From Myth to History and Back Again

We will continue our examination of the myths of Theseus by looking at some of the theoretical and interpretative issues raised by his encounter with the Minotaur.

We begin with the story of the Minotaur’s conception and birth and his imprisonment in the labyrinth, then discuss possible psychological and ritual

interpretations of this story of a monster in a maze.We also examine the possibility that this strange story of a man-eating half-bull has

some basis in history, as represented by the famous “bull-leaping” fresco of Knossos.

At first sight, the myth of the Minotaur in the Cretan labyrinth seems to be one of the most purely imaginary among Greek myths and one of the least likely to have any historical connection.

The Minotaur is a monster that is half-man and half-beast.

He is conceived in a particularly improbable way.

Pasiphae, queen of Crete, develops a passion for a bull.

At her request, Daidalos, the great artisan, builds a wooden cow.

Pasiphae hides in the cow and mates with the bull.

When the Minotaur is born, at Minos’s command, Daidalos builds the labyrinth to contain him.

The Minotaur is not only a monster, but also a man-eating monster.

The fact that the story shows many folktale elements, such as Theseus’s reliance on Ariadne’s help, makes it seem unlikely that it could have any kernel of history in it.

Theseus's encounter with the Minotaur offers a great deal of scope for differing interpretation of myth in general and of his story in particular. Neo-ritualist theorists see it as a paradigm for male initiation rituals.

Theseus arrives in Athens wearing women’s clothing, according to one tradition; initiates arrive at their initiation as less-than-males.

Theseus journeys to Crete; male initiates are removed from thier villages.

Theseus is doomed to be killed by the Minotaur but kills it instead; the initiates are in some sense “dead” while away from their homes and often encounter demons during their sequestration.

Theseus meets Ariadne and “marries” her; the initiates are prepared for sexuality by their initiation.

Theseus returns home and (when his father dies) becomes the king; initiates are fully adult males upon their return from initiation.

This story lends itself so well to psychological interpretations that it seems almost a test case for the theory that myth arises from the human psyche.

The Minotaur imprisoned in the heart of the labyrinth has been interpreted as representing the hidden, inadmissible desires of the human subconscious.

This monster was born from sexual transgression.

The labyrinth was fashioned by the greatest artisan of all time; culture imprisons our most bestial desires.

The labyrinth itself is susceptible to interpretation; Campbell sees it as the tortuous path to enlightenment.

Theseus’s encounter with the Minotaur leads to the death of his father. This can be seen as a variation of the Oedipal desire.

Theseus’s later destruction of his son Hippolytos repeats the Oedipal pattern but reverses it.

Given the fecundity of this myth for interpretations, it comes as something of a surprise that archaeology gives us reason to suppose that some remembered history is hidden beneath its fantastic elements.

Sir Arthur Evans’s discovery of the palace at Knossos was the first indication that the society of King Minos might have existed.

Among the frescoes Evans found at Knossos was one that has become world-famous, often called the “bull-leaping” fresco. This painting shows three young humans and a bull.

The bull is shown with all four legs extended in what appears to represent charging or running.

One human, painted with white skin, seems to be dangling form the bull’s horns, holding the horns with her arms.

A red-skinned youth is somersaulting over the bull’s back.

The third figure, white-skinned, is standing behind the bull, arms extended, apparently having just landed on the tips of her toes.

The most common interpretation of this scene is that it shows an athletic event, in which athletes of both sexes seized the bull by the horns, somersaulted over its back, and landed gracefully behind it.

Without any written context for the scene, however, it is impossible to know just what is being portrayed here.

If it is a sport, it is an extraordinarily dangerous one.

It might also be a form of punishment, even execution; the figure who is dangling from the bull’s horns appears to have been gored by one of those horns.

It could be a representation of some religious ritual.

It could be purely symbolic. The mere fact that an activity is shown in a work of art doesn’t mean it necessarily happened.

Whatever the exact reference of the scene, bulls and young men and women leaping (or being tossed by) bulls appear over and over in Minoan art, in statuary as well as frescoes. Even the Minotaur shows up on some Minoan seals.

What is the connection with the myth of the Minotaur?

The myth recounts a dangerous encounter between youths and maidens, in a labyrinth, with a bull-like creature that kills the young people.

Archaeologists found a labyrinthine palace that contained a representation of youths and maidens encountering a bull in a manner that would undoubtedly have led to the deaths of some of the . The story may be have been transformed through repeated telling.

Thus, one of the strangest of all Greek myths appears to have a kernel of remembered history at its core.

Even the tribute paid by Athens to Crete could have \some basis in fact. After all, Minoan civilization was predominant during the early development of Mycenean culture.

To say that the myth of the Minotaur may reflect dimply remembered history is not, of course, to invalidate other interpretations.

The myth may well have developed as it did because of the connection with male initiation, or because of psychological imperatives, or for other reasons.

The ruins of Knossos serve as a warning against assuming that even the most obvious” symbols in myths are only symbols.