The History Of The Myth Of Theseus: Fiction Or History?

Theseus; Fiction or History?

The Minoan civilization was discovered in the island of Crete in 1905 when excavations lead by Sir Arthur Evans took place at Knossos. Evans observed the use of carved seal stones by the Native Cretians as pendants, that dated back nearly four thousand years. This lead to the thought an ancient Civilization may have resided on Crete. Evans named the civilization for the King Minos, who was characterised in the myth of Theseus. Today, the myth of Theseus is seen as just that, a myth, a work of fiction, but in the ancient Greek civilization, myths were believed to be accurate historical accounts. Through the Minoan culture, the Labyrinth found at Knossos and the human habit of exaggeration, it is highly probable similar events to the myth of Theseus could have unfolded in Minoan society.

The myth of Theseus states a Minotaur lived in a Labyrinth near to the Minos’s kingdom and demanded sacrifices

Often, if an event is not recorded in print, but only spread by word of mouth, the event can become highly exaggerated and inaccurate. Robert Ruark 's Stories Grow Taller in Fresh Air, explains the fact that exaggerating events is unavoidable. It is cause for people to find interest in the story and the need to know how it ends, "It is a sin to call it lying. It isn 't, really. It’s taking nice, honest cloth and embroidering a pretty design on it. You can 't do the embroidery without you got the cloth first.” (Ruark 75) Every time a story is passed on from one to another, the narrator takes the original story and adds something of their own. The smallest details could change, but each time the truth becomes a little more blurred, and further from actual events. In the case if the Minoans, the myth of Theseus could have once been a reality; the telling of true events could have gone through this same process of