Series | Lexis Supplements
Edited book | METra 2
Chapter | «Sed obstat θέλων»
Abstract
This article attempts to explore a very broad topic through a small lens. Starting from a formal aspect of two prayers in Aeschylus’ Libation Bearers (the presence of θέλων in Cho. 19 and 793), the article investigates the connections and interactions between divine and human will within some ancient Greek prayers. Through the analysis of examples from Homer to tragedy, the importance of the divine will in accepting the agreement implicit in a prayer is emphasised, considering the dynamics of prayer within a more general mechanism of reciprocity. On this basis, the phrase θέλων ἀμείψῃ in Cho. 793 can be defended.
Submitted: July 4, 2023 | Accepted: July 30, 2023 | Published Dec. 21, 2023 | Language: it
Keywords Aeschylus’ Libation Bearers • Greek prayers • God’s will • Reciprocity
Copyright © 2023 Andrea Taddei. This is an open-access work distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction is permitted, provided that the original author(s) and the copyright owner(s) are credited and that the original publication is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. The license allows for commercial use. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
Permalink http://doi.org/10.30687/978-88-6969-738-8/003