3 ms·
It may be even worse, as history was eventually established, competing narratives were probably dismissed and neglected as weird tales without foundation or mer
by masswerk 5y ago
It may be even worse, as history was eventually established, competing narratives were probably dismissed and neglected as weird tales without foundation or merit, and eventually suppressed. For which they eventually weren't retold anymore and eventually forgotten.
- abecedarius 5y agoA relevant case: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pytheas#Literary_influence https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pytheas#Literary_influence (I linked to where he's getting dismissed as a liar centuries later, but the main story about the voyage is way more interesting.)
- masswerk 5y agoThis works both ways, compare the "Germania" by Tacitus, which was really about a fictional foil to contrast with the Julian dynasty, but became a historic document and origin story for a few centuries. (Sad to say, but humanists had a decent share in this.) Related literature: Chrisopher B. Krebs, "A Most Dangerous Book. Tacitus' Germania from Roman Empire to the Third Reich", W.W. Norton & Company, NY, 2011.