A Comparative Look at the Changing Perception of Greek death pre- and post- Peloponnesian war

Nishant Joshi

1

Introduction

When studying the treatment of death in ancient Greece, there are several distinct changes seen in the sources. This work looks to study the treatment of death in Ancient Greece from the Archaic

Period through the completion of the Peloponnesian War. More importantly, it aims to examine the major changes regarding the ideologies surrounding death during and after the Peloponnesian war and what led to these changes. These changes are observed through several types of sources, both archeological and literary, and their treatment of death.

The study of the ancient Greek interpretation of death is interesting because there is no unifying

Greek way of death (Vermeule 1979, 2). Due to the sheer number of city states throughout Greece, there is no consistent view of death1. Regardless of the fact that the specifics of the interpretation of death may vary from polis to polis, many of the larger thematic concepts were the same across most of

Greece. Unlike the treatment of other subjects, in which all of the source material comes strictly from

Attica, sources regarding death were found all over Greece allowing a much fuller picture to be painted in regards to the treatment of death. Another reason why there is some trouble when studying the idea of the Greek interpretation of death, lies in the fact that the view can change over short periods of time.

Although this thesis focuses on the changes as a result of the Peloponnesian war, there can still be changes that occur prior to the war. As Vermeule points out, there are almost no major changes regarding the thematic ideas of death between the Bronze Age and the start of the Peloponnesian war

(Vermeule 1979, 3). To avoid the risk of focusing on natural changes, as opposed to those caused by the war, we will focus on larger thematic ideas that are common across several sources.

1 One example of the inconsistencies regarding the view of death is the Eleusinian Mysteries and other cults focused on immortality. Although not covered in this work, the Eleusinian Mysteries provided a view of death and the afterlife that was not consistent with views seen in the rest of Greece.

2

Another way to avoid pitfalls when studying the major thematic ideas of death is to only focus on concepts that were the same as time progressed. While this idea seems counterintuitive when discussing major changes to the interpretation of death, the evolution of a concept represents the changing thought process. Therefore, we will avoid discussions of concepts like Charon because he was not introduced until around the 4th century (Mirto 2012, 25)2. One of the oldest practices in regards to death is the process of a burial (Vermeule 1979, 1). The funerary rites, and their drastically different states pre and post Peloponnesian war, are an important area of focus because of the detailed descriptions of them throughout much of the timeframe on which we are focused. Another major aspect of focus will be the relationship between the living and the dead and how the two worlds interact. Even though the relationship between the two has existed, the specifics of the relationship evolve over time based on the changing views of society. The final major thematic idea has to do with the views of people once they have died. The treatment of someone who is deceased differs from the treatment of someone who is alive and these major differences are also based on societal views changing as time progresses.

The reason we choose to compare the differences in society before and after the Peloponnesian war is because of the fact that war affects all aspects of society. While war was a constant part of ancient society, the Peloponnesian war involved the majority of Greek civilization. Therefore, it would cause changes regarding death that would be seen all across Greece, rather than be limited to just a small portion of Greece. Another reason to focus on the Peloponnesian war is due to the longevity of the war. Even though war, no matter how short, drastically impacts a society, societies are able to recover when the war is short enough. However, because the Peloponnesian war lasted almost 30 years,

2 The study of Charon and his role in the study of death is interesting in its own light. Much of his role has to do with the idea of morality and the rewards people will receive as a result of their actions. One of the largest topics of study is what happens to the soul in the afterlife. In regards to this question, there are hundreds of different answers in regards to just ancient Greece. Although different views regarding what exactly happens to the soul in the afterlife will be covered, they will not be a major focus of this work.

3

Greece was unable to recover but instead was forced to adapt. Moreover, the longevity means that it is possible to see how ideas began to change during the war and what they ultimately became at the end of the war. Another reason to study the Peloponnesian war when studying the changing perception of death is because of the sheer number of casualties during the Peloponnesian war. Death became a prominent part of society and forced changes to occur. The final reason to study the Peloponnesian war as the point of change is because of the fact that it was so well documented by Greek historians.

Thucydides and, to a minor extent, Xenophon attempted to create the first well documented history of any event in the ancient Greek period. Due to Thucydides’ attempts to properly document everything he could about the war in a purely factual manner, we can easily see how the war impacted citizens.

Although the study of the perception of death is primarily cultural and religious, while Thucydides and

Xenophon attempt to avoid these two concepts, they provide reasoning for the changes. Therefore, by reading the works of Thucydides and Xenophon, we are able to see the reasons why Thucydides and

Xenophon thought these changes happened.

Although Thucydides and Xenophon provide what they believe to be the factual reasons for the changes, there is still the question about what the changes are. To answer these questions we focus on four main types of sources: lekythoi, funerary epigraphs, curse tablets, and literary sources3. Each of these sources is linked to the concept of death in a different manner and by examining all of them over time we can see what some of the major changes regarding death were and why they occurred. The first category is the lekythoi. While the word itself refers to a small vase for oil, lekythoi played a large role in funerals. They were frequently buried with the deceased and used during many steps of the funerary rites. As such, many of the lekythoi were covered with paintings of different parts of the funeral process.

The study of lekythoi provides a look at the actual steps carried out during a funeral for different

3 We will also briefly discuss poetry and philosophical works in the appendices. There are several reasons to keep these sources separate from the rest and will be explained in their respective appendix.

4 members of society. The lekythoi also help to establish the connection between the living and the deceased and how the living work to benefit the deceased. The next major category of works is the funerary epigraphs, or the writing on the tombstones of the deceased. While the lekythoi and epigraphs are both related to the funerary rites, the information gained from them is different. The study of the funerary epigraphs is more religiously centered and focused on remembering the deceased. It works to establish the interaction between the world of the living and the dead and show the values about the deceased more explicitly than lekythoi. While the lekythoi and funerary epigraphs show the positive relation between the living and the dead, the curse tablets provide insight on the negatives. Curse tablets allow the living to use the dead to punish the living for purely malicious reasons. They capture the ways in which the dead are able to interact with the world of the living and highlight the less positive aspects of ancient Greek society4. By studying the curse tablets, we are able to see the role of the deceased in ancient society and we are also able to understand society as a whole instead of just focusing on the more positive aspects. Also, curse tablets are of particular interest because the thematic ideas seen on them do not change. Therefore, it raises questions about why the positive aspects of society are forced to change but the negative aspects remain consistent. Finally, the last major category is the literary sources. The three main types of literary sources are epics, historical works, and plays. All three were presented to members of society and captured the larger thematic ideas related to death.

Thus, the study of literary works provides an insight on whether the previous thematic ideas matched the ideas of the time, or if they were limited to a smaller group of people. The study of epics focuses on the religious ideas of the time and provides a deeper insight on how society thought about death. As mentioned previously, historical works provide insight on society’s treatment of death and shows how

4 One important note regarding Greek society lies in the fact that it is a ‘shame culture.’ Therefore, Greek citizens will act a certain way in public because they know they are being judged by members of society. Since the use of curse tablets is a private affair, Greek citizens were able to act in a manner that would traditionally be seen as unacceptable.

5 they handled death once it occurred. Finally, plays work to combine these two aspects. Plays would combine the religious ideas of the times along with the practical manner of handling death to paint a more unifying concept of death. All of these sources provide unique aspects in the study of the Greek perception of death and only by working with all of them, can we truly try and understand the generalized changing perception of death in ancient Greek culture.

The final main question in this introduction is what are those major thematic changes regarding death and how are they related to life in ancient Greek culture. One of the most drastic changes that took place was the importance of the funeral and funerary rites. Prior to the war, the funeral was almost required in order for a soul to gain access to the underworld (Bremmer 1983, 50). However, during and after the war this process was no longer required. The funeral was originally a lengthy process that required members of the family to stop what they were doing and focus on the funeral. Thus, before the war, the focus was more on the family rather than the community. During the war, most of society was involved in the war and it became the central focus of life. Therefore, people did not have the time to carry out their traditional funerary rites and the focus had to shift to the community rather than family.

Another important thematic idea was remembering and honoring the dead. It was not enough to go through the process of the burial, but the living were required to continue their interactions with the deceased. Therefore, there was a strong emphasis on remembrance and a strong connection between the living and dead. Once again, people could not afford to allot so much time to the deceased and the focus shifted away from remembering the dead and to living and surviving. The strength of the connection between the living and the dead lessened because of the war. One important factor that changed was the level of respect for the dead. Originally, the dead were viewed in a positive light and were to be honored. As the war progressed, people lost this respect and began to focus more on winning the war at all costs rather than focusing on the deceased. While there was a large change regarding many positive aspects of life, several of the negatives remained the same. Much of the

6 animosity that Greeks felt toward each other remained during and after the war. The war only fueled the anger and did not provide another reason to change. Another consistent factor was the belief that the dead could haunt the living. Thus, the use of the dead to benefit the living remained the same because the war would provide no reason for a change in beliefs. A point of interest that will be explored is that many Greeks did not want to accept these changes and they eventually reverted back to the original views regarding death seen prior to the Peloponnesian war. By comparing lekythoi, funerary epigraphs, and literary works prior to the Peloponnesian war to those during and immediately after the war, we see a stark difference between the funerary practices and ideas surrounding the dead and the afterlife because the old views of funerary practices and concepts of death were too unsustainable and did not match the ideologies seen during the war.

7

Lekythoi

While several items were closely associated with death and burial customs in the ancient Greek

world, one of the most telling items regarding funerary practices is the lekythos. Due to their artistic

nature, and the fact that they served several roles during the funerary process, many lekythoi depict

themes related to funerary processes and ideas relating to death (Department of Greek and Roman

Art). As such, studying the lekythoi found during different time periods can give insight about how

views of funerary processes and death evolved, or stayed the same, as time progressed. While the

lekythoi do not capture all of the views of the time, they do provide important insights in regards to

beliefs because of the fact that they were in use. Particularly, they were in use during the entire

funerary process prior to the Peloponnesian war and show the different stages of burial customs in

detail. The main funerary rites pre-Peloponnesian war were multi-staged and involved several

objects in order to ensure that the goal of having the psyche properly enter Hades was achieved.

Additionally, once the body was buried, there were steps that had to be taken after the burial5 Due

to the fact that death was seen as impure, steps beyond the funerary rites were involved to repurify

the house and those who participated in the funerary rites in order for them to be able to reengage

with society. During the Peloponnesian war, carrying out such a complex funerary process became

unfeasible. The intensity of the war prevented people from spending large periods of time in

mourning. The sheer number of casualties from the war also made burying the bodies difficult and

forced a changed view of death. Since not carrying out the funerary rites was seen as problematic

prior to the war (Johnson 1999, vii), the alternate view of burial customs and the shifts in tradition

made it possible for the Greeks to give up their old customs in a way that would not cause

punishment to those that died during the war.

5 While the steps taken post-burial are particularly interesting, they are beyond the scope of this paper. Mentioning the steps merely serves to highlight the fact that the process is long.

8

The large amount of lekythoi and funerary pottery pre-Peloponnesian war highlight the long and involved funerary rites that take place once one is deceased. The first stage of the funeral procession was the prothesis, or the exposure of the body. This stage was primarily for preparing the body for later stages. While not a lekythos, one piece of pottery showing part of the prothesis is a Terracotta Funerary Plaque (54.11.5). The terracotta shows several women completing different tasks during the prothesis. While there was a strong desire to have several people present during the prothesis (Garland 1985, 29), they all needed to actively be involved in the prothesis. Part of the preparation is not just directly working with the body as women are also seen to be mourning. Even though the prothesis is a stage that is required for the successful burial of the body, it is also still a time for lamenting. The terracotta only depicts women being involved with the prothesis, but there are lekythoi which have men participating in the prothesis (CVA 480), showing that the process of preparing the body during the prothesis was done by family members close to the deceased, regardless of their gender.

Due to the importance of social classes in ancient Greece, the details of the prothesis would vary depending on a person’s role in society. One common practice for those that died in battle was to have them buried in their armor. There are several lekythoi on which the body is dressed in armor during the prothesis (CVA 2258). The aforementioned lekythos not only includes the body dressed in armor, but also those that are preparing the body are dressed in armor. The use of armor as one of the clothing options signifies how important the idea of war was in ancient Greece. While the traditional choice of garb for bodies was a simple robe, one of the only exceptions to this rule was dressing the body in armor (Kurtz 1971, 58-59). Since warfare was a constant factor in Ancient

Greece, there was a large importance placed on those in the military. Warfare was a pivotal component of Greek life, and having a solider buried in armor demonstrates the extent to which warfare impacted life.

9

The other major exception to the simple garb rule was women dressed in their wedding gown

(Garland 1985, 25). Marriage, for women especially, was a major occasion in ancient Greece and

having wedding gowns be worn shows just how important weddings were6. The wedding gown was

primarily worn by women who were just married or who were too young to be married (Garland

1985, 25). Marriage was expected of all Greek women so those who did not reach the age of

marriage would still wear their wedding dress to signify the fact that they died before their wedding.

This desire to dress corpses in their armor or wedding gown demonstrates something about soldiers

and women. These two identities had a unique place in society which caused them to be focused on

during the burial customs. All other forms of status, including politicians, traders, and farmers,

would be dressed in the traditional robes.

Besides the prothesis, additional tasks must be undergone before the second phase of the

funerary rites. The presence of a corpse in a house meant that there were steps that needed to be

taken to ensure the purity of the house during the time the corpse was present in the house as well

as after the body was removed from the house. One of the methods used to purify the house, was

to place lekythoi inside and near the body as well as the bed of the living in hopes of purifying both

the deceased and the living (Garland 1985, 43). This use of lekythoi shows that lekythoi served more

than one purpose in relation to the entire funeral process. Even though lekythoi were buried with

corpses, and were strongly associated with death and the afterlife, they were also used to remove

the impurity. Other methods of purification were also common, including: leaving out water to wash

oneself after coming in contact with the dead and placing myrtle branches throughout the house

(Garland 1985, 44). Moreover, those that had come in contact with the body were not allowed in

temples, or to resume their normal way of life, until they had been purified (Mirto, 2012 62-63).

6 There are several commonalities between a wedding and funeral. Since both were seen as a major transition, for women in particular, there was a large overlap regarding the two 10

Handling the dead created such impurity that even after the process had been completed, it still took a while before the participants were purified.

Upon the completion of the prothesis, the next major step in the funerary rites is the ekphora, or the procession. The body needed to be carried from the house to the burial site, which was outside of the city walls (Mirto 2012, 84), so several people were needed to carry the body for such a long distance (CVA 463). People would not only carry the body, but also would walk alongside those carrying the body and mourn for the one who had died. The ekphora was primarily associated with mourning since it involved a lot less preparation than the prothesis which allowed children to participate alongside men and women. While the general practice of the ekphora was to carry the body, some practitioners had the body pulled in a cart (CVA 350493), and others had a chariot to transport the body (CVA 305284). As such, there was a wide range of spending for the ekphora.

Since the ekphora passes through the city, many people would use the ekphora as a chance to spend lavishly. For some, it became an excuse to show of how much money they had. Eventually, the practice was stopped by laws set in place by Solon because the spending became excessive (Plut.

Sol. 21.5). Even with the limit of spending, the ekphora was still an involved process because not only was there a method of carrying the body but also there were several offerings for the deceased as well as tools used for mourning. Once again, the ekphora was shaped by societal class. The original notion that spending more would help the psyche transition easier to Hades, a notion which phased out, meant that those who were richer were justified in having an elaborate ekphora

(Johnson 14, 1999).

The final step of the main funerary rites is the burial. The dead were commonly buried with lekythoi as well as other small objects. These items were believed to be necessary for the psyche to successfully complete its journey from the mortal world to Hades. Although the items varied from

11 tomb to tomb, most tombs would include something beyond a lekythos (Department of Greek and

Roman Art). As was customary, the dead were buried with a tombstone marker at their graves. The tombs were commonly decorated and several items were placed at the marker (CVA 3032). The lekythos shows how people left branches, lekythoi, and alabastras. The items buried with the body were seen to be essential while those placed at the tomb were additional offerings. The tombs would also have elaborate decorations, because there was a belief that having a beautiful tomb was important (Mirto 2012, 96-97). Once again, there was a need for opulence. Those with more money could afford to have more offerings left at the tomb while poorer members of society could only afford the bare minimum.

