À très peu de philosophes l’histoire de la pensée occidentale a accordé une place aussi significative qu’à Socrate : nous apprenons tout naturellement à l’édifier comme héros de la rationalité et à reconnaître en lui la figure même du philosophe critique. À plusieurs égards, cette représentation élogieuse nous paraît justifiée, bien que, d’un autre point de vue, elle puisse nous faire sombrer dans la confusion, dès lors que notre regard porte simultanément, et comme pour produire un contraste, sur l’image d’un Socrate se soumettant au daimonion, son étrange signe divin. Comment pouvons-nous justifier, à partir du corpus platonicien, à la fois l’engagement de Socrate vis-à-vis de la rationalité et sa soumission à un phénomène en apparence irrationnel ? De cette question troublante est née la présente étude qui se consacre donc au problème de l’articulation entre le rapport de Socrate aux dieux et son rapport à la raison critique. Plus précisément, nous avons cherché à déterminer s’il existait, sur le plan épistémologique, une hiérarchie entre le daimonion et la méthode d’investigation rationnelle propre à Socrate, l’elenchos. Une telle étude exégétique nécessitait, dans un premier temps, une analyse systématique et approfondie des quelques passages sur le signe divin. Nous avons ensuite exposé deux solutions paradigmatiques au problème du double engagement contradictoire de Socrate, celle de G. Vlastos ainsi que celle de T.C. Brickhouse et N.D. Smith. Enfin, nous avons augmenté cette seconde partie d’un examen spécifique du Phèdre et du Timée, de même que d’un survol des modes de divination pour satisfaire un triple objectif : situer le signe divin en regard de la mantique traditionnelle, déterminer le rôle attribué par Platon à la raison dans le processus divinatoire, et être ainsi en mesure de trancher notre question principale. / To very few philosophers the history of the Western thought granted a place as significant as to Socrates: we quite naturally learn how to identify him as a hero of rationality and to recognize in him the very figure of the critical philosopher. In several respects, this representation of praise appears justified to us, although, from another point of view, it can make us sink in confusion, since our glance carries simultaneously, and like producing a contrast, on the image of Socrates obeying to the daimonion, his uncanny divine sign. How can we justify, starting from the Platonic corpus, both the engagement of Socrates with respect to rationality and his subordination to a seemingly irrational phenomenon? From this disconcerting question was born the present study which is thus devoted to the problem of the articulation between the relation of Socrates to the gods and his relation to the critical reason. More precisely, we sought to determine if there existed, on the epistemological level, a hierarchy between the daimonion and the method of rational investigation peculiar to Socrates, the elenchos. Such an exegetic study required, initially, a systematic and thorough analysis of the few passages related to the divine sign. We then adduced two paradigmatic solutions, that of G. Vlastos as well as that of T.C. Brickhouse and N.D. Smith. Lastly, we added to this second part besides a specific examination of Phaedrus and Timaeus, also a broad survey of the modes of divination, satisfying a triple aim: to make sense of the divine sign in comparison with the traditional art of mantic, to determine the role allotted by Plato to the reason in the divinatory process, and thus to be able to solve our principal question.

This thesis takes as its starting point current views on the relationship between man and god in Archaic and Classical Greek literature, according to which mortality and immortality are primarily temporal concepts and, therefore, mutually exclusive. This thesis aims to show that this mutual exclusivity between mortality and immortality is emphasised only in certain poetic genres, while others, namely those centred on extraordinary achievements or exceptional moments in the life of a mortal, can reduce the temporal notion of immortality and emphasise instead the happiness, success, and undisturbed existence that characterise divine life. Here, the paradox of momentary immortality emerges as something attainable to mortals in the poetic representation of certain occasions. The chapters of this thesis pursue such notions of momentary immortality in the wedding ceremony, as presented through wedding songs, in celebrations for athletic victory, as presented through the epinician, and at certain stages of the tragic plot. In the chapter on the wedding song, the discussion focuses on explicit comparisons between the beauty of bride and bridegroom and that of heroes or gods, and between their happiness and divine bliss. The chapter on the epinician analyses the parallelism between the achievement of victory and the exploits of mythical heroes, and argues for a parallelism between the victory celebration and immortalisation. Finally, the chapter on tragedy examines how characters are perceived as godlike because of their beauty, success, or power, and discusses how these perceptions are exploited by the tragedians for certain effects. By examining features of a rhetoric of praise, this thesis is not concerned with the beliefs or expectations of the author, the recipient of praise, or the surrounding milieu. It rather intends to elucidate how moments conceived of as extraordinary are communicated in poetry.

