"Death and Romance in Sir Orfeo"

A Handbook to the Reception of Classical Mythology, 2017

Journal of Analytical Psychology, 2000

The archaic story of the Thracian musician Orpheus and his bride Eurydice is heard first as an ancient myth of marriage and death, wedding and separation. The mixture of expectation and dread in its sentiments is sounded still today in the contemporary wedding songs and funeral laments of the Mediterranean and the Balkans. Similar sequences of engagement and withdrawal, ascent and descent, change and metamorphosis are found in the adventures and vicissitudes of other mythic figures. Its premise of the soul's transmigration and its promise of psychic transformation inspired the religious ruminations and philosophic speculation of many centuries. The shifting keys in the songs of Orpheus and the cries of Eurydice score the shocking emotions of epiphanal moments, the creative 'agon', and a depth psychological passage. With its crescendos and denouements, the Orpheus/Eurydice phenomenon suggests the range of experience as one both engages reality and reaches toward meaning.

Spenser Studies

This article addresses Spenser's curious preference for the lesserknown Greek version of the Orpheus myth, in which Orpheus successfully recovers Eurydice from the Underworld, over the tragic version promulgated by Virgil's Georgics, exploring its significance in the middle books of The Faerie Queene and its implications for Spenser's conception of his role as an "Orphic" poet. The rescue of Amoret from the House of Busirane and that of Florimel from Proteus's cave both rework Eurydice's release. Spenser's chief concern is to differentiate between true and false love, which he identifies respectively with sympathy and with rapacious desire. Britomart's capacity for sympathy and respect for Amoret's freedom as a desiring subject enable her to perform the role of the liberating Orpheus, while Scudamour's actions at the Temple of Venus are implicitly paralleled with Aristaeus's attempted rape in Virgil's account. In Book IV, Florimel's lament brings out the connection of this sympathetic form of love with Orpheus's traditional powers of poetic pathos, while the Orphic poet's ability to promote a similar equity and "franchise" on the social and political level are evoked through allusion to Orpheus's quelling of the Argonauts's strife. Where Virgil's fourth Georgic opposes political necessity to love and art, Spenser challenges this dichotomy. In assuming the role of the "Brittayne Orpheus," and reasserting Orpheus's victory over death, he dedicates his

Classica et Mediaevalia, 1985

Lozanova-Stancheva, V. Thragic Orpheus. Orpheus On the Stage of the Old Attic Theater. – Bulletin ‘Heritage BG’ – Research Announcements, бр. 2, 14-16, 2022

The article offers an analysis of the information about the figure of Orpheus on the stage of the Old Attic theater in the 5 th century BC. They are systematized in several groups around the mythological motifs characterizing the Thracian musician: The magical power of Orpheus' word-song; Orpheus enchanting wild animals, which is closely associated with the myth of the Argonauts; the myth of the katabasis of Orpheus. In ancient times, magic was almost always negatively associated with the religious practices of someone else, a foreigner, the Other. It is a term that distinguishes these practices from the norm and a means of defining the Otherness embodied in the figure of Orpheus. Along this line, the reserved and even negative attitude towards Orphism and the related religious movement in classical Athens developed. These characteristics transform the figure of the Thracian into inconsistent, conflicting with the canons of good tragedy, defined by Aristotle in his Poetics, and explain why it appears on the stage of the Old Attic theater unsystematically and in associative terms.

thersites, 2022

The paper focuses on an example of multiple-step reception: the contribution of the classical story of Orpheus and Eurydice and the mediaeval lay Sir Orfeo to Tolkien’s work. In the first part, I compare the lay with Virgilian and Ovidian versions of Orpheus’ myth. This comparison shows the anonymous author’s deep knowledge of the ancient texts and complex way of rewriting them through stealing and hybridization. The lay was highly esteemed by Tolkien, who translated it and took inspiration from it while describing the Elven kingdom in The Hobbit and building the storyline of Beren and Lúthien in The Silmarillion. Through this key tale, Orpheus/Orfeo’s romance has a deep influence also on Aragorn and Arwen’s story in The Lord of the Rings. The most important element that Tolkien takes from the Sir Orfeo figuration of the ancient story is undoubtedly the insertion of political theme: the link established between the recovery of the main character’s beloved and the return to royal responsability. The second part of the paper is, thus, dedicated to the reception of Sir Orfeo and the classical myth in Tolkien. It shows how in his work the different steps of the tradition of Orpheus’ story are co-present, creating an inextricable substrate of inspiration that nourishes his imagination.

