Abstract
This paper seeks to account for the anomalous qualities of the Hesiodic Shield of Heracles, and particularly of the shield-description within the poem. Drawing on Khapaeva’s analysis of the nightmare in literature, I argue that the shield-description develops a nightmarish aesthetics: with its horrific themes, intense visuality, and broken structures, the description imitates a nightmare. Moreover, it encourages listeners to immerse themselves in the nightmarish world that it creates.
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Copyright 2017 by the Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois
2017
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