OPEN STACKS | #36 Myths & Folktales: Wendy Doniger & William Hansen
Zeus gives birth to Athena; courtesy of NYPL
This week on the podcast, classical folklorist William Hansen recounts ancient Greek and Roman folktales from his collection, The Book of Greek and Roman Folktales, Legends, and Myths and Wendy Doniger joins us in talking about cross-cultural mythologies surrounding rings and their connection to love and sex as she writes about in her recent book, The Ring of Truth.
As Doniger mentions, De Beers Consolidated Mines, Ltd (now simply De Beers) built a constellation-sized narrative and market around the diamond engagement ring. Here's the story of the origins of the company's famed tagline, "A diamond is forever."
On the other side of valuation, Ananios (by Hansen's translation) offers:
If a person should lock up a pile of gold in a house,
A few figs, and two or three people,
He would perceive how much better figs are than gold.
Further readings in myths and folktales around the world from the Co-op! Stop by to further peruse the section. (It's right next to poetry, for the uninitiated.)
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