February 22, 2007

The Refutation of Narcissus and Echo

Here is a myth I had to refute for school. Click here to see another refuted myth.

There is an ancient Roman myth about a hurt lover, a proud man, and a vengeful goddess. Although enjoyable, this myth is definitely false.

Once there lived a man named Narcissus, who was loved by a nymph named Echo. Echo pursued Narcissus, attempting to win his affection. Sharply, Narcissus told Echo that he did not love her. Angered at his response, the nymph asked Nemesis, the goddess of retribution, for help. Pitying Echo, Nemesis caused Narcissus to fall in love with his own reflection. Narcissus was so enamored with himself that he refused to eat. He grew thinner and thinner until, with a cry of pain and agony, he withered into a flower. Although still angry with Narcissus, Echo felt sorry for him and echoed his cries.

Ladies and gentlemen, I would like to show you a few contradictions, errors, improbabilities, impossibilities, and logical fallacies in this myth. I am of the belief that, once we have examined this myth, we will see that it is impossible for this to have actually happened.

First, let us look at the author. His name is Publius Ovidius Naso, commonly called Ovid, a master in prose and poetry. If we examine his life, we will see that the Emperor Augustus banished him because of the scandalous nature of his work. Augustus never forgave him, so Ovid died in exile. Because of this, I ask that we examine his works critically, for Augustus was intent on reforming the lives of Roman citizens, and Ovid was encouraging sin.

Second, this myth is improbable. It was most likely written to convey the fact that being too proud can lead to dangerous consequences. Although the moral is true, this myth never happened. The aim of this story is to assist in teaching a moral truth, rather than recount a historical story.

Third, this myth is extremely obscure: there is no physical evidence nor witnesses to verify that this narrative actually took place. We should never, ever simply believe something without some sort of witness or evidence.

Next, this myth is clearly impossible and illogical. Could someone please tell me how a person withers into a flower? And, of all the possibilities, Narcissus becomes a flower after he refuses to eat! Barring the fact that a lack of nutrients fails to create something different, logic itself defeats the story. In logic, the concept of an object is defined by descriptions called notes. A 3rd century logician named Porphyry assisted in the organization of notes by inventing a chart called the Porphyrian Tree. This chart lists all objects in simple categories. If you examine the notes of man, you would see that man is a rational( the ability to distinguish true and false), sentient (having senses), living, material(having a body) substance. Yet a flower is simply a non-sentient, living, material substance. This tells us that a flower is completely different from man. Without a doubt, a rational, sentient, living, material substance can not mysteriously change into a sentient, living, material substance. We now come to the conclusion that a man cannot, and will not, change into a flower.

Ladies and gentlemen, I ask that you examine this evidence for yourself and decide whether this myth is history, or simply a moral story.

1 Comments:

Blogger Jeff said...

I like the way you and Lincoln linked to each others Refutations (sp?) I have to say... you both are incredible with your observations. When I was your age... the only thing I was thinking...?, "what time is basketball practice?" ;-)

1:27 PM  

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