Nulla est gloria praeterire asellos. Wizerunek osła w kulturze i literaturze starożytnej Grecji i Rzymu
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Date
2011
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Wydawnictwo Poznańskiego Towarzystwa Przyjaciół Nauk
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Nulla est gloria praeterire asellos. The representations of donkey in culture and literature of ancient Greek and Rome
Abstract
The article aims to examine the representation of donkey in the ancient Greek and Roman culture and literature.
It is investigated, on the example of selected texts, how developed the popular, negative stereotypes about
stupid, lazy and even greedy and lustful donkeys, that seems to have their origins in Greek-Roman mentality
and literature. The article contains a part of symbolic meanings and idioms connected with donkeys, especially
these, that derive from antiquity.
Description
In the European culture donkeys are often perceived as stupid, naive, lazy, greedy and lustful
animals, though they are in fact very diligent and not very demanding. That negative stereotypes
about donkeys and their low status have their origins in Greek-Roman mentality and literature,
that are one of the most important foundations of the European culture. It is worth to mention that
in the ancient Egypt, Assyria and also in the Bible donkeys were respected. In the Bible only an
onager (wild ass) appears as a negative symbol of destruction. Gradually however also in Egypt
or Jerusalem the meaning of donkey was decreasing, what was connected with the arising position
of horses, that were pulling, as believed, the chariot of the sun. The stereotypic representations
of donkeys appeared in different literary genres in Greek-Roman literature, but especially fables
are responsible for popularization of negative representations of these animals. It is also interesting,
that negative stereotypes about donkeys, that appears in Greek-Roman literature, are divided
into two, exactly opposite groups. Once donkey is lazy, ungrateful or grumpy and another time
it seems to be a naive, hardworking victim. The second group of mentioned stereotypes exposes
and ridicule in fact not the donkey but the mentality of people, that consider slyness to be a sign
of wisdom in contrast to hard, honest work, submission and patience. Among Christians donkey
functioned as a positive symbol. The symbolic and idiomatic connected with donkey is rich and
most of them have origins in the culture of ancient Greece.
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Keywords
Donkey, Onager, Horse, Literature, Culture, Symbol, Stereotype
Citation
Symbolae Philologorum Posnaniensium, 2011, nr XXI/2, s. 95-108
Seria
ISBN
978-83-7654-181-5
ISSN
0302-7384