Desire and Denial in Byzantium

Papers from the 31st Spring Symposium of Byzantine Studies, Brighton, March 1997

Liz James editor

Format:Hardback

Publisher:Taylor & Francis Ltd

Published:28th May '99

Currently unavailable, and unfortunately no date known when it will be back

Desire and Denial in Byzantium cover

The papers in this volume derive from the 31st Spring Symposium of Byzantine Studies held for the Promotion of Byzantine Studies at the University of Sussex, Brighton, in March 1997. Desire, sex, love and the erotic are not terms usually associated with Byzantium and Byzantine Studies, unlike celibacy, virginity and asceticism, which more readily spring to mind. In order to examine whether the balance between these two extremes needed redressing, desire and denial was adopted as the theme for this symposium. The papers in this volume, by a group of international scholars, explore the many different aspects of Byzantine perceptions towards their own humanity and the frailties of that humanity. Using evidence from archaeology, art history and literary texts, ranging from sermons to legal documents, these chapters reveal writings about love, both secular and religious; images of sexuality and sensuality; the law; and Byzantine attitudes to bodies and the senses. What the symposium illustrated is that the question of desires in the Byzantine world is significant, and that such desires can offer insights into Byzantine conceptions of their own world.

ISBN: 9780860787884

Dimensions: unknown

Weight: 498g

232 pages