PerodoLus' reworklng of Lhe sLory of Lhe capLure

WhaL can PerdodLus' reworklng of Lhe sLory of Lhe capLure of Pelen ln 8ook ll of Lhe nlstotles Lell us
abouL Lhe hlsLorlans meLhod as a whole?

ln llghL of recenL crlLlcal analyses of Lhe nlstotles lL can be seen LhaL Lhe way ln whlch Lhe sLory of Lhe
capLure of Pelen ls presenLed ls exemplary of PerodoLus' unlque rheLorlcal meLhod of conveylng
meanlng and LruLh dlsLlncL from yeL lndebLed Lo Lhe Pomerlc worldvlew
1he hlghly lnfluenLlal book 1be Mlttot of netoJotos by lrancls ParLog suggesLs a new way of readlng
Lhe nlstotles based solely on Lhe LexL lLself CrlLlcs have argued LhaL such an approach could prove more
frulLful Lhan prevlous analyses of PerodoLus whlch seek Lo dlscredlL hlm as Lhe 'faLher of lles' or Lo
pralse hlm as Lhe 'faLher of hlsLory'
Several crlLlcs afLer ParLog have suggesLed LhaL Lhrough Lhe nlstotles PerodoLus consLrucLs a new
dlscourse for conveylng Lhe LruLh based on 'CLherness' whlch ls deeply rooLed ln yeL lmporLanLly
dlsLlncL from Lhe Pellenlc ldeology of hls Llme
1hrough Lhe LexLual readlng of Lhe hlsLorles some have polnLed Loward PerodoLus' rheLorlcal meLhod of
descrlblng wonderful Lhlngs as hls way of lnvlLlng readers Lo share ln Lhls wonder and Lo derlve meanlng
from lL Lhrough personal reflecLlon
1hrough Lhls way of looklng aL Lhe LexL lL can be seen LhaL Lhe reworklng of Lhe sLory Pelen sLory ls
exemplary of PerodoLus goal of esLabllshlng a new ldeologlcal ouLlook for Lhe Creeks as well as hls
meLhod of ellclLlng bellef Lhrough personal auLhorlLy and Lhe evocaLlon of wonder
All Lhe way dwon Lo Lhe elghLeenLh cenLury PerodoLus' auLhorlLy as Lhe hlsLorlan of Lhe erslan wars
was rarely dlspuLed by crlLlcs and was generally Laken as rellable lnformaLlon (ParLog 372) 8uL ln Lhe
nlneLeenLhcenLury crlLlcs began Lo dlscredlL hlm argulng LhaL he was a plaglarlsL and a llar (ParLog
372) Powever ln Lhe early LwenLleLh cenLury Lhrough Lhe work of !acoby Lhe focus shlfLed from
PerodoLus as Lhe 'faLher of lles' Lo PerodoLus as Lhe faLher of hlsLory and whaL lmpllcaLlons of Lhe blrLh
of hlsLory were (ParLog 373) And Lhus PerodoLus has noL been dlscredlLed slnce he has been
esLabllshed as Lhe faLher of hlsLory and slnce Lhls noLlon of faLherhood lmplles prlnclple of generaLlve
embodlmenL LhaL recuperaLes whaL Lhe lylng appears Lo glve away" (CreenblaLL 34) 1haL ls Lo say LhaL
over Lhe cenLurles Lhe lmporLance of Lhe work of PerodoLus ln splLe of lLs many deLracLors has endured
and now more Lhan ever warranLs aLLenLlon
ln hls hlghly lnfluenLlal book on PerodoLus' 1be Mlttot of netoJotos lrancls ParLog suggesLs LhaL as a
new approach Lo Lhe sLudy of PerodoLus crlLlcs musL sLake everyLhlng on Lhe LexL lLself (ParLog 364)
1hls seems Lo be an echo of !acques uerrlda who famously declared noLhlng exlsLs ouLslde Lhe LexL"
fused wlLh a formula ParLog aLLrlbuLes Lo lusLel de Coulagnes LhaL hlsLory comes from LexLs" (ParLog
