chapter 8 A Child among the Ruins: Some Thoughts on Contemporary Modern Greek Literature for Children Przemysław Kordos I admit that the title of this chapter may be misleading at first glance. Greece is by no means a country of ruins, or a ruined country, and ancient archaeologi- cal sites (“ruins”) are relatively scarce. In fact, in some regions of this beautiful country, such as Thrace or Thessaly, one can hardly find such attractions. On the other hand, the two main cities, Athens and Thessaloniki, which house probably up to 40% of the country’s population, are built around vast and well-exposed ancient sites. The Athenian Acropolis is the city’s most impor- tant landmark, helping substantially in navigating the chaotic city centre. In Thessaloniki the excavations mingle seamlessly with housing districts, shop- ping areas, and recreational parks, and are located near busy streets. So a Greek child has an excellent chance of living close to some ruins. The other, even more universal means of encountering Greek ruins is the standard school curriculum, which revolves around ancient history, tradi- tion, and literature. Textbooks abound in pictures and drawings that proudly present their ancient heritage to Greek children. The role of the educational system is very important in shaping the attitudes of future citizens. I will come back to this issue later on, but first I will start with a personal note. Although this chapter analyses several books for children written by Greek authors in the past few decades, it is by no means reduced solely to literary criticism. I propose a daring approach both in regard to classical reception and children’s literature studies—one that results from my primary formation, which is ethnography and my practice in this field, which comprises research- ing the Modern Greeks for fifteen years now. The relation between ethnographers and their objects of study constitutes a core of contemporary discussion on ethnographic self-conscience as disci- pline. Systemic approaches (deriving from social sciences in paradigm crisis) are partly abolished in favour of personal contact, dialogue, and the unique- ness of the ethnographer’s position of being “then and there,” staying faithful to the statement that “a researcher is also a research tool.”1 Thus, my interest 1 Cf. Anna Engelking, “Między terenem rzeczywistym a metaforycznym. Osobiste refleksje o antropologicznym doświadczeniu terenowym” [Between the real and metaphorical field © Przemysław Kordos, 2016 | doi 10.1163/9789004335370_010 Przemysław Kordos - 9789004335370 This is an open access chapter distributed under the terms of the CC BY-NC-NDDownloaded 4.0 license. from Brill.com09/25/2021 10:21:34PM via free access 128 Kordos in this chapter is on a person, not a text, and in my analysis I depart from my personal experience to draw out more clearly the most important extraliter- ary issues, such as the ideological shaping of the audience and historical poli- tics of the Greek state which permeate the realm of education. As a result, we will discover different aspects of the potential of the texts designed for Greek ­children—texts that affect and strengthen their identity. I was taught a “traditional” way of appreciating ruins, one bordering on ad- miration and nostalgia. On numerous occasions I tried to envisage the walls of ancient buildings and arcades shading ancient streets, all in the midst of chas- ing the remains of yet another edifice. Therefore some of the images I encoun- tered while in Greece came to me as a shock. Little boys playing soccer just outside the Odeon of Herodes Atticus with a goalkeeper standing in one of the ruined arches. An adolescent practising mountain biking on the hills and crev- ices of the Spartan Acropolis, whose disorderly remains are scattered among a peaceful olive grove north of the modern town of Sparta (see figure 8.1). My own son picking wildflowers in Cyprus’s Kourion. This all made me revise my attitude to ruins. I never had a childlike appreciation of them, because from the very beginning I only considered them in a scholarly manner. Children, on the other hand, treat them for what they really are: bundles of stones in a peaceful park, away from the hustle of a modern town, devoid of crowds and sometimes even left unguarded. One could say that children’s contact with the ruins, and through them with the past, is natural and intimate.2 It is only later that they learn—both through the system (school) and outside of it (through extracurricular books, the centre of my interest here3)—about the past, the “glory that was Greece,” and, for the first time feeling the weight of work. Personal thoughts on anthropological field experience], in Tarzycjusz Buliński and Mariusz Kairski, eds., Teren w antropologii. Praktyka badawcza we współczesnej antropologii kulturowej [Fieldwork in anthropology. Research practice in contemporary cultural anthro- pology] (Poznań: Wydawnictwo uam, 2011), 169–180. 