Academic literature on the topic 'Myth of Narcissus'

ABSTRACTThis article explores the myth of Narcissus as told by Ovid. The author examines why one scene in the story became the focus for the term ‘narcissism’, which has been extrapolated to become a theoretical concept as well a diagnosis. Closer reading of the myth suggests this may have been a distortion. Narcissus as a mythological figure may tell us more about late male adolescence than we have given him credit for. Freud’s paper ‘On Narcissism’ is contrasted with Jung’s views on libido. One legacy of the way in which Freud conceptualized narcissism was to pathologize the development of gay men and women. Two cases are presented to show an alternative understanding of sexual development for young men in mid and late adolescence. The author proposes that a dawning awareness of feminine aspects of sexuality can be experienced as a kind of potentially harmful ‘flowering’, about which young men can feel considerable shame and anxiety.

In Geography and the Human Spirit, Buttimer argues that the history of geographical concern is marked by cyclical time, which is distinguished by three phases: Phoenix, Faust, and Narcissus, By taking a longer look at one of these myths, Narcissus, it is possible to suggest that Buttimer bases her account on some problematic assumptions. Thus, the figure of Echo, absent from Buttimer's telling of the myth, can return to disrupt her story. This mytho-poetic assessment reveals something of the way in which ‘others’ are constituted in her story: I take this erasure to be symptomatic of an ‘othering’ humanism, which is predicated on the other, but considers itself self-grounded and thereby distances itself from others. The conclusion questions Buttimer's universalism, her concept of cyclical time, and her sense of a liberation cry of humanism, I suggest that an emancipatory geography cannot rely on undisclosed and marginalized ‘others’, in this case represented by the figure of Echo.

When Franz Schubert's friend Franz von Bruchmann returned to Vienna in 1821 from his studies in Erlangen, he brought with him August von Platen's Ghaselen just off the press. Soon after, Schubert set two Platen texts. A reviewer for the Leipzig Allgemeine musikalische Zeitung singled out "Die Liebe hat gelogen" as particularly incomprehensible, in part because he found Schubert's radical harmony to be unmotivated by the text. The daring harmonic language of the second Platen song has struck even recent critics as excessive, yet none have addressed the textual motivation for Schubert's extreme expression. Both poems concern ill-fated homosexual love, "Du liebst mich nicht" most explicitly, if obliquely: the poem is a veiled reflection on the myth of Narcissus, a myth Platen frequently drew on as a symbol for his own homosexuality.

Abstract This article concentrates on the description of the demise of Echo in the Ovidian narrative of Echo and Narcissus in Metamorphoses 3. I argue that a pun in the line vox tantum atque ossa supersunt (3.398) encapsulates the problem at the heart of the myth: rather than being a reflection on the origins of the echo and the delusion of the senses, the myth of Echo is a meditation on the nature of the voice.

The myth, Echo and Narcissus, is retold in a modern context in my play Jinx Infinity. The accompanying exegesis examines the techniques I employed in writing this piece with reference also to two other plays I have written from myth. This exploration seeks to determine the fine balance between focusing or relying on the myth and the actuality of writing a dramatic text to be performed on stage by actors in front of a live audience. I was able to divide the results from the examination of my writing process into a ten-step guideline or template. The question of balance is addressed throughout the guidelines but becomes particularly vital in the final step, when the playwright is advised to forget the myth in order to ensure the established principles of playwriting are adhered to. If these principals are present and the essence of the ancient myth is inherent, then the final product should be a successful play containing a universal theme that will translate through the ages.

The aim of my work is to comment on the issue of narcissism, which is marked as an epidemic of our time. Narcissism is mostly psychological phenomenon and its generalization to society is difficult. In my preparatory studies on this topic within sociology, I could not find any solution, that would offer a change of position. In my attempt to achieve this, I went back to the original myth.

