by Eldred Bird
St. Patrick’s Day is here, and l have the honor of supplying the WITS post this year. Luck of the Irish, right? To be perfectly honest I’m mostly Scottish and Nordic, but I prefer Irish whisky. I think that qualifies me to write today’s blog.
Refreshing my memory about the history of this particular saint got me thinking. How much of what we hear about historical figures is true and how much is made up? How and why does it happen?
How Myths and Legends are Born
Most myths, legends, and heroes have their roots in actual people and events. St. Patrick is no exception. He was a real person who did a lot for Ireland. Funny thing is, he wasn’t even Irish. He was brought there as a slave during Roman rule. The color that was originally associated with him was blue, not green. Most of the traditions and symbols we associate with the holiday came centuries after his death.
So, how did things change? Let’s take a look at a few ways it can happen.
Word of Mouth
The tradition of storytelling predates the written word—it was the way history was preserved for future generations. As stories were passed from one generation to the next by the elders, details were lost, added, or embellished.
Every storyteller had their own particular style and would often alter the details to teach a lesson. Ordinary people grew into heroes and strangers were painted as villains. Tweaking the details could turn an everyday occurrence into a cautionary tale and get the heart racing.
Stories evolved through retellings by ordinary people as well. Have you ever heard of the Telephone Game? One person whispers something to the person next to them, who then passes it on to the next one in line. By the time things come back around to the original teller the message will be completely different. It works the same way when a story makes its way around a village or even the world.
Artistic License
As authors we understand the need to make a story more interesting. If you want to get your point across you have to keep the audience engaged. One way to accomplish this is to add a few juicy details here and there to spice things up.
Historical fiction is fertile ground for taking real events and people and stretching the truth for the sake of art. If the story becomes popular enough, some people will start to believe bits of the made-up details and pass them on as gospel.
I’ve actually had a debate with someone who thought “Hamilton” was pulled straight out of the history books. I can assure you that the founding fathers did not sing and dance their way through the events leading up to the revolution.
Propaganda
We’ve all heard it said that history is written by the winners. This is more or less true, whether it be governments, warriors, or major corporations. The ones left standing will be the ones telling the story, so the details will generally support their point of view. Some figures and events will be blown out of proportion, while others are buried deep. Other accounts may still exist as well but will be less popular and thus less accepted.
Some sources will flat out change history to benefit their causes, completely ignoring facts in the process. I can’t think of a single government that hasn’t done this at one time or another to sway the masses in their favor. They push their chosen narrative until it becomes the de facto truth.
Finding the Truth
As writers of fiction, we make our living by making things up, but the truth is usually the best foundation to build our stories on. So how do we find it? Honestly, sometimes we don’t, but there are ways we can sift through history and end up a bit closer to the actual facts.
Common Threads
My favorite method to search for the truth came from my father. What he taught me was to read historical accounts of the same events written at different times by different sources, then look for the common threads. If you pull on the threads that are shared by the majority of accounts, you are more likely to be closer to the truth in the end.
The other thing he taught me was to look at what’s missing as well. What the authors of the historical accounts chose to include and exclude may tell you more about society at the time the piece was written than the event itself.
Final Thoughts
Man has been telling stories and leaving a record since the first drawings were scratched into the walls of caves. Who’s to say the size the beasts those early hunters drew aren’t a bit inflated? I’m sure the truth is out there somewhere. We just have to dig it out and piece it together.
So, what does all of this have to do with St. Patrick’s Day? Not a whole lot, but then St. Patrick’s Day really doesn’t have a lot to do with the real St. Patrick either, does it?.
What methods do you use to sort out the truth from the myths? Let us know in the comments.
Have a happy and safe St. Patrick’s Day!
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About Eldred
Eldred Bird writes contemporary fiction, short stories, and personal essays. He has spent a great deal of time exploring the deserts, forests, and deep canyons inside his home state of Arizona. His James McCarthy adventures, Killing Karma, Catching Karma, and Cold Karma, reflect this love of the Grand Canyon State even as his character solves mysteries amidst danger. Eldred explores the boundaries of short fiction in his stories, The Waking Room, Treble in Paradise: A Tale of Sax and Violins, and The Smell of Fear.
When he’s not writing, Eldred spends time cycling, hiking, and juggling (yes, juggling…bowling balls and 21-inch knives).
His passion for photography allows him to record his travels. He can be found on Twitter or Facebook, or at his website.
Image Credits
Top image by K. Mitch Hodge on Unsplash
Second image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay
