Martin M. Winkler – författare

Arminius the Liberator: Myth and Ideology deals with a particular, although wide-ranging, aspect in the long reception history of Arminius the Cheruscan, commonly called Hermann. Arminius inflicted one of their most devastating defeats on the Romans in the year 9 A.D., when he destroyed three legions under the command of Varus in the Battle in the Teutoburg Forest, as it is generally called. Martin M. Winkler traces the origin and development of the Arminius legend in antiquity and in political and ideological appropriations of Arminius-Hermann since the nineteenth century. The book's central theme is the ideological use and abuse of history and of historical myth in Germany: Weimar-era nationalism, National Socialism, and the reaction to the ideological taint of the Arminius figure after 1945. The book also examines the various appearances of Arminius in art and media from the 1960s until today. Special emphasis is on the representation of Arminius in the era of visual mass media in Germany, Italy, and the U.S.: painting (Anselm Kiefer) and theater (Claus Peymann) but, most extensively, cinema, television, and computer videos.

Classical Myth and Culture in the Cinema is a collection of essays presenting a variety of approaches to films set in Ancient Greece and Rome and to films that reflect archetypal features of classical literature. The book illustrates the continuing presence of antiquity in the most varied and influential medium of modern popular culture. The diversity of content and theoretical stances found in Classical Myth and Culture in the Cinema will make this volume required reading for scholars and students interested in the presence of Greece and Rome in modern popular culture.

Classical Myth and Culture in the Cinema is a collection of essays presenting a variety of approaches to films set in Ancient Greece and Rome and to films that reflect archetypal features of classical literature. The book illustrates the continuing presence of antiquity in the most varied and influential medium of modern popular culture. The diversity of content and theoretical stances found in Classical Myth and Culture in the Cinema will make this volume required reading for scholars and students interested in the presence of Greece and Rome in modern popular culture.

Apollo was the ancient god of light and the divine patron of the arts. He is therefore a fitting metaphor for cinematography, which is the modern art of writing with moving light. This book interprets films as visual texts and provides the first systematic theoretical and practical demonstration of the affinities between Greco-Roman literature and the cinema. It examines major themes from classical myth and history such as film portrayals of gods, exemplified by Apollo and the Muses; Oedipus, antiquity's most influential mythic-tragic hero; the question of heroism and patriotism in war; and the representation of women like Helen of Troy and Cleopatra as products of male desire and fantasy. Covering a wide range of European and American directors, genres and classical authors, this study provides an innovative perspective on the two disciplines of classics and cinema and demonstrates our most influential medium's unlimited range when it adapts ancient texts.

This book aims to enhance our appreciation of the modernity of the classical cultures and, conversely, of cinema's debt to ancient Greece and Rome. It explores filmic perspectives on the ancient verbal and visual arts and applies what is often referred to as pre-cinema and what Sergei Eisenstein called cinematism: that paintings, statues, and literature anticipate modern visual technologies. The motion of bodies depicted in static arts and the vividness of epic ecphrases point to modern features of storytelling, while Plato's Cave Allegory and Zeno's Arrow Paradox have been related to film exhibition and projection since the early days of cinema. The book additionally demonstrates the extensive influence of antiquity on an age dominated by moving-image media, as with stagings of Odysseus' arrow shot through twelve axes or depictions of the Golden Fleece. Chapters interpret numerous European and American silent and sound films and some television productions and digital videos.

This book aims to enhance our appreciation of the modernity of the classical cultures and, conversely, of cinema's debt to ancient Greece and Rome. It explores filmic perspectives on the ancient verbal and visual arts and applies what is often referred to as pre-cinema and what Sergei Eisenstein called cinematism: that paintings, statues, and literature anticipate modern visual technologies. The motion of bodies depicted in static arts and the vividness of epic ecphrases point to modern features of storytelling, while Plato's Cave Allegory and Zeno's Arrow Paradox have been related to film exhibition and projection since the early days of cinema. The book additionally demonstrates the extensive influence of antiquity on an age dominated by moving-image media, as with stagings of Odysseus' arrow shot through twelve axes or depictions of the Golden Fleece. Chapters interpret numerous European and American silent and sound films and some television productions and digital videos.

