Politics and Folktale in the Classical World

Abstract

The usurpation of myths and folktales for political purposes is a phenomenon that is well attested during classical antiquity. The preservation of heroic legends was probably motivated in part by social or political considerations, and the process continued into historical times. Our focus has now shifted from the question of historicity to the degree to which folktale has embellished history, and to what degree historical figures have exploited folktale and myth for real-life ends. The Peisistratid tyrants in Athens employed myths and religious symbols both in the initial stages of Peisistratus' rise to power and in the maintenance of the dynasty over several decades. Alexander the Great made special efforts to associate himself with the hero Heracles; the emphasis on Heracles diminished as Alexander's interests turned toward administration of a united Greek-Persian empire. Scipio Africanus was viewed by contemporary and later Roman authors as a Roman Alexander, a fact that is revealing about his personality but that complicates study of his own image-making efforts. Cato Censorius, on the other hand, created his own conservative Roman image by appealing to distinguished historical Romans and by emphasizing cardinal Roman virtues in his public oratory and literary efforts. Greek myths tend to generalize events, Roman myths make them concrete; Greek legends transcend time and space, Roman legends insist upon historicity; Greek myths are largely related to Greek religion, Roman myths and folktales are not part of Roman religion, but part of Roman history, and should be examined first of all from that perspective.