Les mythes grecs « font signe sans signifier, montrant, dérobant, toujours limpides disant le mystère transparent, le mystère de la transparence1 ». Maurice Blanchot dans cette remarque met en valeur le mystère inhérent à tout mythe. Il en va ainsi pour le mythe de Narcisse qui a connu un succès considérable à l’époque médiévale mais dont il n’est pas aisé de fixer un sens stable. C’est de la version du célèbre poète de l’époque augustéenne, Ovide, que les auteurs médiévaux ont hérité. La richesse de la légende, conférée par les nombreux ajouts d’Ovide, leur a permis de déployer à leur tour de nombreux sens nouveaux.Narcisse est avant tout perçu comme figure amoureuse. Narcisse est l’amant malheureux qui souffre d’une passion si forte qu’il finit par en mourir. L’objet de l’amour de Narcisse est bien souvent tu et oublié dans les reprises médiévales. Peu importe finalement qu’il ait aimé une ombre, l’accent est mis sur l’intensité de son amour et surtout sur ses funestes conséquences. La passion entraîne Narcisse sur le chemin de la mort : mort de l’esprit sous le coup de la folie et mort physique. Narcisse a été un objet de choix pour la poésie de la fin’amor. Troubadours et trouvères ont réélaboré la figure de Narcisse en parfait représentant du fin amant entre les XIIe et XIIIe siècles. Par ailleurs, la figure de Narcisse entretient des liens étroits avec les représentations du mélancolique, issues des théories psychophysiologiques sur l’amour de la philosophie et de la médecine.Le mythe a également inspiré des lectures morales. En effet, tout un pan des reprises du mythe – le pan chrétien – dévoile Narcisse sous les traits d’un pécheur entaché de défauts. L’orgueil dont il fait preuve est dans la conception chrétienne laracine de tous les maux ; ce vice engendre la vanité et l’arrogance. De la fin du XIIe au XIVe siècles, les clercs font de Narcisse l’incarnation parfaite de tous ces défauts. Selon la perspective adoptée la condamnation change légèrement mais l’idée reste lamême : Narcisse est imbu de sa propre personne et en tire une satisfaction trop haute.Enfin l’eau de la source, l’un des motifs essentiels du mythe de Narcisse, a été le point de convergence de plusieurs traditions qui ont fini par s’entremêler dans les œuvres médiévales : le motif biblique de l’eau d’un côté, de l’autre les conceptions néoplatoniciennes sur le reflet et le mythe antique de Narcisse. Un réseau d’images similaires irrigue ces traditions, constitué de l’eau claire, du reflet et de la fontaine. Le "fons" antique s’est peu à peu métamorphosé en fontaine médiévale jusqu’à devenir véritable miroir. Le motif du miroir s’autonomise peu à peu par rapport à la surface des eaux. La dimension fantasmatique de l’amour de Narcisse pour son reflet s’amplifie nettement. Se voir soi-même dans un miroir constitue une expérience étrange où l’individu touche au secret de son être. Incapable de l’atteindre réellement, il voit son intimité se dérober à lui, ce qui provoque son désenchantement. Le miroir, véritable porte d’entrée sur le rêve, est un motif idéal pour figurer tous les possibles de l’acte d’écriture. C’est pourquoi certaines reprises médiévales offrent l’utopie d’un amour partagé tandis que d’autres préfèrent peindreles travers de l’être humain. Le miroir enfin se fait métaphore de l’écriture ellemême. La présence de Narcisse se réalise sous des formes plus ou moins implicites dans ces œuvres dont la portée réflexive est actualisée par le motif du miroir
Greek myths « font signe sans signifier, montrant, dérobant, toujours limpides disant le mystère transparent, le mystère de la transparence2 ». With these words, Maurice Blanchot insists on the very mystery of all myth. It is also the case for the myth of the Narcissus that has known a considerable success in the medieval time but for which it is difficult to … a stable meaning. It is the famous Augustinian poet Ovidius myth that the medieval authors inherited. They added new meanings to the already rich legend, following the footsteps of Ovidius.Narcissus is foremost a figure in love. Narcissus is the unfortunate lover who suffers such a strong passion he dies from it. What he is in love with can be ignored in the medieval versions. Even if he loved a shadow, it is the intensity of his love and the funest consequences the texts insist on. Passion drives Narcissus on the road to death : spiritual death because of Madness et physical death. Narcissus was a prime subject for fin’amor poetry. Troubadours and trouveres made of Narcissus the perfect example of the fin amant between the XIIth and XIIIth centuries. Moreover Narcissus is the deeply linked to the representation of the melancholic that came from the psycho-physiological philosophical and medical theories of love.Moral Reading were also inspired by the myth. Indeed, Narcissus becomes a sinner full of flaws Under the Christian vision of the myth. Pride is the origin of all the flaws: vanity and arrogance are direct consequences. Narcissus becomes the perfect incarnation of these sins. Depending of the point of view the condemnation may vary but the idea is still the same: Narcissus is self-important and is too pleased with himself. Finally the water from the source, one of the most important aspect of the Narcissus mythology, became the meeting point of several traditions which interlaced in the medieval work: biblical water on one side and neoplatonician conceptions of reflection and ancient myth of Narcissus. The ancient fons transforms itself into a medieval fountain and a true mirror. The mirror becomes more and more independent from the surface of water. The phantasmatical dimension of the Narcissus love for his reflection is developed

