The Storyteller: Greek Myths

When I was 9 or 10, there was a show on PBS that told Faerie Tales in a way that nobody else told a story. They were amazing...so much so that, though I knew absolutely nothing about who produced them or what they were called, I have been hoping to stumble across them once again as an adult. The past few weeks, whenever I would visit our local grocer, I would notice a DVD next to the check-out stand called "The Storyteller," by Jim Henson. I looked at it a couple of times, but wasn't sure if it was worth it (probably a bad call...most things by Jim Henson are worth seeing at least once). Finally I broke down and just tossed it into the basket; a true impluse buy. The stores are quite clever with their placement of movies...I have grown out of the candy impulse (for the most part) but movies at $9.99 are very tempting...

And in this case, totally worth it. I soon discovered that this was what I have been passively searching for, the complete collection of fables and stories that impacted me as a child so dramatically. After a quick review of the first disc, I soon realized that I had not only stumbled on a treasure trove for my quickly growing son, but also a boon for my history (and quite possibly literature) classes. What better way of helping kids in the 21st Century connect with the myths that painted the imaginations of generations through the centuries then to allow them to hear them as stories? That Jim Henson...what a man!

Needless to say, we've been watching The Storyteller: Greek Myths in my History class this past week. The assignment has been to glean two (and from my perspective, picking only two is a chore...there are TONS of gems thrown out through the telling of the story) morals from each of the 4 myths, and speculate on how those myths would have shaped the culture in which they were told; Daedalus & Icarus, Orpheus & Eurydice, Perseus & the Gorgon, and Theseus & the Minotaur. The stories are not editted for modern sensibilities...they end sadly, and often justice is at the very least in question, if not seemingly absent altogether.

My favorite is a toss up between the moral of Daedalus and Icarus and a question from the tale of Theseus. On the one hand, you have to wrestle with the lesson of the value of moderation, and with Theseus I think you have to ask yourself...what must one become to be the champion that defeats the Minotaur? Theseus is a bad man...and a hero. His glory seems to cost him any virtue he had. Obviously the lessons are closely related...but the discussion comes from different directions.

Even more fun is the fact that in the process of discussing the Greeks on these issues, Milton keeps coming up. Is it better to be a king in Hell than a slave in heaven? Is glory worth more than a mediocre life on earth? If glory is our immortality, what then? Perhaps that is why Christ makes the difference between Christianity and everything else so clear: if you would keep your life, you must be willing to give it up. Clinging to life is the surest way to lose what you hold dear...through this paradox, Christianity resolves the dilemmas that plagued the Greeks. It's a good time to be a teacher.