This is the first study of Sergei Eisenstein's relationship to classical antiquity. Eisenstein regarded the cinema as a Gesamtkunstwerk and considered the ancient Greeks among its ancestors. He detected what he called "cinematism" in Homer, the Laocoon sculpture group, the Acropolis, and elsewhere. The book interprets Eisenstein's chief concept, montage, as a visual analogy to clever juxtapositions in Roman poetry and examines his conflicts with Stalin and the Communist Party over Bezhin Meadow and Ivan the Terrible alongside the classical rhetorical strategy of formidable speaking in the face of absolute power and the Russian practice of Aesopian language. Eisenstein also influenced the design of the New Acropolis Museum via an essay about the Acropolis' architectural promenade and his epic Alexander Nevsky. The cinematism of the Parthenon Frieze, American cinema architecture modeled on the Parthenon, and Eisenstein's image of the cinema as a temple reinforce his importance within the classical tradition.

This is the first study of Sergei Eisenstein's relationship to classical antiquity. Eisenstein regarded the cinema as a Gesamtkunstwerk and considered the ancient Greeks among its ancestors. He detected what he called "cinematism" in Homer, the Laocoon sculpture group, the Acropolis, and elsewhere. The book interprets Eisenstein's chief concept, montage, as a visual analogy to clever juxtapositions in Roman poetry and examines his conflicts with Stalin and the Communist Party over Bezhin Meadow and Ivan the Terrible alongside the classical rhetorical strategy of formidable speaking in the face of absolute power and the Russian practice of Aesopian language. Eisenstein also influenced the design of the New Acropolis Museum via an essay about the Acropolis' architectural promenade and his epic Alexander Nevsky. The cinematism of the Parthenon Frieze, American cinema architecture modeled on the Parthenon, and Eisenstein's image of the cinema as a temple reinforce his importance within the classical tradition.

Martin M. Winkler argues for a new approach to various creative affinities between ancient verbal and modern visual narratives. He examines screen adaptations of classical epic, tragedy, comedy, myth, and history, exploring, for example, how ancient rhetorical principles regarding the emotions apply to moving images and how Aristotle's perspective on thrilling plot-turns can recur on screen. He also interprets several popular films, such as 300 and Nero, and analyzes works by international directors, among them Pier Paolo Pasolini (Oedipus Rex, Medea), Jean Cocteau (The Testament of Orpheus), Mai Zetterling (The Girls), Lars von Trier (Medea), Arturo Ripstein (Such Is Life), John Ford (westerns), Alfred Hitchcock (Psycho), and Spike Lee (Chi-Raq). The book demonstrates the undiminished vitality of classical myth and literature in our visual media, as with screen portrayals of Helen of Troy. It is important for all classicists and scholars and students of film, literature, and history.

Apollo was the ancient god of light and the divine patron of the arts. He is therefore a fitting metaphor for cinematography, which is the modern art of writing with moving light. This book interprets films as visual texts and provides the first systematic theoretical and practical demonstration of the affinities between Greco-Roman literature and the cinema. It examines major themes from classical myth and history such as film portrayals of gods, exemplified by Apollo and the Muses; Oedipus, antiquity's most influential mythic-tragic hero; the question of heroism and patriotism in war; and the representation of women like Helen of Troy and Cleopatra as products of male desire and fantasy. Covering a wide range of European and American directors, genres and classical authors, this study provides an innovative perspective on the two disciplines of classics and cinema and demonstrates our most influential medium's unlimited range when it adapts ancient texts.