Made available in DSpace on 2014-07-29T16:19:09Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Dissertacao Frederico Letras.pdf: 2839715 bytes, checksum: 2d63d0455281cd747cebbe33b7a679c7 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2009-03-27
This study proposes to examine the book Echoes: the jewel of Pandora, of the goiana poet Yêda Schmaltz. To do so, she takes as its leitmotif the update, processed in the book, the myths of Echo and Narcissus. The reinvention of classical myths noticed in Echoes is exemplary of an applicant in the work of the author, which is, in the narratives of antiquity, one of the main centers of creation of her literature. In this case, the archetypal mythological women are treated in different and successive books in order to reveal the various stages of psychological growth of women. In Echoes, the character of the same name, unlike the original narrative, overcomes the rejection and beats the challenges of loving relationship. This overcoming causes in the I lyric the reach of the true love, which necessarily involves the development of self, the self-love, only to then distribute it to the others. Considering the development of this study, first of all, there will be a presentation of the author and her literature. Then, as this study includes the upgrade of classical myths in a modern poet, it will present some considerations on myth and on the relationship myth and poetry, seeking, as possible, establish a dialogue between these considerations and poems of the book covered. Finally, the procedure will be to rescue the narrative of Echo and Narcissus, as it appears in Ovid, the recovery of interpretations and theories about the narrative and also to examine, through the comment of paradigmatic poems, recovering the difference that Yêda Schmaltz stablishes about the myths of Echo and Narcissus
Este estudo propõe examinar o livro Ecos: a jóia de Pandora, da poeta goiana Yêda Schmaltz. Para tal, toma como fio condutor a atualização, processada no livro, dos mitos de Eco e Narciso. A reinvenção de mitos clássicos notada em Ecos é exemplar de um processo recorrente na obra da autora, a qual encontra, nas narrativas da Antiguidade, um dos principais núcleos de criação de sua obra. Nesse processo, os arquétipos mitológicos femininos são tratados em diferentes e sucessivos livros, de modo a revelar as diversas etapas do crescimento psicológico da mulher. Em Ecos, a personagem de mesmo nome, diferentemente da narrativa original, supera a rejeição e vence os desafios da relação amorosa. Essa superação faz com que o eu lírico alcance o amor autêntico, que perpassa obrigatoriamente pela valorização de si mesmo, pelo auto-amor, para só em seguida distribuílo aos outros. No desenvolvimento deste estudo, primeiramente, far-se-á uma apresentação da autora e da sua obra. Em seguida, como o trabalho contempla a atualização de mitos clássicos em uma poeta moderna, serão apresentadas algumas considerações sobre mito e sobre a relação mito e poesia, procurando, sempre que possível, estabelecer um diálogo entre essas considerações e poemas do livro contemplado. Por fim, proceder-se-á ao resgate da narrativa de Eco e Narciso, conforme aparece em Ovídio, à recuperação de interpretações e teorias sobre essa narrativa e também ao exame, por meio de comentário de poemas paradigmáticos, da recuperação com diferença que Yêda Schmaltz realiza dos mitos de Eco e Narciso

