Myths of the Underworld Journey: Plato, Aristophanes, and the "Orphic" Gold Tablets

Book info: Myths of the Underworld Journey: Plato, Aristophanes, and the "Orphic" Gold Tablets (Paperback, 290 pages) – Cambridge University Press, 2012. Language: English.

Plato, Aristophanes, and the creators of the "Orphic" gold tablets employ the traditional tale of a journey to the realm of the dead to redefine, within the mythic narrative, the boundaries of their societies. Rather than being the relics of a faded ritual tradition or the products of Orphic influence, these myths can only reveal their meanings through this detailed analysis of the specific ways in which each author makes use of the tradition. Editorial Reviews Review "Relying on the best current scholarship, Edmonds examines ancient Greek stories about journeys to the land of the dead." CHOICE May 2005

"Not only does Radcliffe Edomonds offer interesting asnwers to long-standing problems; he also illustrates the advantage of combining an analytic method with a synthetic one. In addition to analytically concentrating on concrete distinctions, he perceives patterns and similarities found at an abstract level." - Synnove Des Bouvrie, University of Tromso

"solid, interesting and helpful insights" - Jon Steffen Bruss Book Description This 2004 book explores myths of the underworld in Plato, Aristophanes, and the 'Orphic' gold tablets.