This book presents the first systematic appreciation of Ovid's extensive influence on, and affinity with, modern visual culture. Some topics are directly related to Ovid; others exhibit features, characters, or themes analogous to those in his works. The book demonstrates the wide-ranging ramifications that Ovidian archetypes, especially from the Metamorphoses, have provoked in a modern artistic medium that did not exist in Ovid's time. It ranges from the earliest days of film history (Georges Méliès's discovery of screen metamorphosis) and theory (Gabriele D'Annunzio's fascination with the metamorphosis of Daphne; Sergei Eisenstein's concept of film sense) through silent films, classic sound films, commercial cinema, art-house and independent films to modernism and the C.G.I. era. Films by well-known directors, including Ingmar Bergman, Walerian Borowczyk, Jean Cocteau, Alfred Hitchcock, Stanley Kubrick, Fritz Lang, Max Ophüls, Alain Resnais, and various others, are analyzed in detail.

This book presents the first systematic appreciation of Ovid's extensive influence on, and affinity with, modern visual culture. Some topics are directly related to Ovid; others exhibit features, characters, or themes analogous to those in his works. The book demonstrates the wide-ranging ramifications that Ovidian archetypes, especially from the Metamorphoses, have provoked in a modern artistic medium that did not exist in Ovid's time. It ranges from the earliest days of film history (Georges Méliès's discovery of screen metamorphosis) and theory (Gabriele D'Annunzio's fascination with the metamorphosis of Daphne; Sergei Eisenstein's concept of film sense) through silent films, classic sound films, commercial cinema, art-house and independent films to modernism and the C.G.I. era. Films by well-known directors, including Ingmar Bergman, Walerian Borowczyk, Jean Cocteau, Alfred Hitchcock, Stanley Kubrick, Fritz Lang, Max Ophüls, Alain Resnais, and various others, are analyzed in detail.

The essays collected in this book present the first comprehensive appreciation of The Fall of the Roman Empire from historical, historiographical, and cinematic perspectives. The book also provides the principal classical sources on the period. It is a companion to Gladiator: Film and History (Blackwell, 2004) and Spartacus: Film and History (Blackwell, 2007) and completes a triad of scholarly studies on Hollywood’s greatest films about Roman history. A critical re-evaluation of the 1964 epic film The Fall of the Roman Empire, directed by Anthony Mann, from historical, film-historical, and contemporary points of viewPresents a collection of scholarly essays and classical sources on the period of Roman history that ancient and modern historians have considered to be the turning point toward the eventual fall of RomeContains a short essay by director Anthony MannIncludes a map of the Roman Empire and film stills, as well as translations of the principal ancient sources, an extensive bibliography, and a chronology of events

Martin M. Winkler argues for a new approach to various creative affinities between ancient verbal and modern visual narratives. He examines screen adaptations of classical epic, tragedy, comedy, myth, and history, exploring, for example, how ancient rhetorical principles regarding the emotions apply to moving images and how Aristotle's perspective on thrilling plot-turns can recur on screen. He also interprets several popular films, such as 300 and Nero, and analyzes works by international directors, among them Pier Paolo Pasolini (Oedipus Rex, Medea), Jean Cocteau (The Testament of Orpheus), Mai Zetterling (The Girls), Lars von Trier (Medea), Arturo Ripstein (Such Is Life), John Ford (westerns), Alfred Hitchcock (Psycho), and Spike Lee (Chi-Raq). The book demonstrates the undiminished vitality of classical myth and literature in our visual media, as with screen portrayals of Helen of Troy. It is important for all classicists and scholars and students of film, literature, and history.

This is the first book to analyze Ridley Scott’s film Gladiator from historical, cultural, and cinematic perspectives. The first systematic analysis of Ridley Scott’s film, Gladiator.Examines the film’s presentation of Roman history and culture.Considers its cinematic origins and traditions.Draws out the film’s modern social and political overtones.Includes relevant ancient sources in translation.