2 The inhabitants of Warsaw also have this experience of living among the ruins. The ruined places are slowly being rebuilt and reconstructed, but at least the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, situated in the only surviving piece of the Saxon Palace, will remain a memory. War- saw’s ruins are, however, very different from the Greek ones: while they remind us of the unmatched bravery of insurgents, they are also a reminder of the utter catastrophe that was brought about in the aftermath of the Warsaw Uprising (1944), when prewar Warsaw, de- stroyed in retaliation by the Nazis, ceased to exist. Therefore, the proportions of pride and nostalgia these ruins evoke in the inhabitants of the Polish capital are quite different from those felt by the Greeks, strolling around ancient debris in the Acropolis or Agora. 3 For the supportive role in education played by historical children’s fiction, see Janet Fisher, “Historical Fiction,” in Peter Hunt, ed., International Companion Encyclopedia of Children’s Literature (London: Routledge, 2004), vol. 1, 490–498. The entry comprises also a brief biblio- graphical guide. Przemysław Kordos - 9789004335370 Downloaded from Brill.com09/25/2021 10:21:34PM via free access A Child among the Ruins 129 Figure 8.1 Przemysław Kordos, Mountain Biking in Sparta © by Przemysław Kordos. of history upon their shoulders, are taught to respect those places and to ap- proach them with reverence and awe. A brief glance at the Greek school curriculum is enough to justify this ­thesis.4 Admittedly, the introduction of ancient themes is slow at first. During 4 All up-to-date textbooks are available on the Digital School webpage http://dschool.edu .gr/ (accessed Oct. 12, 2015). Current curricula are contained in documents published by the Greek Ministry of Education and Culture (the former Ministry of Education and Religion). Przemysław Kordos - 9789004335370 Downloaded from Brill.com09/25/2021 10:21:34PM via free access 130 Kordos the first three years, Greek children become acquainted with ancient myths and aspects of ancient history (deeds of Alexander the Great or ordinary life in classical Athens) only through texts studied in Modern Greek language class— glimpses of Antiquity which function on an equal footing with texts concern- ing other epochs and countries. However, the situation changes radically in the fourth grade with the introduction of the class on history: the first year of the three-year course (fourth to sixth grade) is devoted solely to mythological, archaic, classical, and Hellenistic Greece. During the second year the periods of Roman and Byzantine dominance are covered. The third year focuses on the last half millennium. Even such a short course description shows the im- portance placed on Greek Antiquity: up to half of the history course is taken up by ancient history. The emphasis on Antiquity is stressed further in middle school, which lasts for three years and is attended by children aged from 12 to 15. Here the history course is repeated, but this time only a year is devoted to becoming acquainted with Antiquity.5 On the other hand a class in Ancient Greek is introduced, along with extensive reading of Herodotus’s Histories and Homer’s Odyssey. In the second year the Ancient Greek class is strengthened by an anthology, which supplements the regular language textbook: Aρχαία Eλλάδα: o τόπoς και oι άνθρωπoι / Arhaia Ellada: o topos kai oi anthropoi [An- cient Greece: The place and the people].6 This is a curious collection of ancient texts, translated into Modern Greek, which revolves around the six most dis- tinguished poleis and concludes with a chapter on the phenomenon of ancient athleticism. Pupils in the last year of middle school read Anabasis Alexandri by Arrian, learn about ancient theatre (δραματική ποίηση / dramatike poiese— dramatic poetry) through the texts of Aristophanes’ Birds and Euripides’ Helen, and take their first steps in philosophy with help from the pre-Socratic sages to Plotinus. A diligent fifteen-year-old modern Greek pupil receives a thorough classical education, being able to read and interpret a wide selection of ancient masterpieces in their original form.7 5 Greece has recently become a battlefield for Ancient Greek language in the gymnasium (lower middle school). In May 2016 a group of fifty-six professors published an open peti- tion to abolish the extended Ancient Greek language curriculum in favour of extending the Modern Greek programme. Their initiative brought about an intensive, sometimes aggres- sive response. The issue is still being debated, but it is failing. 6 Theodoros Stephanopoulos, Aρχαία Eλλάδα: o τόπoς kαι oι άνθρωπoι / Arhaia Ellada: o topos kai oi anthropoi [Ancient Greece: The place and the people] (Athens: o.e.δ.b., 2010). 7 Education about Classical Antiquity by no means stops there. The last (non-compulsory) three years of secondary education offer a variety of obligatory classes devoted to ancient times.