The three steps outlined on the lekythoi, as well as other steps, were performed to ensure that the psyche of the deceased reached Hades. This process served a purpose and was not just a series of arbitrary steps. There were some beliefs that the soul could reach Hades without the completion of the funerary rites (Mirto 2012, vii), but the process was seen to be lugubrious. Other beliefs were that the psyche would wander aimlessly if the process were not completed (Mirto 2012, vii). The desire for having such an in-depth funerary process reflects directly on the values of Greek society prior to the Peloponnesian war. Having the process carried out by those close to the deceased and not carried out by strangers highlights the importance of community. Family members were required to alter their plans, sometimes suddenly, in order to help carry out the funerary rites. Since the process involved a fairly strict timeframe after the person had died, those close to the deceased were forced to make sacrifices for carrying out the rites. Taking care of the corpse became a priority and those close to the deceased had to complete the funerary rites. Death was considered to be very impure, yet carrying out the rites was required. This sharp contrast shows that while the Greeks generally tried to avoid contact with the dead, they were willing to be impure to carry out the funerary rites. Finally, the large amount of materials required for the funerary rites shows the

12 importance of wealth in Greek society. Those with more money were able to spend more on the funeral, and thus ensure that the soul of the deceased would have a better experience in Hades

(Garland 1985, 74). All of these beliefs of pre-Peloponnesian war Greece were linked to the elaboration of the funerary rites.

During the Peloponnesian war and immediately after the war, such an elaborate funerary process was impossible. Many practices had to be altered or abandoned altogether because of the intensity of the war. Due to the ties between the practices and the ideologies of the Greek society, not being able to carry out the practices caused problems in the society. Having to sacrifice parts of the rites within the old framework of funerary practices meant that the psyche would not properly enter Hades. Moreover, because the war was so severe, the views of society were shifting as well.

Different aspects of life became more important than others while other things became far less important. Due to the ties between the rites and the beliefs of the society, the funerary practices were forced to change because of the constraints the war placed on society. Thucydides, in writing about the Peloponnesian war, discusses how the funerary practices change during the war as well as some of the reasons for the changes. While there are no specific dates with the lekythoi, they provide insight on how the practices have changed by the end of the war.

One of the biggest changes caused by the Peloponnesian war was the sudden lack of resources.

Since the old funerary process was so long and complex, it required a large amount of resources to build the tomb, prepare the body, and carry out mourning. Prior to the war, there were no issues obtaining resources, but during the war, there were very little resources that could be used for carrying out a funeral. In book 2, Thucydides describes the construction of a wall as Spartans,

“carried to the wall wood, and stone, and earth, and anything they accomplished in finding” (Thuc.

2.75). In an attempt to fortify their city, the Spartans used whatever resources they could find to build the wall. The primary concern throughout the war was to protect the city using whatever

13

resources were available. As a result of this desire, there were almost no resources left for funerary

rites. Not only were there no resources left for carrying out the traditional funerary rites, but also

the tombs of those previously buried were used for the war. Thucydides states, “and other things

were brought in too, many stones used for graves and crafted stones were built into the walls”

(Thuc. 1.93). The war forced the removal of tombstones in order to build fortifications and there

was no way for citizens to justify the need to build newer and beautiful tombstones. The tombstone

was an integral part of the funerary process7, and not having a tombstone meant the process wasn’t

completed to the degree necessary for the psyche to successfully enter Hades. By not having

sufficient tools to carry out such an involved process, the funerary rites needed to be reformed

otherwise there would be the belief that all those who died during the war were doomed to suffer.

The funerary rites could no longer be an opulent event with many components, but it was forced to

become a simpler process to accommodate the lack of resources.

Another major change that took place during the war was the perception of the dead body.

While there was a notion that coming in contact with the body made someone impure, this notion

was abandoned during the war. During the war, there were so many casualties that there was

almost constant contact with the dead. While discussing the plague at Athens, Thucydides states,

“and their temples were filled with corpses, of those that had died inside there” (Thuc. 2.52). The

prior notion was that those that had come in contact with the dead were not allowed in temples,

one of the most sacred places, until they purified themselves; however, there were corpses that

were filling the temples because people went to the temples to die. The old concept of avoiding

temples while impure was gone and maintaining the old beliefs about impurity was impossible

because then the temples themselves would have become impure. Thucydides immediately goes on

7 Tombstones were of particular importance regarding understanding Greek death because of the epigraphs. In regards to this paper, the stones themselves are not of particular interest, but the writing upon them is and will be explored later 14 to write, “and all of the laws were thrown into confusion, the laws from before regarding burial, but they were honored with funerary rites as best as each was able” (Thuc. 2.52). The passage explicitly states that the old funerary practices were becoming infeasible.

The plague took place during the beginning of the war in 430 BC. As such, it was a transitional time from the older practices of funerary rites to the ones that would take place during and after the war. Since the plague took place so early, many Athenians tried to continue the old funerary practices but were unable. As it became harder to justify the old system of beliefs, the Greeks were forced to accept a system of beliefs that fit within the context of the war.

The problem discussed during the plague at Athens went beyond the fact that there were bodies coming in contact with the temple. The other main problem lies in the fact that the bodies were not being buried. The corpses were littering not only the temple but also the street. The burial itself was an integral part of the body entering Hades, but during the war, burying every person’s body was not possible. Due to the sheer number of casualties, there was not enough space to bury the bodies. While it was not possible to bury all the bodies, there was still a strong desire to bury as many bodies as possible. In particular, there was a strong desire to bury the bodies of soldiers who died in battle. After a battle between Athens and Sparta, Thucydides describes how the Spartans

“gave the corpses back to the Athenians” (Thuc. 5.11). Even though Athens and Sparta had just fought against each other, the Spartans were still willing to return the bodies of the fallen to the

Athenians so the bodies could receive a proper burial. The Greeks still wished to honor those who had died in battle with a proper funeral, regardless of the fact that they were currently engaged in a large scale war.

Many of the lekythoi found during and immediately after the Peloponnesian war depict the induced cultural and customary changes. One of the most significant changes that took place

15

regarding the depictions on the lekythoi was the decrease in number of people found carrying out

funerary rites. There was still a need to take care of the bodies, but the number of people caring for

the body decreased. While lekythoi prior to the beginning of the war featured several people

involved in the process, many lekythoi featured only one or two people involved, such as one

lekythos dated during the end of the war (CVA 5841). Since the war consumed the lives of the

Greeks, both literally and figuratively, large numbers of them were unable to participate in funerary

rites. Even though there were fewer people involved in the rites, there was still a stronger emphasis

on the idea of warriors, including on a lekythos dated to the end of the war (CVA 5842). Now, those

present at the tomb and assisting in the process were depicted wearing armor. Prior to the war, the

men on the lekythoi would normally be dressed in a simple garb, but the previously mentioned

lekythoi have men dressed in armor. The shift in clothing signifies the lasting impact of the war. The

funerary process does not take place during battle, but there was still the desire to wear armor

during the rites to show how impactful the war was. Everyone’s lives were constantly and directly

impacted by the war and there was almost no way to exist without consideration of the war.

The other major change, outside the number of people involved in the process, was the amount

of items required for the funeral. Previously, large amounts of items were required during each step

of the process and tombs were adorned and covered with gifts. Many of the lekythoi found during

and post-Peloponnesian war, such as one believed to be from 435-375 BC, show fewer preparations

involved and simpler tombs 8 (CVA 217521). The tomb on the lekythos is merely a small stone slab

with almost no offerings. The lack of both time and resources during the war and after the war

prevented those close to the deceased from investing in the funeral of the deceased. There were no

8 One point of reference is the fact that we only have a limited number of lekythoi from this time period. Lekythoi were occasionally arbitrarily marked, making it hard to determine if the information is from an accurate time period. Moreover, since we don’t have all of the lekythoi that were made during and immediately after the Peloponnesian war, we can only make arguments based on the information we do have. This factor prevents us from talking about a lack of certain funerary steps that took place prior to the war because we don’t know if there are any lekythoi that depict these stages.

16 superfluous resources that could be used for a funeral, as all available resources were used during.

As a result, the offerings and items used during the funerary rites were minimal. The funeral could no longer be a chance for community members to show off their wealth, but was forced to be a time strictly of mourning for a smaller number of individuals close to the deceased.

Lekythoi provide a deep insight into the Greek perception of death. Due to their connectedness with burial customs, and society as a whole, many lekythoi would depict common practices associated with funerary customs. Although practices could vary from time to time, the lekythoi captured the general practices of the era. Prior to the Peloponnesian war, funerary rites were a time consuming occasion, required a fair amount of money, and involved several members close to the deceased. Even though parts of Greece were engaged in conflict, the conflicts did not pervade daily life to a large enough extent and citizens were able to carry out these rites. The rites reflected a society that valued community, social status, marriage, and war. Death was not only a time of losing someone close, but also a time of unifying those close to the deceased to carry out a proper funeral.

As a result of the Peloponnesian war, several aspects of the traditional funerary rites were forced to change. Carrying out such an elaborate process became nearly impossible. However, due to the fact that there was a strong belief that such an elaborate process needed to be carried out for the soul to successfully reach Hades, this ideology needed to change. There needed to be a belief that those who did not receive such a complex funeral would be able to enter Hades, otherwise the vast majority of those who died during the war would suffer indefinitely. Thus, the war forced a religious change in society. The old views of death and the afterlife could not exist during the war without causing problems and were required to change. Funerals could not be as elaborate, and were no longer required to be as elaborate in order to ensure the psyche of the deceased still received the same fate as those prior to the war. The war also forced a cultural shift. Social status and marriage were no longer as important during the war as they had been prior to the war. Since everyone was

17 involved in the war, one’s social status was of little importance. The main function of society was to engage in the war, and the idea of classes became less significant. Additionally, there was no time for marriage since all men of age were engaged in the war. War became the central theme of importance because it was the only theme of importance in ancient Greece. The nature of the war forced an entirely new system of burial practices that matched the changed views of society.

18

Funerary Epigraphs

While the lekythoi provide an insight about burial customs, they do not provide a deeper look into the Greek conception of the afterlife as a whole. The burial customs primarily focused on the living aiding the deceased entering Hades but do not elaborate on the experience after the completion of the rites. One way to investigate the ideas of the experience in Hades is through funerary epigraphs. An important difference between lekythoi and funerary epigraphs is the fact that funerary epigraphs do not have as many dates as corresponding lekythoi. Since we are interested in comparing epigraphs from before and after the Peloponnesian war, we are forced to only focus on epigraphs for which we have associated dates. Therefore, we lose out on using the vast majority of the epigraphs available. While several epigraphs match the ideas of the time, we are not able to infer whether they are associated with the corresponding time periods. On the opposite end of the spectrum, since we do not have dates for many of these epigraphs, they could provide counterexamples to arguments regarding the status of the time.

The funerary epigraphs on the tombstones of the deceased not only gave the family another chance to demonstrate their wealth, but also allowed them to convey their feelings about death and life in the underworld. Prior to the Peloponnesian war, tombstones were a symbol of pride for families; their craftsmanship was a chance for families to outwardly express their wealth and dedication for the deceased (Kurtz 1971, 261). Since there was a strong emphasis on family, many chose to be buried alongside their loved ones in grand tombs (Garland 1985, 106). Moreover, since the family was responsible for writing the epigraph, it gave them a way to not only express their specific views about death but also express the views of society as a whole. Many of the epigraphs describe the importance of having ostentatious tombstones and how the experience in the underworld is dependent on the actions of those that are still living. Before the beginning of the Peloponnesian war, citizens could afford to build elaborate monuments and use them as a way to honor the dead. Since those responsible for the

19 construction of the decorated tombstones also were responsible for the inscriptions, it gave them a chance to talk about how time in the underworld would be better because they built such an elaborate tombstone.

The war forced changes regarding many of these ideologies. As previously mentioned, the scarcity of resources and lack of time made the construction of tombstones nearly impossible. People were also not always buried with their loved ones since that was not always an option. Many of the fundamental ideas of society could no longer be maintained. The largescale death and lack of resources caused a shift in the ideology which changed the descriptions of the afterlife on the funerary epigraphs.

One main difference between burial customs and the funerary epigraphs is that the epigraphs provided a voice for the deceased. While the epigraphs could include details about the family, they were ultimately a way to talk about the deceased. On one such tomb from the seventh-century at Rhodes, the engraving states, “I, Idameneus, have made this tombstone so that my glory may live. May Zeus harm those that try to destroy it” (Lattimore 1942, 109). This monument served as a way to not only remember the deceased, but also to praise him. Additionally, the second sentence captures Idameneus’ desire to have his memory last for as long as possible9. He wants people to witness his greatness when they see his tombstone. Another epigraph from the 5th century focuses on the deceased’s skills by stating, “And by Zeus, I never saw a better woodcutter than me” (Lattimore 1942, 285). The epigraph not only highlights the skills, but is also in first person. By using the first person, there is a sense that the deceased themselves are speaking. Regardless of whether or not the deceased actually wrote the epigraph itself, the use of the first person highlights several important ideologies of the time period. One of the main points is the fact that the tombstone is a reflection of the person that died. The personal

9 Additionally, there is the belief that the desire to have the name written on the tombstone is so that the deceased will not forget their own name (Vermeule 1979, 27). Tombstones, if nothing else, served as a way to remember the deceased in some form. As with many cultures, there is always a fear of being forgotten, so tombstones including the name served as a way to help maintain a person’s identity.

20 nature of the tombstone makes the deceased the central focus, rather than the family of the deceased10. Another important factor by having a first person voice is the fact that it shows the relationship between the living and the dead. Although the living and the dead do not directly interact with one another11, the use of first person establishes that there is still a connection between the living and the dead. It shows that the life of the deceased mattered in Greek society and there was a desire to honor the dead. Once someone was dead and the burial was complete, they were still held in regard in the society12.

These beliefs about the relationship between the living and the dead, as well as the deceased’s importance were also captured on funerary epigraphs that were not in first person. By having others write out the epigraphs, they were given a chance to celebrate the deceased in writing. In one such epigraph found in Teithronium in the 6th century, it states, “Farewell Charon. There is not one person who speaks badly about you not even in your death, freeing many men from their troubles” (Lattimore

1942, 287). This epigraph shows that Charon’s deeds in life will continue to be celebrated even though he is deceased and that people are unable to speak ill of him. The dead were still valued in ancient

Greek society. In the case of the epigraph of Charon, he is celebrated in a grandiose manner; however, the celebration of the deceased did not always need to be so extreme13. In one such epigraph, from 6th century Athens, from a father to his son, it states, “Kleoboulus built this tomb for his son Xenophantus because of his excellence and great character” (Lattimore 1942, 222). Xenophantus is being celebrated solely because of his character. While in life, people were treated differently based on their status, to

10 However, there are many cases in which the funerary epigraphs are a celebration of the creator instead of the deceased. 11 While there are many ways in which the living and the dead do interact, most of them require a catalyst that only the living can induce. (Johnson 1999, vii). 12 In fact, during the Classical period, visiting the grave of the deceased was as important, if not more important than the actual funeral process itself (Garland 2001, 104). 13 There is more than on epigraph in which a master is celebrating a slave for their hard work. Moreover, there are other epigraphs in which slaves are celebrating their masters. These two types of epigraphs, regardless of the fact that they do not have dates, capture how the deceased from all social classes were celebrated.

21 the point where some were viewed and treated as being inferior, in death, there was a general level of respect for the deceased. In certain cases, the admiration went beyond the family. One epigraph from

Corcyra in the 6th century describes, “this tomb of Menekrates, son of Tlasias. Oianthian in origin. The public constructed this tomb for him” (Lattimore 1942, 224). The epigraph itself does not list the accomplishments of Menekrates, but shows how the people came together to honor his memory highlighting the level of respect the living have for the deceased.

The funerary epigraphs also were a way in which the living could talk about interactions with the deceased. Exploring the emotional aspect of the relationship between the living and the dead, one epigraph from Piraeus found around the 4th century states, “although I lie here, I am not losing your love” (Lattimore 1942, 58). Even in Hades, the deceased still retains the love from the living. The world of the living and the dead still maintain a connection, even though they are not able to directly interact with one another. The psyche of the deceased does not completely lose everything and is still able to retain feelings of emotion from the real world (Vermeule 1979, 7). In another epigraph from 5th century

Heraeum, it describes how the deceased can directly impact the world of the living, by stating:

Whether citizen, or guest friend having come from elsewhere, as you go past, take pity upon Tettichus, a man who

was brave. Having been killed in battle, he lost youthful pride. Mourning this will lead you towards good things.

(Lattimore 1942, 142). In the case of this epigraph, there is a strong connection between the deceased and the living. Although the two are not directly interacting with one another, the deceased can still make an impact on the life of the living. In the case of burial customs, the actions of the living determined the success of the deceased’s ability to enter Hades properly. In regards to this epigraph, the living are benefitting instead of the deceased. The relationship between the living and the dead is not strictly a dependence relationship, but rather a relationship in which both parties can benefit.

Although the two occupy different worlds, there is still a relationship between the two.