Encyclopedia of Psychology and Religion, 2nd ed., Vol 2, pp. 1255-1258

The image of Orpheus as a semi-divine mythological being and perhaps an actual person has inspired countless works of art for well over two and half millennia. Within the domains of myth and art, he is primarily associated with his renowned abilities as poet and musician. Many versions of his story describe the captivating power his music exerted over anyone or thing near him while he played his cithara. Equally compelling is the story of the death of his newlywed bride, Eurydice, and his journey to the underworld to attempt her retrieval. He also plays a crucial role aboard the Argos accompanying Jason and fellow Argonauts on the quest for the Golden Fleece. Perhaps most intriguing, from the perspective of religious studies, is his purported role as the founder of a non-Hellenic renunciation cult called Orphism that condemned animal sacrifice and produced a large body of works describing a cosmogony and eschatology that stand in sharp contrast to those described in Homer and Hesiod.

MA Dissertation - updated 2021, 2013

Although absent from early Archaic sources by the sixth century BCE Orpheus the poet had become synonymous with poetry and inspiration. This essay will examine the emergence of the myths of Orpheus in Archaic Greece with a view to understanding his place in society. This will entail the exploration of the relationship between poetry and the evolving role of the individual in Archaic society in order to clarify the context in which Orpheus came to prominence. By examining the changing role of the poet within society one can understand ways in which the evolution of Archaic society, including the development of the polis and what has been termed ‘the rise of the individual,’ may have influenced the creation and performance of poetry. These factors, together with the absorption of new cultural influences into Greek society and the development of new attitudes to the afterlife created the social context in which the Orpheus myths took form. This work will clarify the extent to which changing values found expression in the figure of Orpheus and the ways in which the elements of the myths reflected contemporary social concerns. Consideration will be given to claims of exotic influence made by modern scholars and the extent to which Orpheus’ mythology made him a suitable vehicle for the importation of exotic ideas such as reincarnation and metempsychosis and whether these myths expressed the concerns of a society increasingly preoccupied with the fate of the individual soul after death. Orpheus’ perceived otherness made him a liminal figure who crossed boundaries in transcending and uniting the divisions between the animal, human and divine worlds. This work will highlight ways in which the mythical Orpheus was essentially a construct of Archaic Greek society and reflected notions concerned with poetry, heroic identity and immortality inherent in this culture.

Chapter I: Literary Analysis Book X opens on the bard Orpheus, whose wife, Eurydice, died on their wedding day. He famously traveled down to the underworld to retrieve her. Pluto promised him that Eurydice would leave the underworld with him, if only he promised not to look back at her while departing. Having almost reached the exit, curious Orpheus turned around to see Eurydice for a brief moment before he lost her again to the realm of the dead. Still mourning the loss of his wife, he resolves to sing not of Jove and giants, but instead of boys desired by male gods and of maidens burning with forbidden desires and paying the penalty for their lust ("puerosque canamus / dilectos superis inconcessisque puellas / ingnibus attonitas meruisse libidine poenam" 152-54). 1 After having changed his sexual preference from women to boys, Orpheus first tells the stories of Ganymede and Hyacinth, the former loved by Jove and the later by Apollo. In fact, he specifically tells these stories to reflect his change of sexual orientation. Orpheus fulfills the first promise he made in lines 152-54 that he would sing of boys loved by male gods.

