Miasma. Pollution and Purification in Early Greek Religion. - PARKER, R.,

KORTE INHOUD

'This is a fine and important book. From its title it may sound like a monograph on a well-defined topic, but the reader soon becomes aware of the ramifications of the subject, from heroic mythology to forensic abuse, from philosophical theory to the minutiae of civic and private life. Dr Parker (...) has digested a vast quantity of literary and epigraphic material, and he treats it in a highly intelligent and judicious manner. (...) He succeeds in striking an excellent balance between broad brush and pointillisme. (...) A major theme of the book is that pollution is not a single homogeneous concept. Many different forms and aspects of it must be distinguished. But at the end P. tries to find a unifying formula: he suggests that doctrines about pollution are not simply generated by anxiety or guilt, but by alarm at breaches of the normal order, or at the breakdown of statutory oppositions. (...) All in all I have found remarkable little to criticize and a very great deal to admire. I am confident that 'Miasma...
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1983Uitgever: Clarendon PressISBN-10: 0198148356ISBN-13: 9780198148357