| | | Document Type | : | Latin Dissertation | | Language of Document | : | English | | Record Number | : | 54074 | | Doc. No | : | TL24028 | | Call number | : | 3220072 | | Main Entry | : | James M. Reitter | | Title & Author | : | Modern dragons: The crocodilian in the Western mindJames M. Reitter | | College | : | University of Louisiana at Lafayette | | Date | : | 2006 | | Degree | : | Ph.D. | | student score | : | 2006 | | Page No | : | 240 | | Abstract | : | The crocodilian (crocodiles and alligators) has been a steady presence throughout much of Western culture. Dating back to the ancient civilizations of Babylon and Egypt, the crocodilian has been a significant construct in myth, literature, science, art, and film. This is because in certain aspects of culture, humanity needs a comparative figure by which to understand what it means to be human. The crocodilian fulfills this role by acting as a paradigm for what is monstrous and essentially non-human: the reptilian Other. However, the crocodilian also embodies a psychological primitive side of the Self, one that we cannot ignore. The R-complex (or, reptilian brain) is a physiological and cultural necessity, and our portrayal of the crocodilian epitomizes this. Evidence of the crocodilian acting as a foundational element from which humanity grows is seen in the fact that the Western culture's understanding of the reptilian does not change, despite a fundamental shift in the comprehension of the natural order due to the Scientific Revolution. The crocodilian remains beside us as a pre-historic and pre-human Other: a mythic, alien ancestor that helps articulate how we see ourselves. | | Subject | : | Communication and the arts; Social sciences; Language, literature and linguistics; Crocodilian; Myth; Reptilian brain; Western culture; Folklore; Literature; Motion pictures; 0900:Motion pictures; 0401:Literature; 0358:Folklore | | Added Entry | : | J. Laudun | | Added Entry | : | University of Louisiana at Lafayette |
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http://lib.clisel.com/site/catalogue/54074
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