Articoli di riviste sul tema "Mythology, classical – fiction"

Abstract: This essay represents the first scholarly assessment of the complete works of the Elizabethan poet and translator Richard Linche (fl. 1596–1601). Linche was interested in classical mythology, sonnet writing, and prose translation. He was also concerned with the burning literary questions of the 1590s and early seventeenth century. This article analyzes Linche’s sonnet sequence Diella (1596) and his love poem The Love of Dom Diego and Gynevra (1596), highlighting Linche’s use of ancient mythology as an ideal vehicle for exploring personal passion in contemporary poetry. It then turns to Linche’s English translation of the Italian mythographer Vincenzo Cartari, The Fountaine of Ancient Fiction (1599) , to illustrate how Linche deals with mythology as an inspiration for literature. Linche identifies myth as an appealing source for contemporary writing while displaying discomfort with some of its sexual content. Finally, this article discusses Linche’s An Historical Treatise of the Travels of Noah into Europe (1601), placing the work in the larger picture of his literary career and suggesting that it was a euhemeristic response to his earlier explorations of myth. In contrast to Linche’s earlier works, The Travels offers a de-personalized and desexualized approach to myth. By providing the first detailed critical assessment of Richard Linche’s oeuvre, this essay reveals an Elizabethan writer who was interested in what inspires fiction, particularly in the complicated moral issues surrounding the sensuality of classical mythology and the role of eroticism in contemporary poetry.

Notes the presence of references to classical mythology throughout modern culture, and offers an annotated list of 43 works of contemporary fiction, poetry, and drama that use mythological sources and that can help close the gap between today’s students and the gods and goddesses, heroes and monsters of long ago.

Abstract The turn of the millennium has brought a revival of interest in the ancient Greek and Roman texts. Obviously, the legacy of antiquity is a permanent feature of Western literature and visual arts; yet, its contemporary manifestation has taken a novel form, that of a retelling. It is a new trend in which a well-known text belonging to the canon is given an unorthodox interpretation, which exposes the ethnic, class, and gender prejudices present in the original. Mythological retellings are often written in an accessible manner containing features of genre fiction, which makes the revised version palatable to ordinary readers. A characteristic feature of mythic fantasy is the shift of focus from heroic exploits to private life as well as putting previously marginal characters into limelight. The retellings are a consequence of new, reflexive research angles that have appeared in the field of the classics.

Ever since its origins, children's literature has dealt with frightening subject matter. The forms of such frightening fiction for children are, however, continuously changing. Retellings of classical mythology are a case in point as myths contain subjects that might be considered a threat to the romantic notion of the innocent child. As such, a focus upon the way authors deal with sex, death and violence in retellings of classical mythology reveals how the paradoxical impulses that govern the act of retelling – that is, a desire for preserving and challenging cultural tradition – alter under the influence of society's changing ideas about children and their literature. This paper concentrates on the rich and vivid tradition of retelling classical myths in the Low Countries. Shifts in the choice of pretext and in the age of the intended audience reveal a change of attitude towards frightening subjects in classical myths during the last decades. A closer look at retellings of the creation myths, dealing with sexual and lethal violence between parents and children, and the subject of death in the myth of Orpheus shows how the retellings of frightening myths range from unequivocal presentations as cautionary tales to demanding narratives generating unfixed meanings.

The present research featured the dog’s death scenario in twentieth-century American mass fiction based on Robert McCammon’s novels. The authors believe that the popularity of this scenario has its roots in mythology and precedent texts of the linguaculture in question. In global mythology, dogs dwell in the twilight zone between the world of the living and the world of the dead. Modern mass literature preserved this function of the dog as a guide into the other world. As a child extrapolates the episode of their pet’s death, they enter the threshold situation that triggers the awareness of their own death, thus providing access to experience available only at subconscious level. The authors review scientific publications that feature the concept of dog, give classical examples of American literature that shaped the etalon scenario of a dog’s death, and support them with episodes from R. McCammon’s works "Where the Red Fern Grows". Modern mass fiction adopted the etalon scenario of a dog’s death from a story by Wilson Rawls. This scenario presupposes obligatory stages of acceptance and coming-of-age. Any modifications of the etalon scenario result in stagnation or death of the personage.

The present research featured the dog’s death scenario in twentieth-century American mass fiction based on Robert McCammon’s novels. The authors believe that the popularity of this scenario has its roots in mythology and precedent texts of the linguaculture in question. In global mythology, dogs dwell in the twilight zone between the world of the living and the world of the dead. Modern mass literature preserved this function of the dog as a guide into the other world. As a child extrapolates the episode of their pet’s death, they enter the threshold situation that triggers the awareness of their own death, thus providing access to experience available only at subconscious level. The authors review scientific publications that feature the concept of dog, give classical examples of American literature that shaped the etalon scenario of a dog’s death, and support them with episodes from R. McCammon’s works "Where the Red Fern Grows". Modern mass fiction adopted the etalon scenario of a dog’s death from a story by Wilson Rawls. This scenario presupposes obligatory stages of acceptance and coming-of-age. Any modifications of the etalon scenario result in stagnation or death of the personage.

Serial killers have been a popular topic in literature for centuries, appearing in works of fiction, non-fiction, and even poetry. In literature, serial killers often represent the dark side of human nature, and their stories often explore the depths of depravity and the psychological motivations behind their heinous acts. Examples of serial killers can be found throughout history and mythology. With all that the public’s attention is usually focused on the serial murders of the latest decades, with the historical cases still generally remaining in the obscure. The reason for that lack of publicity is that serial killers in antiquity are difficult to identify, because the concept of serial killing is a relatively modern one. One of the pleasant exceptions is a book by Debbie Felton “Monsters and Monarchs: Serial Killers in Classical Myths and History” published by University of Texas Press, 2021, 235 pp., ISBN: 978-1-4773-2357-1 (paperback edition). This article reviews the book and comments on its contents and style.

Fantasy and science fiction genres extensively use imaginary settings and locations different from realistic ones but striving to look real. Arkady and Boris Strugatsky, pioneers of the science fiction genre in Russia, actively exploited the potential of both genres in their early tale, Monday starts on Saturday (1964), which combines features of the two space types. The present paper analyses the principles of creating ‘mago-space’ in the book. To do so, we look at the spatial organization of the events involved in the plot and the personages’ ideas regarding space. The research will enable us to clarify the role of space in conveying the authors’ message, which in this tale is quite explicit. We argue that the space changes significantly within the book, accompanying genre transformations and the development of the protagonist. Since the tale uses ‘mental sublocations’ as the main units of spatial organization, each part is determined by a certain type of cultural heritage. In the first part, it is the mental space of folklore and classical literature, in the second – that of mythology and science fiction, and in the final – philosophy and science. Mental spaces that coexist and follow various laws form a narrative which turns out to be a journey to the described present in the variety of its forms.

This work intends to analyze some representations of violence and fear in the dramaturgical narrative A Ilha da Ira (1975), by João de Jesus Paes Loureiro. This investigation is built on the hypothesis that the character “A Velha”, the ruler of the island where the actions of the narrative are developed, is characterized according to the elements of the Dictator and strongly associated with Sovereignty. To account for this hypothesis, we use two formulations to analyze the narrative, namely: the relationship between history and fiction; the appropriations directed to the mythical imaginary as a response to the conflicting reality, associated with the history-fiction relationship. As for the story-fiction pair, we note that the narrative dialogues with a set of references to authoritarianism in the Amazon – the uprising of Cabanagem and the 1964 Civil-Military Dictatorship. In relation to the real-imaginary, intertextual dialogues with elements of classical mythology – the Medusa myth; and mythical-legendary – the Amazonian legend of Matintaperera. In this way, we consider some theoretical questions, to understand the study about violence and fear and its ramifications in the process of understanding and analyzing the narrative. In this context, our starting point is the reflections of Walter Benjamin, Jaime Ginzburg, Elias Canetti and Tânia Sarmento-Pantoja to articulate the studies of violence and fear in the literary work.

