Like the road to the underworld, the path of a book to publication is neither simple nor single, and I cannot begin to thank all those who have helped on the journey. This project, which grew out of my doctoral dissertation from the University of Chicago, first took shape in a reading class with Arthur Adkins on the myths of Plato, and its path was further defined in the 1997 Brauer Seminar on Myth led by Bruce Lincoln and Wendy Doniger. Along the way, many people provided invaluable help, inspiration, and insight, most notably the chair of my committee, Chris Faraone, without whose guidance I might still be writing. Special thanks must also go to my other readers, Bruce Lincoln and Martha Nussbaum, who provided sharp and insightful critiques of every stage of the dissertation and helped me to shape the overall thesis as well as the individual parts. From the beginning, James Redfield has inspired my approach to these materials and shown me ways of looking at the texts and their contexts that opened them up tomy understanding. As I worked to transform the dissertation into a more coherent book, I have benefited from the advice and critiques of many people, especially Fritz Graf and Claude Calame, who gave me important suggestions on the manuscript both as a whole and in its parts.