The Internet has everything, so I wasn't surprised to receive an invitation to join a Yahoo Group called Kafenion (you must join Yahoo to access it), the Internet cafe for those interested in Greece, Greeks and Greek culture.
On the first page of messages, I found a discussion about what went into an authentic Greek salad-- not lettuce, by the way.
The author of an intriguing book on ancient Greece joined at the same time as I did. Victoria and a collaborator have published Iokaste, a novel which tells the Oedipus story from the point of view of Oedipus' mother and wife. (She is more traditionally referred to as Jocasta).
You will want to check out the official web site for Iokaste. This kind of novel rarely grabs me, because the original stories are good enough for me. But Victoria and partner have added to something significant called The Classical Tradition, which in some ways is just as important as the ancient stuff.
The Classical Tradition comprises all those reactions we have had to the ancient world, and which in turn have shaped us. Thomas Bulfinch, the first popularizer of Greek Mythology in the USA, explicitly told his readers that he was changing the myths for American consumption. That disclaimer got lost over the years, and now many people think the Greeks were just like the Victorians of Bulfinch's time-- charming, civilized, romantic.
Nowadays, New Age psychology is taking over Bulfinch's mantle, convincing us, for example, to identify with Greek divinities (see books like Goddesses in Every Woman for that)-- a legitimate continuation of the Classical Tradition, but not something an ancient Greek would ever do.
The Classical Tradition is neither negative nor positive within its own context. It uses the ancient world to hold a mirror up to contemporary society-- what we like, dislike, value, and are.
I hope to be a voice for the weird, off-putting, and yet wonder-full ancient Greeks, who gave us so much of what we are, and yet were not what we are.
Hope to see you around the Kafenion.
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