Browsing by Author "Sigelman, Asya C."

Now showing 1 - 5 of 5
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    A Contemporary Cartoon Epic: Classical Reception and Homeric Epic in Bone by Jeff Smith
    (2017) Weissman, Hannah; Sigelman, Asya C.; Stevens, Ben
    This thesis explores the connection between ancient epic and contemporary comics using Bone by Jeff Smith as a case study. The theoretical framework of the paper draws from reception studies to frame comparisons between Bone and ancient epic. The paper explores the genre of epic, using ancient and contemporary scholars to produce a working definition of the genre. It creates a distinction between whether works fall into the epic genre and whether works are themselves epics. Then, it compares the formal elements of Homeric epic with comics and investigates key similarities between the two media. There are five main categories that define whether a work is an epic: content (addressed in the discussion of genre), performativity, perspective, use of character types, and seriality. Finally, it applies the connections from the previous chapters to two comic adaptations of the Homeric epics, Age of Bronze by Eric Shanower and The Odyssey by Gareth Hinds. This study lays a foundation for looking at comics as epic, and thus opens up the idea of epic for a broader range of reception studies.
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    An Old Tale Sung Again: Hadestown as Reception of Classical Myth
    (2023) Crocket, Maria Rose; Sigelman, Asya C.
    In this thesis I argue that the 2019 Broadway musical Hadestown is a work of classical reception and I will analyse how it uses the myths of Orpheus & Eurydice and Hades & Persephone to create a story reimagined for modern audiences. Through this paper I will chart the progression of these two myths over time to show how they were distinct in their earliest tellings and were drawn together over time, first through connections in Ovid’s Metamorphoses and then Hadestown tying them together even more. I then move into an analysis of the musical, showing the ways that it entwines the myths together through the storylines of the two main couples and looking at how aspects from the ancient tradition of the myths were included and expanded upon in this modern retelling. This paper also includes a discussion of the power of poetry/song, both in the ancient tradition (looked at specifically in Ovid’s version of the Orpheus myth), along with how this theme appears in Hadestown through both the figure of Orpheus and the story being told through the form of a musical.
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    Blowing in the Wind: The Effect of Translation on Ecclesiastes' Breath Motif
    (2015) Kohrman-Glaser, Eliana; Sigelman, Asya C.
    This thesis discusses the translation of the Septuagint Ecclesiastes as an example of the most literal style of translation in the Septuagint. By examining the breath motif in the Hebrew text of Ecclesiastes and evaluating how the Greek translation preserves or fails to preserve its components, it is possible to analyses the merits of this translation style in maintaining a motif created by repeated words and images. I find that this literal translation style is the most effective way to translate such a text, and should not be dismissed simply because it reads awkwardly.
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    Interwoven Collective Memories and Athenian National Identity in Aeschylus’ Persians
    (2023) Bonatch, Laken; Sigelman, Asya C.
    The Persian Wars had an immense cultural and political impact on Athens in the 5th century, leading to a variety of art, architecture, and entertainment on subjects related to the Persian empire and the war. As a historical moment that invoked both national pride and shared trauma from the Athenian population, the Persian Wars soon took on a life of their own in Athenian collective memory. Persians, a tragedy written by Aeschylus less than a decade after the end of the war, was produced and performed in the context of this post-war Athenian memory. In this thesis, I argue that Persians has three layers of collective memory: First, the genre of tragedy created a shared viewing experience for an audience of Athenians concerning their collective mythological or historical past. Next, Persians presented an Athenian-centered narrative of the battle of Salamis that was significant in emphasizing Athens’ role in the Persian Wars compared to the other Greek city-states. Finally, Aeschylus created a fictional Persian memory within the tragedy to reinforce the Athenian collective memory of the Persian empire and bolster Athenian national identity. To defend this argument, this thesis is grounded in collective memory theory, 5th-century Athenian history, and a close reading of Aeschylus’ Persians.
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    The Woman They Made Myth About: Medea and the Power of Retelling in Euripides and James Ijames
    (2023) Pleasure-Kranowitz, Eden; Sigelman, Asya C.
    Ancient Greek plays performed at the Dionysia were not isolated in terms of the stories they told; rather, they were part of a massive cultural context that all Athenian citizens had, telling stories that were woven into the fabric of everyone’s daily lives. People going to see a Homeric epic, or a play by one of the great tragedians or comedians, more than likely knew the stories they were about to see, having been told such stories their whole lives. What they didn’t know was what exactly the playwright planned to convey through these myths and characters that were so familiar to the public. Take Medea, for instance. The story of Medea had existed (and had even been performed) well before Euripides wrote his version of it, but Euripides added his own artistic influences, while bringing the current events of his time into the world of the play, or vice versa (bringing the myth into his reality). Euripides wrote his Medea as an Ancient Greek, for Ancient Greeks (Athenians, specifically), within the context of the larger Ancient Greek culture. When someone from the year, say, 2023, reads or watches the Euripidean play, that context is no longer there, and many of the references may no longer hold relevance to the viewer. Here, we find a dilemma; how should we, an audience separated from Classical Greece by both space and time (thousands of years even), engage with this piece, when so much of our cultural experience is different from that of the Ancient Greeks? Modern playwright James Ijames responds to this dilemma by taking the characters of Medea’s story and positioning them within a modern American context, adding his own artistic and stylistic choices, and bringing in issues modern to the current discussion of his time. In this paper, I explore the interactions between Ancient Greek mythos and its reinterpretation by playwrights across time. In short, this is a reception study of the story of Medea, as told by two very different people, living in two very different cultural environments. I will also focus on the genealogical connection between Circe and Medea, and the importance of genealogy to the Ancient Greeks. The overarching theme of this paper will focus on Medea, specifically the story of Medea, as a microcosm of the interactions between modern and ancient retellings. I will zero in on Euripides’ and Ijames’ takes on the Medea myth, and how they act in communication with one another, as well as with the broader narrative world in which Medea lives, i.e. the ancient Greek mythos.