Bohaterowie swoich czasów
Heroes of their time

Transformations of ancient heroes in Soviet animations of the 1970s and 1980s

Author(s): Hanna Paulouskaya
Subject(s): Media studies, Studies of Literature, Communication studies, Theory of Communication, Theory of Literature, Sociology of Literature
Published by: Wydawnictwa Uniwersytetu Warszawskiego
Keywords: animation; Soviet culture; children’s culture; ancient mythology; reception of antiquity
Summary/Abstract: In contrast to the great Hollywood productions, ancient mythology entered Soviet screens in the form of animated cartoons for children. Ideological by nature, USSR culture adopted and changed for its needs also ancient myths and their heroes. This article analyses what changes took place and what meaning ancient heroes acquired in Soviet productions of the 1970s and 1980s. The subject of the analysis is the series of animations “Legends and Myths of Ancient Greece” (1969–1974) directed by Aleksandra Snezhko-Blotskaia and the film “Narodziny Heraklesa” (1982) directed by Yulian Kalisher.

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