380) 1hls ls noL a deflnlLlve answer on how Lo sLudy PerodoLus buL ls raLher a way of quesLlonlng Lhe
LexL lLself lor ParLog ln Lhe LexLual analysls of PerodoLus lL ls now a maLLer of analyslng Lhe effecL on
lLs adressees an effecL lL ls posslble Lo evaluaLe ln parLlcular on Lhe basls of Lhe funcLlons Lhe narraLor
assumes ln Lhe LexL and Lhrough Lhe enLlre lnLerplay as Lo Lhe sources of Lhe uLLerances" (ParLog 363)
8aLher Lhan an approach whlch seeks Lo slLuaLe PerodoLus wlLhln any parLlcular spaLlal or offlclal
poslLlon" such as a llar or a hlsLorlan or as Lhe herald of ALhens" as !acoby does we should Lry Lo
deflne Lhe poslLlon of Lhe narraLor wlLhln Lhe narraLlve and LhaL may polnL Lo a poslLlon beyond Lhe LexL
and aL Lhe same Llme exclude oLhers" ln oLher words lL may mark ouL a place for hlm (ParLog 3643)
All of Lhls quesLlonlng need noL suggesL a klnd of relaLlvlsm buL raLher a dlfferenL klnd of approach or
way of Lhlnklng abouL a LexL whlch allows one Lo examlne Lhe ways LhaL PerodoLus' ldeology emerges
from wlLhln Lhe conLexL of Lhe narraLlve and noL wlLh reference Lo anyLhlng ouLslde of LhaL conLexL Lo
supplemenL lL CLher crlLlcs have plcked up on Lhls Lask saylng Lhlngs llke 1he PlsLorles ls a LexL and lL
musL be examlned as a LexL wlLh all Lhe aLLendanL componenLs assoclaLed wlLh lL More lmporLanLly
Lhough lL ls a culLural documenL and conLalns encoded wlLhln lL ldeologlcal sLrucLures LhaL as
responslble scholars we musL Lake lnLo accounL when examlnlng Lhe nlstotles" (8anLa 32) WhaL Lhese
crlLlcs are argulng we should be looklng for ln Lhe LexL have someLlmes been descrlbed as uLLeraLlve
marklngs and modallLles (CreenblaLL 123) whlch always remaln lmpllclL ln Lhe LexL and do noL funcLlon
ln an opaquely dldacLlc way 1hrough looklng aL Lhe way PerodoLus narraLlvely consLrucLs and presenLs
Lhlngs and evenLs one mlghL be able Lo see Lhe embedded or lnLended meanlng wlLhln Lhe sLrucLure
lL ls well esLabllshed LhaL PerodoLus' auLhorlLy ls bound up wlLh an appeal Lo whaL he has personally
seen ouLslde Lhe clLy llmlLs" and LhaL lL cannoL be achleved by remalnlng wlLhln Lhe meLropollLan
bounds" (CreenblaLL 123) 1hls lmplles Lwo Lhlngs flrsL LhaL ln PerodoLuss narraLlve LruLh ls arrlved aL
when lL has been experlenced Lhrough a sense organ (ParLog 210) and second LhaL an undersLandlng
of and an lnLeracLlon wlLh oLher culLures ouLslde Lhe bounds of Lhe Creek meLropolls ls lnLegral Lo Lhe
verlflcaLlon of facLs When PerodoLus ls abouL Lo glve Lhre reLlllng of Lhe sLory of Pelen he wrlLes so
far my accounL of LgypL has been dlcLaLed by my own obersaLlon [udgemenL and lnvesLlgaLlon buL
from now on l wlll be relaLlng LgypLlan accounLs supplemenLed by whaL l personally saw" (h 132) ln
Lhls way he has poslLloned hlmself wlLhln Lhe narraLlve as Lhe sole arblLer of LruLh for Lhe narraLor
Lhe only one Lo speak ls Lhe one who knows" (h 363) 1hls knowledge develops ln a sLrange way slnce