22

As with the funeral, the Peloponnesian war forced the Greeks to alter their lifestyle and the manner in which they perceived the dead. Not only did it alter their religious views, but it also changed society structurally. The war forced everyone to devote their time to the war and people could no longer pursue endeavors that did not directly aid a polis in the war. During the beginning of the war, Pericles describes how everyone must work to support the war by stating:

For it is more beneficial to us to have skill in the sea than skill working the land. … How is it possible to accomplish anything from men who are farmers and not sailors, being beside will be prevented from working as a result of their many ships already moored in our harbor?

(Thuc. 1.142). This section of Pericles’ speech highlights the changing climate of Greek society. People were no longer able to do as they please, instead, their efforts needed to be focused on the war.

Therefore, people could no longer partake in professions that did not aid a polis’ militarily. Luxuries, such as building elaborate tombstones were no longer possible. As such, people were no longer able to have elaborate tombstones as a way to flaunt their wealth.

Another large change that took place during the war was the feelings regarding the dead and the afterlife. While prior to the war there was a strong respect for those who were deceased, the war caused this ideology to change. During the war, it became acceptable to disrespect corpses as a form of punishment. In one passage, Thucydides describes the treatment of Pausanias’ body when he states: and having been led out, he died on the spot immediately. And they intended to throw him into Kaiadas, the place of criminals, but instead desired to bury him somewhere near. But then the god at Delphi proclaimed to the Lacedaemonians to transfer his tombstone from the place he had died, And now he lies in the outer court of a temple, as is proclaimed by the writing on the block of stone. And now as what had been done was a curse placed upon them, so that they give two bodies in the place of one to the Goddess of the Brass House. Thus they made two statues of men made out of bronze to be dedicated in place of Pausanias.

(Thuc. 1.134). This passage highlights several important characteristics about the perception of death during the war. One of the major points lies in the fact that the Lacedaemonians not only removed his tombstone, something that would place a curse upon those who did such an act (Lattimore 1942, 112),

23 but they were commanded to do so by Apollo at Delphi. During the war, the idea of respecting the deceased, regardless of their prior relationships, was abandoned and the tombstone was moved.

Moreover, Pausanias’ body was to be an offering for a Goddess. The passage highlights the fact that the deceased was simply a way of overcoming the curse placed upon them, and his body was the equivalent of two human statues. The Lacedaemonian’s treatment of Pausanias’ body was not an exception as

Thucydides later goes on to describe that, “The Lacedaemonians sent ambassadors to the Athenians so they punished Themistocles as they had punished Pausanias, and they decided to punish him in the same way” (Thuc. 1.135). This passage also highlights the changing attitude towards death. There was no longer the same level of respect for the deceased and the deceased could be punished for their actions while living14. These passages also highlight the fact that a person still has social status even after death. While there was a shifting belief regarding death, not all of the aspects and concepts were abandoned during the Peloponnesian war. The concept of an afterlife still existed during and after the war, but the manner in which it was interpreted changed because of the war.

The epigraphs found during and after the war contrast the epigraphs found prior to the war. The main differences between the epigraphs lies in their treatment of the deceased and their interpretations of the afterlife. The war made funerals a luxury, rather than a necessity, and one area that was affected was the offerings left for the deceased. Prior to the war, there was a belief that offerings should be made to the deceased. During the war, due to the scarcity of resources, it was no longer possible to leave offerings for the deceased. In many cases, the offerings were originally seen as a requirement for

14One of the major points regarding respect for the deceased has to do with the psyche properly entering Hades. Thucydides tends to avoid speaking of any sort of religious concepts, as such, there is no way to see if the punishment outlined in the two sections extends to the psyche and its experience in Hades. However, the lack of respect can suggest that this idea holds true, and that the disrespect shown, will cause problems for the psyche in Hades. As mentioned in 1.134, Pausanias does have a monument mentioning his burial location. Therefore, it can be speculated that the disrespect for the deceased extends beyond just the world of the living and the disrespect directly impacts the deceased’s experience in Hades. If the punishment was merely to remove a burial marker, then the Lacedaemonians would have just removed the marker, but the fact that there is some kind of marker shows that the punishment goes beyond just the world of the living.

24 the passage of the deceased into Hades (Mirto 2012, 25). This old ideology was not possible to carry out, because all available resources were needed to assist the living during the war. Due to the fact that not providing offerings would seem like disrespect towards the deceased, a new mentality regarding offerings was required. In one epigraph from Astypalaea from the late Hellenistic period, it states,

“these things belong to those below: corpses have no part in what the living have” (Lattimore 1942, 75).

As indicated by Lattimore, the epigraph focuses on the idea that the deceased believes that food should not be left as offerings, but rather saffron and frankincense should be brought strictly as a way to remember the deceased. Although these two offerings were more expensive than traditional offerings, the manner of preparation was simpler. Therefore, there was still respect for the dead, as people invested a lot of money to purchase the offerings, but people could spend less time preparing the offerings. This trade off highlight the desire to maintain the strong connection, even if the old way became insufficient. The manner in which the epigraph is written creates a sense that it is accepted that the deceased no longer want food instead of people being unable to provide offerings. Therefore, the concept of not providing food offers appears to be accepted in society instead of being forced by necessity.

The sentiment of the deceased not needing food is also seen in another similar epigraph found in the late Hellenistic period, which states, “Do not bring me anything to drink, for I drank when I was living, and it does nothing for me. Nor anything to eat. I need nothing. All that is nonsense.” (Lattimore

1942, 129). This epigraph once again asserts the idea that the dead do not need offerings. Moreover, in the case of this epigraph, the deceased is the one stating that he does not need any offerings. The offerings were only beneficial for the deceased and by having the deceased say he does not need any offerings makes it seem as though the citizens are not at fault for not being able to make offerings. Since the living could not directly contact the dead, the living were able to have the epigraph reflect the values of the living. The living desired to make sure the deceased had a positive afterlife but were unable to

25 maintain their old traditions. Thus, they created a false15 perception of the ideologies of the deceased in order to still aid the deceased in a manner that was possible.

While the two previous epigraphs showed how the deceased no longer needed food, there was a sense of questioning what happened in Hades. Prior to the war, there was a strong belief in the concept of an afterlife (Vermeule 1979, 2). In a 3rd century epigraph from Athens, it states, “Nurse, I know the highest honors are in store for you even below the Earth with Hades and Persephone, at least, if those of noble life have their deserved reward” (Lattimore 1942, 58). The epigraph, while celebrating the nurse, also highlights the changing belief regarding the afterlife. There is no longer a strict belief that the nurse will go to Hades and have a perfect afterlife; now, there is the belief that nothing may happen at all. Moreover, the epigraph states how “those of noble life have their deserved reward” implying that only those that are worthy will prosper in Hades instead of everyone being similar16.

The three aforementioned funerary epigraphs show how the fundamental way of life and the cultural ideologies was changing for the Greeks during the Peloponnesian war. The belief of a strong connection between the living and the dead was drastically altered by the war. Before the war, there was a sense that the living and the dead were similar. People offered food because there was a belief that the dead needed food in the afterlife (Mirto 2012, 95). There was also the belief that there was possible communication between the two groups in a way that benefitted both parties. However, as seen by the epigraphs, this ideology changed. Food offerings were no longer needed as the dead were seen as not needing food in the afterlife, if there even was an afterlife at all. After the war, there are

15 False in this case refers to falsity when compared to the old views regarding the deceased. There is no way to know which view is right in regards to the dead. There is an expectation that we accept the view that has been held longer to be the true view. 16 There are a lot of changing opinions regarding the experience in Hades for the deceased. While they all accept the idea of the psyche entering Hades, the experience in Hades differs depending on sources. However, the majority of sources have the idea that the psyche of the deceased is of equal status, once they properly enter Hades. Although the burial is required for ease of entry and could make the experience in Hades slightly better, the general accepted viewpoint was that most psyches had a similar experience while there.

26 more aspects separating the living and the dead and the connection between the two worlds is weaker.

Moreover, the use of just saffron and frankincense instead of food further creates a separation between the living and the dead. Food required far more preparation than bringing frankincense or saffron to be burned. The effort required by the living for the dead became decreased because the relationship between the two had gone down. The focus during and after the war became the living and dealing with the consequences of the war and people could not be bothered with making offerings for the dead.

As seen with both the lekythoi and the epigraphs, there is a large shift in the perception and treatment of the deceased after the Peloponnesian war. The two types of documents provide two different ways of approaching the changes in death. The lekythoi provided a way of looking at the ceremonies themselves and how there was a forced structural change. The forced structural change directly impacted the religious culture of Greece. By creating a different ceremony that matched the situation, the living were still able to hold on to certain concepts relating to death but had to give up other concepts. In the case of the epigraphs, they were more focused on the religious changes of the times. Both the lekythoi showing the funerary process and the epigraphs written on the tombs of the deceased highlight the major shifts in Greek religion regarding death as a whole. Both show how there is a separation between the living and how the focus is drawn away from those that have already died and drawn to helping those that are living. Since the deceased could not greatly impact the living, there was less desire to appeal to them and honor them. While the deceased were still remembered, the methods of honoring them were simpler methods, designed to maintain some level of honor, without requiring too much from those that were still alive.

27

Curse Tablets

While funerals and epigraphs created a beneficial relationship between the living and the dead, curse tablets created a harmful relationship that allowed the living to use the dead to harm others. Even when the physical processes themselves changed, the positive relationship between the living and the dead was maintained during funerals and seen through epigraphs. Similarly, even as the times changed, curse tablets still maintained their naturally harmful relationship. One of the main differences between the curse tablets and the funerary epigraphs was the role played by the deceased. In epigraphs, the deceased is only speaking to the living and cannot directly affect their lives. In the case of curse tablets, the deceased became a tool to benefit the living. Another difference between the two groups lies in the fact that even the poor could construct ‘effective’ curse tablets. While funerals and epigraphs required large sums of money, the creation of curse tablets had the potential to be cheaper. Some people would hire professionals to write the tablets for them and would create the tablets on expensive materials, such as stone (Gager 1992, 118). On the other hand, there were also many curse tablets constructed on cheaper materials including papyrus and many were written poorly, suggesting that the tablets were created by an uneducated and poor individual17. The fear of curse tablets became so problematic that laws, including one established in Athens around 479, prevented the use of curse tablets in any situation

(Ogden 2009, 275)18.

The severity of curse tablets was constant pre and post Peloponnesian war. Unlike funerals and epigraphs, curse tablets did not change much during the time between 700 and 300 BC. While there

17 Although there was never a specific list of requirements for what goes into a curse tablet, the ones made from stone tended to have less spelling errors than the ones made from cheaper material. Additionally, many of the ones that were found carved in stone had almost identical phrasing. Many professionals that were hired to make curse tablets would use a generic template and insert unique parts of the curse accordingly (Gager 1992, 118). 18 Unlike many artifacts and documents, curse tablets were found throughout Greece, and not just in Athens. The laws from Athens are the only clear example of laws regarding curse tablets, but Ogden mentions how other parts of Greece had similar laws based on primary sources (Ogden 2009, 275).

28 were certain tablets that would be more war centric during the Peloponnesian war, the general creation, writing, instructions, and implementation of the curse tablets remained constant. In general, the types of curse tablets fit into three main categories: erotic curse tablets, economic and work based curse tablets, and legal curse tablets. Curse tablets help create a picture of Greek society as a whole.

Even though many conclusions were drawn from the funerals and epigraphs, they did not paint a complete picture as they only looked at the positive aspects of Greek society. Moreover, these views changed as the war progressed, which raises the question of how strongly these values were tied to the culture if they were forced to be abandoned. Since curse tablets remained consistent, they presented views that were held so deeply that they did not change as a result of engaging in war. The curse tablets focus on the negatives of a society and draw on the views that the Greeks may not tend to commonly portray in art forms in order to create a higher form of themselves.

Erotic curse tablets focus on two major themes. The first is the theme of winning over someone else’s love by either making sure nobody else will love them, making them forget their previous lovers, or having them fall in love with the person who wrote the tablet. The second major theme involved

‘erotic harm’ to another individual so that they never experience love or intimacy without suffering.

Both of these themes relate to the idea that erotic relations between Greeks were actually a power dynamic instead of one of equality19. The themes build upon a superiority complex of controlling someone sexually through supernatural means. Although the erotic curse tablets do not explicitly mention the deceased, they were an integral part of carrying out curses, since the tablets were required to be buried with someone in order to take effect. Additionally, even in war, there is still a need for marriage20 and reproduction indicating there is no need for there to be a change in erotic curse tablets.

19 This theme of power in eroticism is highlighted more explicitly in poetry. Even poems in which there is a romantic desire will have themes of a power dynamics in which the author will force themselves onto the women for whom they are expressing romantic thoughts. 20 During war especially, there is a strong sense of nationalism. As a result, the desire to marry within one’s nation and maintain a lineage was more important as the city states become more divided as the war progressed.

29

Both the idea of power and the desire for reproduction can be seen in the erotic curse tablets pre and post Peloponnesian war.

In the case of tablets focused on winning over someone romantically, there was the strong desire that the relationship would be a dominant one. In one fourth century curse tablet from

Macedonia, the curse maker wishes to marry the person in the curse by making sure he will not marry anyone else. The tablet explicitly states,

“I register the rite and marriage of Thetima and Dionysophon and those of all other women, widows, and maidens

alike… If I were ever to dig up, unroll, and read this tablet again, then may Dionysophon marry, but not before.

May he take no woman other than me, and let me grow old beside Dionysophon, and no other woman.”

(Ogden 2009, 226)21. The curse maker, presumably a woman22, desires to win over Dionysophon and does so using a multifaceted curse. The first step of the curse breaks the potential marriage between

Thetima and Dionysophon. Additionally, the curse also prevents Dionysophon from being interested in any other woman. This latter section of the curse may be an indication of the insecurity of the curse maker. She may feel threatened by the thought of other women and uses a curse to prevent

Dionysophon from being infatuated with others. In the curse, it also mentions, “Take pity… I have no friends or family and I am all alone… May I become fortunate and blessed.” (Ogden 2009, 227). As

Johnson discusses, the dead become a scapegoat and a way for the living to control their emotions

(Johnson 1999, xii). The use of a curse tablet allows the curse maker to potentially bypass her

21 In the case of many of the curse tablets, most of their presentation in literature is only the English, and rarely the Greek. Due to the prevalence of spelling errors and the destruction of most of the tablets, most authors find including solely the English translation to be sufficient. Only in rare cases will they include important words in Greek, so we are forced to accept most translations based on face value. 22 Curse tablets related to love fell into four main categories in terms of who is pursuing whom. The categories are women in pursuit of men, women in pursuit of women, men in pursuit of men, and men in pursuit of women (Gager 1992, 80).

30 insecurities and problems to win over Dionysophon. The tablet, while seeming vindictive, also allowed the curse maker security and allowed her the hope to achieve a better life by marrying Dionysophon.

While the previous tablet focused on winning over Dionysophon by preventing him from falling in love with other people, other curse tablets would be used to prevent others from winning over someone’s lover. In an early fourth century tablet from Attica, the curse maker attacks Theodora by writing, “… I bind Charias to forget Theodora, and I bind Charias to forget… Theodora and sex with

Theodora.” (Gager 1992, 90). As Gager indicates, Charias is the lover of the curse writer. This use of a curse forces Charias to forget about Theodora and focus his attention back on the curse writer. This curse tablet also focuses on the idea of winning over a lover, but in a way of maintaining control over a lover. Both of the curse tablets focus on an idea of insecurity. The curse maker is afraid of the infidelity of her lover and curses the person with whom he is having an affair. The curse maker not being married to Charias suggests the continued idea of a power dynamic. Even though Charias can engage with

Theodora sexually, the curse maker wanted to punish Theodora for having sex with Charias. The war invokes constant paranoia as there is no knowledge of the next attack. Fear becomes a central theme in the Peloponnesian war and is reflected in the erotic curse tablets where the curses are carried out strictly based on fear.

As is the case with curse tablets designed to prevent someone from falling in love with someone else, there is a strong idea of a power dynamic. In one curse tablet found in Nemea during the mid- fourth century, it states:

I turn away Euboles / from Aineas, from his / face, from his eyes, / from his mouth, / from his breasts, / from his soul, / from his belly, from / his penis, from / his anus, / from his entire body. I / turn away Euboles / from Aineas.

(Gager 1992, 92). There is no explicit indication as to why the speaker wishes to separate the two people and there is no indication if the speaker is involved with either member involved. Above all else, the

31 curse tablet is a vindictive move to make sure the writer punishes the two members involved. As there are erotic curse tablets that have someone leave someone for the speaker, and this curse tablet is not one of those cases23, the speaker does not wish to separate the two so that they may win over one of them.

