This study examines the reception of Cleopatra from the beginning of the 20th century to the present day as it has been reflected in popular culture in the United States of America. Daugherty provides a broad overview of the influence of the Egyptian queen by looking at her presence in film, novels, comics, cartoons, TV shows, music, advertising and toys. The aim of the book is to show the different ways in which the figure of Cleopatra was able to reach a large and non-elite audience.
Furthermore, Daugherty makes a study of the reception of Cleopatra during her own lifetime. He begins by looking at her portrayal in the vicious propaganda campaign waged by Octavian against his rival Marc Antony. The consequence was that Cleopatra was left with a tarnished reputation after the civil war. Daugherty's examination of both the historical and contemporary reception of Cleopatra shows the enduring legacy of one of history's most remarkable queens.
Author(s): Gregory N. Daugherty
Series: IMAGINES – Classical Receptions in the Visual and Performing Arts
Publisher: Bloomsbury Academic
Year: 2022
Language: English
Pages: 248
City: London
Cover
Halftitle page
Series page
Title page
Copyright page
Dedication
Contents
Illustrations
Acknowledgements
1 ‘A Lass Unparalleled’
1.1 Scope and thesis of this study
1.2 The ‘real’ Cleo and her known associates
1.3 Her beauty and her race
1.4 Her early receptions
2 The Femme Fatale
2.1 Cleopatra at the fin de siècle
2.2 Silent Cleopatras
2.3 Pulp fiction
2.4 Demise of the vamp119
3 A Kinder, Gentler Cleopatra
3.1 Advertising and Palmolive Soap 1909–29
3.2 Cleopatra laughs
3.3 Femme fatale to flapper
4 Thoroughly Modern Cleopatra
4.1 Caesar and Cleopatra (1945)
4.2 Postwar novels
4.3 Pepla
4.4 Pulps
4.5 Comic and graphic novels prior to Lizpatra59
4.6 Television pre-Lizpatra
4.7 Cartoons pre-Lizpatra
5 Lizpatra1 and Its Aftermath
5.1 Mankiewicz (1963) aka Lizpatra
5.2 Historical fiction after Lizpatra
5.3 Historical fiction for children and young adults
5.4 Science fiction
5.5 Comedy
5.6 Comics
5.7 Manga and anime
5.8 Pornographic films
5.9 Musical theatre
5.10 Television
6 Eighties’ Ladies
6.1 Maxie – Glenn Close1
6.2 Barbara Chase-Riboud
6.3 Science fiction and fantasy
6.4 Anne Rice, The Mummy (1989)
7 The Fantasy Queen of the Nineties
7.1 Traditional historical fiction
7.2 Film and TV
7.3 Science fiction and fantasy
7.4 Prose fantasy fiction
7.5 Graphic novels
8 The Twenty-first-Century ‘Authentic’ Cleopatras
8.1 Sources for the increased interest in Cleopatra
8.2 Miniseries and films
8.3 Historical novels
8.4 Historical novels about Cleopatra’s children
9 The Twenty-first-Century Fantasy Cleopatras
9.1 Horror and science fiction
9.2 Comics and graphic novels
9.3 Video games
9.4 Animation
10 Her Infinite Variety
10.1 Trends 1889–2022
10.2 Primacy of Plutarch and Shakespeare
10.3 Endurance of Orientalism
10.4 Changing role of film in influencing other reception genres
10.5 As a reflection of changing gender roles
10.6 As a reflection of changing racial perceptions
10.7 Gal Gadot in a snake bra?
10.8 Video games and graphic novels
10.9 A modest pitch for a TV series
Notes
Appendices
Appendix A: Brief chronology of Cleopatra VII Philopator (adapted from Roller 2010: 159–62)
Appendix B: Bibliography of secondary works cited in the text
Appendix C: Bibliography of Cleopatra in prose fiction
Appendix D: Bibliography of Cleopatra in films and TV shows
Appendix E: Bibliography of Cleopatra in comics and graphic novels
Appendix F: Bibliography of Cleopatra in animation
Appendix G: Bibliography of Cleopatra in electronic games
Appendix H: Bibliography of Cleopatra on the stage
Appendix I: Bibliography of Cleopatra in poetry, recordings and music
Index
