The internet and the truth. Will one ever know the other?

I’m researching Greek Myths at the moment. All those wonderful stories have many versions within the Greek tradition, before ever the Romans got hold of the stories and passed them down to us – we who have altered, rewritten and re-shaped them ever since.

Of course, The Greeks didn’t think the stories up themselves, but adapted them from other traditions, Goddesses becoming Gods as it suited.

So it is interesting to see how the stories change on the internet. One misquote on one site leads to a new chronology on another.

I just found one site that suggested that Hermes used his winged sandals to steal Apollo’s cattle. Nice idea, but Hermes was less than one day old when he stole the cattle and had not been given the sandals yet.

Does it matter? I’ve spent the afternoon re-crafting and outline of Hermes life, trying to make it exciting and accessible to modern children. Isn’t that what storytellers have always done? Isn’t that how stories get honed over the centuries and made relevant to the modern taste? Maybe I’m just a servant of Hermes, making sure his name lives on – in which case I can write what I like, exclude what I like and make up what I like, as long as it makes a good story and Hermes comes off the better for it!