While the previous curse tablet did not establish a direct connection between the person placing the curse and those involved, that is not always the case. In one curse tablet found in Attica during the fourth century, it states, “I bind Aristocydes and the women who show off to him. He is never to marry/ have sex with another woman or with a girl / boy” (Ogden 2009, 228). Although there is no specific mention that the author is related to Aristocydes, Ogden indicates the strong evidence that the author is Aristocydes’ current partner. Even though the two of them are together, the curse maker still has a strong desire to punish her partner showing that curse tablets were used even in situations where the two people involved were very close. Another point of interest is the fact that the curse tablet uses the word γαμέω. Even though the two of them are not married, there is still enough jealousy that the curse maker hopes that he does not marry someone else. As in the former case, there is no mention that the curse maker wishes Aristocydes to marry her, but only that he does not marry someone else.

The curse maker is driven by jealousy and anger to make sure that Aristocydes suffers for his actions.

Since the war did not affect the idea of love or jealousy, the same ideologies can be seen in curse tablets found after the war. In a third century tablet found Boeotia, the curse maker makes it so the two people they are cursing will not have sex. The curse states, “… so too may Zoilos stay powerless to have sex with Antheira and may Antheira stay powerless to have sex with Zoilos in the same way… so

23 The text is believed to be the entirety of the text for the tablet so there is little chance that the tablet also includes the possibility of the curse maker wanting one of the people to fall in love with them.

32 may Zoilos be divided from Antheira“ (Ogden 2009, 228). Unlike the previous two curse tablets, this tablet continues to curse them on a second side stating,

… and may you not catch, god [Hermes], Antheira and Zoilos … this night and … not be with each other… so too

may you bury Zoilos for his work, his organizing, his love, and everything else.

(Ogden 2009, 228). The curser not only wants the two of them to not engage in sexual activity, but also that they may suffer in other aspects of their lives. This tablet highlights the idea that, even though curse tablets tended to fall into three distinct categories, the categories could still overlap and there were not limitations in terms of the extent of the curse tablets. While most curse tablets found prior to the war were curses that only focused on one specific area, this curse tablet was found after the completion of the war. Since the war created a very ‘you versus me’ mentality, where the objective of the war was to destroy an opponent entirely, the increased animosity is appropriate in a curse tablet found after the Peloponnesian war. The war broke the idea of a ‘united Greece’ and created a notion of distinct parts fighting each other. This ideology became so strong that it started influencing smaller communities. People took these large ideas and applied them to their daily lives and used curse tablets as a way to attack other members of society. The ideas of eroticism still cling to the notion of hatred and jealousy in the curse tablets24. Even though the war did not affect the erotic curse tablets, the curse tablets can still reflect the societal views as a result of the war. Therefore, the erotic curse tablets

24 Obviously there is an idea of love and eroticism beyond the scope of hatred and anger. By their very nature, curse tablets carry the context of being a curse and being created to cause harm in some manner. The consistency of curse tablets carrying the same idea as time progresses highlights the idea that concepts of love and eroticism are tied to hatred and jealousy. As we have already seen, funerals were a form of love that carried positive connotations. Even in burials of loved ones with no legal connection, there was still a positive nature in the funeral. Although sounding definitive in nature, it would be preposterous to claim that curse tablets can say everything about the Greek concepts of love and eroticism, economics, and legality. However, the conclusions drawn from the curse tablets cannot be ignored due to their consistency throughout time and location.

33 provide an insight about how the ideologies gained from the war can impact tangential subjects like love and eroticism and also how certain ideologies can stay consistent and unaffected by the war.

Erotic curse tablets ended up focusing on the two major themes of the curse maker directly benefitting and the ones being cursed suffering. Similarly, in the case of economic curse tablets, these themes carried over in the sense of relating to a business rather than emotions and the body. One of the earliest curse tablets, from the fifth century25, is an attack on a silver worker and states, “I bind Lusanias the blow from the silver works – him and his wife and possessions and whatever work he produces and his possessions and his hands and feet and mind and head and nose…” (Gager 1992, 164). Regardless of the fact that the curse is economically based to sabotage Lusanias, the curse also makes an attack on

Lusanias’ personal life. The curse maker is, once again, establishing a sense of dominance over Lusanias.

The curse maker wants to destroy all aspects of Lusanias’ life with the main goal of hurting Lusanias economically. There is also no mention of if the curse maker is an economic competitor of Lusanias.

Thus, there is no way to know if the motive of this curse tablet was for financial gain or if it was just an economic attack. Additionally, the form of the curse tablet, in terms of making the references to many of Lusanias’ body parts, is very similar to a format used in erotic curse tablets. This theme highlights the idea of curse makers wanting to attack the physical body of the person, regardless of what category of curse tablet is in use. It also creates a unifying way of linking the different types of curse tablets together.

25 There is no indication from where the table came. Although it was found in the Kerameikos, it is known that it is not the original location of the tablet.

34

In erotic curse tablets, there was primarily one or two named victims. In the case of economic curse tablets, there were far more targets explicitly listed26. In one fourth century Attic curse tablet, the curse maker binds the vast majority of shop keepers in his town when he writes:

“I bind Kallias, the shop keeper… and his wife, Thraitta; and the shop of the bald man and the shop of Anthemion… and Philon the shopkeeper. Of all of these I bind the soul, the work, the hands, and the feet; and their shops. I bind

Sosimenes, his brother; and Karpos, his servant, who is the fabric seller and also Glukanthis, who is called

Malthake, and also Agathon the shop keeper the servant of Sosimenes: of all of these I bind the soul, the work, the

life, the hands, and the feet.

I bind Kittos my neighbor, the maker of wooden frames – Kittos’ skill and work and soul and mind and the tongue of Kittos. I bind Mania the tavern keeper who is near the spring and the tavern of Aristandros of Eleusis and their

work and mind.

(Gager 1992, 157). In this curse tablet the curse maker is attacking several members of the community.

As such, the attack is not just personal, but is an attack for economic gain. In the curse, the curse maker also curses people’s shops as well as the owners themselves. In regards to the last curse tablet, which merely attacked the person working in the shop, this curse tablet can be seen as more aggressive and destructive. The motivation seems to be that the curse maker wishes to harm all other businesses in the hope that they may be the most successful shopkeeper in the town.

Another difference between the erotic tablets and the economic tablets is the relationship to the Peloponnesian war. Regardless of a war, there is still a desire to have sex, and thus, there is little reason to see any change in erotic curse tablets during the war. However, since many shopkeepers aid in

26 There are actually several cases in which an erotic curse tablet will name more than two people. The frequency of these tablets is far more insignificant than the economic curse tablets that mention more than one person. Since the erotic curse tablets primarily focused on love in a primarily monogamous society, there wasn’t much need to include multiple names on an erotic curse tablet.

35 the war, curse tablets related to economics change as a result of the war. An Attic fourth century curse tablet attacks a man by stating,

“I bind Kimonokle… the pipe maker and carpenter… the carpenter who is serving with the solider in Peiraeus… All

of these I consign, inscribed in lead and in wax and in water and to unemployment and to destruction and bad

reputation and to military defeat and in the tombs – both these and all the children and wives who belong to

them.”

(Gager 1992, 159-59). In the case of this curse tablet, the attack goes beyond just the workshops, but also extends to the battlefield. As Gager notes (Gager 1992, 159), the curse combines the issues of business competition and hostility towards soldiers into one tablet. The attack breaks from just being about economics, but extends to include the war. The close ties between economics and the war indicate the strong connection in the curse tablets. The curse tablets carry the strong competitive nature and the desire to defeat their opponents both economically and in battle. The curse tablets carry over the idea of harming another, but manifest themselves to include the war.

Legal curse tablets are the final major category of curse tablets27. Unlike the other two categories, legal curse tablets always had a clear motive and relation between the cursed and the curse maker. As noted by Gager, legal curse tablets were primarily used for a prospective trial and used by the defendant (Gager 1992, 117). In one of the earliest legal tablets, found late sixth / early fifth century in

Selinus, the curse maker writes, “The tongue of Eucles and the tongue of Aristophanis and the tongue of

Angeilis and the tongue of Aliiphron…28” (Ogden 2009, 211). As Ogden points out, the list of names is for people that may challenge the curse maker in court. While curse tablets were primarily rooted in destruction, they were also a form of protection for the curse maker. By inciting this curse, the curse maker felt safe from being attacked in court. Since Greek poleis were constantly engaging in war, there

27 While there are other categories, such as athletic curse tablets, these three categories are the largest ones. 28 The curse tablet continues with this form mentioning several additional names.

36 was a desire of protection and constant fear of being attacked. One of the many ways to combat the fear of attack was through the destruction of the enemy. Thus, the curse tablet mimics the desired protection felt by the city states during Greece’s history. The spell is also precautionary. There is no mention that any of these people will actually challenge the curse maker, but the curse maker still chooses to incite the curse to prevent anything from potentially happening.

The idea of preemptive protection carries through during the Peloponnesian war. In a tablet from the late fourth century in Attica, it states,

“I will bind… Aristias and Euaristes and Kalliades, and …. The friend… and I bind those… and Menon the son of

Aristkles, both him and the actions of Menon and his tongue and words and actions; and that he may prove useless

to the authorities…”

(Gager 1992, 126). In the case of this tablet, there is specific mention that Menon himself will not be of any use to the authorities. Although the curse maker lists several other people in the curse, Menon is the only one that is prevented from being useful to the authorities. There is a sense of fear from Menon in particular. The tablet is both precautionary in fearing that someone may provide a legal case against the curse maker, and also actively fearful in hoping that Menon will not be able to cause the court case to go in one particular direction. Once again, there is the notion of fear and protection. By punishing

Menon, the curse maker can put themselves in a better position. The sense of morality is also ambiguous; there is no indication whether the curse maker is actually guilty of committing a crime.

Therefore, it can be concluded that the sense of protection was a priority and people were willing to sacrifice morality for safety.

By the end of the Peloponnesian war, the precautionary fear became full-fledged paranoia. In a tablet from Athens found around 400 BC, the tablet states, “Barburtides, Xophugos, Nikomachos,

Oinokles, Mnesimachos, Chamaios, Tesonides, Charisadros, Demokles, And if there is anyone else with

37 them as an advocate or witness.” (Gager 1992, 129). This curse tablet goes beyond just the names listed and wishes to harm anyone that may be an advocate or witness. One of the main factors of Athens losing the Peloponnesian war was the collapse of the Delian league. And with the destruction of the league came paranoia. Even presumed allies would rebel and so, a much deeper sense of fear became prevalent. Along with fear, the use of legal curse tablets also carries the sense of superiority. Even with laws in place to prevent the use of curse tablets, people would still use them in a legal context. Thus, the curse makers hoped to circumvent the laws in order to better themselves. It was a way to avoid risks of losing in a legal system and carried the notion of being more powerful than the law.

Curse tablets were a unique relationship between the living and the dead. While funerals and epigraphs involved a large amount of the living interacting with the dead, curse tablets had one person involved in the usage of the curse tablet (Mirecki 2002, 348). Moreover, in the case of funerals and epigraphs there was some sort of relation between the living and the one who had passed. There were cases of curse tablets buried in random graves with the hopes that the deceased in that grave, if there was a corpse in that grave, would help the curse maker (Johnson 1999, 79). The unique relationship found in the case of the curse tablets allows conclusions to be drawn that would not be found in the case of epigraphs and funerals. The curse tablets allowed the dead to serve as scapegoats for the actions of the living (Johnson 1999, xii). Additionally the curse tablets focused on the desired power sought by the Greeks. The tablets let people become more powerful than other human beings. Finally, the curse tablets let the curse maker be protected and have a way to fight off people they are afraid of. While funerals and epigraphs highlighted the fact that certain ideas of life changed as a result of the war, the curse tablets highlighted the fact that not everything changed. The simplistic nature of the creation of the curse tablets and the important thematic ideas drawn from them allowed them to remain consistent even through the completion of the war.

38

Literary works

The final medium of exploring the concepts of Greek death is through literary sources29.

Although death was not always the primary focus of many literary works, death was pervasive in many literary works. Moreover, thematic ideas related to death could be seen in many of these works which incorporated aspects of death. The use of literary sources for interpreting thematic ideas of Greek death is not only beneficial, but also includes several risks. One of the main advantages of using literary sources is that they are made for a large and varying audience. As a result, the thematic ideas seen in the works must match the thematic ideas of the times to make the works relatable and enjoyable for an audience. Since funerals and building tombstones was expensive, the thematic ideas were primarily those of the richer members of society. However, since literary works were performed and accessible to people across several socioeconomic backgrounds, the thematic ideas played to all aspects of society.

Moreover, many literary works of fiction were based on mythological stories known to the Greeks and accurately represented the views seen in the myths and society at large. Many of these literary works would not only just capture these thematic ideas, but also show how they manifested in society.

Therefore, the literary works present the Greek way of death in a more complete picture as it captures both the spiritual and physical aspects of the treatment of death. Literary works serve as a way of linking thematic ideas seen in lekythoi, epigraphs, and curse tablets and creating a more complete picture of life. Another major advantage of using literary sources is the fact that they are accurately dated. Since all of the literary sources used are attributed to famous authors, they are well documented in terms of when they were written. Therefore, it is easy to see when things were created and how the perception of death evolved over time.

29 The literary sources explored in this work will be limited to epics, histories, and plays. Philosophical works and poetry will also be explored in the Appendices. However, their treatment of death is drastically different than the sources presented, and thus, will be treated as separate cases.

39

While the use of literary sources provides many benefits, there are several risks that are associated with them. Even though the works are based on the ideas of the time and can be based on mythological works, they can still easily be based on the author’s feelings. The views seen in literary works are often idealized and exaggerated representations of life based on the interpretations of the authors. This problem is seen in the lekythoi, epigraphs, and curse tablets as well. One way, that is not always possible, to account for the possibility that the views presented in a work are different from those of society, the works must be compared to other works to draw conclusions about societal feelings as a whole30. Another issue with certain literary sources, such as written histories, lies in the fact that they are written. Therefore, the only people that would have access to some of these sources would be the rich and educated. A final risk associated with literary sources is the fact that authors will create a persona in their works. As a result, the worlds in several of these works may not directly align with the world. To account for this possibility, several authors from the same time period have to be compared to create an accurate view of the world. Regardless of the risks associated with literary sources, there are ways to account for these problems and the use of literary sources is beneficial in interpreting the Greek view of death. Looking closely at epics, poetry, histories, and plays, it is easy to see the solidification of ideas previously explored through other works as well as see how the different ideas are intertwined and impact society as a whole.

The first major category of literary works, is literary epics. Epics were important in ancient tradition because they were a fundamental part of society. Epics like Works and Days served as a guide for citizens, while epics like The Iliad captured important mythological aspects and provide a cultural insight regarding society. One of the most telling sections regarding the Greek perception of death

30 This process was also done in the case of the lekythoi, epigraphs, and curse tablets. In the case of epics, the only major surviving epic after the Peloponnesian war is The Argonautica which means we have no works to serve as a comparison.

40 occurs in Book 22 of The Iliad. During Hector’s last interaction with Achilles, he says, “I will not do unto you some terrible thing, if Zeus gives me the strength so that I may take your soul from you. But when I have stripped off your glorious armor, oh Achilles, I will give your body back to the Achaeans, so that you may do the same” (Hom. Il. 22.256-259). This passage presents several important ideas. In line 257, when Hector is talking about slaying Achilles, he talks about removing Achilles’ ψυχὴν from his body.

This description focuses on the idea that the soul is part of the body, and leaves the body upon someone’s death. This idea shows that there is a deep belief in the body and soul being separate and also the idea that there is an afterlife. The passage also focuses on the importance of carrying out a funeral for a deceased individual. Even though Hector and Achilles are enemies, and Hector wishes to kill

Achilles, he still promises to return his body to the Achaeans if he slays Achilles. His gesture shows that the idea of a burial is so sacred that even enemies deserve a burial. Death on the battlefield was seen as one of the noblest ways to die (Vermeule 1979, 2), and Hector wishes that whomever dies, receives the honors they deserve.

The idea of a proper burial is so sacred that when Hector is dying, and discovers Achilles does not wish to bury him, he desperately begs Achilles to return his body so that he may be properly buried

(Hom. Il. 22.338-343). In response to these pleas, Achilles says, “and indeed not even your queenly mother will be making a bier so that she may weep for the death of you, but dogs and large birds of prey will divide all of you amongst themselves” (Hom. Il. 22.353-355). Achilles’ desire to deny Hector a proper burial is based in his anger towards Hector. Merely killing Hector is not enough, Achilles wants to make sure Hector, and the people of Troy, continue to suffer in an extreme way. However, in the end, Achilles returns Hector’s body and allows a proper burial. Through the use of divine intervention, Hector is able to receive a proper burial. Burial, and its importance to society, is of such importance that the gods are even willing to step in in order to make sure that someone receives a proper burial, regardless of who they are (Garland 1985, 2). After the death of Hector, the remainder of The Iliad is entirely focused on

41 the idea of a burial of both Patroclus and Hector. Not only is the idea of burial important in The Iliad, but its importance is also seen based on the fact that 2 books are dedicated strictly to the idea of burial.

