As professor Johannes Haubold commented, “In many ways, The Odyssey is a universal story.” I’d like to expand on the surprising universality of what he called “the law of Zeus, of hospitality to the stranger.” Most African languages, for example, still use the same word for “guest” and for “stranger.” Looked at more closely, precolonial societies put our claim to be more civilized to shame.
In indigenous Native American tribes, hospitality to the stranger was a sacred duty. There, as well as in Africa and ancient Greece, the host was duty bound to feed and bathe a stranger before even asking that person’s identity. Anyone who violated these duties was considered uncivilized, and offensive to the gods.
Tragically, however, Africans and Native Americans were so vulnerable to colonizers partly because they falsely assumed these strangers were civilized and would not take advantage of their hosts.
Perhaps we need to reexamine our assumptions about who is civilized and who is not.
As professor Johannes Haubold commented, “In many ways, The Odyssey is a universal story.” I’d like to expand on the surprising universality of what he called “the law of Zeus, of hospitality to the stranger.” Most African languages, for example, still use the same word for “guest” and for “stranger.” Looked at more closely, precolonial societies put our claim to be more civilized to shame.
In indigenous Native American tribes, hospitality to the stranger was a sacred duty. There, as well as in Africa and ancient Greece, the host was duty bound to feed and bathe a stranger before even asking that person’s identity. Anyone who violated these duties was considered uncivilized, and offensive to the gods.
Tragically, however, Africans and Native Americans were so vulnerable to colonizers partly because they falsely assumed these strangers were civilized and would not take advantage of their hosts.
Perhaps we need to reexamine our assumptions about who is civilized and who is not.