This research was mainly based on my experiences along with the students of Pedagogy and Special Education course. Such knowledge has become the focal point for me to return to the essential questioner role in the risky world of research. Therefore, I propose to investigate the adolescents construction of self-image with Characteristics of High Ability / Gifted, which was constituted in this doctoral thesis, linked to the Graduate Program in Education, in the search line LP3: Special Education, UFSM - Santa Maria Federal University -RS Brazil. To help in this clash and list some possible solutions it was outlined as general aim to investigate, through the Narcissus Myth, as one builds his/her self-image on educational relationships as a reflection on the other. To advise, it was pointed out some specific objectives, such as: understanding the conception that one has of oneself; identify as the other, from educational space he sees and reveals oneself; and finally describes how he from the (intra / inter) relationship with the reflection of the other, builds one s self-image. The participants who contributed were three teenagers, one of them a 15-year-old teenager with characteristics described previously and two others not having such attributes, besides other testimonials / memorable from this mother, other mothers from the group and other teenagers disposal here, too, as objects of study. The criteria used for selecting this target corresponded to some inclusion and exclusion insights. Related to the teenage X, 15 and his characteristics were considered the identification made by the TIP - Talent Incentive Program, developed by UFSM (Santa Maria Federal University); being within the age group of 12 to 18 years old, according to the Child and Adolescent Statute and being male, as the central character of the Narcissus Myth belongs to this genre. Moreover, the other participants should be appointed by the Teenage X and legitimized by the members who make up their (inter) personal relationships. One of them, the Teenager Y, aged 17, is part of the acquaintanceship cycle that expresses a positive attitude toward to order and proximity, and another, codenamed Z, aged 16, reflecting a negative image reflex, because he is considered an opponent for attending the same educational spaces, which will outline the adolescent self-image construction, central focus for this investigation. Therefore, to present possible solutions to the aim and the Thesis problematization it was used descriptive research with case study interpretation, because the variety and searching of nexus with the object in question. For a better data explanation, It was used the qualitative method because it gave information of reality that could not be quantified. To study the declarations and contents, it was aimed to support the narrative analysis, since the stories and reports are commonplace in the investigated participants everyday life. For the subsidies collection and recording were used instruments such: semi-structured interview, notes in the logbook or observations and recordings field. Considering the statements and records of these observations, It was chosen to make the data analysis in the course of the chapters juxtapose prominent theorists. Narcissus still roams the societies today, equivalent to the ego in its difficult struggle to be born, to firm up and strengthen. The adolescence stage is marked by conceptual confusion and loss of certain references in the meeting of equals in the world of unequals. At no time is so urgent and so hard to become one. It is at school that this teenager experiences the moment of confrontation of various conceptions of what being an adolescent is, in his parents view, himself, his peers and the professionals working in education. The study of the adolescent self-image construction compared to others in the educational space gave origin to the defense of this thesis considering it as ontologically human, central to his eternal development. Finally, educational theoricals, High Ability / Gifted, multiple intelligences, psychological theories and the Narcissus Myth will be key references for the central corpus of this Doctoral Thesis.
Esta pesquisa teve como embasamento principal as experiências vividas do meu fazer pedagógico junto aos alunos dos cursos de Pedagogia e Educação Especial. Tais conhecimentos se tornaram ponto fulcral para eu me voltar ao papel essencial de inquiridor no mundo arriscado da investigação. Logo, propus-me pesquisar a construção da autoimagem do adolescente com Características de Altas Habilidades/Superdotação, a qual se constituiu nesta tese de doutorado, vinculada ao Programa de Pós-Graduação em Educação, na linha de pesquisa LP3: Educação Especial, da UFSM Universidade Federal de Santa Maria-RS - Brasil. Para ajudar nesse embate e elencar algumas possíveis soluções, delineei como objetivo geral investigar, pelo viés do Mito de Narciso, como esse constrói sua autoimagem, nas relações educacionais como reflexo no outro. Para assessorar, assinalei alguns objetivos específicos como: compreender a concepção que esse tem de si mesmo; identificar como o outro, do espaço educacional, o vê e o revela; e, por último, descrever como ele, a partir da (intra/inter)relação com o reflexo do outro, edifica sua autoimagem. Os participantes que contribuíram foram três adolescentes, dos quais um, com 15 anos de idade, apresenta tais característica e os outros dois não têm tal atributo; além de outros depoimentos/memoriáveis da mãe deste, outras mães do grupo e outros adolescentes que aqui disponho, também, como objetos de estudo. O critério usado para a seleção desse público alvo correspondeu a alguns discernimentos de inclusão e exclusão. Quanto ao adolescente X, de 15 anos e com as características, foram consideradas a identificação realizada pelo PIT Programa de Incentivo ao Talento, desenvolvido pela UFSM; estar dentro da faixa etária de 12 a 18 anos, conforme o ECA Estatuto da Criança e do Adolescente e ser do gênero masculino, visto que o personagem central do Mito de Narciso pertence a esse gênero. Quanto aos demais participantes, deverão ser indicados pelo próprio Adolescente X e legitimados pelos membros que compõem as suas relações (inter)pessoais. Um deles, o Adolescente Y, com 17 anos, é do ciclo de convivência que exprime um espelhamento de ordem positiva e proximidade; e o outro, de codinome Z, com 16, traduz uma imagem reflexa negativa, por se tratar de um oponente seu a frequentar os mesmos espaços educacionais, os quais configurarão a construção da autoimagem do adolescente, foco central desta investigação. Assim, para apresentar possíveis soluções aos objetivos e à problematização da Tese, foi utilizada a pesquisa descritiva, com interpretação de estudo de caso, visto a variedade e a busca de nexo com o objeto em questão. Para melhor explicação dos dados, utilizei o método qualitativo, pois conferiu informações da realidade que não puderam ser quantificadas. Para fazer o estudo das declarações, dos conteúdos, buscou-se suporte na Análise da Narrativa, visto que as histórias e os relatos são lugares comuns na vida diária dos participantes investigados. Para a coleta e registro dos subsídios foram usados instrumentos como: entrevista semi-estruturada, anotações em diário de bordo ou de campo, observações e gravações. Considerando as falas destes e os registros das observações, optei por fazer a análise dos dados no decorrer dos capítulos ao justapor os teóricos proeminentes. Narciso ainda perambula pelas sociedades hodiernas, equivalendo-se ao ego na sua árdua luta para nascer, firmar-se e se fortalecer. O adolescer é marcado por confusão de conceitos e perda de certas referências no encontro dos iguais no mundo dos desiguais. Em nenhum outro momento é tão urgente e tão difícil tornar-se pessoa. É no espaço escolar que o esse adolescente vivencia o momento do confronto de várias concepções do que é adolescer, na visão dos pais, dele próprio, dos seus pares e dos profissionais que atuam na educação. O estudo da construção da autoimagem desse adolescente a partir da relação espelhar com o outro no espaço educacional deu procedência à defesa dessa Tese que a entende como ontologicamente humana, fulcral para o seu eterno desenvolver-se. Enfim, teóricos sobre educação, Altas Habilidades/Superdotação, inteligências múltiplas, teorias psicológicas e do Mito de Narciso serão referenciais fulcrais para o corpus central desta Tese de Doutorado.