While The Iliad focuses on ideas of death and a funeral, a portion of The Odyssey focuses on the concept of the soul in Hades and the relationship between the living and the dead. The entirety of Book

11 focuses on Odysseus communicating with the psyches of the deceased. Once again, there is a clear idea that the world of the living and the world of the dead are interconnected. When discussing the souls with whom he spoke, Odyssey describes meeting Elpenor as, “first came the soul of my comrade

Elpenor, for yet he had not been honored with funeral rites and been buried under the earth” (Hom. Od.

11.51-52). This passage not only captures the fact that the world of the living can interact with the world of the dead, but also presents an idea of what happens to the soul after death. Prior to the war, many

Greeks believed that the soul would wander aimlessly until the body received a proper burial (Bremmer

1983, 89). When Elpenor talks with Odysseus, he begs Odysseus to bury him when he states:

And now I implore you, for those who were left behind, even though they are not present, for your wife and your father, who raised you since you were a small child, and for Telemakhos, the one you left behind in your house: I know as I am in the house of Hades, you will have your well-made ship for the Aeaean island. And there, I urge you

to remember me. Do not leave me unlamented or unburied, turning your back on me, so that I will not have the

Gods cause wrath upon you. But instead, burn me completely with whatever armor is with me, build me a

tombstone in the sand by the sea to tell people I was poor and wretched.

(Hom. Od 11.66-78). Elpenor’s passage focuses on several important aspects of the perception of death.

Firstly, there is a strong desire to remain remembered. Elpenor does not wish to be forgotten and begs

Odysseus for a proper burial so that he may move on. Additionally, he mentions how he will punish

Odysseus if he does not give him a proper burial. This part highlights the fact that the dead could directly interact with the living, and that they could punish them. While the idea of burials in lekythoi suggests that the burial is taking place so that the living can aid the dead, there is also the fear that not

42 properly burying someone will result in them punishing the living (Johnson 1999, vii). The final point in this section lies in the fact that Elpenor wishes to be burned. As Vermeule mentions, it does not matter if the body is burned or buried, only that funerary rites take place (Vermeule 1979, 2). Since the funerary rites were about the soul, rather than the actual disposal of the body, it did not matter if the body was buried or cremated, it only mattered that a ceremony took place.

Book 11 also establishes how strong the relationship is between the living and the dead in the

Homeric world. As Odysseus continues, and talks about speaking with his mother, his mother describes life back in Ithaca when she says, “And your wife still remains in your house with her heart suffering greatly” (Hom. Od. 11.182-183). This passage highlights the fact that the dead can still observe the world of the living and are aware of what is going on. While sources indicate that the dead were unaware of events that took place after their death (Garland 1985, 2), this section suggests the dead are aware of the current status of the world of the living. Even though this passage may contradict some sources, there were several cases in which contradictory views were both held true in regards to Greek death

(Johnson 1999, 6). Therefore, the passage shows that the living were still connected and involved with the world of the living. Not only were they are aware of current events, but they were also aware of future events, as discussed when Elpenor is speaking to Odysseus. Therefore, the world of the living and the world of the dead are strongly intertwined. The relationship is not as one-sided as it may appear when looking at other sources regarding death.

Outside the Homeric epics, one pre-Peloponnesian war epic exploring thematic ideas of death is

Works and Days31 in the myth of the five ages. Hesiod’s descriptions of the different races and what happens to them after the completion of their race focuses on many aspects of death and societal thoughts regarding it. When describing death in the golden age, Hesiod writes, “death was as much as

31 The version of Works and Days will be by William Heinemann, Harvard University Press, 1919.

43 being overcome by sleep” (Hes. WD. 116). The golden race was seen as the ideal race where everything worked out for them. This race was better than our race in every way, and thus, the idea of a painless death was seen as the best way to die. Although there were noble ways to die, such as dying on the battlefield, this passage suggests that the ultimate form of death was through a painless death. As

Hesiod continues to talk about the golden race, he describes their role after their death by stating, “and after they become covered with earth, they are called the kindly souls upon they earth, keeping off ill- will, they are the guardians of mortal men” (Hes. WD. 121-123). Once again, there is the strong emphasis on the idea of the soul of the deceased impacting, and in this case protecting, the living.

While the golden age focused on the ideals of death, the silver age presented death through the negative view. Members of the silver age died prematurely, because, according to Hesiod, they did the following:

But when they reached adulthood, they only lived for a short period of time in misery because they were foolish.

For they were reckless and were unable to keep away from harming each other, nor were they willing to sacrifice to the gods, nor would they make sacrifices to the blessed altars, the thing that is laid down for men to accomplish.

And thereupon, Zeus son of Kronos, being angry, put them away because they would not give sacrifices to the holy

Gods, the ones living on Olympus

(Hes. WD. 133-139). In ancient Greek society, there was a strong desire for a long life and putting off the inevitable state of death (Vermeule 1979, 6). This passage focuses on what one must do in life in order to live longer and avoid a premature death. It shows how people would need to work during their lives to actively stay alive for as long as possible32. The eventual destruction of the silver age was due to their

32 The passage also focuses heavily on the idea of morality and death. They all suffered from hubris, which led to their premature death. There is a natural tie between the idea of being a morally sound person and the promise of a better afterlife. Morality, as a whole, is an artificially created system that focuses on values people believe to be superior to others. One of the easiest ways to assert these artificial values are superior is to state that abiding by them will promise a better afterlife. Since humans are unaware of what happens in the afterlife, or there is no accurate way to prove if someone is aware of what happens, they are able to create a sense of an afterlife that

44 impiety. Although they were reckless, their unwillingness to make sacrifices is what led Zeus to smite them. Therefore, to live a long life, one needed to be religious.

Hesiod’s description of the bronze age presents ideas that align with the concept of remembrance seen in the epigraphs as well as provide a description of the experience in Hades. When describing their destruction, Hesiod writes, “and they were destroyed under their own hand, going to the damp and icy house of Hades, leaving behind no name, black death seized them, and they left behind the bright rays of the sun” (Hes. WD. 152-155). A big concept in ancient Greece was the concept of κλέος, or glory even after death. The bronze age was being punished for their actions, and the people died with nobody remembering their names. Additionally, the passage describes Hades, and how it was a gloomy experience overall. Although people could work to have a better experience in the afterlife, several portrayals still had the afterlife be a negative experience (Mirto 2012, 11). The idea of Hades, in some cases, was seen as a reward for those that had lived a pious life, while others chose to present

Hades as a bleak and horrible experience (Garland 1985, 50). Regardless of the fact that the views are contradictory, there is still the notion that the soul can benefit depending on how someone acted during their life.

The three previous epics provide similar conclusions about death to the conclusions found in

The Argonautica33. After the death of Kyzikos, the passage describes how the Minyans reacted when it states, “they were mourning for three full days, and they pulled out their loose flowing hair, these men and the Dollones” (Apollon. 1.1056-1057)34. Even though Minyans are not Greeks, the strong emphasis

suits their needs. Therefore, they can tie morality to death and create a way to implement morality effectively into society. 33 The age of heroes was left out of the analysis of Works and Days because the conclusions Hesiod draws about that age are identical to those found in the Homeric age and provide no additional insight in the study of the ancient Greek perception of death. Vermeule believes that no massive changes regarding death were made during the time in which the two works were composed, so the consistency of Works and Days and the Homeric epics does not even allow us to say that these views were maintained in a changed society (Vermeule 1979, 2). 34 The version of The Argonautica being used is by George W. Mooney, London. Longmans, Green. 1912.

45 on mourning presents the idea that there was still a desire to mourn important people for several days.

Even in the case of his wife, Kleite, it is described how, “even the nymphs from the grove lamented her death” (Apollon. 1.1065-1066). Their deaths were so impactful that even the nymphs were mourning their loss. Mourning was such a large part of society that it was not enough for just the people to mourn.

The passage ends with a description of the mourning that took place after both their deaths. Apollonius writes:

And then the most terrible day sent by Zeus came upon the men and women of the Dollones, not even one of them took it upon themselves to eat meat, nor, on account of grief, did anyone do work at the mill, but they went

on with their lives while eating the food uncooked. Even now, every year, the Ionians who dwell in Kuzikon pour

their libations, they grind the meal for the sacrificial cakes at the common mill.

(Apollon. 1.1070-1078). In the passage, there is a clear unity seen in the people. They all come together to mourn the loss of Kyzikos and his wife. Another aspect seen in this passage is the fact that life changed around them to account for the funeral. The death and mourning became to the point where society was forced to stop and people were allowed to mourn before things became back to normal.

The epics seen seem to provide a much deeper understanding of the Greek perception of death.

Even though the epics come from two vastly different time periods, The Argonautica imitates the works of Homer, and they still matched the views seen through other mediums exploring thematic ideas related to death prior to the Peloponnesian war. The level of practice of the burial seen in The Iliad and

The Argonautica matches the level of importance of the burial seen on lekythoi. They all focus on the different stages and include the importance that a funeral was necessary for the psyche to properly enter Hades. As was seen in funerary epigraphs, the funeral in The Argonautica was a communal event.

It was not merely an isolated event, but a time to come together. As was seen in Works and Days, there is a desire to have one’s name be remembered, and those who act poorly will not be honored. Finally,

The Odyssey and Works and Days showed the relationship between the living and the dead and how it

46 mimics the ideas seen in curse tablets. The two worlds are intertwined and the living and the dead can contact members of the other world. Additionally, The Odyssey captures the ideas that the dead can negatively impact the living and the relationship between the two is not always one of perfect friendship. Although The Argonautica was written after the completion of the Peloponnesian war, it matches up with several views held exclusively before the start of the war. Since the epics are written and created works, as is the case of all literary works, they will have idealized views of the world. The war forced a large societal shift and traditions had to change to adapt to the new way of life. Therefore, the views in The Argonautica can reflect the old views and focus on the idea that there was a desire to regain the old views, even if that was impossible during and immediately after the war35. The epics support the views seen in the mediums prior to the war and show how the changes in the perception of death were forced rather than desired.

The second main category of literary works is written histories. These sources differ from the other two in the fact that they are primarily to be read, rather than performed36. Another aspect in which they differ, is that the histories are an attempted retellings of events that have actually taken place with minimal commentary from the authors. Therefore, the events discussed tend to try to be an accurate portrayal of the events. The authors are unable to create fictitious worlds that match their needs. The three authors, Herodotus, Thucydides, and Xenophon, all talk about war as their major focus.

Because of the similarity in subject matter, it is easy to compare the three and see if the ideologies are consistent. Likewise, all three authors write closely enough to each other to show an evolving cultural change rather than a drastic one that might occur over a longer period of time.

35 There is strong evidence that shows that the Greeks revert back to many of the views held prior to the war. However, these changes don’t become significantly obvious until around the end of the 3rd century and the start of the 2nd century. As a result, they will not be explored in this paper, but the reversion shows that the Greeks changed their views out of necessity rather than desire. 36 However, there is evidence to suggest that Herodotus performed Histories live and without stopping similar to a performance of Homeric epics (Crane 2017).

47

Herodotus is regarded as the father of history because he is the first author to break away from the Homeric style of history and chooses to create a written history that focuses on events in recent history. Herodotus’ Histories captures a detailed account of the origins of the Persian war, while also capturing many of the religious aspects of the time. Thus, Herodotus captures both the practical and religious aspects of the Greek perception of death, and is also to show how the two are interrelated and influence each other. One of the strongest passages in Histories regarding death, is in book 5 regarding the burial of Melissa. The passage focuses on Periander and the extreme lengths he will go to appease the ghost of his wife, Melissa. The passage begins by describing how, “in one day, he had stripped all of the women of Korinth on account of his wife Melissa” (Hdt. 5.92G.1). Although Melissa is attempting to punish Periander because, “she is cold and naked,” (Hdt. 5.92G.2) all the women of Korinth must suffer because of his improper treatment of her body. As mentioned by several sources, there is a fear of the dead greatly impacting the living, and as long as the dead are pleased, they will not haunt the living

(Johnson 1999, viii). This passage shows the extent that a spirit can impact a community, regardless of how small the reason for their suffering.

A key idea established in this section is the relationships between the living and the dead. Even though Melissa has died, she is able to communicate with Periander. The passage describes how

Periander had attempted to make contact with the dead when Herodotus writes:

For Periander sent a messenger to the Oracle of the Dead at Thesprotia by the river Acheron so as to ask

about a deposit left by a friend and Melissa, appearing suddenly, said she would not tell him anything nor say

anything about where the deposit was buried.

(Hdt. 5.92G.2). In this passage, Melissa is able to directly communicate with Periander at will. In the

Homeric tradition, ghosts needed to be summoned in order to speak to the living. However, in the case of Melissa, she makes herself visible and directly speaks with Periander. Even prior to the

Peloponnesian war, the perception and believed interactions between the living and the dead are seen

48 to change. This perception gives the dead more power than they previously had as now they can freely enter the world of the living37 and choose with whom they communicate.

The passage continues exploring the relationship between the world of the living and the world of the dead. As seen in the Homeric epics, the knowledge of the dead regarding the world of the living is fairly limited. Although the dead are unaware of the world of the living as a whole, they are aware of the status of their bodies. This limited frame of reference is no longer the case in Herodotus. The idea that the dead are aware of the status of their corpse is still prevalent when Melissa is describing why she is enraged. Herodotus states, “She would not help for the clothes she had been buried with had not been burned completely and were useless to her” (Hdt. 5.92G.2). Even though the clothes were added after she had died, Melissa is aware of the fact that they were not burned and, therefore, she cannot use them in the afterlife. Moreover, Melissa proves to Periander that she is his wife when she says,

“Periander had put his cakes in a cold oven” (Hdt. 5.92G.2). Melissa is aware of the fact that Periander defiled her corpse and is upset by it. Melissa is aware of the current status of her corpse and, unlike the

Homeric epics, is aware of the world of the living. After Periander appeases Melissa, Melissa tells him where the deposit of his friend was laid (Hdt. 5.92G.4). Regardless of this change in beliefs, the views seen in Herodotus are similar to the views seen in the Homeric epics.

While Herodotus explored the thematic ideas of death prior to the Peloponnesian war,

Thucydides discussed the changing perception during the war. Even though Thucydides was primarily focused on the historical facts of the war, Pericles’ funeral oration provides an insight on the views of

Athens about death immediately prior to the war, but also how those views are forced to change because of the state of Athens during the war. The entire speech is dedicated to those that have died

37 Enter in and of the fact that they can communicate with those in the world of the living. There are many questions about what happens to the psyche itself and if the entity communicating with those in the world of the living is the same psyche that exists in Hades.

49 during the first year of the war and presents Athenians with the information of how they will move forward as the war continues. The speech begins with Pericles explaining the purpose of the speech and that, “Many others here applaud he who put into law that this speech should be performed now, for it is good to make this speech during the burial of those who have died in war” (Thuc. 2.35.1). The extent to which the Athenians value the deceased is so strong that they have laws in place to honor the dead. As was the case with Solon, the Athenians have established several laws strictly dedicated to worshipping and respecting the dead. Respecting the dead is so fundamental to Greek society that it has become part of the law. Regardless of the fact that Pericles finds the task of delivering the funeral oration difficult, he continues with the delivery as per the laws (Thuc. 2.35.3).

Although the funeral oration is strictly for those who have died in battle, Pericles begins the oration itself by stating, “I will begin by first speaking of our ancestors, for it is just and becoming of custom at the same time to give them honor and remembrance during such a time as this” (Thuc.

2.36.1). The funeral oration is a time to worship all of the dead, not just those who have died in battle.

There is a unifying respect for the dead that goes beyond just those who have died in the last year alone.

Pericles continues with mentioning that, “And if our ancestors are worthy of such praise, more too are the fathers of us” (Thuc. 2.36.2). The funeral oration is a time to praise and remember all of the deceased, but Pericles focuses on the fact that some are more worthy of praise than others.

After shifting focus away from those that have died, Pericles returns to the idea of praising the soldiers that have died defending Athens and building it into a strong empire38. In his praise, he describes how Athens produces the finest soldiers by saying:

38 The funeral oration served two purposes for Pericles. The funeral oration not only was a celebration for those that had died during the war, as has been the case for the speech, but also it was a way to try and unify the Athenians during war. Therefore, in his praise of the dead, Pericles celebrates the power of Athens and uses the speech to create a strong sense of nationalism in the Athenians. Pericles intertwines the two themes to allow him to kill two birds with one stone.

