Introduction

Euhemerism is the idea that the Greek gods were actually men and women, who lived their lives among other men, and women at some point in the past, and who ultimately died, as men and women always do, and were buried. As a work of fiction, then, Euhemerus’ novel could perhaps not be pinned down even if we could read the original in its entirety. As a piece of critical terminology, however, ‘euhemerism’ and its derivatives are designed to be pins, and pins can be useful tools, if we know how to use them. In the strictest sense, euhemerism ought only to refer to this idea, though if a writer applies the same interpretation or explanation to another set of gods, it seems reasonable to apply the term in that case too. The chapter also presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in this book.