This chapter explores Sor Juana’s best known auto sacramental, El divino Narciso. In particular, it focusses on what previous critics have perceived to be the weakness of the play, that is Sor Juana’s choice of Narcissus as a figure of Christ. In contrast, this study argues that the apparent dissimilarity between Narcissus’ self-love and Christ’s selfless love is precisely the reason for Sor Juana’s choice. In particular, it explores a little-known source for the play, Jakob Masen’s Speculum imaginum, and its connection to Golden Age theories of wit. Specifically, it demonstrates how Masen’s emphasis on originality and the unexpected, together with his theories on mirrors and optics, explains Sor Juana’s Christological reading of the Ovidian myth. The study then turns to the loa to explore how the treatment of optics in the auto can also be applied to its introductory piece, and how this illuminates its reading of the Conquest.

The chapter, “Me,” examines in detail Donald Trump’s love of himself—that is, his narcissism. Tracing the concept back to the ancient Greek myth of Narcissus, the chapter explores different theories of and empirical research on narcissism, and considers how they may apply to Trump. The chapter dismisses common clinical speculations regarding the origins of Trump’s narcissism in the alleged early failings of the mother–infant bond. The chapter traces Trump’s long career in narcissism, from school experiences through the presidency. Trump never tires of glorifying the self. As the episodic man, each new moment is a completely refreshed opportunity to gaze anew at the beautiful and powerful me. If too many moments go by without the fix, Trump feels an aching longing for me, a desire to gaze upon the me, like Narcissus gazing into his reflection in the pool, as if he were addicted to the me—the me as an object, not a person, but a beautiful and mesmerizing thing.

Researchers from all disciplines are increasingly inclined to acknowledge intuition and reflective practice as a valid ways of knowing. But in technology and areas other than the arts, this thinking is still new, and few strategic frameworks are available to assist researchers to approach intuitive research with rigor. In this chapter, Subphenomenology is laid out as a methodology for analysing weblog writing, as data for research. As a template for other first-person research, the framework showcases the author’s own experiences as a novice Web 2.0 user. Starting with the research question, “Why do I resist learning with technology?” I show how candid blogs are analysed to reveal an archetypal image of Echo and Narcissus in response to the research question. This chapter formulates how Subphenomenology uses intuition to access unconscious knowing, and reveal an archetypal image of the research in question. The case studied, like all case studies, may not be applicable to every learner who, in the described sample, shies away from technology. But it may provide profound insight to those who self-identify with the given universal myth. Subphenomenology is a formula, which can be applied to any weblog data, or indeed any creative work, to enable researchers to understand more about the universal implications of their most subjective reflections.