50

This is to say, of all the cities of Hellas, Athens is to be the teacher. And it is not obvious to me that

anywhere else is another city gifted by so many graces of different forms and whose body is so skilled and self

sufficient.

(Thuc. 2.41.1). This sentence not only praises those who died in battle, but also praises the living and encourages them to be strong soldiers. Pericles is using the praise of the dead as a way to spread his own personal views. There is a strong relationship between dying in battle and being honored in death, and Pericles is using this idea to his advantage. Thematic ideas related to the dead are based on ideologies of the living and things that are praised in death serve a purpose while someone is alive

(Johnson 1999, ix). Although Pericles wants to honor those that have died, Athens is still in a war and needs as many soldiers as possible. Pericles is able to combine the religious aspect of honoring the dead with funerary rites and the practical aspects of instilling nationalism. One of the reasons for the shifting views regarding death during the Peloponnesian war is because maintaining the older views was no longer practical. Athens needed to have a stronger military and heightened sense of nationalism during the war, and Pericles accounted for this change by shifting his speech to instill these views and celebrating the dead who were heroic in battle and were raised in Athens.

While many previous forms of treatment of the dead had been religiously focused, Pericles begins to shift the focus to be more practical. Even in the case of Herodotus, there was still the desire to maintain Homeric views. However, Pericles breaks away from this idea when he says:

Presently, we will all marvel for many decades to come in regards to our massive army producing strength which is unattested. And we will need neither Homer to praise our dead, nor will we need others who are skilled in such a way, for their work throws away the truth, but we have overpowered by force every land and sea that is accessible to us to be our undertaking of courage, and everywhere we conquered we left immortal monuments be it for good

or for evil.

51

(Thuc. 2.41.4). Pericles goes as far as to shun the Homeric epics and their remembrance of the dead, and chooses to focus on the more practical way in which the Athenians will be remembered. Through their conquest of the rest of Greece, Athens was able to leave their mark and create a memory, rather than needing a bard to recount their history. In times of war, there was a large focus on the practical and entertainment lost popularity. As a result, remembering people through pleasure served little benefit.

However, regardless of the shift in how people were remembered, there was still an emphasis on remembering and honoring the deceased. No matter how impactful the war was on the way of life, there was still a desire to remember and respect the deceased.

Towards the end of the funeral oration, Pericles uses the praise of the dead to instill his views on the Athenians. He begins by stating, “and it is this city these men deemed they should not lose and fought to keep it until their death, and may all of those that are still living be willing to work under toil under her” (Thuc. 2.41.5). Pericles is now directly telling the citizens of Athens to fight to defend Athens because those who have died, died to defend Athens. Pericles is using the dead to instruct the living on how to act. In a time of shifting viewpoints, Pericles is having the dead serve his purpose. While the views regarding the dead have traditionally reflected the views of the time, Pericles is having the views of the dead impact the world of the living. In a time when things were collapsing, Pericles used the strong beliefs regarding the dead to serve his own purpose and to help Athens fight in the war. Pericles continues with instilling his ideologies by talking about how Athens is based solely on those that have died when he states, “and in regards to the Athens of which I sing, it only thrives because of the heroic work done by those who died before” (Thuc. 2.42.2). Pericles wants to encourage others to act in a way that continues Athens’ traditions and allows for the city to continuously prosper, in a way that Pericles sees fit. The entirety of the second part of the funeral oration is a way for Pericles to instruct the

Athenians on what he wants to accomplish to win the war and maintain the greatness of Athens.

52

One of the strongest ways in which Pericles encourages the Athenians to fight for Athens is when he is talking about the honor received by those who died defending Athens. Pericles goes on to state: and in that way, choosing to fight and die is better than giving in to save oneself, and they fled only from dishonor,

their bodies submit to war, and thus in that small exact moment of time, they escaped not from fear, but from

glory.

(Thuc. 2.42.4). This part of the speech reinstates the idea that there is glory in dying for one’s city. Here,

Pericles wants the Athenians to be willing to do everything they can to defend Athens because there is the need to protect Athens during the war. Pericles continues with instructing the Athenians more explicitly when he states:

And in this way did those men become Athenians. It is necessary for you, the survivors, to make an unwavering

promise… and do not contemplate the words only derived from the aid, for anyone is able to lengthen these

words, saying that there is nobility in fighting your enemies.

(Thuc. 2.43.1). Pericles ties together the concept of being Athenian with the concept of dying for Athens and encourages everyone listening to be willing to make the same sacrifice they made.

Although Pericles is pushing for a more practical funeral oration, it still carries over many of the earlier religious ideologies of the time. He is delivering his speech early enough in the war when the ideologies regarding death are beginning to change. As such, Pericles ends by carrying through religious aspects. He states:

For all of these men giving up their bodies together receive undying praise and the most renowned tombs, but not in the tombs in which they are buried, but in the mind where light will always fall upon them and every deed and word they said will be held in everlasting remembrance as it shall receive due measure. For all of the earth is the

53 tomb of distinguished men, and not only inscribed on the stele in the house, but it is the unwritten memory in the

mind of each individual that will outlive any creation.

(Thuc. 2.43.2-3). In this passage, Pericles returns to the more religious idea of death. He still reminds people that dying will result in them being honored with funerary rites, or τάφος, a word which still carried religious context during the time of the funeral oration. Moreover, the passage refers to burying the dead as well as having a stele to honor them, ideas that were prevalent prior to the Peloponnesian war39. Regardless of the practical shift, the speech still is very telling of the views of the dead. Even during the speech, there is still respect for the deceased. Only by using the deceased as an example, and highlighting the importance of dying in battle, is Pericles able to relay to the Athenians the importance of defending Athens. Pericles also uses the belief in undying glory to rally the Athenians. They still believe the idea that the soul can live on and be celebrated and Pericles uses this idea in the funeral oration. Regardless of the shifting treatment of death and the deceased, many thematic ideas seen prior to the war are still being upheld during the start of the war.

The last historian of interest is Xenophon. Xenophon models his writing on Thucydides and also writes about the completion of the Peloponnesian war as well as its aftermath. As a result, the passages of Xenophon reflect the changed attitude about the Greek perception of death. Since Xenophon models his writing after Thucydides, many of the passages describing the perception of death in Hellenica are factually driven and based on what individuals did, rather than religiously describing events. None the less, Hellenica still provides insight into the beliefs of the time and reflects that, while the views may have changed as a result of the war, many are similar to the beliefs originally seen prior to the war. One of the main views held even after the Peloponnesian war is a respect for the dead, and particularly those

39 Ironically, Pericles’ Funeral Oration comes right before the Plague at Athens, in which all of the aforementioned ideas are completely abandoned as the Athenians were unable to properly handle the severity of death that took place in Athens.

54 who died in combat. In one passage, Xenophon writes, “And the Athenians did not give up their fallen, and they gave back those of their enemy under a truce” (Xen. Hell. 7.5.17). Regardless of the fact that the Athenians could have easily abandoned their dead, they chose to not give them up showing they still deeply valued the dead. Moreover, the respect for the deceased was so strong, the Athenians were willing to return the corpses of their enemies showing the respect for the deceased outweighed the hatred of war. This desire to not abandon the deceased and return corpses to the enemy is not just an

Athenian belief. In another passage the same idea is seen with the Spartans when Xenophon states,

“and under all of these considerations, the Spartans decided to recover their dead under a truce” (Xen.

Hell. 3.5.23)40. Once again, the passage highlights the desire to recover the dead as well as the willingness of the enemy to let the Spartans recover their dead. Regardless of the strong desire to not abandon fallen soldiers, the soldiers were still practical and would only recover the bodies when possible. During one such battle, Xenophon writes, “and the enemy, while seeing them, fled from there, leaving behind their ladders and their dead and some of the living who had become quite lame” (Xen.

Hell. 7.2.9). The passage highlights the fact that there is a clear limit on the extremes soldiers are willing to go to recover their dead. While the previous battles had allowed both sides to recover their dead, this passage was more hostile and did not allow such an opportunity. Regardless, there is a strong importance on those who have fallen in battle.

The honoring of the dead goes beyond merely collecting them; the honoring extends to giving them a proper funeral. During the Peloponnesian war, it became difficult to bury anyone. However, many people still desired to properly honor those that had fallen. In one passage, Xenophon states, “and the Thebans sent a messenger, begging that they be allowed to bury their dead under a truce. And in this way, they made a truce” (Xen. Hell. 4.3.21). In this scenario, the Thebans are wishing to bury their

40 Also in Xen. Hell. 6.2.24, the Corcyaeans give back the dead under a truce.

55 dead and have been allowed to carry out a funeral. Before the war, there was an established timeline to bury someone after they had died (Kurtz 1971, 143). Although not explicitly stated, the desire to bury the dead during a truce suggests the Thebans are attempting to follow the older practices of burying someone within the timeframe. This practice originated as a way to have the soul enter Hades and not wander during in between stages (Bremmer 1983, 89). As noted, the practice fell out of fashion during the war because people were unable to adhere to a strict timeframe. However, this passage indicates the Thebans desire to follow the original steps for a burial.

Along with the desire to follow the time for burying the dead, there was also a desire to maintain the traditional funerary practices. In one passage, Xenophon describes the treatment of the dead when he states:

So when the Greeks arrived, having come to aid, found nothing in the camp but corpses stripped naked. But when

the Odrysians came back, they firstly buried their dead, then they drank plenty of wine for them and they had a

horse race.

(Xen. Hell. 3.2.5). The Odrysians are attempting to recreate a traditional funeral for their fallen comrades. As mentioned by several sources, the use of horse races was common during funerals and the Odrysians carried one out in celebration of their fallen comrades (Garland 1985, 32). Although the ceremony does not perfectly emulate the ceremonies performed prior to the war, the ceremony still carries many traditional aspects. One reason for the lack of the complete ceremony is the fact that the

Odrysians cannot afford to allot the required time to have a full ceremony as they immediately continue destroying Bithynia after the ceremony. Therefore, the passage highlights the fact that there is such a strong desire to carry out the ceremony that the Odrysians are willing to stop fighting to honor their dead.

56

The historians present clearly changing viewpoints about the perception of death. Due to the fact that they are concerned with recording a factual history, the sources cannot paint a complete picture of the interpretation of death, but present different aspects of it. In the case of Herodotus, he presented the strongest religious interpretation regarding death. The views matched those seen in other sources and presented the views as though the religious aspects were facts and not just held beliefs.

Therefore, Herodotus showed how much the Greeks believed that the dead could interact with the world of the living and how important it was to carry out proper funerary rites. Although the rites were seen as a way to help aid the psyche of the deceased enter Hades, it was also a way to protect the living from the wrath of the dead (Johnson 1999, xiii). In this manner, the funerary rites were done out of both love and fear. While the lekythoi highlighted the loving aspect, other sources worked to present the fearing aspect that was also strongly believed in Greek society. Thucydides, in his handling of historical events, portrays the view of death and the deceased in a much different light. He begins to show how the treatment of the living is based on the ways in which society as a whole functions. The highlighted aspects of the dead are characteristics that the living aspired to emulate and what aspects of life should not be forgotten (Vermeule 1979, 4). Although society as a whole was changing, the relationship between the living and the dead was still based on the same principles. Finally, Xenophon presented the cultural views during the end of the war as well as immediately after the war. Xenophon’s retelling highlights the fact that the dead were always held in high regard and there was always a desire to honor them. Even though things were drastically changing, several ideologies of the society remained the same. Also, the fact that people emulated older beliefs shows the desire to maintain those traditions indicating that the changed views were not ideal.

The final literary source is plays. Plays offer a deeper insight into the treatment of death for several reasons. The plays themselves were often social commentaries and incorporated cultural ideas into the works. Therefore, the interpretations seen in the plays were aligned with society as a whole.

57

Since the plays were presented in public, the audience would know if the plays’ views were consistent with their own. Since the plays also were viewed by a large audience, the thematic ideas needed to be consistent across economic class, instead of just matching up with the views of the rich. The first major concept worth exploring is the treatment of funerary rites. Through The Oresteia, Medea, Antigone, and

Ajax there is a clear interpretation of the thematic ideas related to the funerary rites. Additionally, by comparing Medea, Helen, and The Frogs there is a clear sign of the changing views. Although the three works are written closely chronologically, their treatment of death differs drastically. By exploring the ideas seen in all of these works, it is possible to draw conclusions of society as a whole which properly align with sources already analyzed.

One work highlighting death is Sophocles’ Ajax41. Although the story is based on the Homeric heroes, the treatment of Ajax is very telling of Greek society. In the discussion following Ajax’s death, the play captures several of the complicated nuances regarding the treatment of Ajax. One of the biggest questions regarding Ajax is in the fact that people disagree about whether he should be buried or not. Ajax was a noble warrior who should have deserved a proper funeral (Vermeule 1979, 12).

However, because of the fact that Ajax attempted to murder his companions, he is also at risk of not receiving any funerary honors at all (Garland 1985, 4). As such, the dialogue at the end of Ajax highlights the conflicting views and how to handle certain situations partaking to death. Regardless of the fact that

Ajax tried to kill Odysseus himself, Odysseus still believes Ajax should be properly buried (Soph. Aj. 1332-

3). Therefore, the honor held by Ajax as a result of him being a warrior outweighs the dishonor as a result of him attempting to murder everyone. Odysseus goes on to explicitly state this idea when he says, “but no matter how hostile he was towards me, I would not dishonor him without funerary rites, and I would not refuse to admit that of all of the forces at Troy, he was the strongest in my eyes, outside

41 Although Antigone is also written by Sophocles, it makes more sense to treat Ajax separately and discuss Oresteia, Medea, and Antigone as one group rather than doing a comparison author by author.

58 of Achilles” (Soph. Aj. 1338-41). Odysseus goes on to explain that these are not just views he holds, but societal views when he states, “it is not him you would be harming, but the laws laid down by the Gods.

For it is not just to harm a man when he is dead, even if you hate him” (Soph. Aj. 1343-5). Even in Ajax, there is a desire to honor the dead and celebrate their accomplishments rather than punish them for their faults. Moreover, the respect for Ajax is a result of the fact that he is dead. Although Odysseus hated him when he was alive, Odysseus does not hate Ajax now that he is dead (Soph. Aj. 1355). The desire to not disrespect Ajax is primarily religious in nature, but also highlights the fact that there is a certain gained level of respect for someone once they have died.

In another respect, the Orestea trilogy, Medea, and Antigone explore a deeper look at funerary rites. One of the most important facts of these three works, is the fact that women are all carrying out the required funerary rites, a practice believed to be held in ancient Greece (Hame 2008, 3). The three women who handle the funerary rites all have a different treatment of the ceremony and by comparing their reactions, and the reasoning behind them, we can relate the thematic ideas to ideas we have seen in other sources. In Agamemnon, Klytemnestra attempts to use the treatment of the funeral of

Agamemnon as a way to punish him for sacrificing their daughter. After the murder of Agamemnon, the chorus is concerned with the funerary process and says:

Who will bury him? / Who will sing a dirge for him? / will you take it upon yourself to do these things? / having slain your own husband, / to mourn loudly during his funeral. / and for his soul, having done many great things, /

will it receive injustice without grace? / who will tell the tales of his success over his tomb?

(Aesch. Ag. 1537-1549). Although it would traditionally be Klytemnestra’s job to carry out the funerary rites, there is a conflict because she has murdered Agamemnon. Because Klytemnestra is unwilling to carry out the funerary rites, the chorus is unsure about who will perform them. Therefore, the passage indicates the fact that the family or those close to the deceased were supposed to carry out the funerary rites and there is a struggle to figure out who will perform them if the family is unable. Moreover, the

59 passage also has the chorus talk about how they are afraid Agamemnon might go unburied and they are afraid nobody will visit him if he does not have a proper funeral. The idea of the funeral was so important in ancient Greece that the biggest concern for the chorus is that Agamemnon will not receive a proper burial. They are also afraid that nobody will visit his grave or celebrate his life. There was a large emphasis on being remembered after death (Vermeule 1979, 118) and the passage highlights the constant desire for everyone to be remembered after death.

While the chorus has every right to be worried about the treatment of the corpse of

Agamemnon, Klytemnestra confirms that she will carry out the funerary rites (Aesch. Ag. 1551-3). While

Klytemnestra carries out some treatment of the funerary rites, she has altered them in a way to insult

Agamemnon after death. Rather than give Agamemnon a proper prothesis, Klytemnestra chooses to provide him with a poorly executed prothesis (Hame 2008, 6). In the opening of Libation Bearers,

Orestes’ reference to the tomb of his father indicates that Agamemnon received a tombstone (Aesch.