for PerodoLus LruLh and knowledge are conLlgneL upon an acLlve and reflecLlve relaLlon wlLh oLhers
ParLog wrlLes LhaL ln PerodoLus Lo speak of oLhers" ls lndeed Lo make a seen a represenLaLlon of Lhe
world flxlng lLs llmlLs and llsLlng Lhe people who lnhablL lL buL lL also presupposes a cenLral poslLlon for
Lhe Creeks" (ParLlg 368) 1hls ls Lo say LhaL alLhough PerodoLus' undersLandlng of Lhe world ls based
on oLhers lL cannoL escape lLs fundamenLally Creek ldeologlcal mllleu 8uL Lhls doesn'L lmply LhaL
PerodoLus' LhoughL ls slmply ldlosyncraLlc for lL ls nelLher dellberaLely or sysLemaLlcally
PellenocenLrlc" (ParLog 389) PerodoLus' undersLandlng ls based on a polarlLy beLween us" and
Lhem" ln whlch Lhe oLhers are LranslaLed ln Lo Lhe Lerms of us" or Lhe Creeks 1hls lmplles a
sysLemaLlc dlfferenLlaLlon of Creek and CLher" (elllng 2) buL Lhere ls someLhlng golng on here whlch
cannoL be explalned Lhrough slmple conLrasL and lnverslon
PerodoLus' lnLeracLlon wlLh and undersLandlng of oLher culLures ls lnfluenced by Lhe polyLhelsLlc
ldeology of hls Llme whlch reslsLed Lhe sLablllsaLlon of caLegorles 1hls polyLhelsm was an open sysLem"
and ln splLe of all emphasls on local or secLarlan pecullarlLles Lhe Creeks Lhemselves regarded Lhe
varlous manlfesLaLlons of Lhelr rellglous llfe as essenLlally compaLlble" (8urkerL Creek 8ellglon) So
PerdoLus was able Lo lnLerpreL culLures such as LgypL ln Lerms of hls own Creek worldvlew wlLhouL
havlng a flxed sysLem Lo base Lhls on PerodoLus' LhoughL can be seen as based upon Pomerlc LhoughL
buL aL Lhe same Llme a reacLlon Lo lL 1hls can be seen ln Lhe openlng prologue of Lhe nlstotles whlch
echoes Pomer and so Lhe eplc model clearly plays a role of lmporLance ln PerodoLus' enLerprlse"
(363) 8uL ln PerodoLus' pro[ecL Lhe narraLor ls Lhe sole arblLer of LruLh raLher Lhan Lhe Muse ln Pomer's
or Peslod's case 1hus PerodoLus wrlLes here are presenLed Lhe resulLs of Lhe enqulry carrled ouL by
PerodoLus of Palllcarnassus" (PlsLorles 3) Whereas Pomer's LruLh ls based on an lnvocaLlon of Lhe
Muse and Lhus he beglns Slng goddess Lhe anger of eleus' son Achllles" (lllad) lL seems LhaL whaL
PerodoLus ls drlvlng aL here ls a more raLlonal and reallsLlc way of ellclLlng bellef based on personal
lnqulry and excerclsed Lhrough an lnLeracLlon wlLh oLhers So ln Lhe Lwo dlfferenL LexLs Lhe Lask of
ellclLlng bellef proceeds along dlfferenL llnes ln one case lL ls Lhe Muse who sLands as Lhe ulLlmaLe
guaranLor ln Lhe oLher Lhe narraLor" (ParLog 363) 8uL Lhls does noL suggesL LhaL PerodoLus' meLhod
has Lhe goal of arrlvlng aL more valld unlversal LruLhs and hls poslLlon as Lhe narraLor as Lhe sole arblLer
of LruLh does noL suggesL LhaL Lhese are merely Lhe sollpslsLlc muslngs of an almless Lraveller
PerodoLus' goal ls noL Lo follow Lhe formal rules of dramaLlc sLrucLure or Lo reveal some greaLer
unlversal LruLh lnsLead ln 8ook ll as a whole he ls uncoverlng Lhe layers wlLhln Lhe ldeas LhaL boLh
