The Mythical Underworlds of Francis Stevens and Daphne du Maurier

Authors

  • Mercedes Aguirre Universidad Complutense Madrid

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.18778/1733-0319.24.12

Keywords:

Myth, underworld, science fiction, Francis Stevens, Daphne du Maurier

Abstract

This article analyses two stories by women writers (The Heads of Cerberus by Francis Stevens (1952) and The Breakthrough by Daphne du Maurier (1964)), which could both be considered as belonging to the genre of science fiction. These stories do not follow the ‘canonical’ or more popular type of underworld narrative, especially the idea of the katabasis or descent to the underworld and the encounter with the dead, a motif which has often been present in Western culture since classical antiquity and has generated numerous narratives. Rather, they evoke the classical myth of the underworld through the use of certain names (such as Charon and Cerberus) as well as exploring other concepts which coincide with ancient Greek accounts of the topography and inhabitants of the world of the dead, the realm ruled over by Hades.

Author Biography

  • Mercedes Aguirre, Universidad Complutense Madrid

    Dr Mercedes Aguirre – Doctor in Classical Philology (Universidad Complutense, Madrid). Honorary Research Fellow, University of Bristol. Profesor Honorífico, Universidad Complutense, Madrid. For many years she lectured on Greek Philology at the Universidad Complutense in Madrid. She has published on Greek literature, mythology, iconography, and the reception of Greek mythology in the contemporary world. Among her scholarly articles are those on: Scylla, the Gorgons, ghosts, female characters in the Odyssey and studies of particular myths and their reception in modern and contemporary art. With Richard Buxton she has co-authored Cyclops: The Myth and its Cultural History (Oxford University Press, 2020). She is also the author of several books of fiction, some of them inspired by Greek mythology.

References

Aguirre, M. (2014). Caracterización y representación de los fantasmas en la antigua Grecia in Fantasmas, aparecidos y muertos sin descanso. In: M. Aguirre, C. Delgado, A. González-Rivas (ed.). Madrid: Abada. 55–65.

Alderman, N. (2019). “Introduction” to Francis Stevens, The Heads of Cerberus. New York: Modern Library https://doi.org/10.1515/9781618110558-001 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1515/9781618110558-001

Armitt, L. (ed.). (1991). Where no man has gone before: Women and science fiction. London–New York: Routledge.

Bleiler, E.F. (1990). Science Fiction. The Early Years. Kent, Ohio: Kent State University Press.

Bost-Fiévet, M., Provini, S. (2014). Sur des pensers anciens faisons des mondes nouveaux. In: M. Bost-Fiévet, S. Provini (ed.). L’Antiquité dans l’imaginaire contemporain. Fantasy, science-fiction, fantastique. Paris: Classiques Garnier. 273–283.

Brayfield, C. (2007). The House of the Strand. In: The Daphne du Maurier Companion. London: Virago Press. 210–216.

Bremmer, J. (1983). The Early Greek Concept of the Soul. Princeton: Princeton University Press https://doi.org/10.1515/9780691219356 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1515/9780691219356

Cornillon, C. (2014). Moi, Thésée, je decouvrirai les chemins de l’espace. In: M. Bost-Fiévet, S. Provini (eds.). L’Antiquité dans l’imaginaire contemporain. Fantasy, science-fiction, fantastique. Paris: Classiques Garnier. 175–186.

Du Maurier, D. (2006). The Breakthrough in Don’t Look Now and Other Stories, London: Penguin.

Ekroth, G., Nilsson, I. (eds.). (2018). Round Trip to Hades in the Eastern Mediterranean Tradition: Visits to the Underworld from Antiquity to Byzantium. Leiden: Brill https://doi.org/10.1163/9789004375963 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1163/9789004375963

Fletcher, J. (2019). Myths of the Underworld in Contemporary Culture. Oxford: Oxford University Press https://doi.org/10.1093/oso/9780198767091.001.0001 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/oso/9780198767091.001.0001

Hall, E. (2012). The Return of Ulysses, London: I.B.Tauris.