Lib. 4). Regardless of the fact that Klytemnestra is attempting to completely dishonor Agamemnon in as many ways as possible, and in many of these ways she succeeds, she still does carry through with certain parts of the funerary rites. Therefore, it can be assumed that the risk of enraging the spirit of the deceased was too great completely ignore all of the funerary rites. When discussing the treatment of his body, the chorus states, “and you should know he was mutilated. And in this way she buried him”

(Aesch. Lib 439). Once again, there is a clear sign that Klytemnestra disrespected the corpse of

Agamemnon. As Klytemnestra seeks revenge on Agamemnon she does negatively impact his funeral, but none the less, she does carry out the funeral rites for him and he does end up buried in a tomb and receives visits to his tomb (Aesch. Lib. 84-151). Therefore, there is the fact that the religious ties and importance of the burial outweighed any form of anger. Similar to Ajax, regardless of the all of the hatred towards the deceased, they still received a funeral in some sense.

60

As also seen in the case of Medea is the importance of the funeral and the emphasis on the fact that a woman carries out the funeral. Although never explicitly stated, there is strong evidence suggesting that Medea must be the one to bury the children (Hame 2008, 6). One of the strongest facts for this scenario is the fact that Jason says, “Let me honor the children with funerary rites and let me lament them” (Eur. Med. 1377). Jason must beg Medea to have a chance to bury his kids. Unlike

Agamemnon, where the issue is finding someone to carry out the funerary rites because the chorus believed Klytemnestra to be insufficient, the issue in Medea is that Medea is unwilling to let Jason carry out the rites. Although Jason is willing to carry out the rites, Medea states, “I will bury them with this hand” (Eur. Med. 1378). Once again, there is a strong belief that it is the woman’s job to carry out the funeral of the deceased. Due to Medea demanding that Jason go bury his wife, but not their children, suggests there must be a certain established relationship between the deceased and those who carry out the funerary rites (Hame 2008, 7). Medea’s wish that Jason not bury their children is not rooted in the fact that she thinks Jason is incapable of carrying out a funeral, but comes from a place of spite where she uses his relationship with the children as a way to prevent him from carrying out the funerary rites highlighting the emphasis on the relationship between the deceased and those who carry out funerary rites. This strong connection is seen in the lekythoi for the process of the funeral being carried out. Although it is not always strictly family seen on the lekythoi, there is always a strong connection between the deceased and those carrying out the funeral.

Finally, in the case of Antigone, there is also the case of how to handle the burial and the fact that the lack of burial is used as punishment. The entire premise of Antigone lies in the fact that

Polyneices will not be buried, but rather left unburied. Even though Polyneices died in battle, Creon chooses not to bury him as a way to shame him. As previously explored, not burying someone, especially a war hero, caused the risk that the ghost of the person would be upset and terrorize the world of the living. The fact that Creon is willing to make sure Polyneices remains unburied indefinitely

61 suggests that this view was either starting to become less accepted or the anger of Creon towards

Polyneices outweighed the fear of Polyneices’ wrath. Unlike Ajax where Odysseus believes that Ajax’s skills on the battlefield outweigh his crimes and make it so he still should be allowed a proper funeral,

Creon justifies leaving Polyneices unburied because he believes him to be a temple burner and a traitor

(Soph. Ant. 285-8). Now, the negative acts of the deceased outweigh the positives and become a way for

Creon to justify leaving Polyneices unburied. This moral dilemma focuses on the question of what the

Greeks truly believe in regards to the dead.

Regardless of Creon’s decree, Antigone still believes that her brother is worthy of funerary rites, even though he is believed to be a traitor. When Antigone states how she desires to bury him, Ismene responds by saying, “you plan on burying him, even though it is forbidden in the city?” (Soph. Ant. 43).

This passage highlights the fact that the funeral was seen as such an important task that Antigone is willing to break the law, just to grant her brother funeral rites. Traditionally, the funerary rites were performed by several people (Kurtz 1971, 143), but in the case of Antigone, she is the only one.

Therefore, she is unable to perform the traditional funerary rites, but performs an alternate version

(Soph. Ant. 245-7). Although Antigone does not carry out the traditional rites, when describing the events, the guard uses the word θάψας which indicates that the rites carried out by Antigone were equivalent to a full traditional burial. Therefore, Antigone was able to honor her brother, even though she was not able to perform a traditional funeral. As such, even from the mid-4th century, there was this idea of the funerary processes being able to change depending on circumstance. Although the process carried out by Antigone does not match the process seen on the lekythoi, it was still sufficient because the Greek treatment of the dead was always evolving (Vermeule 1979, 2).

While Ajax, Antigone, and Oresteia provide a look at the views of death prior to the war, comparisons of Medea, Helen, and Frogs provides insight on the changing views during the war since they have a different treatment of the interpretation of death and are written within a similar time

62 period42. The comparison between Medea and Helen captures the truly changing nature of the war, as both are written by Euripides during different stages of the war. While Medea is written during the very beginning of the war, Helen is written towards the very end of the war and captures the changing views of society in regards to the war. Trying to escape, Helen attempts to convince Theoklymenos that she needs to bury her dead husband (Eur. Hel. 1239). Prior to the war, there was no treatment or burial for those who died at sea (Bremmer 1983, 90). Even though Helen is attempting to use this ‘funeral’ as a way to escape, it does highlight the fact that the Greeks now had a ceremony for those who had death at sea due to the large number of soldiers who died in naval combat. The process outlined in Helen for providing funerary rites for those who have died at sea is similar in grandeur to those who have died on land (Eur. Hel. 1252-77). This description of the funerary rites highlights the fact that those who died at sea were worthy of a funeral equal to those who died on land. While those who had died at sea were originally granted nothing, now they were able to receive rites equal to others who had died. Another point of comparison between Helen and Medea is why the idea of a funeral is being considered. In the case of Medea, Jason wishes to bury his children out of love for them. In the case of Helen, Helen and

Menelaus wish to have a burial in order to escape from Egypt. Therefore, the desire for a burial in

Medea follows the traditional views of love and family values, while the desire for a burial in Helen is about practicality and using the funeral as a way to benefit Helen and Menelaus. Therefore, the reasoning behind the two funerals matches the views corresponding to the times in which they occurred.

The other play worth comparing is The Frogs. Aristophanes is a comedian rather than a tragedian, but still focuses on ideas related to death in The Frogs. While all of the previous plays strictly focused on the world of the living, The Frogs takes place almost entirely in Hades and presents a more

42 Since Medea is comparable to both the groupings of plays, it is worth analyzing it in both senses.

63 religious interpretation of death and the soul. When in the underworld, one of the servants of

Persephone describes the party they wish to hold for Heracles (Aristoph. Frogs 503-21). The description of Hades indicates that it is a jubilant place and those who reside in Hades have emotions, unlike views seen prior to the war. The bigger focus regarding the thematic ideas of death takes place during the competition between Aeschylus and Euripides and reflects the changes in society as a result of the war.

Dionysus describes why he came to Hades when he states, “I came down here looking for a poet. For what purpose? / to save the city so that it may hold a chorus” (Aristoph. Frogs 1418-9). Dionysus came to Hades for a practical purpose. His final decision is also based on practicality. The Frogs provides a look at the fact that Greece was shifting from a more artistic view to a more practical view. Although

Dionysus was unable to decide between the two poets, the deciding factor was that Aeschylus was more practical than Euripides. As is the case during the war, the shift to a more practical approach became the desired approach.

The literary works explored further fleshed out the Greek perception of death. While the categories of the literary works were analyzed separately, the thematic ideas drawn from them not only matched the other categories, but also matched the ideologies seen in the lekythoi, epigraphs, and curse tablets. Due to the timespan of the works, the geographical span of the authors, and the span of economic classes that enjoyed these literary works, the conclusions and interpretations of thematic ideas in these literary works would have had to match a much broader audience rather than just a primarily rich Athenian audience. In the case of several of these literary sources, they were preserved due to the fact that they were seen as the best in their respective categories. Therefore, the conclusions drawn by these works can be seen to be the most representative of the times. None the less, the literary works were a form of entertainment and the presentation of death presented in a way that suits the author. Even if the views are not perfectly representative, they are an idealized representation of the views of death, and therefore, life itself.

64

Conclusion

The study of the Greek interpretation of death is complex and based on many different ideologies blended into one idea. The attempt to form a unifying concept is almost impossible due to the vast differences across all of Greece both in terms of space and time. None the less, conclusions about the general perception and treatment of death are possible through the examination of multiple sources and tying the ideologies together. The lekythoi showed how the funeral became shortened and no longer required in order for the soul of the deceased to properly enter Hades. In the case of epigraphs, the continued interaction between the living and the dead was no longer required and the connection between the two was weakened. The curse tablets played an important role in showing that not all aspects of society were altered by the war and many of the negatives stayed the same. Finally, the literary sources tied together many of these changing views and focused on the fact that the Greeks wanted to revert back to some of their original ways.

One natural question that should have arisen is why the Peloponnesian war caused such a drastic change and not the Persian war. Even though the Persian war occurred before the Peloponnesian war, and lasted longer than the Peloponnesian war, the Peloponnesian war caused the larger shift in the perception of death. There are several important factors as to why there was only a mild change during the Persian war and a major change during the Peloponnesian war. One of the main reasons why the

Persian war was not as influential is because of the fact that the Persian war was not a continuous battle between the Greeks and the Persians. Therefore, the Greeks had periods where they were able to recover and readjust. The Peloponnesian war was continuous and the Greeks were constantly engaged in the war during the duration of the war. This continuous involvement meant that the Greeks could not work to bring back the traditional values. Another major reason is the fact that the Persian war had less casualties and involved less Greeks. The prevalence of death was not as strong as during the

Peloponnesian war which meant that the ideologies of all of Greece did not need to change. Also, the

65 fact that the Peloponnesian war came so soon after the Persian war was another reason for the drastic change. Greece was already recovering from the Persian war when the Peloponnesian war took place so the impact it had on society was much greater. The final, and most important reason, why the

Peloponnesian war was more impactful than the Persian war is because of the fact that the Greeks were fighting each other in the Peloponnesian war. During the Persian war, the Greeks were working together to overcome the Persian threat which led to a strong sense of nationalism and strengthened what it meant to be a Greek. During the Peloponnesian war, the Greeks were enemies and so every aspect of

Greek culture began to be challenged. Societies were forced to reconsider what it meant to be Greek which caused many changes to take place. All of these different aspects were tied together and explain why the Persian war did not cause as many societal differences in ancient Greece.

The changes that occurred regarding the perception of death are more oriented on the changes in Greek society as a whole. The treatment of the dead is nothing more than a society reflecting what it believes to be most important in life. The changes caused by war were strictly based on the idea of shifting the focus from love to practicality. The importance of the war overtook the desire to have the family be the first priority. The war forced the bonds that a citizen held to their community to overtake the bonds that held them to other members of the family. While elaborate funerals for common people were all but eradicated during the war, several longer traditional funerals still took place. However, all of the longer funerals that took place were for very important members of society. Therefore, the funerals were held to honor those that gave back to the community and worked to protect it during the war.

The epigraphs also reflected the idea that there was a shift away from love to practicality. While the earlier tombstones would praise the deceased in some facet, regardless of their contribution to society, the epigraphs seen during and after the war removed the necessity of individuals to visit the tomb and focused on traits that were directly impactful to society. The epigraphs were a way to remember people who had died and for loved ones to carry on the memory of those dear to them.

66

During the war, with so many casualties, it became impossible to remember everyone that had died because of the sheer numbers. Rather than serving as a reminder about someone, epigraphs focused on being a reminder to work to benefit a polis.

The conclusions drawn from curse tablets differs drastically from all the other sources. All the other sources were public affairs in which members of the community could witness them. However, the use of curse tablets was primarily a private affair43. Ancient Greece was a shame culture and how they perceived each other was a very important aspect of society. In the case of curse tablets, since there was nobody else to observe an individual carrying out a curse, people could reflect values not traditionally seen in other mediums. The curse tablets highlight the continued animosity felt by ancient

Greeks towards each other. War only heightened this feeling of negativity and rage which is why the curse tablets did not change during the war. In terms of the three main types of curse tablets, they also reflect different views held by Greeks, primarily concerning the idea of power. The erotic curse tablets reflected that sex was more of a power dynamic than about equality and people were willing to harm others for their own sexual benefit. Economic curse tablets highlighted that businesses were willing to harm others in order for their own business to prosper. Even when businesses were unrelated, they could still be the focus of curse tablets meaning that the attacks were not always for economic gain and could also be for personal reasons. Finally, the legal curse tablets were an attempt to transgress the law in order to win cases and prevent them from occurring.

The literary sources worked as a way to unify the different aspects of death in Ancient Greece by combining the practical and religious aspects. Epics were the idealized version of society and the thematic ideas seen regarding death were the ideals that the Greeks wanted. The epics found before the

Peloponnesian war reflect the fact that the views held by the Greeks were not the best possible case

43 The main exception to this rule is when someone would hire a professional to construct a curse tablet.

67 and there was this awareness of the fact that they were humans and there were others who received a better afterlife than them. The later epics reflected a view on death more similar to the traditional views about death indicating a desire to return to the older practices about death. Finally, the historical works and the plays worked to show how, even with the shifting focus to becoming more practical, the ideologies about death were still religiously based. They also showed how the views were held by the majority of the ancient world, rather than a select few because they were sources that focused on integrating the views held throughout the ancient world.

As time progresses, and societies develop, societies are prone to changes. In some cases, these changes occur naturally and benefit the society, and in other cases, the changes are forced and their impact in society is not as clear. The study of the changing perception of death highlights the forced changes in Greek society since many of the changes were drastic and sudden instead of organic and slow. Within as little as five years, there were largely different practices occurring across Greece in regards to the treatment of the deceased. These changes, and the fact that they were seen across

Greece, reflects the connection between Greece, even during an internal war. Additionally, these changes were, in several aspects, seen as good changes because the views were held by so many different parts of Greece. However, as time progressed, and Greece was able to recover from the war, many of the changes that occurred as a result of the Peloponnesian war reverted back to their original manner. The idea of retaining old ideas is similar to the practice of remembering the dead and not letting go of the deceased. Therefore, this idea of wanting the old practices matches the traditional treatment of the dead indicating the fact that the Greeks never truly let go of the traditional ideas. Even though some of these ideas may have been better practically, the love and sense of community held by the Greeks with regards to the old views outweighed the potential benefits of the changes forced upon them by the Peloponnesian war.

68

Poetry Appendix

The two appendices discuss the interpretation of death seen in poetry and philosophical works.

Although poetry is considered a type of literary work, the manner in which death is handled in poetry is very different than the manner in which it is handled in other literary works44. The treatment of death seen in poetry and philosophical works is based on differences in the treatment of the world by these two categories of works.

The views in regards to death seen in poetry differ from those of society. While the thematic ideas of other literary works matched societal views and presented the ideals in regards to death, thematic ideas about death in poetry presented a different interpretation. Many poets would create a world different from the world they are writing. This world was an idealized world and did not carry over the same values and ideals. All of the literary works explored earlier were based on the real world.

Therefore, the persona of the poets in their poems would thus hold different beliefs since they live in a different world. The thematic ideas of the persona seen in poetry do not align with the views held by society, indicating the clear difference in the persona and the speakers themselves. These differences cause poems to be treated as a separate category, and explored in an Appendix, and not be comparable to other literary sources. The authors looked at who write prior to the Peloponnesian war are

Archilochus, Theognis, Mimnermas. All three authors are from different parts of Greece and their different views highlights their inconsistency with the rest of society. One main issue regarding studying poets found during and immediately after the Peloponnesian war is that there are almost none. Most of those whose works survive, only have fragments which do not focus on death. While there are poets who write after the war on themes related to death, many of them do not write until around the 2nd

44 Philosophical works are their own category all together.

69 century. Due to the large gap in time, we will exclude these authors and only focus on ones found prior to the war.

Several poems of Archilochus that discuss death suggest the persona created has an aversion to death and does not appreciate death to the same level as the rest of society. In one poem, the persona describes how he threw his spear while fleeing from battle. The persona mentions how “the blameless weapon was left beside a bush, not willingly, to save myself” (Arch. Fr. 5). The persona does not wish to die. Although death in battle is seen as important, and promises a good afterlife, the persona in the poem wishes to avoid death in war (Garland 1985, 77). The potential of continuing to be a sell sword outweighs the potential of a good afterlife by dying in war. Moreover, the persona describes how they left the shield “unwillingly.” Therefore, it seems as though the persona was forced to leave the shield behind in order to save himself. The bigger burden was the fact that the speaker would have to purchase another shield, not that the speaker was fleeing from battle. Even with the belief that one should continue to fight, the speaker demonstrated that he valued his life and the potential to make more money more than honor he would receive in death for dying nobly in battle.