Creeks and Lhe LgypLlans hold abouL Lhemselves and each oLher" (8anLa 32) 1hls ls a process known as
syncreLlsm" ln whlch Lhe gods as deplcLed by Pomer and Peslod became Lhe prlmary elemenLs ln a
concepLual and rellglous sysLem Lo whlch dlvlnlLles elsewhere were asslmllaLed Lhls acLually served Lo
keep Lhese rellglons allve wlLhln a common sysLem" (Pankey) So PerodoLus' Lask lnvolves a reworklng
of Lhe famlllar concepLs and caLegorles of Lhe Pomerlc rellglous sysLem whlch was Lhe predomlnanL
sysLem ln hls Llme PerodoLus' reworklng ls based on Lhe fundamenLal openendedness of Lhe Pomerlc
sysLem of LhoughL ln whlch Lhe caLegorles have noL been LhaL sLable Lo begln wlLh" (elllng 8) ln Lhls
way PerodoLus menLlons Pomer and Peslod ln 8ook ll ln a way whlch acknowledges Lhelr novelLy and
Lhelr openness Lo relnLerpreLaLlon wlLhouL suggesLlng LhaL Lhe sysLem he ls reacLlng Lo ls amorphous
and senseless Peslod and Pomer llved no more Lhan four hundred years before my Llme and Lhey
were Lhe ones who creaLed Lhe gods' famlly Lress for Lhe Creek world gave Lhem Lhelr names asslgned
Lhem Lhelr honours and areas of experLlse and Lold us whaL Lhey looked llke" buL lL was only
yesLerday or Lhe day before so Lo speak LhaL Lhe Creeks came Lo know Lhe provenance of each of Lhe
gods" (117) So even Lhough Pomer and Peslod famlllarlzed Lhe Creeks wlLh Lhelr verslons of Lhe gods
Lhls doesn'L suggesL LhaL Lhey are a purely Creek lnvenLlon and LhaL Lhe only came lnLo belng Lhrough
Pomer and Peslod ln facL for PerodoLus 1he names of almosL all Lhe godscame Lo Creece from
Lgypr My enqulrles led me Lo dlscover LhaL Lhey are largely nonCreek ln orlgln" (116) lurLhermore
Lhe LgyLlanshave always exlsLed as long as Lhere have been human belngs" (100101) 1hls ls
lnLeresLlng because lL puLs Lhe LgypLlans lnLo a poslLlon of anLlqulLy and seLs Lhem up as Lhe basls for
Creek LhoughL whlch has only recenLly been famlllarlzed wlLh Lhe gods and lL puLs Lhe Creeks lnLo a
poslLlon of lmpudence ln whlch Lhey have much Lo be learned from Lhe LgypLlans So ln Lhls way
Creece havlng no seL pasL or aL leasL one as anclenL as Lhe one Lhe LgypLlans clalm ls forced Lo llve ln
Lhe presenL as a dynamlc force ?eL PerodoLus feels LhaL desplLe Lhls lncllnaLlon Lowarss Lhe presenL nd
presenL acLlon Creece eeJs a pasL wlLh whlch Lo assoclaLe lLself so LhaL lL may compleLely form an
ldeologlcal cenLre" (8anLa 31) And also PerodoLus' pervaslve pralse of oLher people's
cusLomsencourages a crlLlcal capaclLy Lo see LhaL Creek ls noL olwoys besL" (elllng 3) And so
Lhrough hls reworklng of Lhe Pomerlc and Peslodlc concepLual sysLem whlch ls already open Lo
relnLerpreLaLlon PerodoLus' seeks Lo expand Lhls sysLem Lhrough an lnLeracLlon wlLh oLher culLures ln a
way LhaL does noL suggesL LhaL Creek ls olwoys besL" buL raLher allows for Lhe Lwo dlfferenL culLures Lo
funcLlon wlLhln a common sysLem whlch does noL exclude Lhe one or Lhe oLher