Although the critics have traditionally observed the novel Tess of the D’Urbervilles as the disapproval of Victorian morals and double standards, the aim of this work is to point out the fact that this novel also has a general, universal meaning. Using Lukacs’ concept of realistic fiction as a synthesis of particular and universal as a starting point, the author of this research claims that this novel is a story of the tragic destiny of a particular character, but that at the same time Tess Durbeyfield functions as an embodiment of the Archetypal Feminine. Myths are symbolic expressions of archetypes, and, apart from numerous parallels with the ancient myth of Demeter and Persephone, the novel contains allusions to the myth of Genesis and to classical gods like Artemis and Apollo. The character of Tess Durbeyfield is closely related to earth and natural laws. Tough she has a great mythic potential, nobody (with the exception of Alec D’Urberville), not even Tess herself, realises it. Tis leads to a tragic outcome. Contrary to Persephone, who, even though Hades carries her to the Underworld and pronounces her his wife, succeeds to return to Earth and to begin a new life, Tess never regains stability after she loses her virginity to Alec. She does not recognise Alec’s function in terms of initiation into the world of maturity. Her sole reaction is neglect of the sensual part of her nature and her turning to the spiritual. There is no projection of the archetype, which inevitably leads Tess to failure and death.

Abstract At the 2018 Outstanding African Thinkers Conference on Nna Chinweizu, attendees – the first author included – took a pledge that “In all branches of our lives, we must be capable of criticizing and of accepting criticism. But criticism, proof of the willingness of others to help us or of our willingness to help others, must be complemented by self-criticism – proof of our own willingness to help ourselves to improve our thoughts and our actions. This is a sacred principle and it is my sacred duty to apply and defend it at all costs” (Chinweizu 2018). In response to that call to action, this article represents an effort to restore MꜢꜤt ‘Maat.’ Ataa Ayi Kwei Armah’s Wat Nt Shemsw: The Way of Companions epitomizes undeclared fiction masquerading as an accurate reflection of the mythology of classical Kmt ‘Land of Black People.’ By cross-checking Ataa Armah’s undeclared fiction with actual historical, iconographical, and archaeological data, we are able to debunk his numerous misrepresentations. We find that the best way to approach Kmt ‘Land of Black People’ is through direct engagement with actual evidence rather than through the distortions of fiction writers turned Egyptologists. Further, we will address the personality cult, or what we term “Ataa Armah’s Manor Shemsw model,” which embodies the rhetorical ethic whereby all egalitarians are equal, but some egalitarians are more equal than others (Orwell, Baker, and Woodhouse 1996).

The importance of science fiction in contemporary cultural studies can hardly be underestimated, no more than it can be denied. Many narratives emerging out of the world of science fiction have become fully integrated within the contemporary cannon of popular understanding, mythology and reference. Amongst these narratives, perhaps no story is more fully integrated with contemporary culture than the original Star Wars saga. More current in the contemporary social imagination than the norse sagas, or those of ancient greece, Star Wars shares many of their epic qualities. The focus on the heroic characteristics of individuals, for example, against the backdrop of a great conflict between forces of good and evil, in which the righteous and the virtuous prevail is the standard narrative of many epic cultures. Indeed, this is the origin of classic notions of virtue, which stay with us to this day (MacIntyre, 2007). In that sense, this saga could be understood as yet another permutation of a story which has been told since time immemorial. Yet, as with the classical sagas, one must be sensitive to problematic aspects within their narratives; to the version of morality which they promote, and the ways in which they do so. This main focus in this essay will be just one such problem: the (mis)use of memory within the narrative of the original Star Wars saga, and deception as it relates to the myth of the Jedi.

Abstract Toni Morrison’s fiction has frequently attracted critical attention on account of her strategic use of myth (whether classical or Afrocentric) and symbols. This paper examines the role that horses have, as rhetorical constructs, in strengthening the mythical and symbolic unity of her tenth novel Home (2012). Horses have figured widely in the articulation of African American history and letters, often serving as symbols of the abused slaves upon whose bodies the equipment and instruments of oppression and bondage were violently placed. Within Morrison’s cornucopia of animal imagery, their presence is essential for an understanding of the rituals that are so much a part of the novel’s exploration of masculinity and the overcoming of trauma. The horses in Home stand as mythopoetic agents around whom the problematic completion of rituals revolves. As namely linguistic constructs, the rhetorical devices and choices employed in the description of the horses and their final fate points to a discourse that signifies on the structural tensions that are characteristic of classical mythology but that also draw on the African American communal experience. At the same time, they invite a reading of Morrison’s ritualistic pulse through Jacques Derrida’s carnophallogocentric schema. The schema links together the different motifs and interspecies similes and metaphors that populate the text, enabling a deconstruction of the “centaur” image that lies at the heart of the protagonist’s homecoming journey

This paper introduces three umbrella terms (Literal Adaptation, Spirit Adaptation, and Creative Adaptation) that define the broad approaches to creating an adaptation through the consideration of the literature of six different fields and their approaches to the study of adaptation. They are as follows: the study of Classical Mythology (a sub-set of Classics), Cultural Studies, Adaptation Theory (from Film Studies), Fan Fiction Studies (from Fan Studies), Folklore Studies, and Translation Studies. While Library and Information Studies (LIS) does occasionally deal with adaptation, often in the form of Children's Literature and/or Fairy Tales, there is no widely-accepted theory or method to doing so. Therefore it is absent from the six disciplines that were reviewed, though it has substantial cross-over with each. As scholarship becomes more interdisciplinary, juggling the terms of a variety of fields becomes more important and more challenging. This paper aims to provide three accessible terms for those interested in studying adaptions from a broad or cross-disciplinary perspective that can substitute for the lengthy and specialized vocabulary of each individual discipline. It may also provide an example for others looking to similarly synthesize a set of cross-disciplinary vocabularies.

The role and place of ancient intellectual heritage (fiction, mythology, historical works, political and philosophical treatises) in the formation of the intellectual landscape of Ukraine during the late Enlightenment are presented and analyzed. The purpose of the work was to find out the methods of assimilation and instrumentalization of the culture of Antiquity in the Ukrainian intellectual environment. The research methodology is based on intellectual history approaches aimed at identifying the mechanisms of formation and structures of the intellectual landscape of certain cultural areas. The presentation of the main material is aimed at the representation of the process of reception of the texts of the Antiquity era in the spiritual-cultural and social-political space of Left Bank Ukraine. Algorithms for assimilation of the ancient heritage have been identified: studying in domestic and foreign institutions, forming one’s own libraries, getting acquainted with the texts of ancient authors in the original and through the work of European educators. The personnel potential of Ukrainian translators of ancient Greek and ancient Roman works was determined, the repertoire of translations of ancient authors and their thematic priorities were clarified. It is emphasized that the appeal to Antiquity was determined both by the pan-European cultural discourse of the Age of Enlightenment and by the peculiarities of the regional social and socio-economic situation. Representatives of the Ukrainian intellectual elite used the plots, images, and styles of Antiquity as a tool for developing and justifying strategies and tactics for the protection of national interests in the process of integration into imperial structures. Conclusion. Ancient heritage in the second half of the XVIII – at the beginning of the ХІХ century became an important cultural resource in the formation of the intellectual landscape of Left Bank Ukraine. This was due to the prevailing cultural discourse of the Enlightenment, the available personnel potential, and the social and aesthetic demand of the ancient heritage. Her patriotic pathos was actively used to defend the special status of the Motherland as part of the empire, to create a national elite socio-cultural space. Classical heritage has become an effective means of status positioning and an instrument of career strategies of the educated classes. Crisis of the Enlightenment Paradigm at the Edge of the XVIII–XIX centuries created the conditions for rethinking Antiquity in the categories of modern times («Aeneid» by I. Kotlyarevskyi). Its use as an important factor in the intellectual landscape ended at the time of the birth of the modern Ukrainian ethnic project.

