Women and Weasels
Mythologies of Birth in Ancient Greece and Rome
9780226044743
9780226039961
Women and Weasels
Mythologies of Birth in Ancient Greece and Rome
If you told a woman her sex had a shared, long-lived history with weasels, she might deck you. But those familiar with mythology know better: that the connection between women and weasels is an ancient and favorable one, based in the Greek myth of a midwife who tricked the gods to ease Heracles’s birth—and was turned into a weasel by Hera as punishment. Following this story as it is retold over centuries in literature and art, Women and Weasels takes us on a journey through mythology and ancient belief, revising our understanding of myth, heroism, and the status of women and animals in Western culture. Maurizio Bettini recounts and analyzes a variety of key literary and visual moments that highlight the weasel’s many attributes. We learn of its legendary sexual and childbearing habits and symbolic association with witchcraft and midwifery, its role as a domestic pet favored by women, and its ability to slip in and out of tight spaces. The weasel, Bettini reveals, is present at many unexpected moments in human history, assisting women in labor and thwarting enemies who might plot their ruin. With a parade of symbolic associations between weasels and women—witches, prostitutes, midwives, sisters-in-law, brides, mothers, and heroes—Bettini brings to life one of the most venerable and enduring myths of Western culture.
384 pages | 28 halftones | 6 x 9 | © 2013
Art: Ancient and Classical Art
History: Ancient and Classical History
Literature and Literary Criticism: General Criticism and Critical Theory
Reviews
Table of Contents
I The Story of Alcmene Saved by the Weasel
1 The Story
2 La Folia
3 The Woman in Labor
4 The Enemy
5 The Knots
6 The Resolution
7 The Rescuer
8 The First Identity of the Rescuer
9 Dissonance? Pliny and Birth through the Mouth
II Animal Metaphors and Women’s Roles
10 The Forest of Symbols Is Full of Animals
11 The Weasel-Rescuer Is a Complicated Character
12 Wilde Frau, Savage Midwife
13 Godmother Weasel
14 An Encyclopedia without Footnotes
Conclusion: Alcmene’s Thoughts
Notes
Index
1 The Story
2 La Folia
3 The Woman in Labor
4 The Enemy
5 The Knots
6 The Resolution
7 The Rescuer
8 The First Identity of the Rescuer
9 Dissonance? Pliny and Birth through the Mouth
II Animal Metaphors and Women’s Roles
10 The Forest of Symbols Is Full of Animals
11 The Weasel-Rescuer Is a Complicated Character
12 Wilde Frau, Savage Midwife
13 Godmother Weasel
14 An Encyclopedia without Footnotes
Conclusion: Alcmene’s Thoughts
Notes
Index
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