Phil Cousineau was once told by master teacher and psychologist, the late Rollo May that the myth of Sisyphus is an antidote to the modern myth of progress. Myths can and do reveal perennial truths about human nature and culture. Mythographers are fond of saying that myths are stories that never happened but are always happening. The Greek myth of Sisyphus is a tale that unveils our valiant and irrepressible desire to create something unique out of our lives despite our despair and our defeats. This deep conversation plunges the depths and fullness of this misunderstood myth with master Greekophile Phil Cousineau. He reveals how, in the depths of the pandemic, he was inspired to turn the Sisyphus myth around. “Just as Sisyphus had to fight against Zeus and his dominating ways, condemning this great hero [Sisyphus] to life in the underworld is a parable for the modern world and our fight against authoritarianism… We are all in hell during the pandemic. And I would argue that if our legends, fairytales, myths, our dreams, our novels, our output of Art cannot address the dark night of the soul, ‘It ain’t Art’.”