La Antigá¼edad griega ha definido dos topoi simbólicos para territorializar la identidad (Mismidad) y la otredad: la há½bris y la sophrosyne, definidos discursivamente en la mitologá­a por dos linajes, uno claro y otro oscuro, que seguirán presentes en el perá­odo clásico. En este sentido esa es la experiencia dominante griega de la identidad y la otredad. La sophrosyne termina su larga ligazón con la identidad y la há½bris con la otredad. A partir de allá­ proponemos pensar un modelo de construcción de la Otredad en la economá­a general del pensamiento má­tico. Pensar y construir a un otro implica territorializarlo en cinco ejes o dimensiones que analizaremos antes de situarnos en la mujer como ”nuestro otro”. Pandora constituye una figura emblemática de esta construcción atravesada por lo viril. Desde su propia condición de artefacto hasta las marcas identitarias atribuidas en su ficción, la dimensión axiológica la ubica en un territorio de registro singular que el presente trabajo recorrerá.Palabra clave: Mismo. Otro. Pandora. Mujer. Hesá­odo.OS TRAá‡OS DO MATRIMÓNIO NA OBRA DE HESáODO. PANDORA COMO A CONSTRUÇÃO DO OUTRO Resumo: A Antiguidade grega definiu dois topoi simbólicos para contextualizar a identidade (Mesmidade) e a alteridade: a há½bris e a sophrosyne, definidas discursivamente na mitologia por duas linhagens, uma clara e outra obscura, que continuarão presentes no perá­odo clássico. Neste sentido essa é a experiência dominante grega da identidade e da alteridade. A sophrosyne estabelece a sua ampla ligação com a identidade e a há½bris com a alteridade. A partir daqui propomo-nos pensar um modelo de construção da Alteridade na economia geral do pensamento má­tico. Pensar e construir um outro implica contextualizá-lo em cinco eixos ou dimensões que analisaremos antes de nos situarmos na mulher como ”o nosso outro”. Pandora constitui uma figura emblemática desta construção atravessada pelo viril. Desde a sua própria condição de artefato até á s marcas identitárias atribuá­das á sua ficção, a dimensão axiológica situa-a num território de registo singular que o presente trabalho se propõe rever.Palavras -chave: Mesmo. Outro. Pandora. Mulher. Hesá­odo.THE VESTIGES OF MARRIAGE IN THE WORK OF HESIOD. PANDORA AS THE CONSTRUCTION OF THE OTHER Abstract: Greek Antiquity has defined two symbolic topoi to territorialize the identity (Sameness) and the otherness: the há½bris and the sophrosyne, defined discursively in mythology by two lineages, one clear and the other dark, that will continue to be present in the classical period. In this sense, that is the dominant Greek experience of identity and otherness. The sophrosyne establishes its broad association with identity and the há½bris with otherness. From this point on, we propose to conjecture a model of construction of the Other in the general economy of mythical thought. Thinking and constructing an "other" implies territorializing it in five axes or dimensions that we will analyze before situating ourselves in the woman as "our other". Pandora is an emblematic figure of this construction traversed by the virile. From its own artifact condition to the identity marks attributed in her fiction, the axiological dimension places her in a territory of singular register that this work aims to revise.Keywords: Same. Other. Pandora. Woman. Hesiod.

When the first edition of theMetamorphosesappeared in the bookshops of Rome, Ovid had already made a name for himself in the literary circles of the city. His literary début, theAmoves, immediately established his reputation as a poetic Lothario, as it lured his tickled readers into a typically Ovidian world of free-wheeling elegiac love, light-hearted hedonism, and (more or less) adept adultery. Connoisseurs of elegiac poetry could then enjoy hisHeroides, vicariously sharing stirring emotional turmoil with various heroines of history and mythology, who were here given a literary forum for voicing bitter feelings of loss and deprivation and expressing their strong hostility towards the epic way of life. Of more practical application for the Roman lady of the world were his verses on toiletry, theMedicamina Faciei, and once Ovid had discovered his talent for didactic expositionà la mode Ovidienne, he blithely continued in that vein. In perusing the urbane and sophisticated lessons on love which the self-proclaimederotodidaskalospresented in hisArs Amatoria, his (male and female) audience could hone their own amatory skills, while at the same time experiencing true Barthianjouissancein the act of reading a work, which is, as a recent critic put it, ‘a poem about poetry, and sex, and poetry as sex’. And after these extensive sessions in poetic philandering, his readers, having become hopeless and desperate eros-addicts, surely welcomed the thoughtful antidote Ovid offered in the form of the therapeuticRemedia Amoris, a poem written with the expressed purpose of freeing the wretched lover from the baneful shackles of Cupid.

The Wedding Chamber fresco, also known as Camera Picta, or La Camera Degli Sposi, painted by Andrea Mantegna at the dawn of the Renaissance, epitomizes the most outstanding expression of personal creativity and innovation from an artist that transformed the boundaries of representation and narrative inside the architectural space, to mix illusion and reality. He utilized the trompe l'oeil effect, the Oculus, and cinematic painted imaging on the walls, to reveal a world of fictional and symbolic situations combined with classical mythology. However, Andrea Mantegna playfully organized these compositional components, inaugurating a proto-technological system of visualization that transforms the viewer's perception in an immersive experience that goes beyond the mere effect of illusion. The research and the development of the installation described and explained with deconstruction of what Mantegna expressed masterfully at the end of the 15th century in the Saint Giorgio Castle in Mantua, Italy.

In a paper, written in polemics with mythology of the Flauberian studies of XX, particularly of the Soviet origin (the so-called realism or new realism, objectivism, impersonality, rationality of Flaubertian manner in “Madame Bovary”, identification of the author and his skills with the narrator, etc.), a figure of the narrator in this novel is discussed in full detail for the first time. This figure, a concrete person and a creator of narrative, is corresponded with Flaubert on various levels (biographical, gender, psychological, rationally creative, intertextual, subconscious) as well as with the characters (including the narrator on his own, his self-reflexion, psychological and psychic complexes, aims, methods and stylistics of narration). Antifeminine dimension of the narrative. «We» of the narrative is interpreted as a controversial sum of “I”, “non-I”, “other I-ies”, shadow projections of “I”, theatrical metamorphoses of “I”. In context of a special position of the narrator bourgeoisness, literatureness of the social consciousness, romanticism, palimpsest of the narrative, the double ending, and also the motives of story-telling and justification of creative efforts are analyzed. Symbolically the main events of the narrator’s world are death and positioning of himself as an inventor of fictions (“the lies”), a highly personal narrative the roots of which are in his school childhood, his mania of additional details and of endless improvement of his text. The narrator as a madman and an author of the madman’s diaries. The characters of the novel as artists. A study of the poetics of repetitions, mirror scenes, colours (blue, red, green), erotics, nature, historical details permits V. M. Tolmatchoff to introduce a rather new interpretation of Flaubert’s work as belonging to romanticism (partially baroqian, partially classical). The paper reconstructs chronology of events, age of the characters and poses a problem of Flaubert as inventor, of a meaning of non-correspondence in his novel between purely fictional time-space and strict historical details.