This is the first book to analyze Ridley Scott’s film Gladiator from historical, cultural, and cinematic perspectives. The first systematic analysis of Ridley Scott’s film, Gladiator.Examines the film’s presentation of Roman history and culture.Considers its cinematic origins and traditions.Draws out the film’s modern social and political overtones.Includes relevant ancient sources in translation.

“These essays – lively and learned – give new new depth to the greatest gladiator film of all time. Historians and film scholars pool their talents to show afresh how Kubrick’s Spartacus was made and what this ancient slave revolt means to us today”Natalie Zemon Davis, author of The Return of Martin Guerre and slaves on Screen “Nobody teaching a classics film course and no classics library can afford to be without this book. It is a major contribution to our understanding of one of the most popular and important films on the ancient world. Packed with perceptive analysis and fascinating facts, this book approaches Spartacus from a wide variety of perspectives, and there is admirable depth as well as breadth.”Paul Murgatroyd, McMaster University

“These essays – lively and learned – give new new depth to the greatest gladiator film of all time. Historians and film scholars pool their talents to show afresh how Kubrick’s Spartacus was made and what this ancient slave revolt means to us today”Natalie Zemon Davis, author of The Return of Martin Guerre and slaves on Screen “Nobody teaching a classics film course and no classics library can afford to be without this book. It is a major contribution to our understanding of one of the most popular and important films on the ancient world. Packed with perceptive analysis and fascinating facts, this book approaches Spartacus from a wide variety of perspectives, and there is admirable depth as well as breadth.”Paul Murgatroyd, McMaster University

This is the first book systematically to examine Wolfgang Petersen’s epic film Troy from different archaeological, literary, cultural, and cinematic perspectives. The first book systematically to examine Wolfgang Petersen’s epic film Troy from different archaeological, literary, cultural, and cinematic perspectives. Examines the film’s use of Homer’s Iliad and the myth of the Trojan War, its presentation of Bronze-Age archaeology, and its place in film history. Identifies the modern political overtones of the Trojan War myth as expressed in the film and explains why it found world-wide audiences. Editor and contributors are archaeologists or classical scholars, several of whom incorporate films into their teaching and research. Includes an annotated list of films and television films and series episodes on the Trojan War. Contains archaeological illustrations of Troy, relevant images of ancient art, and stills from films on the Trojan War.

This is the first book systematically to examine Wolfgang Petersen’s epic film Troy from different archaeological, literary, cultural, and cinematic perspectives. The first book systematically to examine Wolfgang Petersen’s epic film Troy from different archaeological, literary, cultural, and cinematic perspectives. Examines the film’s use of Homer’s Iliad and the myth of the Trojan War, its presentation of Bronze-Age archaeology, and its place in film history. Identifies the modern political overtones of the Trojan War myth as expressed in the film and explains why it found world-wide audiences. Editor and contributors are archaeologists or classical scholars, several of whom incorporate films into their teaching and research. Includes an annotated list of films and television films and series episodes on the Trojan War. Contains archaeological illustrations of Troy, relevant images of ancient art, and stills from films on the Trojan War.

The essays collected in this book present the first comprehensive appreciation of The Fall of the Roman Empire from historical, historiographical, and cinematic perspectives. The book also provides the principal classical sources on the period. It is a companion to Gladiator: Film and History (Blackwell, 2004) and Spartacus: Film and History (Blackwell, 2007) and completes a triad of scholarly studies on Hollywood’s greatest films about Roman history. A critical re-evaluation of the 1964 epic film The Fall of the Roman Empire, directed by Anthony Mann, from historical, film-historical, and contemporary points of viewPresents a collection of scholarly essays and classical sources on the period of Roman history that ancient and modern historians have considered to be the turning point toward the eventual fall of RomeContains a short essay by director Anthony MannIncludes a map of the Roman Empire and film stills, as well as translations of the principal ancient sources, an extensive bibliography, and a chronology of events