Cette thèse a pour but de dresser un panorama complet des croyances de Xénophon en la divination. À l’aide d’une analyse rigoureuse de la totalité des œuvres de cet auteur antique pendant longtemps déprécié, il ressort que le problème de la consultation des dieux, loin d’être abordé de manière anecdotique et spontanée à la façon d’un legs de la tradition que la pensée critique n’a pas touchée, est au contraire un élément essentiel de la formation d’une réflexion profonde sur la piété et plus généralement les rapports qu’entretiennent les hommes avec les dieux. D’autre part, en raison du zèle de Xénophon à avoir rapporté des récits ou des réflexions à propos de la divination, cette analyse offre l’occasion de mieux comprendre les subtilités de cette pratique rituelle logée au cœur de la religion grecque et qui ne saurait être réduite à une forme de superstition. / This thesis aims to provide a complete overview of the beliefs of Xenophon about divination. Using a rigorous analysis of all the works of this ancient author who has long been depreciated, it seems clear that the problem of the consultation of the gods, far from being addressed incidentally and spontaneously like a traditional legacy that critical thinking has not reached, is on the contrary an essential element in the formation of a deep thinking on piety, and more generally of the relationships between men and gods. On the other hand, due to Xenophon’s zeal to have reported stories or thoughts about divination, this analysis provides an opportunity to a better understanding of the intricacies of this ritual lying at the core of Greek religion and that can not be reduced to a form of superstition.

À très peu de philosophes l’histoire de la pensée occidentale a accordé une place aussi significative qu’à Socrate : nous apprenons tout naturellement à l’édifier comme héros de la rationalité et à reconnaître en lui la figure même du philosophe critique. À plusieurs égards, cette représentation élogieuse nous paraît justifiée, bien que, d’un autre point de vue, elle puisse nous faire sombrer dans la confusion, dès lors que notre regard porte simultanément, et comme pour produire un contraste, sur l’image d’un Socrate se soumettant au daimonion, son étrange signe divin. Comment pouvons-nous justifier, à partir du corpus platonicien, à la fois l’engagement de Socrate vis-à-vis de la rationalité et sa soumission à un phénomène en apparence irrationnel ? De cette question troublante est née la présente étude qui se consacre donc au problème de l’articulation entre le rapport de Socrate aux dieux et son rapport à la raison critique. Plus précisément, nous avons cherché à déterminer s’il existait, sur le plan épistémologique, une hiérarchie entre le daimonion et la méthode d’investigation rationnelle propre à Socrate, l’elenchos. Une telle étude exégétique nécessitait, dans un premier temps, une analyse systématique et approfondie des quelques passages sur le signe divin. Nous avons ensuite exposé deux solutions paradigmatiques au problème du double engagement contradictoire de Socrate, celle de G. Vlastos ainsi que celle de T.C. Brickhouse et N.D. Smith. Enfin, nous avons augmenté cette seconde partie d’un examen spécifique du Phèdre et du Timée, de même que d’un survol des modes de divination pour satisfaire un triple objectif : situer le signe divin en regard de la mantique traditionnelle, déterminer le rôle attribué par Platon à la raison dans le processus divinatoire, et être ainsi en mesure de trancher notre question principale. / To very few philosophers the history of the Western thought granted a place as significant as to Socrates: we quite naturally learn how to identify him as a hero of rationality and to recognize in him the very figure of the critical philosopher. In several respects, this representation of praise appears justified to us, although, from another point of view, it can make us sink in confusion, since our glance carries simultaneously, and like producing a contrast, on the image of Socrates obeying to the daimonion, his uncanny divine sign. How can we justify, starting from the Platonic corpus, both the engagement of Socrates with respect to rationality and his subordination to a seemingly irrational phenomenon? From this disconcerting question was born the present study which is thus devoted to the problem of the articulation between the relation of Socrates to the gods and his relation to the critical reason. More precisely, we sought to determine if there existed, on the epistemological level, a hierarchy between the daimonion and the method of rational investigation peculiar to Socrates, the elenchos. Such an exegetic study required, initially, a systematic and thorough analysis of the few passages related to the divine sign. We then adduced two paradigmatic solutions, that of G. Vlastos as well as that of T.C. Brickhouse and N.D. Smith. Lastly, we added to this second part besides a specific examination of Phaedrus and Timaeus, also a broad survey of the modes of divination, satisfying a triple aim: to make sense of the divine sign in comparison with the traditional art of mantic, to determine the role allotted by Plato to the reason in the divinatory process, and thus to be able to solve our principal question.