In another poem by Archilochus, the speaker mocks the dead. In regards to the death of

Archilochus’ brother in law (Miller 1996, 2), the speaker of the poem states, ”for I shall no more heal the wounds by weeping than make it worse by pursuing festivities” (Arch, Fr. 11). A large belief in Archaic

Greece was respect for the deceased (Mirto 2012, 66). Moreover, the respect was far more important when it came from the family of the deceased. While it is accepted that the poem is in reference to the death of Archilochus’ brother-in-law, the poem shows a complete lack of respect for the deceased.

Mourning is generally expected, but the speaker of the poem believes that mourning will not accomplish anything and would rather drink than mourn. In many cases, especially for the family of the deceased, mourning was expected. If the speaker in the poem is Archilochus, then Archilochus is showing disrespect for his brother-in-law which suggests that the speaker is not Archilochus. Although the poem

70 still focuses on the idea of death, it was performed during a symposium. As such, the desire to focus on drinking instead of mourning seemed more appropriate. The speaker believes that celebrating and drinking were a better use of his time than mourning45. While this idea would directly go against the standard view of death, it was aligned with the concept that people were drinking and having fun during the symposium.

While the speaker in Archilochus’ poems chooses to avoid death and shows a lack of respect for the dead, the speaker in Theognis’ poems presents a much different interpretation of the concepts of death. The speaker presents the idea that death is better than life, and also the idea that life is better than death. In one excerpt, the speaker discusses how life is terrible and death is the only escape by stating, “Gladly I play in my youth. For a long time beneath the earth I will be buried, having lost my life, as a voiceless stone. I will leave the rays of the sun. All the same, although I will see nothing still” (Theog.

567-570). In this poem, the speaker presents a bleak portrayal of the afterlife. The speaker has a desire to enjoy life for as long as possible because he feels as though the afterlife will be a terrible experience.

Moreover, the speaker discusses how he will be like a voiceless stone and see nothing. While it was common practice in the Archaic period to believe there was a positive afterlife (Kurtz 1975, 19), the speaker denies this belief and instead describes an afterlife in which a person has nothing to look forward to. Even though the general perception of the afterlife was not perfect, there was not a fear or rejection of the existence of Hades. In the case of the speaker, he is choosing to avoid the afterlife and painting a bleak picture of it.

While presenting a bleak picture of the afterlife and a positive picture of life in one poem, the speaker in another poem of Theognis presents the opposite view. The speaker of the poem talks about

45 One practice that was sometimes common during the funerary rites was to engage in a feast (Garland 1985, 110). However, this feast was not seen as a celebration, but rather as a way for those close to the deceased to have one last meal with the deceased.

71 how life is bad and, “being born, it is best to cross the gates of Hades as quick as possible having heaped much earth upon oneself” (Theog. 427-428). In this poem, the speaker believes that death is better than life. There is the desire to not be born, but if one has to have such a terrible fate, they should attempt to enter Hades as quickly as possible. Both poems are written by Theognis, but the beliefs of the two speakers in the poems are very different. Additionally, neither speaker’s ideologies match the beliefs of society as a whole. While people believed in a positive afterlife, they did not always believe that life was bleak46. Since Theognis presents two very different ideas about death, neither of which matches the general notion of death in the Archaic period, there is strong evidence to suggest that the persona created in the poems is not the same person as Theognis himself.

Finally, the poems of Mimnermus also present a view of death not aligned with the views of the time, suggesting that the speaker in his poems is not Mimnermus himself. In one poem, the speaker describes how painful old age is, and how he wishes he were dead instead of carrying out his life through old age. The speaker states, “What is life? What pleasure is there without Golden Aphrodite? I would rather die when I no longer care of such things” (Mim. Fr. 1). To the speaker, death serves as an escape from life. Moreover, once the speaker grows old, he believes that death is superior to being old.

Once again, there is the idea that death is superior to life in some sense. The speaker also does not have respect for the idea of death. Death is merely a tool to escape the horrendous nature of life once a person has reached old age. While the beliefs of the speaker contradict societal views, the reasons the speaker desires death has to do with the fact that he can no longer engage in sex and pleasures of youth. Although the poem is sad in nature, it does highlight and talk about enjoyable activities. It focuses on the idea that life is about sex and having fun, and once that has been accomplished, there is

46 In the case of society, there is no strong evidence to suggest that there was a negative view of society. While Herodotus has a negative view towards society, there is also scholarly work to suggest that the persona in Herodotus’ work is different than Herodotus himself.

72 no point in life. Since the poem was presented at the symposium, many of the listeners believed that sex and drinking were the best ways of enjoying life. Thus, the poem could serve to provide entertainment and appeal to the members of the symposium, making it more evident that the speaker of the poem is not the same person as Mimnermus. Mimnermus continues this idea of death being an escape from human suffering in another one of his poems. Similar to the previous poem, Mimnermus believes that death is better than old age. In the poem, the speaker states, “As soon as the youthful season has come to a conclusion, then immediately is death better than life” (Mimn. Fr. 2). Once again, the speaker talks about how painful life is during old age, and how death is a suitable substitute. Unlike the speaker in

Theognis’ poems, the speaker in Mimnermus’ poems maintains a consistent ideology. Even though the ideology of the speaker is different than that of society, the ideologies expressed in the poems are consistent with one another.

Archaic poets created personas in their poetry. While these personas could be the authors themselves, they could also be a fictional creation of the author. One way to help create a distinction between the two possibilities is to explore the thematic ideas of the persona in the poems and comparing them to the thematic ideas of the time. If the ideologies of the poems greatly differ from the ideologies of the time, there is strong evidence to suggest that the persona in the poems is different than the speaker himself. Therefore, death is a medium in which comparisons of the two ideologies can say if the speaker is the same as the writer. Thus, the comparison of ideologies reflects if the persona is the same as the writer. By exploring the works of Archilochus, Theognis, and Mimnermus, there is strong evidence to suggest the speaker is different than the aforementioned authors. The personas in the poems lack respect for the deceased and do not have ideologies of death that match society. Not only do the ideologies of the poems conflict with the ideologies of the time, but also, the ideologies of the same author will conflict. Although there is no way to say with certainty that the personas are different, or that the authors themselves had different ideologies than society, there is strong evidence

73 suggesting these authors created personas for the entertainment of their audiences. The personas created served a function of making poems enjoyable for the listener and their personalities would reflect this desire.

74

Philosophy Appendix

The views regarding death seen in philosophical works differ greatly from other sources for several reasons. In poetry, the reason for the difference in the views related to die was because of the fact that the world in which the persona existed was different than the world; as a result, the views seen by the persona in the poetic works was different than the views seen in the actual world. In philosophical works, the difference lies in how the people are treating the world. In the previously explored sources, the interpretations regarding death was primarily based on religion because of the strong ties of religion and society. In the case of philosophical works, there was a movement to break away from the religious treatment of matters, death included. As a result, the views seen in philosophical works differ drastically from other works. By examining the fragments of Heraclitus and

Socrates’ discussion of death in Plato’s Apology, we can see how philosophers handled the idea of death and how these ideas drastically contrasted those seen previously.

The main focus of Pre-Socratic philosophers was to understand the universe and the world around them; as a result, many Pre-Socratic philosophers chose to avoid discussions related to death

(Cooney 2017). While death was such an integral part of society, the focus of Pre-Socratic philosophers went beyond the scope of death and was focused on broader results. As a result, many philosophical writers made no mention of death, and those that did, would tie it back to their work. Heraclitus was one of the few Pre-Socratic philosophers who engaged with the dialogues related to death in his philosophical works. His discussions about death are not religiously or practically focused; he instead chooses to talk about how death plays a part in the inner workings of the world. In one fragment, he states, “Everything we see while being awake is death, like everything we see while being asleep is sleep” (Heracl. Fr. 21). Rather than presenting death in a more traditional manner, by relating it to religious or practical aspects, Heraclitus makes no references to either of these categories. Instead, he views death as an ever-present aspect of life. Heraclitus does not try and combine different facets of life

75 together, but wants to focus strictly on the philosophical idea that death is present in every part of society.

While philosophers tried to stray away from religion in their treatment of the study of death, there was no way to completely avoid it. In another fragment, Heraclitus goes on to say, “for those who have a greater life will win a greater fate” (Heracl. Fr. 25). This fragment, while mimicking traditional views regarding death, is still different from the previous interpretations of death. In this fragment,

Heraclitus makes no reference to what equates to a good life and what are the greater rewards. The previous cases had specific requirements on what categorizes as a good life and leads to a greater reward in the afterlife47; however, Heraclitus does not explicitly state the requirements, only that someone be good. Moreover, when referring to the greater fate, Heraclitus uses the word μόρος, which is not used in any of the previously mentioned sources. Μόρος is used primarily outside of religious connotation and refers to the destiny of a person until and through their death. Even though μόρος does not directly carry religious connotations, it can be argued that the concept of fate and destiny has ties to religion. Regardless, Heraclitus chooses to describe one’s fate as being prosperous, rather than their time in the underworld. This difference highlights the fact that Heraclitus wanted to move away from the traditional interpretation of death in his philosophical works.

The last work we will explore in the appendices is Plato’s Apology. The trial of Socrates took place immediately after the Peloponnesian war and Socrates’ interpretation of death starkly contrasts other views seen prior. Socrates’ discussion of death differs drastically due to the fact that he knows he is on the brink of death during his trial. In no other cases was there a clear indication that the person creating the source was on the brink of death; they may have been close to death but they themselves were not dying. As a result, Socrates’ treatment of death is partially due to the fact that he is about to

47 Such as being religious or dying in war.

76 die. Even though Socrates’ views may have been influenced by his connection to death during the trial, his views were held by others and it can be assumed that others also held the same views regarding death as he did. Additionally, Socrates was on trial for impiety. Since the other views regarding death were based on religion, Socrates’ impiety will also result in a difference in perception. All of these factors combine to present a unique treatment of death not seen in other sources.

Socrates, having heard his sentence, ends his apology with a discussion about death. Before beginning the speech regarding death, Socrates states, “and those of us who believing dying to be bad are mistaken” (Plat. Apol. 40c). One of the main points of talking about death is to create a portrayal of what happens after one dies. The Greeks held several different views, but still believed they knew what happened after death in some facet. Socrates challenges this societal view and admits he does not know what will happen to someone after death. Rather than blindly accepting the standard view of death,

Socrates wants to explore the concepts of death on a philosophical scope. While Socrates is attempting to find other solutions to death, he is aware of the standard views of death when he says, “For death is one of two things: either it is nothing and those who have died have no perception of anything or it is as people have said and a migration of the soul from one place to another” (Plat. Apol. 40c). Socrates is aware of the standard notion of death, and even though he disagrees with it, he still acknowledges that it is a possibility.

Socrates, in his attempt to understand the world, discusses the pros and cons of the two possible views of death. In discussing the first option, Socrates states, “and if indeed it is one where one perceives nothing and it is like a sleep in which one does not dream, this death would be a wondrous gain” (Plat. Apol. 40d). In this statement, Socrates both rejects the traditional narrative of death, and states he believes his belief of death to be superior. Socrates is actively admitting to not liking the standard belief of society. He continues by describing how awful it would be to experience the death

77 seen in traditional narratives (Plat. Apol. 40e – 41a). Socrates continues his rejection of the traditional narrative when he states, “for indeed I would wish to die many times if these things were to be true”

(Plat. Apol. 41a). Socrates highlights the fact that the standard belief is both wrong and idealized. He believes his view to be the correct one, and a great option to experience, but believes the standard view to be this incredible experience that would cause him to want to die several times over. Socrates believes both options to be good options but is still accepting of the fact that he is unaware of what happens.

Socrates ends his speech in Apology by wrapping up his thoughts regarding death.

Socrates opens up the final part of his apology by stating:

But indeed, oh judges, for you it is necessary to think of death to be joyful, and for you it is also necessary

to keep in mind this truth: there is no badness that can come to a good man either in life or in death, this is not

possible under the work of God.

(Plat. Apol. 41c-d). Although Socrates was believed to have rejected the Gods of Athens, he still believed in deities and their connection with death. He accepted that there is some kind of afterlife in which those that have lived a good life will continue to have a good experience. Finally, Socrates completes his speech with the statement, “But now is the time to go, for me to dying and for you to living. Which of the two is better, only God knows.” (Plat. Apol. 42a). The final words of the speech regard the fact that, no matter what we may think in regards to death, nobody knows what happens when someone dies. Socrates is aware that even though there are many potential explanations about what happens, there is no certainty about any of the theories. As a result, Socrates does not know if living or dying is better because he has nothing to compare.

78

Both philosophers have views regarding death that differed from the rest of society. While

Heraclitus’ views tied into his discussion about other topics, he ultimately discussed his views on death in his fragments. On the other hand, Socrates focused on the idea of death while knowing he was about to die. Both philosophers had different reasons for talking about death and both of their views did not match up with traditional views held by society. Since philosophers were working to find out actual truth and move away from religion, their treatment of death was based on what conclusions they could draw from the world around them, rather than from religious stories. The exploration of both poetry and philosophical works illustrates why they both deserve a separate section. The views seen are different and only held by a small group of people. The poets were the ones who created the unique worlds of different views and the philosophers sought these different interpretations of death. Since the groups were so small, they only provided a nice example of how the views differed, rather than counter examples to the points raised in the paper. None the less, both categories present interesting and drastically changing views on death and would be worth exploring in their own right.

79

Bibliography

Aeschylus, Oresteia

Apollonius Rhodius, The Argonautica

Archilochus, Fragment 5

Archilochus, Fragment 11

Aristophanes, The Frogs

Athenian Black-Figure lekythos, 525-475, Rhitsona, Thebes Archeological Museum, 305284

Athenian Black-Figure lekythos, 525-475, Kolias, Musee de Louvre, CVA 463

Athenian Black-Figure lekythos, 525-475, Phaleron, Athens National Museum, CVA 450

Athenian Black-Figure lekythos 550-500, Mylios, Berlin Antikensammlung, CVA 350493

Athenian Black-figure terracotta, 520-510, 54.11.5

Athenian Red-figure lekythos, 500-450, Ceramicus, CVA 2258

Athenian Red-figure lekythos, 500-450, Musee de Louvre, CVA 3032

Athenian Red-figure lekythos, 425-375, Allard Pierson Museum, CVA 217521

Athenian Red-figure lekythos, 425-375, Museo Arqueologico Nacional, CVA 5841

Athenian Red-figure lekythos, 425-375, Museo Arqueologico Nacional, CVA 5842

Bremmer, Jan. 1983. The Early Greek Concept of the Soul. Princeton: Princeton University Press.

Cooney, William. 2017. Encyclopedia of Death and Dying. “Philosophy, Western.” Chicago: Advameg.

Crane, Gregory. 2017. Lecture. Medford, MA.

80

Department of Greek and Roman Art. 2003. Death, Burial, and the Afterlife in Ancient Greece. In

Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art.

Euripides, Helen

Euripdes, Medea

Gager, John G. 1992. Curse Tablets and Binding Spells from the Ancient World. New York: Oxford

University Press.

Garland, Robert. 1985. The Greek way of Death. Ithaca, New York: Cornell University Press.

Hame, Kerri J. 2008. Female Control of Funeral Rites in Greek Tragedy: Klytaimestra, Medea, and

Antigone. Classical Philology 103, no. 1.

Heraclitus, Fragment 21

Heraclitus, Fragment 25

Herodotus, Ancient History

Hesiod, Works and Days

Homer, The Iliad

Homer, The Odyssey

Inscriptiones Graecae. Berlin. 1873.

Johnson, Sara Iles. 1999. Restless Dead: Encounters between the Living and the Dead in Ancient Greece.

University of California Press.

81

Kurtz, Donna C., and John Boardman. 1971. Greek Burial Customs. Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press.

Lattimore, Richard. 1942. University of Illinois Studies in Language and Literature, Volume 28. Urbana:

The University of Illinois Press.

Miller, Andrew. 1996. Greek Lyric. An Anthology in Translation. Indianapolis. Hackett Publishing

Company.

Mimnermus, Fragment 1

Mimnermus, Fragment 2

Mirecki, Paul Allan., and Marvin W. Meyer. 2002. Magic and Ritual in the Ancient World. Religions in the

Graeco-Roman world, v. 141; Religions in the Graeco-Roman world, v. 141. Leiden: Brill.

Mirto, Maria Serena, and A. M. Osborne. 2012. Death in the Greek world: from Homer to the classical age. Norman: University of Oklahoma Press.

Ogden, Daniel. 2009. Magic, witchcraft, and ghosts in the Greek and Roman worlds: a sourcebook.

Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Plato, Apology

Plutarch, Life of Solon.

Sophocles, Ajax

Sophocles, Antigone

Theognis, Corpus

Thucydides, The Peloponnesian War

82

Vermeule, Emily. 1979. Aspects of Death in Early Greek Art and Poetry. Berkeley: University of California

Press.

Xenophon Hellenica

83