In a paper, written in polemics with mythology of the Flauberian studies of XX, particularly of the Soviet origin (the so-called realism or new realism, objectivism, impersonality, rationality of Flaubertian manner in “Madame Bovary”, identification of the author and his skills with the narrator, etc.), a figure of the narrator in this novel is discussed in full detail for the first time. This figure, a concrete person and a creator of narrative, is corresponded with Flaubert on various levels (biographical, gender, psychological, rationally creative, intertextual, subconscious) as well as with the characters (including the narrator on his own, his self-reflexion, psychological and psychic complexes, aims, methods and stylistics of narration). Antifeminine dimension of the narrative. «We» of the narrative is interpreted as a controversial sum of “I”, “non-I”, “other I-ies”, shadow projections of “I”, theatrical metamorphoses of “I”. In context of a special position of the narrator bourgeoisness, literatureness of the social consciousness, romanticism, palimpsest of the narrative, the double ending, and also the motives of story-telling and justification of creative efforts are analyzed. Symbolically the main events of the narrator’s world are death and positioning of himself as an inventor of fictions (“the lies”), a highly personal narrative the roots of which are in his school childhood, his mania of additional details and of endless improvement of his text. The narrator as a madman and an author of the madman’s diaries. The characters of the novel as artists. A study of the poetics of repetitions, mirror scenes, colours (blue, red, green), erotics, nature, historical details permits V. M. Tolmatchoff to introduce a rather new interpretation of Flaubert’s work as belonging to romanticism (partially baroqian, partially classical). The paper reconstructs chronology of events, age of the characters and poses a problem of Flaubert as inventor, of a meaning of non-correspondence in his novel between purely fictional time-space and strict historical details.

This paper draws on classical scholarship on myth in order to critically examine three ways in which scholars and fans have articulated a relationship between fan fiction and myth. These are (1) the notion of fan fiction as a form of folk culture, reclaiming popular story from corporate ownership; (2) the notion of myth as counterhegemonic, often feminist, discourse; (3) the notion of myth as a commons of story and a universal story world. I argue that the first notion depends on an implicit primitivizing of fan fiction and myth, which draws ultimately on the work of Gottfried von Herder in the 18th century and limits our ability to produce historically and politically nuanced understandings of fan fiction. The second notion, which is visible in the work of Henry Jenkins and Constance Penley, is more helpful because of its attention to the politics of narration. However, it is the third model of myth, as a universal story world, where we find the richest crossover between fan fiction's creative power and contemporary classical scholarship on myth, especially in relation to Sarah Iles Johnston's analysis of hyperserial narrative. I demonstrate this through some close readings of fan fiction from the Greek and Roman Mythology fandom on Archive of Our Own. I conclude the paper by extending Johnston's arguments to show that fan-fictional hyperseriality, specifically, can be seen as mythic because it intervenes not only in the narrative worlds of its source materials but also in the social world of its telling.

The article examines antiquity in the most successful young adult novel series in recent times, Időfutár. The text, which intertwines the genres of fantasy and alternative historical fiction, is built upon parallel time-travelling narrative schemes, the pathos of quest fantasy is replaced by absurd humor, Greek mythology by Roman history and some classical literary models. The plot takes place during Nero’s reign and it interweaves ancient artifacts and Latin literature with state-of-the-art scientific and technical developments, to create the symbiosis of modernity and antique culture. This bears an even more significant message in the era when the ancient languages and cultures, which provide the basis of European intellect, lose importance globally.

In this essay I show that the picture of universal extinction in the poem Satire I of the Romantic poet Mihai Eminescu (1850-1889) is deeply and rigorously inspired by a theory of thermodynamics from the 1870s, more precisely by the theory of universal “death” launched in the second part of 19th century by physicists William Thomson and Rudolf Clausius. My interpretation addresses competing interpretations, from literary-centric scenarios claiming that Eminescu’s representation of the extinction is inspired by or approaches models of the mythological-Christian tradition or universal literature, to scenarios that also launch hypotheses in the field of science, but other than thermodynamics. I am also interested in producing here, in the alternative, a critique of the thesis – widespread not only in popular culture but also in the most serious academic circles – according to which many of the discoveries of modern and even contemporary science would have been “announced,” “contained,” or “coded” in literary fiction, mythology, religious narratives etc., from ancient times (Indian, Judeo-Christian mythology etc.) to modern authors. Keywords: classical mechanics, cosmology, termodinamics, entropy, poetry, Immanuel Kant, William Thomson (Lord Kelvin), Rudolf Clausius, Spiru Haret, Mihai Eminescu, Scrisoarea I, G. Călinescu, Ion Heliade Rădulescu.

Narcissism as a multifaceted problem is studied in contemporary Ukrainian literary studies, including in psychoanalytic works devoted to philology. In particular, it is a project of the psychohistory of the Ukrainian literature proposed by Nila Zborovska. But the problem of narcissistic perversion, which is becoming more and more relevant in modern times, has not yet been isolated in literary criticism. Instead, fiction is an example of a clear depiction of such a problem in the images of imitators, egocentric manipulators, the display of unhealthy (sick) relationships etc. The main features of the perverse narcissist are singled out in the article. At the same time, manifolds and greater breadth of this type were found in the example of fiction (as opposed to the regularities in accessible psychoanalytic studies). The examples of hysteria and hysteroidism in reliance on the heroines of Lessya Ukrainka are considered, compared with the image of Lisa Khokhlakova in the novel by F. Dostoevsky “The Brothers Karamazov”. The paralyzed Ukrainianity and paralyzed Christianity in the feminine version are singled out. It is found that the absence of sublimation (in relation on Nerisa) leads to loss of moral qualities. The research emphasizes on the national identity (Nerisa vs Euphrosyne and Antaeus). The characters of Nerisa (“Orgy” by Lessya Ukrainka) and Salome (O. Wilde) are compared. The Lady Macbeth syndrome was identified as one of the signs of perverse narcissus. On the basis of the analyzed texts, there are extracted some binary oppositions, such as: sacred/profane, introvert/extravert, spiritual/fleshly, up(top)/low, creativity/imitation, Eros/Thanatos. Methods of research: comparative, Jungian (analytical psychology), translation studies, mythological, intermedial. For a clearer understanding of the clinical picture of feminine characters, the historical context is presented. The material of the analysis is artistic literature and opinion journalism (epistolary texts). Attention is paid to the texts of the Ukrainian, British, American, Austrian, Russian literatures, as well as folklore and mythology of different nations. Keywords: text, work, archetype, character, narcissistic perversion, narcissist, manipulation, aggressor, victim.