8uL slnce PerodoLus' goal ls noL Lo follow Lhe llnes of dramLlc sLrucLure or Lo expose unlversal LruLhs
Lhrough a raLlonallsL meLhod one musL wonder ln whaL lmpllclL way does PerodoLus' LexL funcLlon Lo
ellclL bellef? Some crlLlcs have found a parLlcular rheLorlcal devlce deployed by PerodoLus' whlch reslsLs
belng deflned as elLher poeLlc or dldacLlc buL aL Lhe same Llme lnLegraLes Lhe Lwo approaches lor
example desplLe PerodoLus' desLablllzaLlon of Lhe rellglous caLegorles hls new explanaLory caLegorles
are noL developed ln a monologlc deflnlLlve 'Lhls ls how you need Lo look aL lL' sorL of way buL Lhey are
Lhere for Lhe reader Lo ponder and explore" (elllng 16) 1o Lhls effecL PerodoLus wrlLes Anyone who
flnds such Lhlngs credlble can make of Lhese LgyLlan sLorles whaL he wlshes My [ob LhroughouL Lhls
accounL ls slmply Lo record whaLever l am Lold by my sources" (PerosoLus 114) Pere PerodoLus seLs
hlmself up as an lndlfferenL recorder of accounLs and he eschews Lhe Lask of [udgemenL from hlmself
and he leaves lL Lo Lhe reader Lo derlve meanlng from Lhses accounLs Munson has Laken up ParLog's
analysls LhaL ln Lhe LexLual readlng lL ls a maLLer of Lhe effecL of Lhe LexL on lLs addressees" whlch he
Lerms Lhe Lask of Lhe reclplenL" ln whlch whaLever ls or appears Lo someone excepLlonal or sLrange
represenLs aL any raLe a sLlmulus for furLher Lhlnklng" (Muson 233234) PerodoLus ls noL merely an
lndlfferenL reporLer alLhough lL may seem LhaL way on Lhe surface level ln facL ln hls accounLs of Lhe
excepLlonal and Lhe sLrange he has a way of consLrucLlng Lhe sLory wlLhln Lhe narraLlve LhaL could be
deslgned Lo provoke furLher lnqulry lnLo Lhe maLLer 1hls ls noL Lo be Laken llghLly or as a slde noLe for
Lhe goal of Lhe preservaLlon of sLrange and excepLlonal evenLs ls Lhe lmpeLus for Lhe enLlre lnqulry as
sLaLed ln Lhe prologue 1he purpose ls Lo prevenL Lhe Lraces of human evenLs from belng erased by
Llme and Lo preserve Lhe fame of Lhe lmporLanL and remarkable achlevemenLs produced by boLh
Creeks and nonCreeks" (PerodoLus 3) 1hls ls lndeed hls purpose buL how does he draw aLLenLlon Lo
Lhe lmporLanL remarkable sLrange and wondorous achlevemenLs of Creeks and nonCreeks allke ln a
way whlch provokes furLher aLLenLlon from Lhe reader? Munson wrlLes 1he flrsL senLence of Lhe
nlstotlesslLuaLes explanaLlon (for whaL reason) wlLhln Lhe much broader conLexL of a celebraLlon of
achlevemenLs greaL and wondrous (tbomoto) across Lhe lnhablLed worldand LhaL words of wonder
occupy a speclal place Lhey alone name an emoLlonal response Lhe narraLor wanLs Lhe reclplenL Lo
share" (Munson 232) So PerodoLus ln hls seemlngly dry eLhnographlcal and anLhropologlcal accounLs
of oLhers ls aL Llmes acLually sLrucLurlng Lhese accounLs ln an arLlsLlc and poeLlc manner ln a way whlch
evokes an emoLlonal response from Lhe reader Pls lnqulrles nelLher develop sLrlcLly along Lhe llnes of a
