#when i say archaeologists want that man BURNED AT THE STAKE for what he did at hisarlik

[doloneia]

honestly? personally, i defer to neither and instead look more at the primary material itself. contemporary scholars are generally good and reliable but their interpretations can also reflect their own biases or refer to outdated interpretations [*cough dorian invasion cough*]. and past scholarship is uh. er. [shakes fist at arthur evans and schliemann]. not great!

that being said, i will say that the primary material does not provide a very clear picture of mycenaean society - being very limited both textually and geographically - and mostly conveys administrative and religious information [ie, who gets how many beds! how much pylos sacrifices to poseidon! this guy has a son!] which can be interpreted to some degree by scholars but heavy caveats should always be put in place due to how fragmentary the material is. at some point, we do have to admit we don’t know for certain. and that is a difficult thing to do! especially when we have later representations like homeric epics that seem to present a situation that is sometimes echoing the context and other times actively contradicts it.

the unfortunate reality is that homeric epic is not coming from that context, it is coming from - at absolute best - snippets of that context but mostly later ones. homeric epic can be misleading, and in the context of aegean bronze age archaeology it has been actively damaging to sites like mycenae, knossos, and troy. maybe it’s just the amount of times i’ve had to hear about schliemann’s absolute massacre of troy’s LBA levels in his search for “priam’s treasure,” but i am incredibly cautious towards reliance on homeric narratives in scholarship and letting them guide understanding of mycenaean culture and society.

there’s a strange dichotomy with the late bronze age aegean, particularly mycenaean palatial complexes, where you have so much of this fragmented and scattered material that provides tantalizing glimpses into their society and culture but also contains so little detail at the same time. what the fuck is a lawagetes? who knows! academics are still divided on that one. at some point you do just have to cobble together scholarship, tablets, and material remains to come up with what you interpret that society to look like.

Wondering which one y’all like better: 1. Homer with his bunch of anachronisms plus fact-checked errors (hoplites, some cultural differences between Mycenaean and Archaic Greece, everyone speaking in Ionic Greek, inaccurate depiction of western Mediterranean geography, some gods worshipped in later times, etc); or 2. Well-researched scholars with our vague understanding of the Mycenaean Greek culture

I’d like to hear some thoughts

[waywardstoryenthusiast]

Things my Anthro teacher says

So, I’ve started college, and my favorite teacher has to be my Anthropology professor. He is wonderful. He doesn’t wear shoes to class, just jeans and a t shirt, and he’s hilarious. So I though I’d share some of the things he says with you. Some of it’s funny, some of it’s deep, but in my opinion it’s all great. So, please enjoy, and if people like this I may do more.

“You’re Americans, so I need to be blunt.”

“Just keep breathing, and you grow old. Stop breathing and you will die.”

“The opposite of entanglements is not freedom, it is death.”

“I ate three Mandarins for lunch. *pauses, realizes how this sounds* No, I did not eat three Chinese people for lunch.”

*When describing himself as a hermit* “Those of you who have studied with me before have been to my cave.”

“Everyone here is a muggle - sorry, this is America, No-Mag. Don’t want to get my cultural references mixed up.”

*When encouraging us to ask questions* “Raise your hand, the Hippy’s not going to hurt you.”

“Being bipedal isn’t everything it’s cracked up to be” *After experiencing back pain*

“Please do not underestimate the capacity of human beings to be unimaginative.”

“I do not own this stone, it rests with me.” *Referring to the Greenstone pendant he wears*

“She asked how I was, and the usual answer to this question is, ‘I’m fine’ not, ‘I’ve had spiritual diarrhea for the last six months.’ I made a faux pas, I answered honestly.”

“New Zealanders refer to it as the Ass End of the Universe. No one goes to New Zealand by accident.”

“More things in Australia that can poison you than anywhere else.”

“Do not stick your hand down a hole in Sydney.”

“The Chattam Islands, they look out across the world: 4,000 people, and 40,000 sheep.”

“Love begins in the ear and on the tongue. It begins with a conversation that engenders compassion for another person. Don’t get me wrong, the other stuff is great, but the ear and tongue is most important.” (Fuck this was beautiful. I had to bold it. This deserves to be seen.)