Heeley, M. (2007). Christianity versus Paganism: Daphne du Maurier’s Divided Mind. In: H. Taylor (ed.). The Daphne du Maurier Companion. London: Virago Press. 122–132.

Hietala Lilja, J. (2020). Anticipation, Uncertainty and Concern for Characters: Suspense in Daphne du Maurier’s Short- Story Collection Don’t Look Now. MA Thesis, Helsinki: Helsingin yliopisto.

Hodges, S. (2007). Editing Daphne du Maurier. In: H. Taylor (ed.). The Daphne du Maurier Companion. London: Virago Press. 25–43.

Horner, A., Zlosnik, S. (1998). Daphne du Maurier. Writing, Identity and the Gothic Imagination. London: McMillan Press https://doi.org/10.1057/9780230378773 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1057/9780230378773

Keen, A. (2015). Mr. Lucian in Suburbia: Links Between the True History and The First Man in the Moon. In: B.M. Rogers, B.E. Stevens (eds.). Classical Traditions in Science Fiction. Oxford: Oxford University Press. 105–120.

Kogel, D., Schaefer, I. (2011). The Doppelgӓnger motif in Science-Fiction film. In: S. Georgi, K. Loock (eds.). Of Body Snatchers and Cyberpunks: Student Essays on American Science-Fiction. Gӧttingen: Universitӓt Gӧttingen. 125–141 https://doi.org/10.17875/gup2021-1678 DOI: https://doi.org/10.17875/gup2021-1678

Merrick, H. (2003). Gender in Science Fiction. In: E. James, S. Mendelsohn (eds.). The Cambridge Companion to Science Fiction. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. 241–252 https://doi.org/10.1017/CCOL0521816262.019 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/CCOL0521816262.019

Ogden, D. (2001). Greek and Roman Necromancy. Princeton: Princeton University Press https://doi.org/10.1515/9780691207063 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1515/9780691207063

Provini, S., Bost-Fiévet, M. (2014). L’antiquité gréco-latine dans l’imaginaire contemporain, Introduction générale. In: M. Bost-Fiévet, S. Provini (eds.). L’Antiquité dans l’imaginaire contemporain. Fantasy, science-fiction, fantastique. Paris: Classiques Garnier. 15–34.

Roberts, A. (2006). The History of Science Fiction. Basingstoke: Palgrave Mcmillan https://doi.org/10.1057/9780230554658 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1057/9780230554658

Rogers, B.M., Stevens, B.E. (2015). Classical Traditions in Science Fiction. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Seed, D. (2011). Science Fiction. A Very Short Introduction. Oxford: Oxford University Press https://doi.org/10.1093/actrade/9780199557455.001.0001 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/actrade/9780199557455.001.0001

Simonis, A. (2014). Voyages Mythiques et passages aux enfers. In: M. Bost-Fiévet, S. Provini (eds.). L’Antiquité dans l’imaginaire contemporain. Fantasy, science-fiction, fantastique. Paris: Classiques Garnier. 241–252.

Stableford, B. (2003). Science Fiction before the genre. In: E. James, S. Mendelsohn (eds.). The Cambridge Companion to Science Fiction. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. 15–31 https://doi.org/10.1017/CCOL0521816262.002 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/CCOL0521816262.002

Stevens, F. (2019). The Heads of Cerberus. New York: The Modern Library.

Downloads

Published

2021-12-28

Issue

No. 24 (2021): Ad fontes. Tradycja antyczna i jej recepcja

Section

Articles

License

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

How to Cite

Aguirre, Mercedes. 2021. “The Mythical Underworlds of Francis Stevens and Daphne Du Maurier”. Collectanea Philologica, no. 24 (December): 185-95. https://doi.org/10.18778/1733-0319.24.12.
Crossref
Scopus
Google Scholar
Europe PMC