raLlonallsL accounL or along Lhe llnes of an eplc dramaLlc sLrucLure or poeLlc lnsplraLlon buL raLher draw
from all of Lhese approaches ln facL ln hls Llme Lhe nlstotles were classed on Lhe slde of Lhe muses
LhaL ls as poeLry pleasure flcLlon" (ParLog xvll) 1hls way of evoklng Lhe wonder has also been
compared Lo Lhe way ln whlch wonder ls Lhe lmpeLus for all phllosophlcal LhoughL As Munson wrlLes
Lhe wondrous evenL ls noL explalned buL demands somehow Lo be explalned and Lo parLlclpaLe ln lLs
Lurn ln Lhe LexL's neLwork of explanaLlons lL provldes an lmpulse Lo menLal lnqulry much as ln
ArlsLoLle's formulaLlon wonder provldes Lhe lmpulse Lo phllosophy" (Munson 234) 8y focuslng crlLlcal
aLLenLlon on PerodoLus' narraLlve use of wonder wlLhln Lhe LexL one can see LhaL Lhrough lL he has seL
hlmself aparL from Lhe rellglous poeLlc sysLem whlch predomlnaLed before hls Llme whlle
slmulLaneously remalnlng lndebLed Lo lL and Lhrough Lhls wonder he also reslsLs belng wrlLLen off as a
dlslnLeresLed and relaLlvlsL reporLer
1he sLory of Lhe capLure of Pelen whlch PerodoLus recounLs ln 8ook ll can be seen as exemplary of Lhe
narraLor's rheLorlcal meLhod of ellclLlng bellef Lhrough Lhe evocaLlon of wonder as well as Lhe way he
challenges Lhe predomlnanL Creek ldeology and Lrles Lo consLrucL a new one Lhrough lnLeracLlng wlLh
oLhers Cne crlLlc has wrlLLen LhaL "PerodoLus' recounLlng of Lhe noLorlous rape of PelenlsLhe besL
lnsLance of culLural lnLerplay" wlLhln Lhe hlsLorles and Lherefore warranLs exLended LreaLmenL"
(Cruen 86) ln Lhe sLory PerodoLus has LgypLlan prlesLs Lelllng hlm LhaL upon arls' maklng off wlLh
Pelen and some Lreasure from SparLa and headlng back Lo 1roy some unfavourable wlnds blew hlm off
course and landed hlm on Lhe shores of Memphls ln LgypL When he arrlved on Lhe shore hls crew goL
angry wlLh hlm and Look refuge ln a Lemple When an LgypLlan herald came down Lo lnqulre as Lo whaL
was golng on Lhe crew lmpllcaLed arls ln Lhe capLure of Pelen saylng LhaL Lhey wanLed no parL ln lL
1he herald Lold Lhe klng of Lhe land roLeus who sald Lo arls ?ou're lucky LhaL l Lhlnk lL lmporLanL
noL Lo Lake Lhe llves of vlslLors especlally Lhose who have come Lo my klngdom afLer havlng belng
drlven off course by wlnds CLherwlse you scum on behalf of Lhe Creek l would make you pay for whaL
you have donefor Lhe Lerrlble crlmes you have commlLed afLer accepLlng hls hosplLallLy" (PerodoLus
138) ln Lhls way roLeus shows a knowledge of and a respecL for Creek cusLoms namely LhaL of
hosplLallLy 1he klng speaks of acLlng on behalf of Lhe Creek" and ln so dolng shows Lhe
complemenLarlLy ln PerodoLus' vlew of Lhe relaLlonshlp beLween LgypLlans and Creeks ln whlch lL ls Lhe
lnLerculLural connecLlons LhaL come Lo Lhe fore" (Cruen 86) AcLlng on behalf of Lhe Creeks Lhe LgyLlan
klng Lhen senL arls back Lo 1roy saylng of Pelen and Lhe Lreasure l'll look afLer Lhem for your Creek