“The last thing the author writes - the introduction.”

“She said she was in, ‘Bumfuck, Alabama.’ I said, ‘I have family in Bumfuck, Mississippi.’”

“My ex decided to have her midlife crisis. Yes, women have them too. She told me not to take it personally, but I did so that made me the bad guy.”

“New Zealand is a civilized country. It closes everything on the 23rd of December, and opens on January 7th, except for the all important gardening centers, liquor stores, grocery stores, oh and hospitals.”

“Keep breathing, other peoples children will age you. You age your parent’s friends.”

“I told you, New Zealand is a civilized country. Most houses have two fridges; the larger one is used for beer.”

“The Hippy knows some strange things about the world.”

“Your mind is the most powerful thing you have. It can kill you and it can keep you alive when you should be dead.”

“There is nothing physically wrong with this person, they’re just dead.”

“New Zealand, civilized country - National Health System. No one loses their house because someone gets sick.”

“They have basements in Ohio.” (This is a big deal for us Texans, cause we don’t really have basements.)

“The guy buys what my wife calls, and I quote, ‘A big fuck off diamond.’” *His description of a man proposing*

“Your life comes from outside of you. From your family or the food you eat.”

“The stakes are so low, it can only be personal.” *Him describing why scientists and researchers get pissy with each other and throw shade in their papers and thesis’*

“Dictionaries are your friend, they are your dearest lover. Thesauruses are fickle.”

*Describing another teacher* “He liked teaching. He did not like getting up in the morning.”

“6:30 is a godawful time to be out of bed in the morning.”

*Talking about Christians* “Easter was very important to them, because that’s the day the dude was supposed to have come forth.” ( You have no idea how much pleasure it gives me that my Anthropology teacher refers to Jesus as ‘the dude’)

“If I stand outside in the morning I will see the sun appear to rise, and if I stand outside in the evening I will see the sun appear to set. If I stand there all day... well, actually my skin would burn. I once thought I had a tan, then I took a shower. But if I stood outside all day like a mad dog or an Englishman, that’s who the Indians say are the only people who go out in the noon side, then I would see the sun appear to move.”

“My friend the philosopher, and he is a philosopher and he is my friend and I love him, but he can be kind of dense.”

“Navigating by the stars - older. Not simpler, not primitive, just older. Forgotten.”

“I know, the Hippie just said something very strange.”

“Evolution - change over time. That’s it, that’s all it means.”

“Y’all, more recently than I, were little.”

*During the discussion of consuming ones own waste (I know it sounds weird, but there was an academic purpose)* “Urine is sterile so it won’t hurt you, but shit is poisonous, so don’t do it.”

“Pay attention to peoples cliches.”

“I would like to point out that my hand is empty, but I’ve got about half of you convinced that I’ve got a glass full of urine.”

“Our emotions are what we have to go on, but they aren’t always right.”

“Y’all seem to be paying attention, but that may just be an illusion.”

“He came to shore in full armor, like in Game of Thrones, ended up face down in a mangrove swamp, and unlike Jaime Lannister, could not get back up. That armor is heavy.”

“Andalucia, wonderful place. Christians, Muslims, and Jews all living in relative peace with running water, while my Irish relatives were running around basically butt naked. In the cold.”

“I’ve spent a lot of time talking to women about being women, but y’all don’t agree, so I am confused.”

“My friend the philosopher says listening is very difficult, and I say yes it is. Try it sometime. I would like to say he is my friend, and I love him.”

“My New Zealander friends have reasons for saying that Australians are the Americans of the South Pacific.” (If a New Zealander is reading this, can you confirm whether this is true?)

“I can go to the museum of recently dead things (that’s what he calls the grocery store) and admire a baby. Even long-haired hippies can ooh and aaww over babies.” *Part of the discussion about what separates us from animals*

“Robes, sarongs, so much more forgiving than things that are sown to fit.” *On the topic of weight gain*

“I’m not an archaeologist, but every archaeologist I know is fascinated by garbage.”

Shit, this got long. Well, those are the first few weeks of my Anthro teacher. Let me know what y’all think. Hope you found this as amusing as I did! :D