A CRITICAL EXPLORATION OF THE THEME OF DEATH IN CLASSICAL MYTHOLOGY

The present writer wishes to offer a succinct overview of the main themes linking together the narratives discussed in this writing. Such mythological narratives are those of Adonis, Callisto, Ganymede and Hippolytus. Although improbable at first sight, there are a number of motifs accompanying one or all the versions of these myths. The main motifs are those of the dying and rising hero, which may optionally take the form of a metamorphosis; of the boundary that is eventually transgressed; of the consequences of the lack of sophrosyne appropriate to the circumstances; of the realm that is eventually gotten back and forth into. In the beginning, the present writer shall argue how such narratives are quintessential narratives sinking into the mist of time.