| Summary: | The first half of the volume is devoted to the exposition of the ancient evidence, literary and iconographic, for the traditions of Heracles' life and deeds. After a chapter each on the hero's childhood and his madness, the canonical cause of his Twelve Labors, each of the Labors themselves receives detailed treatment in a dedicated chapter. The "Parerga" or "Side-Labors" are then treated in a similar level of detail in seven further chapters. In the second half, the Heracles tradition is analysed from a range of thematic perspectives. After consideration of the contrasting projections of the figure across the major literary genres, epic, tragedy, comedy, philosophy, and in the iconographic register, a number of his myth-cycle's diverse fils rouges are pursued
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