{"title":"Alastair Blanshard","description":null,"products":[{"product_id":"hercules-book-alastair-blanshard-9781862078772","title":"Hercules","description":"From Ovid and Virgil to the muscle beaches of Malibu, Hercules has made an indelible impression on Western culture. Hercules is the original hero: half-god, half-man; strong, handsome and virile; triumphant in his twelve labours yet ultimately victim of his tragic destiny. He has been variously portrayed for thousands of years in sculpture, painting and verse, and more recently depicted on stage and screen. Roman emperors, renaissance princes and totalitarian dictators have all attempted to appropriate his image. This unconventional biography of Hercules charts his life from his dramatic birth in Thebes to his agonizing death on a flaming pyre. Along the way, it recounts many long-forgotten yet revealing adventures and shows Hercules to be much more than just a muscle-bound hero. His life story, which mixes elements of tragedy and comedy, often makes uncomfortable reading: a rapist, drunkard and transvestite, Hercules' excesses explore some of the darkest recesses of human nature.","brand":"WoB","offers":[{"title":"GB \/ VERY_GOOD \/ INTERNAL","offer_id":49517905477905,"sku":"GOR002835166","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"GB \/ GOOD \/ INTERNAL","offer_id":51879547535633,"sku":"GOR003382591","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"GB \/ WELL_READ \/ INTERNAL","offer_id":52965474533649,"sku":"GOR011404453","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0784\/4072\/6801\/files\/1862078777.jpg?v=1772273920"},{"product_id":"hercules-book-alastair-blanshard-9781862076532","title":"Hercules","description":"From Ovid and Virgil to the muscle beaches of Malibu, Hercules has made an indelible impression on western culture Hercules is the original hero: half-god, half-man; strong, handsome and virile; triumphant in his twelve labours yet ultimately victim of his tragic destiny. He has been variously portrayed for thousands of years in sculpture, painting, and verse, and more recently depicted on stage and screen. Roman emperors, renaissance princes, and totalitarian dictators have all attempted to appropriate his image. This unconventional biography of Hercules charts his life from his dramatic birth in Thebes to his agonizing death on a flaming pyre. Along the way, it recounts many long-forgotten yet revealing adventures and shows Hercules to be much more than just a muscle-bound hero. His life story, which mixes elements of tragedy and comedy, often makes uncomfortable reading: a rapist, drunkard, and transvestite, Hercules' excesses explore some of the darkest recesses of human nature.","brand":"WoB","offers":[{"title":"GB \/ VERY_GOOD \/ INTERNAL","offer_id":49553697079569,"sku":"GOR002707097","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"US \/ GOOD \/ SBYB","offer_id":49896469758225,"sku":"CIN1862076537G","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0784\/4072\/6801\/files\/1862076537.jpg?v=1751445970"},{"product_id":"classical-world-all-that-matters-book-alastair-blanshard-9781444177961","title":"Classical World: All That Matters","description":"Modern Western European culture would have been impossible without the civilizations of ancient Greece and Rome. The disciplines of philosophy, drama, history, and science all owe an immense debt to these two Mediterranean cultures. At the same time, there are aspects of this legacy that are less worthy of celebration. Slavery went hand in hand with democracy. The pursuit of beauty coexisted with breathtaking acts of brutality.   This book explores the world of the ancient Greeks and Romans and the distinctive cultures they produced. It charts the rise and fall of empires as well as examining the intricacies of domestic life. The opening sections of the book give a chronological overview of the ancient world. They orientate the reader to the key places, actors, and historical trends. The remaining chapters focus on some of the most important and influential aspects of Greco-Roman culture including ancient festivals, art, architecture, religion, and medicine.","brand":"WoB","offers":[{"title":"GB \/ VERY_GOOD \/ INTERNAL","offer_id":49618161533201,"sku":"GOR007700234","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0784\/4072\/6801\/files\/1444177966.jpg?v=1751178690"},{"product_id":"classics-on-screen-book-alastair-j-l-blanshard-9780715637241","title":"Classics on Screen","description":"Cinema loves Greece and Rome. Hollywood epics, animated movies, avant-garde features - all have turned to classical antiquity for inspiration. On the silver screen, we see a world of virtuous Christians, depraved pagans, gladiators, charioteers, Spartan warriors, and muscle-bound demigods - a potent mix of sex, violence and art. So pervasive are these images that this cinematic output dominates the public understanding of the ancient world. Through analysis of ten influential films, this book examines the representation of Greece and Rome in both popular and art-house cinema, arranged by cinematic genre. Key scenes are discussed and each film is located in its historical context.","brand":"WoB","offers":[{"title":"US \/ GOOD \/ SBYB","offer_id":50358214656273,"sku":"CIN071563724XG","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"US \/ VERY_GOOD \/ SBYB","offer_id":51766662136081,"sku":"CIN071563724XVG","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"GB \/ NEW \/ INGRAM","offer_id":52683226743057,"sku":"NLS9780715637241","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"GB \/ VERY_GOOD \/ INTERNAL","offer_id":53520028860689,"sku":"GOR006010943","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0784\/4072\/6801\/files\/071563724X.jpg?v=1751630927"},{"product_id":"modern-hercules-book-alastair-jl-blanshard-9789004440005","title":"The Modern Hercules","description":"The Modern Hercules explores the reception of the ancient Greek hero Herakles – the Roman Hercules – in western culture from the nineteenth century to the present day.  Each chapter considers a particular work or theme in detail, exploring this complex hero’s transformations of identity and significance in a wide range of modern media, including literature, visual arts and film. The volume is one of four to be published in the Metaforms series examining the extraordinarily persistent figuring of Herakles-Hercules in western culture, drawing together scholars from a range of disciplines to offer a unique insight into the hero’s perennial appeal.","brand":"WoB","offers":[{"title":"GB \/ NEW \/ INGRAM","offer_id":52678441894161,"sku":"NLS9789004440005","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0784\/4072\/6801\/files\/9789004440005.jpg?v=1768558465"}],"url":"https:\/\/www.worldofbooks.com\/collections\/author-books-by-alastair-blanshard.oembed","provider":"World of Books ","version":"1.0","type":"link"}