La Gigantomachia sullo sfondo: da Omero a Platone

Gigantomachy in the Background. From Homer to Plato · In antiquity, discussions concerning giants often meant addressing the question of the battle they fought against the Olympian gods, a battle known as the ‘Gigantomachy’, a term popularized by Plato. This article focuses on literary accounts of giants, from Homer to Plato. One of the aims is to examine the earliest references, during the eighth and seventh centuries bc, particularly in Homer and Hesiod, to determine if they also allude to this battle. The findings suggest that such references exist, though they are subtle and elusive. The article then reexamines the remaining literary evidence, particularly from the sixth and fifth centuries bc, which is often overshadowed by abundant iconographic documentation. It concludes with a reconsideration of the famous passage in Plato’s Sophist, in which the dispute between the corporealists and the idealists is framed as « a kind of gigantomachy » (γιγαντομαχία τις). Within this context, special attention is given to the role of Heracles, though the Greek hero is not mentioned by Plato.