Mythology is formed by the set of stories and beliefs, relatively cohesive, to which people have traditionally attributed their origin and the cause of everything that happens around them. Therefore, we can affirm that mythology has the power to influence culture's worldview and belief system. For a better understanding of a region's socio-cultural condition, it becomes crucial to examine popular mythological texts. Among contemporary mythologists, there has been an increase in retelling ancient myths from a new perspective. The paper examines Devdutt Pattanaik's non-fictional attempt to revise classical Indian epics. In process, it reveals to the reader the challenges associated with paradigms that have dominated Indian thought for centuries. Two well-known retellings of Devdutt Pattanaik: Jaya: An Illustrated Retelling of Mahabharata (2010) and Sita: An Illustrated Retelling of Ramayana (2013) have been analyzed to explore the new feminine perspective in mythological retellings of the two great epics of India: TheRamayana and TheMahabharata. It is a qualitative research which follows the exploratory research design. MLA seventh edition style has been used for referencing and citation.

Mark Haddon’s The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time has achieved success as “the new Rain Man” or “the new definitive, popular account of the autistic condition” (Burks-Abbott 294). Integral to its favourable reception is the way it conflates the autistic main character, the fifteen-year-old narrator Christopher Boone, with the savant, or individual who exhibits both neurological problems and giftedness, thereby engaging with the way autism is presented in popular culture. In a variety of contemporary films and television series, autism has been transformed from a disability to a form of giftedness by relating it to abilities associated in contemporary media with a genius, in particular by invoking the metaphor of an autistic mind as a type of computer. As a result, the book engages with the current association of giftedness in mathematics and science with social awkwardness and isolation as constructed in popular culture: in idiomatic terms, the genius “nerd” figure characterised by an uncertain, adolescent approach to social contact (Kendall 353). The disablement of the character is, then, lessened so that the idea of being “special,” continually evoked throughout the text, has a transformative function that is related less to the special needs of those with a disability and more to the common element in adolescent fiction of longing for extraordinary power and control through being a special, gifted individual. The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time relates the protagonist, Christopher, to Sherlock Holmes and his methods of detection, specifically through the title being taken from a story by Conan Doyle, “Silver Blaze,” in which the “curious incident” referred to is that the dog did nothing in the night. In the original story, that the dog did not bark or react to an intruder was a clue that the person was known to the animal, so allowing Holmes to solve the crime by a process of deduction. Christopher copies these traditional methods of the classical detective to solve his personal mystery, that of who killed a neighbour’s dog, Wellington. The adoption of this title allows a double irony to emerge. Christopher’s attempts to emulate Holmes in his approach to crime are predicated on his assumption of his likeness to the model of the classical detective as he states, “I think that if I were a proper detective he is the kind of detective I would be,” pointing out the similarity of their powers of observation and his ability, like Holmes, to “detach his mind at will” as well as his capacity to find patterns in events (92). Through the novel, these attributes are aligned with his autism, constructing a trope of his disability conferring extraordinary abilities that are predicated on a computer-like detachment and precision in his method of thinking. The accessible narrative of the autistic Christopher gives the reader the impression of being able to understand the perspective of an individual with a spectrum disorder. In this way, the text not only engages with, but contributes to the construction of this disability in current popular culture as merely an extension of giftedness, especially in mathematics, and an associated unwillingness to communicate. Indeed, according to Raoul Eshelman, “one of its most engaging narrative devices is to make us identify with a mentally impaired narrator who is manifestly not interested in identifying either with us or anyone else” (1). The main character’s reference to mathematical and scientific ideas exploits an interest in giftedness already established by popular literature and film, and engages with a transformation effected in popular culture of the genius as autistic, and its corollary of an autistic person as potentially a genius. Such a construction ranges from fictional characters like Sheldon in The Big Bang Theory, Charlie and his physicist colleagues in Numb3rs, and Raymond Babbitt in Rain Man, to real life characters or representative figures in reality series and feature films such as x + y, The Imitation Game, The Big Short, and the television program Beauty and the Geek. While never referring specifically to autism, all the real or fictional representations contribute to the construction of a stereotype in which behaviours on the autistic spectrum are linked to a talent in mathematics and the sciences. In addition to this, detectives in the classical crime fiction alluded to in the novel typically exhibit traits of superhuman powers of deduction, pattern making, and problem solving that engage with the popular notion of genius in general and mathematics in particular by possessing a mind like a computer. Such detectives from current television series as Saga from The Bridge and Spencer Reid from Criminal Minds exhibit distance, coldness, and lack of social awareness or empathy with others, and this is presented as the basis of their extraordinary ability to discern patterns and solve crime. Spencer Reid, for example, has three PhDs in Science disciplines and Mathematics. Charlie in the television series Numb3rs is also a genius who uses his mathematical abilities to not only find the solution to crime but also explain the maths behind it to his FBI colleagues, and, in conjunction, the audience. But the character with the clearest association to Christopher is, naturally, Sherlock Holmes, both as constructed in Conan Doyle’s original text and the current adaptations and transformations of it. The television series Sherlock and Elementary, as well as the films Sherlock Holmes and Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows all invoke a version of Holmes in which his powers of deduction are associated with symptoms to be found in a spectrum disorder.Like Christopher, the classical detective is characterised by being cold, emotionless, distant, socially inept, and isolated, but also keenly observant, analytical, and scientific; one who approaches the crime as a puzzle to be solved (Cawelti 43) with computer-like precision. In what is considered to be the original detective story, The Murders in the Rue Morgue, Poe included a “pseudo-mathematical logic in his literary scenario” (Platten 255). In Conan Doyle’s stories, Holmes, too, adopts a mathematical and scientific approach to construct patterns from clues that he alone can discern, and thereby solve the crime. The depiction of investigators in contemporary media such as Charlie in Numb3rs engages with these origins so that he is objective, dispassionate, and able to relate to real-world problems only through the filter of mathematical formulae. Christopher is presented similarly by engaging with the idea of the detective as implied savant and relying on an ability to discern patterns for successful crime solving.The book links the disabling behaviours of autism with the savant, so that the stereotype of the mystic displaying both disability and giftedness in fiction of earlier ages has been transformed in contemporary literature to a figure with extraordinary powers related both to autism and to the contemporary form of mysticism: innate mathematical ability and computer-style calculation. Allied with what Murray terms the “unknown and ambiguous nature” of autism, it is characterised as “the alien within the human, the mystical within the rational, the ultimate enigma” (25) in a way that is in keeping with the current fascination with the nature of genius and its association with being “special,” a term continually evoked and discussed throughout the book by the main character. The chapters on scientific ideas relate to Christopher’s world view, filtered through a mathematical and analytical approach to life and relationships with other people. Christopher examines beliefs such as the concept of humanity as superior to other animals, and the idea of religion and creationism, that is, the idea of humanity itself as special, with a cold and logical approach. He similarly discusses the idea of the individual person as special, linking this to a metaphor of the human mind being a computer (203, 148). Christopher’s narrow perspective as a result of his autism is not presented as disabling so much as protective, because the metaphorical connection of his viewpoint to a computer provides him with distance. Although initially Christopher fails to realise the significance of events, this allows him to be “switched off” (103) from events that he finds traumatising.The transformative metaphor of an autistic individual thinking like a computer is also invoked through Christopher’s explanation of “why people think that their brains are special, and different from computers” (147). Indeed, both in terms of his tendency to retreat or by “pressing CTRL + ALT + DEL and shutting down programs and turning the computer off and rebooting” (178) in times of stress, Christopher metaphorically views himself as a computer. Such a perspective invokes yet another popular cultural reference through the allusion to the human brain as “Captain Jean-Luc Picard in Star Trek: The Next Generation, sitting in his captain’s seat looking at a big screen” (147). But more importantly, the explanation refers to the basic premise of the book, that the text offers access to a condition that is inherently unknowable, but able to be understood by the reader through metaphor, often based on computers or technology as a result of a popular construction of autism that “the condition is the product of a brain in which the hard drive is incorrectly formatted” (Murray 25).Throughout the novel, the notion of “special” is