The oldest story of all: how the gods were born. And it begins with a shepherd who says the Muses spoke to him.
Hesiod’s Theogony · C1
Part One: The Muses on Helicon
Reporting verbs with nuance (claim, insist, concede, deny, urge, boast, allege, dismiss as, recount, assert): C1 language for a poem that begins by questioning its own truth.
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SOPHIA
MARCOS
Says. Not did.
The story
After Hesiod’s Theogony, lines 1–115
Hesiod, a shepherd from the poor village of Ascra, claims that one day the Muses appeared to him on Mount Helicon. They dismissed the shepherds as “mere bellies”, and boasted that they could tell lies that sounded like the truth, or the truth itself when they wished.
Hesiod did not deny being a shepherd. The Muses gave him a laurel staff, breathed a divine voice into him, and urged him to sing of the gods, insisting that he begin and end with them.
In the rest of the poem, he recounts how the world and the gods came to be. It is alleged, in other words, that the whole Theogony comes straight from the Muses: Hesiod asserts it himself.
We know how to tell many lies that sound like the truth; and we know, when we wish, how to speak the truth.
Reporting verbs: what people say about truth
MARCOS
They claim to know the truth. He asserts that they spoke to him. And it is alleged that… well, I have doubts.
SOPHIA
Good, Marcos. Reporting verbs do more than report: they show attitude. claim (no proof), assert (firmly), allege (formal, unproved). claim to + verb, assert that, it is alleged that.
Admitting and denying
PHILO
He conceded he was a shepherd. He didn’t deny being a belly.
SOPHIA
concede (that) = admit reluctantly. deny + -ing or deny that. admit + -ing / that. Never deny to be.
Pushing and dismissing
DEMETRIA
The Muses urged him to sing, and insisted that he begin with them. But first they dismissed him as a belly!
SOPHIA
urge someone to do. insist that + subject + base verb (or insist on + -ing). dismiss someone as. And to tell a story formally: recount.
Sophia’s summary
| Form | Use | From the story |
|---|---|---|
| claim to + verb; assert that | saying something is true | They claimed to know the truth. |
| it is alleged that | formal distance | It is alleged that he met the Muses. |
| concede that; deny + -ing | admitting and denying | He didn’t deny being a shepherd. |
| urge sb to; insist that sb + base verb | pushing someone | They insisted that he sing of them. |
| boast about; dismiss as; recount | boasting, dismissing, telling | They dismissed the shepherds as bellies. |
Practice
Answer all the questions, then press “Check my answers”. You can try again as many times as you like.
A · Choose
Choose the correct form.
1. The Muses ___ to know how to tell convincing lies.
2. They insisted that he ___ of the gods.
3. He didn’t deny ___ a shepherd.
4. They urged him ___ his song with them.
5. They dismissed the shepherds ___ mere bellies.
6. Hesiod firmly ___ that the Muses spoke to him.
B · Write
Write the correct form of the word in brackets, or the missing word.
7. The shepherds boasted their sheep.
8. It is that he met the Muses in person. (formal, unproved)
9. He that he knew nothing. (admitted reluctantly)
10. The Muses how the world began. (told, formally)
C · Right or wrong?
Is it correct?
11. “They insisted him to sing.”
12. “He denied having seen them.”
13. “I assert you that it is true.”
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