[*Newsfiction – see Footnote*]
In the ever-intriguing landscape of academia, a groundbreaking archaeological discovery has recently sent ripples through the scholarly community, sparking both impassioned debates and profound admiration. The Evandros Scroll, a cryptic relic of ancient times, was unveiled by the intrepid archaeologist, Dr. Callista Evandros, her team employing cutting-edge technology to breathe new life into a text believed to be over two millennia old. This enigmatic tome, with its arcane inscriptions, has unveiled the mysteries of Greek mythology, redefining our understanding of the rich tapestry of ancient culture. [*Newsfiction*]
Already this scroll has yielded intriguing stories such as The Great Metamorphosis: Birth of the Revel, and The Maiden of the Golden Race who Broke the Taboos and Caused the Seasons, and now it has given up another: Thespis amongst the Pelasgians. (See also The Clever Crow.)
Yet, this archaeological treasure is not without its controversies. A shadow of doubt looms over its authenticity, with some sceptics boldly suggesting that the scroll may be an artful creation of the modern age, a product of clever artificial intelligence. Despite these challenges to its origin, tireless scholars and archaeologists press on, committed to the relentless pursuit of knowledge, delving into the depths of the scroll to unearth the hidden treasures within its pages.
The latest revelation from the depths of the Evandros Scroll is a captivating missive—another letter penned by Pseudohesiod, the erudite sage, to his nephew Callias. This letter, wrapped in the enigmatic embrace of the scroll, spins a tale that defies the traditional narrative of Thespis of Attica as the founding figure of acting. This newly uncovered perspective challenges this age-old tale, shedding light on an alternative viewpoint, implying that Thespis merely introduced drama to Athens after witnessing it amongst the hunting and gathering indigenous ‘Pelasgian’ peoples of the remote interior of Arcadia. Pseudohesiod recounts a story heard from his cousin, whose roots intertwine with the Pelasgians—a people deeply connected to ancient storytelling traditions rooted in primordial epochs.
Pseudohesiod’s Tale: Thespis Amongst the Pelasgians
Greetings to my beloved nephew, Callias,
I trust this missive finds you in excellent health and high spirits, your intellect ever keen to embrace the wisdom of the ancients. It is in the spirit of familial bond and the pursuit of knowledge that I relay this narrative to you.
As I traverse the rolling landscapes of my rustic abode, where the sun’s radiant glow bathes the land, ancient echoes persist, calling me to unravel yet another chronicle from the annals of time. This particular tale, relayed to me by my cousin, Polymela, whose lineage intertwines with the Pelasgians, a people whose roots are deeply entwined with the distant epochs of antiquity, unveils a narrative that diverges from the oft-told accounts.
The Pelasgians, dwelling in the heartland of Arcadia, persist as the descendants of a bygone era, when humanity roamed the Earth as hunters and gatherers. They claim their ancestry from the divine Golden Race, the primordial inhabitants of the Earth who once roamed the world, long before the first seeds graced the fertile soil.
It was among these honorable people that Thespis, the venturesome poet of Attica, encountered a unique form of storytelling—a tradition that transcended temporal boundaries, delving into a world where creatures shared parity with humankind. Under the starry embrace of their campfires, their narratives leapt from the spoken word into life, with a chorus of voices that mimicked the movements, gestures, and sounds of a diverse array of animal characters. Songs and dances wove into the tales, bringing forth the creatures’ spirits with uncanny realism.
This captivating experience captured Thespis’s spirit, and upon his return to the bustling streets of Athens, where the heartbeat of a burgeoning civilization pulsed, he ventured into the realm of theatrical storytelling. Inspired by the Pelasgian approach, he began crafting performances that mirrored their tradition—these were satyr plays, where animal characters assumed the grace and speech of humans. His renditions swiftly captured the hearts of Athenians, thus birthing the art of mimetic drama as we know it.
As I inscribe these words to you, Callias, it is not merely to relay a narrative but to impart a profound lesson. This account, dear nephew, underscores the truth that although the Greeks have bestowed countless treasures upon humanity, we must retain humility in our triumphs. Just as it was the Golden Race who first mixed paint and made pictures, who first told stories, danced and sung, it appears that the art of drama, far from being an exclusive creation of our age, is woven into the very fabric of humanity’s ancient storytelling heritage, rooted in the whispers of primordial times.
With profound reverence and boundless affection,
Pseudohesiod
*Footnote
Of course, this is “newsfiction” – I have invented this story of the discovery of the scroll, and indeed I have invented the figure of Pseudiohesiod as well as his nephew, and furthermore the entire series of letters is my own creation, using AI to help with the stylistic aspects, to help create the veneer of authenticity. You might be wondering what inspired me to recast a series of Greek myths in a hunter gatherer context. I am still trying to put my finger on my own motivations, to understand my own muse as it were, but I think have some insight into why it fascinates me.
I have long been a fan of ancient Greek mythology, but in recent years have developed a great fascination with the stories of hunter gatherer peoples such as the “San” peoples of South Africa, as well as the indigenous Australians. Then I noticed opportunities to marry the traditions. To do so, is in fact not un-Greek – the Greek empire was just that – an Emporium – a place of trade, which included the trade of ideas just as much as goods. What I am doing is just a continuation of that process – stories from afar drifting into the Greek marketplace and being taken up and used.
Though we don’t know for certain what stories hunter gatherer people were telling back in the time of Ancient Greece, there is nothing in the tales that we do know that could not have formed part of stories that were being told by hunter gatherer peoples at that time. The Greeks had a method of dressing up their tales, using rhetorical motifs, the classical style, and this can be applied to the core plots of other stories. Imagine if the Greeks had come across the stories of hunter gatherers during their travels and then given them the Greek treatment. For all we know, some of the famous Greek tales could have had this type of non-agricultural origin.
Taking themes from hunter gatherer myths and fusing them with the classical tradition allows us to make stories that could have been created in ancient times, if only these groups of people had met and interacted at that time.
This gives fresh blood to the classical tradition. Without such fresh blood, a tradition can ossify. The same old stories, again and again. Pump the old classical tradition with new blood, and suddenly it comes back to life. It becomes a living tradition. I am fascinated with the idea of the classical tradition not as a dead museum piece, but as an ongoing living tradition. Why not?
Another reason I am attracted to this process is that it makes a point: there is a tendency to view the tales of classical mythology as artefacts of High Culture, and to view the mythologies of hunter gatherers as some how ‘primitive’ by comparison. But the actual stories, once you get beneath the classical rhetoric, are of a similar type. Once you get under the skin of the hunter gatherer narratives, understanding them ontologically, from the perspective of their own way of being in the world, you realise how they are no less engaging and sophisticated in their own way. My aim is to demonstrate this by giving them a Greek makeover.
More generally, I have a very strong dislike of the idea that civilisation began with agriculture. This is simply not true. Mythology, painting, dance, storytelling, song, decorative artefacts – these are although things that human hunter gatherers have invented time and again without any contact with agriculturalists.
These stories from the fictional “Evandros Scroll” are my own inventions, but they resonate, I hope, with a deeper truth: culture existed long before agriculture came on the scene. We cannot now return to pre-agricultural times, but we should move beyond the idea that dominating the natural world is a prerequisite of civilised living.
ROCK ART 4 REWILDING 