presented as a trope for those with a disability, but as the protagonist, Christopher, points out, everyone is special in some way, so the whole idea of a disability as disabling is problematised throughout the text, while its associations of giftedness are upheld. Christopher’s disability, never actually designated as Asperger’s Syndrome or any type of spectrum disorder, is transformed into a protective mechanism that shields him from problematic social relationships of which he is unaware, but that the less naïve reader can well discern. In this way, rather than a limitation, the main character’s disorder protects him from a harsh reality. Even Christopher’s choice of Holmes as a role model is indicative of his desire to impose an eccentric order on his world, since this engages with a character in popular fiction who is famous not simply for his abilities, but for his eccentricity bordering on a form of autism. His aloof personality and cold logic not only fail to hamper him in his investigations, but these traits actually form the basis of them. The majority of recent adaptations of Conan Doyle’s stories, especially the BBC series Sherlock, depict Holmes with symptoms associated with spectrum disorder such as lack of empathy, difficulty in communication, and limited social skills, and these are clearly shown as contributing to his problem-solving ability. The trope of Christopher as detective also allows a parodic, postmodern comment on the classical detective form, because typically this fiction has a detective that knows more than the reader, and therefore the goal for the reader is to find the solution to the crime before it is revealed by the investigator in the final stages of the text (Rzepka 14). But the narrative works ironically in the novel since the non-autistic reader knows more than a narrator who is hampered by a limited worldview. From the beginning of the book, the narrative as focalised through Christopher’s narrow perspective allows a more profound view of events to be adopted by the reader, who is able to read clues that elude the protagonist. Christopher is well aware of this as he explains his attraction to the murder mystery novel, even though he has earlier stated he does not like novels since his inability to imagine or empathise means he is unable to relate to their fiction. For him, the genre of murder mystery is more akin to the books on maths and science that he finds comprehensible, because, like the classical detective, he views the crime as primarily a puzzle to be solved: as he states, “In a murder mystery novel someone has to work out who the murderer is and then catch them. It is a puzzle. If it is a good puzzle you can sometimes work out the answer before the end of the book” (5). But unlike Christopher, Holmes invariably knows more about the crime, can interpret the clues, and find the pattern, before other characters such as Watson, and especially the reader. In contrast, in The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, the reader has more awareness of the probable context and significance of events than Christopher because, like a computer, he can calculate but not imagine. The reader can interpret clues within the plot of the story, such as the synchronous timing of the “death” of Christopher’s mother with the breakdown of the marriage of a neighbour, Mrs Shears. The astute reader is able to connect these events and realise that his mother has not died, but is living in a relationship with the neighbour’s husband. The construction of this pattern is denied Christopher, since he fails to determine their significance due to his limited imagination. Such a failure is related to Simon Baron-Cohen’s Theory of Mind, in which he proposes that autistic individuals have difficulty with social behaviour because they lack the capacity to comprehend that other people have individual mental states, or as Christopher terms it, “when I was little I didn’t understand about other people having minds” (145). Haddon utilises fictional licence when he allows Christopher to overcome such a limitation by a conscious shift in perspective, despite the specialist teacher within the text claiming that he would “always find this very difficult” (145). Christopher has here altered his view of events through his modelling both on the detective genre and on his affinity with mathematics, since he states, “I don’t find this difficult now. Because I decided that it was a kind of puzzle, and if something is a puzzle there is always a way of solving it” (145). In this way, the main character is shown as transcending symptoms of autism through the power of his giftedness in mathematics to ultimately discern a pattern in human relationships thereby adopting a computational approach to social problems.Haddon similarly explains the perspective of an individual with autism through a metaphor of Christopher’s memory being like a DVD recording. He is able to distance himself from his memories, choosing “Rewind” and then “Fast Forward” (96) to retrieve his recollection of events. This aspect of the precision of his memory relates to his machine-like coldness and lack of empathy for the feelings of others. But it also refers to the stereotype of the nerd figure in popular culture, where the nerd is able to relate more to a computer than to other people, exemplified in Sheldon from the television series The Big Bang Theory. Thus the presentation of Christopher’s autism relates to his giftedness in maths and science more than to areas that relate to his body. In general, descriptions of inappropriate or distressing bodily functions associated with disorders are mainly confined to other students at Christopher’s school. His references to his fellow students, such as Joseph eating his poo and playing in it (129) and his unsympathetic evaluation of Steve as not as clever or interesting as a dog because he “needs help to eat his food and could not even fetch a stick” (6), make a clear distinction between him and the other children, who despite being termed “special needs” are “special” in a different way from Christopher, because, according to him, “All the other children at my school are stupid” (56). While some reference is made to Christopher’s inappropriate behaviour in times of stress, such as punching a fellow student, wetting himself while on the train, and vomiting outside the school, in the main the emphasis is on his giftedness as a result of his autism, as displayed in the many chapters where he explains scientific and mathematical concepts. This is extrapolated into a further mathematical metaphor underlying the book, that he is like one of the prime numbers he finds so fascinating, because prime numbers do not fit neatly into the pattern of the number system, but they are essential and special nevertheless. Moreover, as James Berger suggests, prime numbers can “serve as figures for the autistic subject,” because like autistic individuals “they do not mix; they are singular, indivisible, unfactorable” yet “Mathematics could not exist without these singular entities that [. . .] are only apparent anomalies” (271).Haddon therefore offers a transformation by confounding autism with a computer-like ability to solve mathematical problems, so that the text is, as Haddon concedes, “as much about a gifted boy with behavior problems as it is about anyone on the autism spectrum” (qtd. in Burks-Abbott 291). Indeed, the word “autism” does not even appear in the book, while the terms “genius,” (140) “clever,” (32, 65, 252) and the like are continually being invoked in descriptions of Christopher, even if ironically. More importantly, the reader is constantly being shown his giftedness through the reiteration of his study of A Level Mathematics, and his explanation of scientific concepts. Throughout, Christopher explains aspects of mathematics, astrophysics, and other sciences, referring to such well-known puzzles in popular culture as the Monty Hall problem, as well as more obscure formulae and their proofs. They function to establish Christopher’s intuitive grasp of complex mathematical and scientific principles, as well as providing the reader with insight into both his perspective and the paradoxical nature of an individual who is at once able to solve quadratic equations in his head, yet is incapable of understanding the simple instruction, “Take the tube to Willesden Junction” (211).The presentation of Christopher is that of an individual who displays an extension of the social problems established in popular literature as connected to a talent for mathematics, therefore engaging with a depiction already existing in popular mythology: the isolated and analytical nerd or genius social introvert. Indeed, much of Christopher’s autistic behaviour functions to protect him from unsettling or traumatic information, since he fails to realise the significance of the information he collects or the clues he is given. His disability is therefore presented as not limiting so much as protective, and so the notion of disability is subsumed by the idea of the savant. The book, then, engages with a contemporary representation within popular culture that has transformed spectrum disability into mathematical giftedness, thereby metaphorically associating the autistic mind with the computer. ReferencesBaron-Cohen, Simon. Mindblindness: An Essay on Autism and Theory of Mind. Cambridge MA: MIT Press, 1995. Berger, James. “Alterity and Autism: Mark Haddon’s Curious Incident in the Neurological Spectrum.” Autism and Representation. Ed. Mark Osteen. Hoboken: Routledge, 2007. 271–88. Burks-Abbott, Gyasi. “Mark Haddon’s Popularity and Other Curious Incidents in My Life as an Autistic.” Autism and Representation. Ed. Mark Osteen. Hoboken: Routledge, 2007. 289–96. Cawelti, John G. Adventure, Mystery, and Romance: Formula Stories as Art and Popular Culture. Chicago: U of Chicago P, 1976. Eshelman, Raoul. “Transcendence and the Aesthetics of Disability: The Case of The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time.” Anthropoetics: The Journal of Generative Anthropology 15.1 (2009). Haddon, Mark. The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time. London: Random House Children’s Books, 2004. Kendall, Lori. “The Nerd Within: Mass Media and the Negotiation of Identity among Computer-Using Men.” Journal of Men’s Studies 3 (1999): 353–67. Murray, Stuart. “Autism and the Contemporary Sentimental: Fiction and the Narrative Fascination of the Present.” Literature and Medicine 25.1 (2006): 24–46. Platten, David. “Reading Glasses, Guns and Robots: A History of Science in French Crime Fiction.” French Cultural Studies 12 (2001): 253–70. Rzepka, Charles J. Detective Fiction. Cambridge, UK: Polity Press, 2005.

