Table of Contents

Preface
List of Abbreviations
Chapter 1: Introducing Orphic Theogonies
a) The Orphic Question
b) Ancient Theogonic Traditions
c) Theogonic Hymns
d) Mythical Poetry and Philosophical Prose
Chapter 2: The Derveni Papyrus
a) Orphic Ritual and the Derveni Author
b) The Reconstruction of the Derveni Poem
c) Zeus and the Act of Swallowing
Chapter 3: The Eudemian Theogony and other Early Orphic Poems
a) The Cosmic Egg in Aristophanes' Birds
b) The Primordial Deities of the Eudemian Theogony
c) The Orphic Hymn(s) to Zeus
d) Demeter and Dionysus in Early Orphic Poetry
Chapter 4: The Hieronyman Theogony
a) The Evidence: Apologist vs. Neoplatonist
b) Reconstruction: Athenagoras, Damascius, and Bernabé
c) The Narrative Pattern of Chronos and Phanes
d) The Succession Myth and the Incest of Zeus
Chapter 5: The Rhapsodies
a) Introduction
b) Rhapsodic Theogony or Rhapsodic Collection?
c) Chronos, the Cosmic Egg, and Phanes
d) Three Nights or One?
e) The Rhapsodic Succession Myth
f) Zeus the Demiurge swallows Phanes the Paradigm
Chapter 6: Dionysus in the Rhapsodies
a) Modern Interpretations of the Zagreus Myth
b) Ancient Interpretations of Dionysus and the Titans
c) The Story of Dionysus in the Rhapsodies
Chapter 7: Conclusion
Bibliography

About the Author

Dwayne A. Meisner, Sessional Lecturer in Classics, Campion College at the University of Regina

Dwayne Meisner grew up in Saskatchewan, Canada where he earned his first two degrees at the University of Regina. In 2015, he completed his PhD in Classical Studies at the University of Western Ontario, and then returned to the University of Regina to work as a Sessional Lecturer. He specializes in the study of ritual and myth, with a particular focus on ancient Greek ritual.

Reviews

"This work is impeccable from the viewpoint of erudition, with regard both to primary sources and to secondary literature... An excellent introduction to the various versions of the Orphic cosmogony" -- Luc Brisson, Bryn Mawr Classical Review
"Throughout, Meisner is attentive to both the history of scholarship on Orphism and current controversies, and he is evenhanded in his discussion. He does a good job of showing that Greek religious thought and philosophical questions were central to the production and reception of the Orphic theogonies from as early as evidence is available. ... Summing up: Recommended" -- CHOICE
"Meisner provides an important new study of these complex and fascinating texts. By approaching the Orphic theogonies as diverse products of bricolage, he helps to make sense of the bizarre elements, the complicated intertwinings of plots, and the contradictions in the fragmentary evidence. He is particularly sensitive to the need to understand the evidence from the Neoplatonists in its philosophical context, and he guides the reader surely and steadily through
the often baffling intricacies of Neoplatonic theology." --Radcliffe Edmonds, Bryn Mawr College
"Dwayne Meisner's fascinating discussion of Orphic theogonies is the first of the topic after West's Orphic Poems of 1984. The intervening decades have especially seen the final publication of the Derveni Papyrus and other Orphic texts; this has triggered an intensive and controversial scholarly debate. Meisner proposes a new view that takes seriously the ritual function of these poems. His picture thus moves far away from West's and it has the
potential to initiate a new scholarly consensus on an intriguing genre of Greek poetry." --Fritz Graf, The Ohio State University