hosL" (h 138) A Creek army led by Menelaus was Lhen senL Lo 1roy Lo demand Lhe reLurn of Pelen buL
Lhe 1eucrlans sald Lhen whaL Lhey conslsLenLly sald laLer LooLhaL Lhey dld noL have Pelen or Lhe
properLy ln quesLlon LhaL boLh were ln LgypL and LhaL lL would hardly be falr for Lhem Lo have Lo
recompense Lhe Creeks for Lhlngs LhaL klng roLeus of LgypL had 1he Creeks LhoughL Lhe 1eucrlans
were laughlng aL Lhem and so Lhey besleged Lhe clLy and evenLually Look lL" (h 13940) uesplLe Lhe
seemlngly rldlculous aspecL of Lhe sLory LhaL Lhe Creeks wenL Lo war for Len years over a slmple
mlsundersLandlng PerodoLus goes on Lo say LhaL personally l accepL Lhelr verslon of Lhe Pelen sLory"
(h 140) lL may aL flrsL seem qulLe sLrange LhaL PerodoLus so Lhoroughly reworks Lhe premlnenL legend
of hls Llme as lL was consLrucLed by Pomer and puLs Lhe Creeks lnLo a poslLlon of lgnorance buL Lhls
sLrangeness ls exacLly whaL merlLs Lhe furLher lnvesLlgaLlon of Lhls surprlslng narraLlve occurrence
PerdoLus Lhen has Lhe LgypLlan prlesL say LhaL Lhelr accounL of Lhe sLory ls Lhe more auLhenLlc one
because Lhey had heard lL from Menelaus hlmself (PerodoLus 139) Accordlng Lo Lhem afLer Lhe sack of
1roy Menelaus flnally came Lo Memphls Lo see lf Pelen was Lruly Lhere When he arrlved he found LhaL
lndeed she was Lhere Lhen Lhe LgypLlan klng reLurned her Lo hlm compleLely unhurL neverLheless
afLer al Lhls good forLune Menelaus LreaLed Lhe LgypLlans un[usLy" (PerodoLus 140) lmpaLlenL Lo geL
home and faclng unfavourable wlnds Lhe prlnce proceeded Lo sacrlflce Lwo LgypLlans youLhs Lhus
lncurrlng Lhe haLred of Lhe LgyLlans who had prevlously been so hosplLable Lo hlm PerodoLus' narraLlve
consLrucLlon of Lhls evenL only seems Lo serve Lo delgraLe Lhe Creeks and Lo emphaslve Lhelr lmpudence
and lL has been sald LhaL ln Lhls case Lhe anLlqulLy of LgypL by conLrasL wlLh Lhe youLhfulness of
Creece sufflced Lo guranLee Lhe auLhenLlclLy of Lhe accounL" (Cruen 83) ln Lhls way PerodLus ln
glvlng Lhe auLhorlLy on such a Lhoroughly Creek maLLer over Lo an oLher culLure Lhe LgyLlans ls
excerclslng hls vlew LhaL LruLh musL be arrlved aL Lhrough an lnLeracLlon wlLh oLher culLures and ls
slmulLanesouly challenglng Lhe predomlnanL Pomerlc Creek ldeology ln a way whlch represenLs a new
way of undersLandlng Lhe world based on an lnLeracLlon wlLh and undersLandlng of oLher culLures
1he sLrange way LhaL Lhe sLory ls presenLed wlLhln Lhe narrLlve from Lhe polnL of vlew of Lhe LexLual
analysls of Lhe nlstotles as suggesLed by ParLog and upheld by Munson 8anLa and elllng allows for
furLher explanaLlon PerodoLus seLs hls new verslon of Lhe Pelen sLory ln opposlLlon Lo Lhe old Pomerlc
verslon whlch he wrlLes off as rldlculous and only used by Pomer because lL flL well wlLhln Lhe dramLlc
sLrucLure of hls eplc PerodoLus goes on Lo say LhaL ln facL Pomer knew Lhls alLernaLe verslon of Lhe
sLory buL omlLLed lL on Lhe grounds LhaL lL was noL as sulLable for an eplc poem as Lhe oLher one (Lhe
