IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/mig/avarjl/v1y2022i1p51-87.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

The Deviant Villain: The Construction of Villainy as Deviant Otherness in Mesopotamian Royal Rhetoric

Author

Listed:
  • Ilan Peled

    (VU Amsterdam, Netherlands)

Abstract

This article combines theoretical and historical approaches for studying notions of heroism and villainy in ancient Mesopotamia, as reflected in royal propaganda and rhetoric. It focuses on the different manners in which Mesopotamian kings of the second and first millennia BCE constructed the image of their rivals as villains who deviate from the standard characteristics of the heroic ruler. The theoretical framework of the article is based on heroism studies, a recently-established field within the social sciences, which studies the role of heroes and villains in human society. The article utilizes these theoretical considerations for analyzing Mesopotamian royal inscriptions where the ruler’s rivals were portrayed as villains. Seven villain-archetypes are identified and discussed, each of which contrasting one or more of the typical heroic traits of the Mesopotamian ruler. By combining sociological, psychological and philological methodologies, this article offers a new perspective on ancient Mesopotamian society and culture.

Suggested Citation

  • Ilan Peled, 2022. "The Deviant Villain: The Construction of Villainy as Deviant Otherness in Mesopotamian Royal Rhetoric," Avar, Transnational Press London, UK, vol. 1(1), pages 51-87, January.
    • Handle: RePEc:mig:avarjl:v:1:y:2022:i:1:p:51-87
    DOI: https://doi.org/10.33182/aijls.v1i1.1529
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://journals.tplondon.com/avar/article/view/1529/1478
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/https://doi.org/10.33182/aijls.v1i1.1529?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:mig:avarjl:v:1:y:2022:i:1:p:51-87. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    We have no bibliographic references for this item. You can help adding them by using this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: TPLondon (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.tplondon.com/ .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.