying values in Homeric culture. Such efforts are consonant with the anthropological goal of understanding how culturally defined natural phenomena work in the articulation, expression, and condensation of powerful, culturally defined emotions.