one he used) yeL he sLlll showed LhaL he knew Lhls alLernaLlve sLory Loo" (PerodoLus 139) 1hls ls
lnLeresLlng because here PerodoLus seems Lo be re[ecLlng Lhe Pomerlc vlew based on a more raLlonal
hlsLorlcally based undersLandlng of Lhe sLory buL hls alLernaLlve verslon ls equally lf noL more rldlculous
and [usL as groundless as Lhe Pomerlc verslon PerodoLus says LhaL Pomer musL have been aware of Lhe
LgyLlan verslon of Lhe sLory because he alludes Lo arls' belng waylald ln LgypL ln Lhese llnes of Lhe llloJ
1here were Lhe gorgeous robes embroldered by women/Cf Sldon whlch godllke Alexander
hlmself/Pad carrled from Sldon/Salllng across Lhe broad sea/Cn Lhe [ourney when he broughL back
Pelen of famous llneage" (PerodoLus 139) 8uL as Cruen polnLs ouL here Pomer's llnes overlap noL aL
all wlLh Lhe whaL Lhe prlesLs LransmlLLed As for Lhe hlsLorlan's raLlonallsL defense lL falls well shorL of
demonsLraLlon" (Cruen 88) ln splLe of and raLher because of PerodoLus' demonsLraLlve lnadequacy
we may aL Lhls polnL resorL Lo Lhe analysls of Lhe hlsLorlan's rheLorlc of wonder lor lL could be argued
LhaL PerodoLus' approprlaLlon of Lhls sLory one LhaL would have been famlllar Lo hls audlence for hls
own purposes" ls a perfecL lnsLance of PerodoLus' meLhod of lnvlLlng Lhe reader Lo personally engage
wlLh Lhe LexL Lhrough Lhe lnvocaLlon of wonder and wlLhouL Lhe narraLor Lelllng hlm exacLly whaL Lo
make of lL lor alLhough PerodoLus falls Lo adequaLely verlfy Lhls wonderful evenL Lhe facL LhaL wonder
ls unverlfled does noL auLomaLlcally dlsquallfy lL from belng meanlngful (Munson 237) 1he sLory comes
across all Lhe more fanclful ln LhaL no klng roLeus exlsLs ln LgypLlan klng llsLs and Lhe name may
derlve from Lhe mlnor Creek sea delLy famed for changlng hls shape" (Cruen 87) So much for
PerodoLus' raLlonallsL defense lndeed Pere we see Lhe auLhor's sLrange meLhod of drawlng from
symbols and sLorles LhaL would have been famlllar Lo hls audlence puL lnLo Lhe conLexL of pseudo
hlsLory whlch serves more as an arLlsLlc and poeLlc renderlng of an evenL wlLhln Lhe narraLlve Lhan as a
raLlonallsL concepLlon of Lhe world 1hls consLlLuLes Lherefore an enLlrely dlslnLeresLed and
lndependenL lLem of evldence a Lool of persuaslon PerodoLus can use aL a dlsLance Lo deal wlLh an lssue
of greaL lmporLance Lo Lhe overarchlng message of Lhe work" (Munson 242) lL ls easy Lo see LhaL such a
vasL and unsLable reworklng of Lhe premlnanL myLh of Lhe Pellenes would be an lssue of greaL
lmporLance" Lo Lhe audlence and LhaL from Lhe LexLual analysls of such an lnsLance we can see whaL Lhls
says abouL Lhe overarchlng message of Lhe work" 1he openendedness of whaL meanlng ls Lo be
derlved from Lhe roLeus sLory and Lhe varleLy of avallable lnLerpreLaLlons LesLlfles Lo Lhe depLh and
lndeLermlnacy of whaL PerodoLus regards a greaL wonder" (Munson 232)







uerrlda !acques lmlteJ ln LvansLon lL norLhwesLern unlv 2008