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Media type:
E-Article
Title:
PROVERBS IN HERODOTUS' DIALOGUE BETWEEN SOLON AND CROESUS (1.30‐33): METHODOLOGY AND ‘MAKING SENSE’ IN THE STUDY OF GREEK RELIGION
Contributor:
ELLIS, B. ANTHONY
imprint:
Oxford University Press (OUP), 2015
Published in:Bulletin of the Institute of Classical Studies
Language:
English
DOI:
10.1111/j.2041-5370.2015.12013.x
ISSN:
2041-5370;
0076-0730
Origination:
Footnote:
Description:
<jats:title>Abstract</jats:title>
<jats:p>Summary: Several influential scholars have recently argued that Herodotus' thought about the gods and historical causation is inconsistent and ‘proverbial’ in nature, and these conclusions have been used to support far-reachingtheories about the nature of ancient Greek religion and archaic thought. Taking the Croesus logos as a case study, I question some of the philosophical premises and methodological practices employed in recent arguments for Herodotus' inconsistency. I argue that much analysis is based on a reductive treatment of key words or phrases (often classed as ‘proverbs’) in isolation from their immediate context. I also argue that stronger claims about the difference between ancient religious/proverbial thought and modern, secular thought rely on circular reasoning. Finally I explore alternative approaches to the interpretation of the theology of Herodotus' Croesus logos, discussing examples from humanist apologetics to literary analysis in the twenty-firstcentury. In exploring various approaches to Herodotean exegesis I offer a new analysis of several key concepts (divine nemesis, divine phthonos, sumphorē) and reassess the dynamics of the dialogue between Solon and Croesus.</jats:p>