Depuis les travaux fondateurs de M. Nilsson, on admet que les cultes grecs de l’époque archaïque héritent des pratiques rituelles des Mycéniens. Pendant toute la période qui s’étend du XIIIe au début du Ve siècle, et au delà, sont surtout consacrées par dépôt, par crémation, et par libation, des denrées issues des travaux des hommes, animaux domestiques, végétaux cultivés et liquides provenant de l’agriculture et de l’élevage. Des évolutions majeures affectent cependant l’organisation de la vie religieuse au cours de ces huit siècles ayant connu des crises, des changements de régime, des déplacements de population importants. Il ne convient cependant pas nécessairement d’opposer les aspects statiques et dynamiques : même les héritages les plus anciens ont progressivement été adaptés aux contextes nouveaux, et c’est particulièrement vrai de ceux qui concernent les consécrations d’offrandes alimentaires. Parce qu’elles s’articulent avec les besoins essentiels de l’homme comme « animal politique » autant qu’elles s’en détachent, ces dernières focalisent l’attention du chercheur sur ce que les actes de culte disent de la place du sacré dans les sociétés grecques en mutation. De l’époque mycénienne à la fin de l’époque archaïque les pratiques religieuses sont des enjeux de pouvoir. La répartition des prérogatives au cours des cérémonies, la définition d’un corpus de denrées jugées adéquates pour les consécrations, et la possibilité, ou non, de partager avec le divin, reflètent et cimentent l’organisation socio-politique des communautés. Si les accidents de la vie religieuse accompagnent ceux de la vie sociale et politique, ils témoignent aussi de l’évolution des mentalités. Propice au développement de la science et de la philosophie, l’époque archaïque a particulièrement favorisé les questionnements sur la pratique des cultes, et les réflexions sur la construction d’un espace sacré singulier. / Since M. Nilsson’s work, it is accepted that the Greeks of the Archaic Period have inherited some of their religious habits from the Mycenaean era. From the XIIIth down to the VIth century BCE, the Greeks offered to their gods parts taken from domestic animals, cultivated plants, and drinkable liquids by burning them, depositing them in an appropriate place, or pouring them. Still, during eight centuries where there have been huge crisis, political disruptions, and population displacements, major religious changes took place. Those suggest that even practices that seem to have been the same have enventually been adapted to new contexts. This is especially the case for those associated with food offerings. Because they are closely related to the basic needs of humans, but can still be pretty distant from them, food offerings encourage researchers to focus on what religious practices tell us about how sacred matters were embeded into Greek mutating societies. From the Mycenaean down to the Archaic period, cult is an instrument of power. The social and political organisation of Greek communities was both represented and reinforced by the distribution of religious privileges, the definition of which goods were suitable for the offerings, and the possibility, or impossibility, for everyone to share with the gods. Religion and politic share an intimate relationship, but cult practices also closely reflect how the Greeks thought the world they lived in. New questions about religion and the definition of sacred space naturally followed the development of philosophy during the archaic period.

