Questioning The Authority Of M Essay Research

Questioning The Authority Of M Essay, Research Paper

Questioning the Authority of Myth in The Histories

History can be defined as the systematic study of and writing about the past (Cartledge, Paul, The Greeks: A Portrait of Self and Others, Oxford University Press, Oxford, 1993). Does this mean anything that happened, or that was believed to have happened, in the past can be recorded as history. Or, does one need proof. In Herodotus The Histories, the narrative is arranged in a dramatic form. Modern historians also arrange their narrative in dramatic form, but he or she uses footnotes, endnotes and citations to show proof; the raw data, of his or her work is validated. These notes allow the historian to share sources of details and present tangible information. Herodotus, however, was not able to use such conventions as footnotes or endnotes. In The Histories, Herodotus includes as much primary material as he can, but obviously does not fully trust his sources. He takes special care to let his readers know when he is saying what has been told to him by other people, and often includes accounts that he believes to be false. Cartledge states that historians all create their own distinctive, selective pasts (Cartledge, 19). In including all accounts, and stating which he believes to be true, Herodtus in fact creates his own past.

But, was Herodotus telling the truth. He uses many techniques in his writing to make the reader believe that what he is saying is fact. Herodotus uses story and myth in such a way that it lends credibility to his writing. Why did he include stories and myths. Cartledge makes the claim that, Myths were virtually all that Herodotus could possibly have used to recount and account for the origins, development, and outcome of his chosen subject (Cartledge, 21). First of all, Herodotus used the stories to tell the history of the time because he often only had stories

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to tell, as no concrete facts were available to him. Secondly, the people of his day were used to literature filled with myth and symbolism. It may have been that Herodotus wrote his books using many stories because he felt it was the only way to properly tell the history of the people of Persia and Greece.

I am not going to come down in favor in this or that account of events…I will cover major and minor human settlements equally, because most of those which were important in the past have diminished in significance by now, and those which were great in my own time were small in times past. I will mention both equally (Waterfield, Robin, Herodotus The Histories, Oxford University Press, Oxford, 1998, Book 1, Chapter 15).

In order to understand how Herodotus arrives at conclusions about the events he discusses it helps to examine specific instances where his methods of narration and analysis are illustrated. By looking carefully at these examples, we are able to draw conclusions that help define what constitutes proof for Herodotus. A good example of his method of historical analysis can be found in the story of Helen (2.113-120). Her familiar story is reconstructed to show the reader a different outlook on the causes and historical facts which make up the event. Herodotus begins by telling the above story as related to him by the priests. However, he does not take myth as truth. Herodotus questions the validity of the myth by using tools of logic and reason. He examines the situation surrounding the myth and evaluates it rationally. Herodotus uses two major tools to prove his outlook. He begins by using the fact that the statue of Aphrodite, now standing at the former site of Proteus’ court, is referred to as “the stranger.” As this is the only statue of Aphrodite referred to in this way, he concludes that there must be a reason why. He believes that it is because of the story of Helen. Here, Herodotus takes anthropological details into account and through his own observations, he manages to

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supplement the myth. Herodotus then uses a form of literary analysis in order to validate the story of the priests further, and in doing so he lays out the difference between Homer’s use of myth and his own practice of rational analysis. In looking at three passages from the Iliad and the Odyssey, he pulls out details that point to Homer acknowledging Helen s being at Proteus’ court (2.116). And, though this does not outrightly prove Herodotus’ account, it is certainly an effective critical tool in analyzing the event and adding much validity to his analysis.

The mere fact of Herodotus questioning the authority of the myth is, remarkable, at least reference to earlier writers. In fact, he seems in complete rebellion of myth when he writes, “Now, I think that Homer had heard this story as well, because although he omitted it on the grounds that it was not suitable for an epic poem as the other one (the one he used), he still showed that he knew this alternative story too (2.115).” He is attacking Homer for his subjectivity by implying that he gives a false account of the story for the sake of poetry. There is a direct contradiction between Homer’s account of Helen s story and of Herodtus objective telling of the tale.

In the story of Cyrus youth, Herodotus transforms the mythological facts underlying the tale into a realistic narrative. He does this by removing an element that had not ever been rem