The Ancient World: mythology (or not?) of the canine

     The conclusion chapter of Christiana Francos' Shameless: The Canine and the Feminine in Ancient Greece and Eli Edward Burriss' The Place of the Dog in Superstition as Revealed in Latin Literature provided a very interesting perspectives on dogs. Honestly, I love studying ancient civilizations and their mythologies- especially Greece. These readings were right up my alley, and they definitely succeeded in catching my interest. In fact, I might even shift my research project focus now.

   Source Image: Wikimedia Commons

Greece Dog

     I think part of what's so interesting about studying ancient civilizations is how brutally relatable they are. Yes, our times are very different. We're not running around in togas and sharing public baths anymore (at least not in the U.S.), nor are we as limited in our resources and understanding of the world. We are still discovering new things every day, discussing and debating modern issues, and engaging in our own types of mythology. Now, myths are defined as ideas that are commonly believed but not usually true. I'm not going to get into the truth aspect of things. Rather I'm just going with the idea of something that is commonly known, used, and possibly accepted.

  Source Image: Wikimedia Commons

Dog Statue

  First off, I'm going to talk about the concept of dog as an insult. According to Franco, dog was used as a type of insult in Greece for multiple different reasons. These reasons actually work very well in our modern world; we also use the word dog as an insult, though it's not as common right now. Our current relationship with dogs is especially similar to that of Ancient Greece. They are seen as highly valuable, loyal animals. Kind of that awkward family-but-not type of thing. They are also very useful in other things- medicine, military, even security. Our view of them often switches between animal and 'human.' When they're useful, we tend to see them as the best kind of animal. They give their lives to protect someone, they bring us joy, they are wonderful test subjects for research. Great tools. Sometimes more than tools. But also, not enough 'more' to qualify as a good human. Yes, they may be a part of out family. In the end, though, they're just creatures. The death of a dog is often a lot less difficult to recover from than a death of a human family member. They are loyal, but they're still animals in the end (ha, as if humans aren't animals) and will follow their own nature. I'm not trying to suggestion any bias or strong opinions here, I'm just trying to communicate the complex humanish-animal way we treat dogs.

Image Source: Seaq68 at pixbay.com

Animal or Human?

    In Ancient Greece, female humans were often seem in a similar light. If they behaved 'as they were supposed to' as loyal and devoted wives, then they were treated with the same wonderful respect dogs were when they were considered the best type of animal. If they didn't, though, they were seen as the lowest kind of human there was. Never really human, but also barely not animal either. That awkward, awful, in-between phase- just like dogs. And sadly, this still happens today. I like to think not as often as back then, but it does still happen. Like the comparison of dogs to wolves, women are seen as the inferior half of the human species. No matter what they do, they're still not quite human like men are. There's definitely a continued improvement today, but this bias still exists. Ironically, it seems that when we call someone 'a dog' today, we're usually referring to a man. Besides this irony, it's fascinating how similar all this is between modern times and Ancient Greece. I guess history really does repeat itself.

Source Image: Deeann Arant at pixy.org

Black Dog

    Second of, and more briefly, I want to look at Burriss' paper. Basically, it was a list and description of how people used dogs as scrape-goats, remedies, omens, and types of talisman. The point being that dogs and their parts were used for all sorts of things. Sometimes dogs were seen in a positive light as they warded off evil and warned people of upcoming danger. Other time they either failed these responsibilities or even brought evil alongside witches. And still, at time they were also simply tools to use for medicine and blame. I'm fascinated with how much the perspective on dogs changed according to what people used them for. There's a lot more to explore here, but the gist of this idea seems to be that dogs were more than simple friends or demons- no, they were animals that were used as a part of everyday life. Again, just like we do today.

    Overall, I really enjoyed these readings. I look forward to exploring more about the ancient world, how they interacted with dogs, and how that relates to our modern times.