The Contours of Masculinity and Public Entertainers in Ancient Greece

Abstract

It is crucial to remember that ancient Greek society did not exist in isolation; there was cultural interaction with many societies around it, or in classics scholar Carol Dougherty’s phrase, “conflict and collaboration,” between different Greek settlements as well as with Etruscans, Phoenicians, and other groups (2003, 35). “Elements of the indigenous Etruscan world are combined with aspects of Greek myth as well as those of Phoenician origin to produce a compelling testament to the power and status of this princeps… In other words, Odysseus serves as a model for the Etruscan princeps“ (41). The Greeks borrowed the basic elements of the Phoenician alphabet to create their own, and the Etruscans looked to Greek artistic production to adorn their dwellings and provide funerary equipment. Greek traders were active throughout the ancient world, and thus exposed to an array of customs and practices from other cultures.