History as Apocalypse

Download or read book History as Apocalypse written by Thomas J. J. Altizer and published by SUNY Press. This book was released on 1985-01-01 with total page 282 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: History as Apocalypse is a reenactment of the history of the Western consciousness from the Homeric and Biblica revolutions through Finnegans Wake. This occurs through a historical, literary, and theological analysis of the Christian epic tradition. While attention is focused primarily upon Dante, Milton, Blake, and Joyce, the Classical and Biblical foundations of the Christian epic are explored with the intention of discovering an organic unity in the evolution of the Western consciousness. Our primary epics are identified as revolutionary breakthroughs, not only as transformations of consciousness but also records of social revolutions. The Christian epic is both a consequence and a primary embodiment of the decisive historical revolutions, revolutions culminating with the ending of our historical evolution.