Listening to Birth asserts that structures of power reproduce themselves by instituting particular modes of listening and sound production. Situating my research within feminist sound studies, I argue that meanings conjured around the audible, material bodies of women were carefully crafted by elites in antiquity, in order to construct gendered ideologies of kingship, civilisation, and nature. I examine these power dynamics as expressed in mythic and magical texts and iconographies, dating from the Bronze Age to later Roman antiquity. Throughout the thesis, I examine the development of symbolic systems and narrative tropes that linked mining and metallurgy with reproduction and vocality. My analysis emphasises how the invention of nature was accomplished, in part, through a metallurgical reclassification of the voices and sexualities of women as indiscrete phenomena: womb, mouth, and voice were elided with mining and smelting to form a unified semantic realm. I argue that this invention of ‘vulvar vocality’ reclassified female sounds as illicit, providing a plaform for the removal of women from the public sphere. I attempt to connect the gendered discourse found in myths and magical rituals to the political and economic domain of state-craft, to demonstrate the importance of hegemonic mythopoeic control of audible female reproduction for establishing ideologies of colonisation and extraction. I link analyses of texts and iconographies from the Bronze Age Mesopotamians, Hittites, Canaanites, Minoans, and Egyptians to later materials from the Iron Age Greeks, Israelites, and Romans—my goal is to demonstrate both the ubiquity and the continual reproduction of metallurgical ideology across the ancient world. I also present my preliminary research into the lasting impact that antique notions of vulvar vocality had on later state-craft. I begin to trace the preservation and elaboration of antique metallurgical literature by Byzantine and Islamic scholars, who in turn exerted strong influence on the Ottomans and late medieval and early modern Europeans. I outline future work to investigate the exponential rise of entrepreneurial metallurgy in late medieval and early modern Europe, arguing that this metallurgical discourse provided symbolic re-enforcement for the rapidly-accelerating mining and metal trade that formed the core of European colonial expansion. I suggest that vulvar vocality was central to early modern metallurgical, demonological, and colonial discourse, and that specific female vocalities and silences were purposefully crafted into the colonial project in order to forcibly redefine women, along with the lands and children stolen from them, as mere natural resources.

L'objectiu immediat de la nostra tesi és analitzar les representacions de la divinitat que es troben en els corpus tràgics atribuïts a Eurípides i a Sèneca, i més específicament en dos parells de tragèdies que comparteixen argument mític: Hèracles i Hipòlit per a l'autor grec, i Hercules furens i Phaedra per al llatí. Entenem per “divinitat” tant els déus que apareixen en les obres de teatre com els diferents discursos sobre la divinitat que també s'hi troben. El nostre objectiu final és contribuir a la constitució d'un marc teòric per a l'anàlisi de la tragèdia, entesa aquesta no com a universal ahistòric, sinó com un contínuum arrelat en la praxi escènica i textual, i que manté una relativa unitat gràcies a la tradició. Encara que el material de què disposem sigui molt escàs, és possible de mostrar que les diferents maneres de tractar la representació dels déus reflecteixen la diferent relació que el gènere tràgic, en dos contextos també molt diferents, pot tenir amb les concepcions extrateatrals de la divinitat. La tragèdia àtica es pot entendre com un context de performance obert a discursos variats sobre els déus. Això és així, no com a conseqüència de la lliure circulació d'idees en el sentit modern de l'expressió, sinó d'una complexa interacció entre diferents nivells de discurs que són presents en el món grec clàssic i que no s'oposen a la religió per se. Trobem en la tragèdia àtica dues tendències que considerem decisives, i que Eurípides sembla dur fins a l'extrem. En primer lloc, la crítica de la representació homèrico-hesiòdica de la divinitat. En segon lloc, un sistema mimètic no naturalista que afavoreix la formulació de discursos sobre l'acció dramàtica des de l'escena mateixa. Ambdues tendències es combinen en certes obres que, indubtablement, critiquen les representacions dels déus que apareixen en l'acció escènica, però no la “religió atenesa” com a tal. Enfront de la tragèdia euripidea, l'estructura i els continguts de les obres dramàtiques de Sèneca fan palès el procés de textualització que ha experimentat la poesia, i el paper subsidiari d'aquesta última davant d'un “centre del discurs” que ja no es troba en la poesia mateixa. Les representacions dels déus que hi trobem no semblen estar lligades a un context específic de performance, sinó a una tradició d'interpretació de la poesia associada a la Filosofia. Els déus que