In our week of failure, both the class and our readings talked extensively about how failure can be an important aspect of success. Learning from failures allows one to “hit the wall, and then go past it” as Patrick exclaimed. So, when playing Ancient Greek Punishment, I truly remembered how the Greeks were some real a**holes. I say this not because they created torture devices that objected people to tormenting failure, but because their devised tortures never ended.
Take Tantalus, the Greek king who stole ambrosia and nectar (similar to food/water) from the gods. He also cooked up his son and tried to feed him to the gods. He was guilty of thievery and cannibalism, so he got an appropriate punishment: always being thirsty/hungry yet being unable to eat/drink. This story taught a lesson against stealing and cannibalism, and, if you already knew the background, the Tantalus game level could do the same. But regardless, the player, or the listener, gets what is being taught and can continue onward.
Meanwhile, Tantalus is stuck failing for an eternity. He deserved to learn his lesson, but what is the point if he can never act on it. Failure is supposed to inform a person, to teach them what they did wrong or guide them towards a path that will grant success. If failure is always succeeded by more failure through some sort of systematic oppression, than it no longer paves the way to success, therefore becoming an undeniably bad thing. One may claim that Tantalus should accept that he committed terrible wrongs and accept his eternal damnation, but then one gets into the realm of things like whether murderers deserve to be released if they’ve served their time.
Anyways, I declare the Greeks were a**holes because they took an integral part of the learning and success process and poisoned it. Tantalus may have once been cruel, but since he can never act upon his failure, he will likely become bitter and resentful that he can NEVER redeem himself. If failure truly begets success, then the Greeks spit on that idea. Ancient Greek Punishment simply takes that spit and pixelates it.