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Acknowledgements

Acknowledgements Peter Funke and Nino Luraghi Most of the contributions collected in this book were first submitted as papers at the conference “Ethnizität als Argument. Der Untergang des Peloponnesischen Bundes,” held at the Westfälische Wilhelms-Universität of Münster (Germany) on November 14th–16th, 2003. The editors wish to acknowledge the generous financial support of the Gerda-Henkel-Stiftung, which made the conference possible. In Münster, Dr. Matthias Haake and Ms. Read more

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Works Cited

Works Cited Abélès, M. 1983. Le lieu du politique. Paris. ———. 2003. “Revenir chez les Ochollo.” In Detienne 2003b:393–413. Ackerman, R. 1987. J. G. Frazer: His Life and Work. Cambridge. Allen, T. W., Halliday, W. R., and Sikes, E. E. 1936. The Homeric Hymns. 2nd ed. Oxford. Altherr-Charon, A., and… Read more

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Part III. “Politics” Doesn’t Fall from the Sky. 2. The Gods of Politics in Early Greek Cities

Chapter 2. The Gods of Politics in Early Greek Cities [*] Here, I have decided to speak of “the gods” rather than “religion.” The “gods” know why I have rejected a modern reference to “religion.” I confess that I have never held the terms “religious” and “religion” in high esteem. And that is not solely because those terms, with their associations with… Read more

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Part III. “Politics” Doesn’t Fall from the Sky. 1. Doing Comparative Anthropology in the Field of Politics

Chapter 1. Doing Comparative Anthropology in the Field of Politics [*] There is a long history behind the Greeks and us. Clearly, the Greeks are not a tribe or even an ethnic group like others. At the heart of what historians complacently call “the history of the West,” the Greeks represent a real stake, in the sense of what may be either… Read more

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Part II. Every God Is Plural. 3. Forgetting Delphi Between Apollo and Dionysus

Chapter 3. Forgetting Delphi Between Apollo and Dionysus [*] Let us be clear who is at fault if we are still today attracted and fascinated by the opposition between Apollonian and Dionysian, be it in a Poussin painting or at the origins of Greek religion. It is certainly not the fault of Orpheus’ first disciples, who did make use of the contrasts… Read more

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Part II. Every God Is Plural. 2. This Is Where I Intend to Build a Glorious Temple

Chapter 2. This Is Where I Intend to Build a Glorious Temple [*] Before making one of the most decisive pronouncements of his career, the young Apollo had experienced what it was to wander, for even before his birth, his doubly pregnant mother was forced to undertake a long march. [1] The story of this great god… Read more

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Part II. Every God Is Plural. 1. Experimenting in the Field of Polytheisms

Chapter 1. Experimenting in the Field of Polytheisms [*] The discovery that gods make good objects of research was not made by contemporary anthropology. The very first anthropologists never failed to recommend making an inventory of the various kinds of powers at large in a village or scattered the length and breadth of a kingdom. However, by the end of the nineteenth… Read more

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Part I. Murderous Identity. 2. Being Born Impure in the City of Cadmus and Oedipus

Chapter 2. Being Born Impure in the City of Cadmus and Oedipus [*] Human vanity is a limitlessly entertaining subject, and if I have chosen to ask myself, “how can one be autochthonous?” it is because the pride of being rooted or of believing oneself to be of cleansed blood is a sickness as laughable as chicken pox. Its consequences, however, can… Read more

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Part I. Murderous Identity. 1. The Art of Founding Autochthony: Thebes, Athens, and Old-Stock French

Chapter 1. The Art of Founding Autochthony: Thebes, Athens, and Old-Stock French [*] Yes, there is an art in founding what some call their roots and others autochthony. I have chosen this approach, valid both for the present and the past, for two reasons. These have to do with two complementary lines of inquiry, two systems of collective thought which concern both… Read more

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Preface. Doing Anthropology with the Greeks

Preface: Doing Anthropology with the Greeks [In this on-line version, the page-numbers of the printed version are indicated within braces (“{” and “}”). For example, “{69|70}” indicates where p. 69 of the printed version ends and p. 70 begins. These indications will be useful to readers who need to look up references made elsewhere to the printed version of this book.] Our history begins… Read more