hi apareixen com a personatges, i els discursos sobre els déus, es poden entendre com a mitjans per a la construcció d'obres que no són estrictament filosòfiques, però que només es poden entendre plenament a partir de la Filosofia. Així, podem dir que la representació dels déus en les tragèdies d'Eurípides i Sèneca està clarament lligada als respectius contextos intel•lectuals. / The immediate goal of our dissertation is to analyze the representations of godhead in the tragic corpus attributed to Euripides and Seneca, and more specifically in two pairs of tragedies, one for each author, that deal with the same mythoi: Heracles and Hippolytus by the Greek author, and Hercules furens and Phaedra by the Latin one. As “godhead” we understand both the godly characters that appear in the plays and the different kinds of discourse about the gods which we find in them. Our final goal is to contribute to a theoretical framework for the analysis of tragedy, not as an ahistorical genre, but as a continuum rooted in both scenic and textual praxis that maintains its relative unity through tradition. Despite the scarcity of the material, it is possible to show that the different ways of dealing with the godhead may be understood as reflecting the different ways in which tragic genre, in two clearly differentiated contexts, deals with extratheatrical understanding of divinity. Attic tragedy might be understood as a context for performance which is open to various discourses about the gods. Its relative openness is allowed, not by a supposed free circulation of ideas in the modern sense of this expression, but by a complex interaction of different levels of discourse which are present in Classical Greek society and which are not seen as antagonistic against religion per se. There are two traits in Attic tragedy which we consider decisive, and which Euripides seems to take to the extreme: first, the criticism of the representation of gods in the Homeric-Hesiodic tradition; second, a non naturalistic mimetic system which favours the formulation of discourses on dramatic action from inside the stage. Both combine to create some plays that undoubtedly criticize the representations of gods that appear in them, but not “Athenian religion” as such. In contrast with Euripidean tragedy, the structure and contents of Senecan plays evidence a process of textualization of poetry, and of its subsidiary role with regards to a “centre of discourse” which would explicitly find itself outside the realm of poetry. Its representations of gods do not seem to be directly linked to a specific representational context, but to an interpretative tradition associated to philosophy. Gods as characters, and discourses about gods, are to be understood as a means to the construction of plays which are not strictly philosophic, but which can be properly understood only through Philosophy. In this sense it is possible to say that the representation of gods in Euripidean and Senecan tragedy is strongly linked to their respective intellectual framework.

Made available in DSpace on 2015-04-17T15:02:15Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 arquivototal.pdf: 2002590 bytes, checksum: 1cf0b65b7aa4ef3d01cfab2a703ce00c (MD5) Previous issue date: 2014-07-14 / Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior - CAPES / Nostratic is a hypothetical language infered by Holger Pedersen in the beginning of the 20th century. Since the hypothesis was set up in the scientific world, several generations of linguists have been trying to solve the problem it created. Ancestral language of Greek and Hebrew, the Nostratic indicates in its vocabulary a lifestyle forgotten lifestyle by both cultures, but though its marks did not disappear in their lexicon. Spoken in the Mesolithic, when the Early Stone Age was in transition to the Polished Stone Age, this language followed in its existence the change from a hunting and gathering economical culture to an agricultural and urbanized one. The study of the nostratic root *ʕ̱oṭ∇- breathe, blow allowed to perceive it as cognate for the Greek ἀηκóο blow, breath, air and the hebrew root √qṭr incense, scent , whereas in its sister languages, in both linguistic families, it has often meant soul, phantom, spirit, deity . The Greek, an example of the Eurasiatic Branch of the Nostratic Languages, more specifically the Indo-European, still keeps in its vocabulary some relation with the shamanic religion. On the other hand, the Hebrew, example of the Afrasiatic Branch, from the Semitic family, already suffered deep changes due to the advent of agriculture, which reached that people in more archaic periods than the indo-europeans. To illustrate this, there was a selection of the older literary texts in each language, which allowed us to analyse the most primitive reccurrence of this lexicon, for comparison. For this comparison, a semantic study was accomplished in order to check which elements of its semantics are more persistent and which are lost in the evolve of these languages, and thus it was possible to chart which archaic