Art Imitating ArtThis article discusses the global, historical and literary references that are present in the video game franchise Bayonetta. In particular, references to Dante’s Divine Comedy, the works of Dr John Dee, and European traditions of witchcraft are examined. Bayonetta is modern in the sense that she is a woman of the world. Her character shows how history and literature may be used, re-used, and evolve into new formats, and how modern games travel abroad through time and space.Drawing creative inspiration from other works is nothing new. Ideas and themes, art and literature are frequently borrowed and recast. Carmel Cedro cites Northrop Frye in the example of William Shakespeare and Charles Dickens. These writers created stories and characters that have developed a level of acclaim and resonated with many individuals, resulting in countless homages over the years. The forms that these appropriations take vary widely. Media formats, such as film adaptations and even books, take the core characters or narrative from the original and re-work them into a different context. For example, the novel Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson published in 1883 was adapted into the 2002 Walt Disney animated film Treasure Planet. The film maintained the concepts of the original narrative and retained key characters but re-imaged them to fit the science fiction genre (Clements and Musker).The video-game franchise Bayonetta draws inspiration from distinct sources creating the foundation for the universe and some plot points to enhance the narrative. The main sources are Dante’s Divine Comedy, the projections of John Dee and his mystical practices as well as the medieval history of witches.The Vestibule: The Concept of BayonettaFigure 1: Bayonetta Concept ArtBayonetta ConceptsThe concept of Bayonetta was originally developed by video game designer Hideki Kamiya, known previously for his work including The Devil May Cry and the Resident Evil game series. The development of Bayonetta began with Kamiya requesting a character design that included three traits: a female lead, a modern witch, and four guns. This description laid the foundations for what was to become the hack and slash fantasy heroine that would come to be known as Bayonetta. "Abandon all hope ye who enter here"The Divine Comedy, written by Dante Alighieri during the 1300s, was a revolutionary piece of literature for its time, in that it was one of the first texts that formalised the vernacular Italian language by omitting the use of Latin, the academic language of the time. Dante’s work was also revolutionary in its innovative contemplations on religion, art and sciences, creating a literary collage of such depth that it would continue to inspire hundreds of years after its first publication.Figure 2: Domenico di Michelino’s fresco of Dante and his Divine Comedy, surrounded by depictions of scenes in the textBayonetta explores the themes of The Divine Comedy in a variety of ways, using them as an obvious backdrop, along with subtle homages and references scattered throughout the game. The world of Bayonetta is set in the Trinity of Realities, three realms that co-exist forming the universe: Inferno, Paradiso and the Chaos realm—realm of humans—and connected by Purgitorio—the intersection of the trinity. In the game, Bayonetta travels throughout these realms, primarily in the realm of Purgitorio, the area in which magical and divine entities may conduct their business. However, there are stages within the game where Bayonetta finds herself in Paradiso and the human realm. This is a significant factor relating to The Divine Comedy as these realms also form the areas explored by Dante in his epic poem. The depth of these parallels is not exclusive to factors in Dante’s masterpiece, as there are also references to other art and literature inspired by Dante’s legacy. For example, the character Rodin in Bayonetta runs a bar named “The Gates of Hell.” In 1917 French artist Auguste Rodin completed a sculpture, The Gates of Hell depicting scenes and characters from The Divine Comedy. Rodin’s bar in Bayonetta is manifested as a dark impressionist style of architecture, with an ominous atmosphere. In early concept art, the proprietor of the bar was to be named Mephisto (Kamiya) derived from “Mephistopheles”, another name for the devil in some mythologies. Figure 3: Auguste Rodin's Gate of Hell, 1917Aspects of Dante’s surroundings and the theological beliefs of his time can be found in Bayonetta, as well as in the 2013 anime film adaptation Bayonetta, Bloody Fate. The Christian virtues, revered during the European Middle Ages, manifest themselves as enemies and adversaries that Bayonetta must combat throughout the game. Notably, the names of the cardinal virtues serve as “boss ranked” foes. Enemies within a game, usually present at the end of a level and more difficult to defeat than regular enemies within “Audito Sphere” of the “Laguna Hierarchy” (high levels of the hierarchy within the game), are named in Italian; Fortitudo, Temperantia, Lustitia, and Sapientia. These are the virtues of Classical Greek Philosophy, and reflect Dante’s native language as well as the impact the philosophies of Ancient Greece had on his writings. The film adaption of Bayonetta incorporated many elements from the game. To adjust the game effectively, it was necessary to augment the plot in order to fit the format of this alternate media. As it was no longer carried by gameplay, the narrative became paramount. The diverse plot points of the new narrative allowed for novel possibilities for further developing the role of The Divine Comedy in Bayonetta. At the beginning of the movie, for example, Bayonetta enters as a nun, just as she does in the game, only here she is in church praying rather than in a graveyard conducting a funeral. During her prayer she recites “I am the way into the city of woe, abandon all hope, oh, ye who enter here,” which is a Canto of The Divine Comedy. John Dee and the AngelsDr John Dee (1527—1608), a learned man of Elizabethan England, was a celebrated philosopher, mathematician, scientist, historian, and teacher. In addition, he was a researcher of magic and occult arts, as were many of his contemporaries. These philosopher magicians were described as Magi and John Dee was the first English Magus (French). He was part of a school of study within the Renaissance intelligensia that was influenced by the then recently discovered works of the gnostic Hermes Trismegistus, thought to be of great antiquity. This was in an age when religion, philosophy and science were intertwined. Alchemy and chemistry were still one, and astronomers, such as Johannes Kepler and Tyco Brahe cast horoscopes. John Dee engaged in spiritual experiments that were based in his Christian faith but caused him to be viewed in some circles as dangerously heretical (French).Based on the texts of Hermes Trismegistas and other later Christian philosophical and theological writers such as Dionysius the Areopagite, Dee and his contemporaries believed in celestial hierarchies and levels of existence. These celestial hierarchies could be accessed by “real artificial magic,” or applied science, that included mathematics, and the cabala, or the mystical use of permutations of Hebrew texts, to access supercelestial powers (French). In his experiments in religious magic, Dee was influenced by the occult writings of Heinrich Cornelius Agrippa (1486—1535). In Agrippa’s book, De Occulta Philosophia, there are descriptions for seals, symbols and tables for summoning angels, to which Dee referred in his accounts of his own magic experiments (French). Following his studies, Dee constructed a table with a crystal placed on it. By use of suitable rituals prescribed by Agrippa and others, Dee believed he summoned angels within the crystal, who could be seen and conversed with. Dee did not see these visions himself, but conversed with the angels through a skryer, or medium, who saw and heard the celestial beings. Dee recorded his