Sappho and Homer (Paperback) (ISBN-13: 9781108740609)

In this book, Melissa Mueller brings two of the most celebrated poets from Greek antiquity into conversation with contemporary theorists of gender, sexuality, and affect studies. Like all lyric poets of her time, Sappho was steeped in the affects and story-world of Homeric epic, and the language, characters, and themes of her poetry often intersect with those of Homer. Yet the relationship between Sappho and Homer has usually been framed as competitive and antagonistic. This book instead sets the two side by side, within the embrace of a non-hierarchical, 'reparative reading' culture, as first conceived by queer theorist and poet Eve Kosofsky Sedgwick. Reintroducing readers to a Sappho who supplements Homer's vision, it is an approach that locates Sappho's lyrics at the center of timely discussions about materiality, shame, queer failure, and the aging body, while presenting a sustaining and collaborative way of reading both lyric and epic.

Author: Melissa Mueller
ISBN-10: 110874060X
ISBN-13: 9781108740609
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Language: English
Published: 06/19/2025
Pages: 248
Format: Paperback
Weight: 0.75lbs
Size: 9.00h x 6.00w x 0.53d