Cassandras Of A Second Kind

Abstract

In this paper, Cassandra’s role in the ancient Greek myth of the fall of Troy, as one given the gift of prophesy but cursed to be disbelieved, is explored with a view to understanding the apparently powerless position of climate justice and environmental activism to change public policy. To make this case, we re-interpret the myth of Cassandra to imagine her as a different kind of person, and explore the ideas and stories of certain Teme Augama Anishinaabe Elders that we believe reflect a divergent ontos (being state) from that of the global, modern West. This being state is embedded in the natural world in a constantly reciprocal and dialogical way. We couple this with parallel arguments from recent theories around the human neuro-hemispheric divide relating to ontology and use both to explore how we might become the kinds of people that are capable of dealing with climate change: Cassandras of the second kind. Viewed methodologically, this paper is a cyclical philosophical investigation that, in part, makes use of hermeneutics and narrative inquiry to understand mythic Greek tales and the stories of Indigenous Elders. It also draws on literary traditions that employ allegory to explore meaning.