interviews in his “Spiritual Diaries” (French). Throughout Bayonetta there are numerous seals and devices that would appear to be inspired by the work of Dee or other Renaissance Magi.In these sessions, John Dee, through his skryer Edward Kelley, received instruction from several angels. The angels led him to believe he was to be a prophet in the style of the biblical Elijah or, more specifically like Enoch, whose prophesies were detailed in an ancient book that was not part of the Bible, but was considered by many scholars as divinely inspired. As a result, these experiments have been termed “Enochian conversations.” The prophesies received by Dee foretold apocalyptic events that were to occur soon and God’s plan for the world. The angels also instructed Dee in a system of magic to allow him to interpret the prophesies and participate in them as a form of judge. Importantly, Dee was also taught elements of the supposed angelic language, which came to be known as “Enochian” (Ouellette). Dee wrote extensively about his interviews with the angels and includes statements of their hierarchy (French, Ouellette). This is reflected in the “Laguna Hierarchy” of Bayonetta, sharing similarities in name and appearance of the angels Dee had described. Platinum Games creative director Jean-Pierre Kellams acted as writer and liaison, assisting the English adaptation of Bayonetta and was tasked by Hideki Kamiya to develop Bayonetta’s incantations and subsequently the language of the angels within the game (Kellams).The Hammer of WitchesOne of the earliest and most integral components of the Bayonetta franchise is the fact that the title character is a witch. Witches, sorcerers and other practitioners of magic have been part of folklore for centuries. Hideki Kamiya stated that the concept of” classical witches” was primarily a European legend. In order to emulate this European dimension, he had envisioned Bayonetta as having a British accent which resulted in the game being released in English first, even though Platinum Games is a Japanese company (Kamiya). The Umbra Witch Clan hails from Europe within the Bayonetta Universe and relates more closely to the traditional European medieval witch tradition (Various), although some of the charms Bayonetta possesses acknowledge the witches of different parts of the world and their cultural context. The Evil Harvest Rosary is said to have been created by a Japanese witch in the game. Bayonetta herself and other witches of the game use their hair as a conduit to summon demons and is known as “wicked weaves” within the game. She also creates her tight body suit out of her hair, which recedes when she decides to use a wicked weave. Using hair in magic harks back to a legend that witches often utilised hair in their rituals and spell casting (Guiley). It is also said that women with long and beautiful hair were particularly susceptible to being seduced by Incubi, a form of demon that targets sleeping women for sexual intercourse. According to some texts (Kramer), witches formed into the beings that they are through consensual sex with a devil, as stated in Malleus Maleficarum of the 1400s, when he wrote that “Modern Witches … willingly embrace this most foul and miserable form of servitude” (Kramer). Bayonetta wields her sexuality as proficiently as she does any weapon. This lends itself to the belief that women of such a seductive demeanour were consorts to demons.Purgitorio is not used in the traditional sense of being a location of the afterlife, as seen in The Divine Comedy, rather it is depicted as a dimension that exists concurrently within the human realm. Those who exist within this Purgitorio cannot be seen with human eyes. Bayonetta’s ability to enter and exit this space with the use of magic is likened to the myth that witches were known to disappear for periods of time and were purported to be “spirited away” from the human world (Kamiya).Recipes for gun powder emerge from as early as the 1200s but, to avoid charges of witchcraft due to superstitions of the time, they were hidden by inventors such as Roger Bacon (McNab). The use of “Bullet Arts” in Bayonetta as the main form of combat for Umbra Witches, and the fact that these firearm techniques had been honed by witches for centuries before the witch hunts, implies that firearms were indeed used by dark magic practitioners until their “discovery” by ordinary humans in the Bayonetta universe. In addition to this, that “Lumen Sages” are not seen to practice bullet arts, builds on the idea of guns being a practice of black magic. “Lumen Sages” are the Light counterpart and adversaries of the Umbra Witches in Bayonetta. The art of Alchemy is incorporated into Bayonetta as a form of witchcraft. Players may create their own health, vitality, protective and mana potions through a menu screen. This plays on the taboo of chemistry and alchemy of the 1500s. As mentioned, John Dee's tendency to dabble in such practices was considered by some to be heretical (French, Ouellette).Light and dark forces are juxtaposed in Bayonetta through the classic adversaries, Angels and Demons. The moral flexibility of both the light and dark entities in the game leaves the principles of good an evil in a state of ambiguity, which allows for uninhibited flow in the story and creates a non-linear and compelling narrative. Through this non-compliance with the pop culture counterparts of light and dark, gamers are left to question the foundations of old cultural norms. This historical context lends itself to the Bayonetta story not only by providing additional plot points, but also by justifying the development decisions that occur in order to truly flesh out Bayonetta’s character.ConclusionCompelling story line, characters with layered personality, and the ability to transgress boundaries of time and travel are all factors that provide a level of depth that has become an increasingly important aspect in modern video gameplay. Gamers love “Easter eggs,” the subtle references and embellishments scattered throughout a game that make playing games like Bayonetta so enjoyable. Bayonetta herself is a global traveller whose journeying is not limited to “abroad.” She transgresses cultural, time, and spatial boundaries. The game is a mosaic of references to spatial time dimensions, literary, and historical sources. This mix of borrowings has produced an original gameplay and a unique storyline. Such use of literature, mythology, and history to enhance the narrative creates a quest game that provides “meaningful play” (Howard). This process of creation of new material from older sources is a form of renewal. As long as contemporary culture presents literature and history to new audiences, the older texts will not be forgotten, but these elements will undergo a form of renewal and restoration and the present-day culture will be enhanced as a result. In the words of Bayonetta herself: “As long as there’s music, I’ll keep on dancing.”ReferencesCedro, Carmel. "Dolly Varden: Sweet Inspiration." Australasian Journal of Popular Culture 2.1 (2012): 37-46. French, Peter J. John Dee: The World of an Elizabethan Magus. London: London, Routledge and K. Paul, 1972. Guiley, Rosemary. The Encyclopedia of Demons and Demonology. Infobase Publishing, 2009. Howard, Jeff. Quests: Design, Theory, and History in Games and Narratives. Wellesley, Mass.: A.K. Peters, 2008. Kamiya, Hideki.Bayonetta. Bayonetta. Videogame. Sega, Japan, 2009.Kellams, Jean-Pierre. "Butmoni Coronzon (from the Mouth of the Witch)." Platinum Games 2009.Kramer, Heinrich. The Malleus Maleficarum of Heinrich Kramer and James Sprenger. Eds. Sprenger, Jakob, or joint author, and Montague Summers. New York: Dover, 1971.McNab, C. Firearms: The Illustrated Guide to Small Arms of the World. Parragon, 2008.Ouellette, Francois. "Prophet to the Elohim: John Dee's Enochian Conversations as Christian Apocalyptic Discourse." Master of Arts thesis. ProQuest Dissertations Publishing, 2004.Treasure Planet. The Walt Disney Company, 2003.Various. "Bayonetta Wikia." 2016.