Percy Bysshe Shelley wrote, “We are all Greeks. Our laws, our literature, our religion, our arts, have their root in Greece.” That is true in both a positive as well as a negative way. This dichotomy can be seen in many Americans. For example, in the ancient Greek theater, the actors wore masks.

The Greek masks

It should be noted that all actors were males. Therefore, masks covered their faces, which allowed them to play women’s parts. Another reason was that the use of masks amplified their voices. Despite that, it was often difficult to hear what characters spoke on the stage. Therefore, the Greek actors wore masks that had happy or depressed expressions. The audience could see the expression on the character’s mask, which allowed the audience to understand the actor’s feelings. The Greeks picked up the use of masks around the sixth century BCE.

The Theatre of Dionysus

This is the theater of Dionysus, the Greek god of wine. When drinking, one could emotionally feel happy and then sad.

Happy and sad Dionysus

Another Greek god was Janus, who was depicted with two faces. Janus was the beginning and the end of things. One face was young, and the other was old.

Beginning and Ending

As Shelley noted, “We are all Greeks.” Here are some examples of our two masks. These are Trump’s two faces.

These are the two faces of Mitch McConnell. The first face.

The second face.

These are the two faces of Kevin McCarthy. The first face.

That was one face of McCarthy. You can see his other face when he went to Mar-a-Lago to kiss Donald the Dumb’s ring.

As Shelley wrote, “We are all Greeks,” but some of us have two faces.

The Greek masks