Orpheus - Myth Complex, Philosophy and Psychoanalysis

english - german - espanol The Orphic mythology encompasses the tragedy of humanity from its alienation from nature to the present day and the so far futile attempt to return to the lost homeland.... The 'alienation from nature' is the consequence of the introduction of family life among the rebellious teams in the original tribe, which led to narcissistic fixation among the descendants of these monogamous couples.... In contrast to the figures of the other paradise myths, Orpheus, who had become the victim of this disorientation, not only recognises the way back to his original home, but also succeeds in restoring the original state of being close to nature, admittedly only for a short time! Just as long as it took Orpheus' successors and their enemies to establish the authenticity of his recovery - otherwise the latter would not have destroyed his work... I only became aware of this fact when I tried to shed light on the Orpheus complex. In the process, I also gradually realised the importance of its historical aspects, both mythical and political, which led Aeschylus to dramatise Orpheus' death. The mythical death of Orpheus by dismemberment represents the dissolution of the rebellious crews by the council of the original tribe, namely the measure by which the isolated men were prevented from reversing the balance of power in the tribe. Since such 'uprisings' were triggered by the rut of the tribal women, the mainads, they themselves seem to have been the ones who would have dismembered and incorporated the crew of Orpheus, although both had been carried out by the tribal council, which was itself militant through the women. (Incorporation in the sense of integration into the tribe, its transformation into a genea.) Aeschylus transferred this mythical version to the conditions in Athens of his time, not without reason, for the 'Orphics' -(a secret organisation)- actually desired the reversal of the balance of power, thus the Areopagus was striving to break up its opponents. This court, dominated by the Athenian family masses, took every opportunity to banish the aristocrats - who secretly belonged to the Orphics - from the polis or even - like Socrates, for example - to eliminate them... ............................................................................................. Die orphische Mythologie umfasst die Tragik der Menschheit von ihrer Naturentfremdung bis heute und den bisher vergeblichen Versuch, in die verlorene Heimat zurück zu gelangen... Die ‚Naturentfremdung‘ ist die Folge der Einführung des Familienlebens unter den rebellischen Mannschaften im Urstamm, was unter den Nachkommen dieser monogamen Paare zur narzisstischen Fixierung führte... Im Unterschied zu den Gestalten der sonstigen Paradiesmythen erkennt Orpheus, der zum Opfer dieser Wesensentstellung geworden war, nicht nur den Weg zurück zur Urheimat, sondern gelingt ihm auch die Wiederherstellung des naturverbundenen Urzustandes, freilich nur für kurze! Zeit — genau so lange, wie nötig war für Orpheus‘ Nachfolger und deren Feinde, die Echtheit der Genesung festzustellen – sonst hätten letztere sein Werk nicht zerstört... Dieser Sachverhalt wurde mir erst durch den Versuch bewusst, den Orpheus-Komplex zu durchleuchten. Dabei ist mir außerdem nach und nach die Wichtigkeit seiner historischen Aspekte klar geworden, und zwar sowohl des mythischen als auch des politischen, die Aischylos veranlassten, den Tod Orpheus dramatisch zu verarbeiten. Der mythische Tod Orpheus durch Zerstückelung stellt die Auflösung der rebellischen Mannschaften durch den Rat des Urstammes dar, nämlich jene Maßnahme, anhand derer die vereinzelten Männer gehindert wurden, die Machtverhältnisse im Stamm umzukehren. Da solche ‚Aufstände‘ von der Brunst der Stammesfrauen ausgelöst wurden, den Mainaden, scheinen sie selbst diejenigen gewesen zu sein, die die Mannschaft Orpheus zerstückelt und sich einverleibt hätten, obwohl beides von dem durch die Frauen seinerseits kämpferisch gestimmten Stammesrat durchgeführt worden war. (Einverleibung im Sinne von Integration in den Stamm, dessen Umwandlung zur Genea.) Diese mythische Fassung übertrug Aischylos auf die Verhältnisse im Athen seiner Gegenwart, nicht zu Unrecht, denn die ‚Orphiker‘ -(eine Geheimorganisation)- wünschten sich tatsächlich die Umkehrung der Machtverhältnisse, so war der Areopag um die Zersprengung seiner Gegner bemüht. Dieser von der Familienmasse Athens beherrschte Gerichtshof nutzten jede Gelegenheit, die Aristokraten – die heimlich zu den Orphikern zählten – aus der Polis zu verbannen oder gar – wie z.B. Sokrates – zu beseitigen... ............................................................................................. La mitología órfica abarca la tragedia de la humanidad desde su alejamiento de la naturaleza hasta la actualidad y el intento, hasta ahora inútil, de volver a la patria perdida.... La "alienación de la naturaleza" es el resultado de la introducción de la vida familiar entre los equipos rebeldes de la tribu primordial, lo que llevó a la fijación narcisista entre los descendientes de estas parejas monógamas.... A diferencia de las figuras de los otros mitos del paraíso, Orfeo, que se había convertido en víctima de esta desorientación, no sólo reconoce el camino de vuelta a su hogar original, sino que consigue restablecer el estado original de estar cerca de la naturaleza, ¡aunque sea por poco tiempo! Tanto como los sucesores de Orfeo y sus enemigos tardaron en establecer la autenticidad de su recuperación - de lo contrario, estos últimos no habrían destruido su obra... Sólo me di cuenta de este hecho cuando intenté arrojar luz sobre el complejo de Orfeo. En el proceso, también me fui dando cuenta de la importancia de sus aspectos históricos, tanto míticos como políticos, que llevaron a Esquilo a dramatizar la mu¬erte de Orfeo. La mítica muerte de Orfeo por desmembramiento representa la dis¬olu¬ción de las cuadrillas rebeldes por el consejo de la tribu original, es decir, la medida por la que se impidió a los hombres aislados invertir el equilibrio de poder en la tribu. Dado que tales "levantamientos" fueron desencadenados por el celo de las mujeres de la tribu, las mainads, ellas mismas parecen haber sido las que habrían desmembrado e incorporado a la tripulación de Orfeo, aunque ambas hayan sido llevadas a cabo por el consejo tribal, que a su vez militaba a través de las mujeres. (Incorporación en el sentido de integración en la tribu, su transformación en una genea). Esquilo trasladó esta versión mítica a las condiciones de la Atenas de su tiempo, no sin razón, ya que los "órficos" -(una organización secreta)- deseaban en realidad la inversión del equilibrio de poder, por lo que el Areópago se esforzaba por acabar con sus oponentes. Esta corte, dominada por la masa familiar ateniense, aprovechaba cualquier oportunidad para desterrar a los aristócratas -que secretamente pertene¬cían a los órficos- de la polis o incluso -como Sócrates- para eliminarlos... .............................................................................................