The Prestige of Iron and Fire: The Auratic Dimension of Weapons in Epic Discourse

Abstract

This essay explores the auratic and charismatic dimension of weaponry within epic discourse, analyzing how its representation transcends purely functional roles to become a vehicle for symbolic, aesthetic, and anthropological meanings. The study focuses on the seductive power of visual brilliance and metallic clangor, the concept of armor as a "second skin" or ritual mask, and the intrinsic link between the beauty of offensive instruments and their lethal nature. Ultimately, the essay outlines a "critique of weaponry" capable of revealing the cultural logics and symbolic grammars that transform instruments of death into objects of irresistible fascination and fetishes of power.