The Judgment of Animals in Classical Greece: Animal Sculpture and ...

Chapter 3: The Classical Greek Contradictory Attitude toward the Dog
Introduction
This chapter is an investigation of the Classical Greek attitude towards the dog
based on contemporary literary sources. Although the Classical period is especially rich
in sources, the present chapter is limited to a selected body of texts from which a clear
picture of how the dog was viewed and treated can be discerned.
The attitude towards the dog that emerges from these texts is marked by
contradiction: the dog, on the one hand, was in some respect, central to the life and
thought of Classical Greek society, but, on the other, it was denigrated as a malevolent
creature deserving of callous and cruel treatment. The sources show that the dog was an
integral part of Classical Greek society, which was anthropocentric to its core. As a
resident of the Classical Greek household, the dog was cared for by having both shelter
and food provided for it. Its behavior was so familiar and closely observed that its
propensity for stealing and gobbling food served as a figure of speech for describing
similar behavior in humans. The dog was also highly valued for its ability in guarding
the house, its residents, and their possessions, and for its fidelity and cunning
intelligence. A certain breed known as the Molossian was esteemed for its exceptional
appearance and size. Yet along with this positive reception of the dog, the sources also
preserve a strand of evidence that portrays the animal as a malevolent and dangerous
creature, and one that was beaten and actually eaten. For example, because of its ability
simultaneously to fawn over and bite people, the dog was considered a treacherous and
therefore untrustworthy animal. Similarly, its behavior as a scavenger inspired fear in
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