Pindar and the Sublime: Greek Myth, Reception, and Lyric Experience

Robert Fowler's new study explores how the concept of the sublime can still guide a reading of Pindar's odes, focusing on reception and the experience of the poems as text. He argues that Pindar is a great writer and thinker, considering his views on divinity, transcendence, time, and the limits of language.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 280 pages
Publication date: 13 January 2022
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing PLC

Pindar, the renowned "Theban eagle," as famously coined by Thomas Gray, has often been regarded as the epitome of the sublime poet, soaring into the heavens on the wings of language and inspired by visions of eternity. In this highly anticipated new study, Robert Fowler delves into the question of how the concept of the sublime can still inform our interpretation of the greatest Greek lyric poets. Drawing upon ancient and modern treatments of the subject, particularly the poetry and writings of Friedrich Hölderlin (1770–1843), widely considered Pindar's greatest contemporary reader, Fowler presents a compelling argument for an aesthetic appreciation of Pindar's odes as literature. Building upon recent trends in criticism, he shifts the focus away from the initial performance and the oral traditions of Greek culture to reception and the experience of Pindar's odes as textual artifacts. This shift in emphasis yields a fresh and insightful exploration of numerous aspects of Pindar's remarkable art, encompassing the relationship between the poems and their specific occasions, performativity, the poet's persona, his imagery, and his mythological references. By examining Pindar's views on divinity, transcendence, time, and the limitations of language, Fowler reveals him not only as a skilled writer but also as a profound thinker.

Weight: 432g
Dimension: 157 x 234 x 21 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781350198166