In Greek tragedies, the coryphaeus leads the chorus.
Coryphaeus is a term that comes from the Latin word coryphaeus , in turn from the Greek koryphaîos . According to etymology , the term refers to the leader of a choir .
Choir leader
In a Greek tragedy , therefore, the coryphaeus is the one who leads the chorus . The concept derives from what happened in the temple of Dionysus : the coryphaeus was the one who sang and danced best of each group of young people who went to the temple within the framework of the grape harvest festival, thus becoming the leader of his group and who set the pace.
Later, in classical theater , the director of the choir began to be called coryphaeus. He was no longer a skilled dancer or an entertainer, but rather someone who was in charge of guiding the choristers .
Sometimes the coryphaeus assumed the voice of the choir and spoke on its behalf; He could also repeat his words or even respond to him. The coryphaeus could also develop an interaction with the characters who were on stage.
Another meaning
According to the Royal Spanish Academy ( RAE ), on the other hand, the coryphaeus is the individual who is supported or followed by others . When it appears in the plural ( corifeos ), the notion usually refers to the supporters or followers of an organization, a movement, etc. For example: “The president's supporters limit themselves to repeating his words, without reflecting on them,” “Communism has many supporters in these lands,” “The deputy appealed to his media sponsor so that the complaints against him would lose legitimacy .” .
This duality in meaning linked directly to the number of the noun is very curious, especially because it takes us to two apparently opposite extremes. In the singular it tells us about a leader, someone capable of influencing others with a charisma that few people have; in the plural, on the other hand, of an individual who probably lacks these qualities, and who simply echoes what others who do have them say.
Throughout the three examples we see cases like the one described just now, of an almost automatic repetition of what was said by a third party. When talking about a president's coryphaes, the consequences can be especially serious if he promotes ideas such as racism, machismo or any other form of discrimination, something that could be seen before and during Donald Trump's term in the United States. .
With respect to movements or ideologies, this attitude usually occurs in people who do not have very deep or precise knowledge, or who have developed a kind of obsession with them and are not able to stop and think about their negative points or the advantages that they offer. would bring them into practice. Lastly, when journalists act as chorus men, they can manipulate information and influence the public to make them think in a certain way.
Currently, the plural use of the term refers to supporters or followers.
Etymology
As we anticipated at the beginning of this article, the origin of this term is found in Greek, where it meant " chief ", and then it came to Latin. Broadly speaking, even in our language it retains the broadest definition, which refers to an individual who is followed by others because of his ideas or opinions, and who is a natural leader.
Digging a little deeper, we can see that in Greek there were two terms from which Latin supposedly took its version: korufaisol and koryphaios , which translate as "chief" and "choir leader" respectively. In turn, the latter seems to have descended from koryphé , which is " top , highest point." Curiously, there are scholars who claim that these arose from the Latin cornu , which means "horn."