<P> Herodotus is neither a mere gatherer of data nor a simple teller of tales -- he is both . While Herodotus is certainly concerned with giving accurate accounts of events , this does not preclude for him the insertion of powerful mythological elements into his narrative , elements which will aid him in expressing the truth of matters under his study . Thus to understand what Herodotus is doing in the Histories , we must not impose strict demarcations between the man as mythologist and the man as historian , or between the work as myth and the work as history . As James Romm has written , Herodotus worked under a common ancient Greek cultural assumption that the way events are remembered and retold ( e.g. in myths or legends ) produces a valid kind of understanding , even when this retelling is not entirely factual . For Herodotus , then , it takes both myth and history to produce truthful understanding . </P>
<P> Herodotus is neither a mere gatherer of data nor a simple teller of tales -- he is both . While Herodotus is certainly concerned with giving accurate accounts of events , this does not preclude for him the insertion of powerful mythological elements into his narrative , elements which will aid him in expressing the truth of matters under his study . Thus to understand what Herodotus is doing in the Histories , we must not impose strict demarcations between the man as mythologist and the man as historian , or between the work as myth and the work as history . As James Romm has written , Herodotus worked under a common ancient Greek cultural assumption that the way events are remembered and retold ( e.g. in myths or legends ) produces a valid kind of understanding , even when this retelling is not entirely factual . For Herodotus , then , it takes both myth and history to produce truthful understanding . </P>
who recognized the appeal of herodotean story-telling of historical events
who recognized the appeal of herodotean story-telling of historical events
James Romm
James Romm