concepts for soul in the Nostratic religion are still present today. / O Nostrático é uma língua hipotética deduzida por Holger Pedersen no início do século XX. Desde que a hipótese foi levantada no mundo científico, várias gerações de linguistas vêm tentando resolver o problema que ela criou. Ancestral do Grego e do Hebraico, o Nostrático aponta em seu vocabulário para um modo de vida esquecido pelas duas culturas, mas cujas marcas não desapareceram de seu léxico. Falada no Mesolítico, quando a cultura da Pedra Lascada estava em transição para a Pedra Polida, essa língua acompanhou ainda em sua existência a transformação de uma economia de caça e coleta para uma agrícola e paulatinamente urbanizada. O estudo da raiz nostrática *ʕ̱oṭ∇- respiração, sopro permitiu perceber como cognatos o vocábulo grego ἀηκóο sopro, bafo, ar e a raiz hebraica √qṭr incenso, aroma , enquanto que em suas línguas irmãs, em ambas as famílias linguísticas, vinha frequentemente significando também alma, fantasma, espírito, divindade . O grego, representante do ramo Eurasiático das línguas nostráticas, mais especificamente o Indo-Europeu, ainda mantém em seu vocabulário alguma relação com a religião xamânica. Por outro lado, o hebraico, representante do Afrasiático, da família Semita, já sofreu profundas transformações devido ao advento da agricultura, que atingiu aquele povo em períodos mais arcaicos que entre os indo-europeus. Para ilustrar isso, fez-se a seleção dos textos literários mais antigos de cada língua, permitindo analisar a recorrência mais primitiva desse léxico e só então compará-los. Para essa comparação, vale-se de um estudo semântico que permite verificar quais elementos de sua semântica são mais persistentes e quais foram perdidos na evolução dessas línguas, assim sendo possível mapear que conceitos arcaicos para alma na religião nostrática ainda estão presentes na atualidade.

The aim of this thesis is to describe forms of Greek religion in the context of Graeco-Bactrian kingdom. The lack of written sources is typical for the region, my analysis is therefore based on archaeological evidence. The first part of my thesis introduces the archaeological sources connected to the religion. A material culture of Graeco-Bactrian kingdom mixes both Greek and local traditions. The second part of the thesis analyses the formation of the Graeco-Bactrian religious identity. I compare the situation with other Hellenistic states, especially with Syria, using postcolonial models based on theories by Rachel Mairs and Irad Malkin. It seems that Graeco- Bactrian kingdom does not differ from other parts of Hellenistic world. The absence of Greek temples is especially remarkable, I suppose that Hellenistic religion inclined to respect local religious traditions. On the other hand, Hellenistic identity did not depend on Greek religion but on Greek education.

Si les héros peuplant la mythologie grecque sont particulièrement connus, les héros historiques, eux, le sont beaucoup moins. Pourtant le phénomène dit d'héroïsation concerna de nombreux personnages. Cette étude propose de se pencher sur ces personnages à l'existence historique avérée, qui se virent reconnaître le statut de héros et qui accédant ainsi à la sphère divine bénéficièrent d'honneurs mais également de cultes. Cette étude se propose également de comprendre l'ensemble de ces rites en rapport avec les héros et l'héroïsation. Elle présente aussi l'évolution que connu ce phénomène pendant toute la période allant de l'époque archaïque au IIIe siècle ap. J. -C. mais également met en lumière les différences et les points communs entre les différentes régions et cités qui composèrent l'ensemble du monde grec. Cette étude tente également d'en apprendre plus sur l'identité de ces personnages qui pour nombre d'entre eux restent inconnus de la « grande Histoire ». Pourtant ces personnages méritent une attention toute particulière car leur étude éclaire singulièrement et permet une bien meilleure compréhension de la vie religieuse des Grecs de l'Antiquité. / If the heroes of Greek mythology are particularly well known historical figures themselves, are much less. Yet the phenomenon known as heroization concerned many characters. This study proposes to examine these characters for whom the historical existence is proven, and who had been assigned the status of heroes and thus accessing to the divine sphere benefited honors but also cults. This study also aims to understand all of these rites in connection with the hero and heroization. It also presents the evolution knew by this phenomenon during the period from the Archaic period to the third century AD. But also highlights the differences and similarities between the different regions and cities that composed the entire Greek world. This study also tries to learn more about the identity of these characters, who, for many of them remain unknown of the "great history." Yet these characters deserve special attention because their study singularly clarifies and provides a much better understanding of the religious life of the ancient Greeks.