Classical Mythology - Tumblr Posts
In a Modern AU:
For context, Rhian is a literature professor who has to deliver a talk at a conference about the chivalric romance genre, and he can't drive himself safely while his stomach is turning with anxiety. And besides, he has to rehearse his speech. However, he did not agree to Rafal being the one to drive him.
[Rhian is standing by the side of the road, on the driveway. Rafal is already in their car, in the driver's seat.]
Rafal: Get in. What are you standing there like a sluggard for?
Rhian: What! No! You're a maniac on the road, Rafal! I'd rather take my chances with Thanatos behind the wheel than you. I'll take the train to my conference instead.
Rafal: [shrugs and says mockingly,] Pardee, suit yourself, Eros. [He presses down on the gas pedal, and speeds off into the distance with an astronomical acceleration, tires skidding through a clouded puddle with a great SPLOOSH, soaking Rhian to the bone—all while wearing an expression that rather did resemble one of a patient who ought to be sealed in a psychiatric ward.]
Rhian: [He remains dead still, trying to keep his hands from shaking with fear and anger, so he won't strangle Rafal the next time he turns up. Then, he blinks the frigid, bone-numbing slush out of his eyes and attempts to stave off the heat of public ridicule in his face, but he's still cold, wet, and redder than ever, and just heaves a resigned sigh.] I'll ready the straitjacket for when he gets arrested.
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If anyone would to know what exactly were the references the brothers made, here are some quotations I've found to explain them:
"In classical Freudian psychoanalytic theory, the death drive is the drive toward death and destruction, often expressed through behaviors such as aggression, repetition compulsion, and self-destructiveness."
"Eros was the god of love, fertility, and passion in ancient Greece. Thanatos was the human manifestation of death."
"Thanatos, or the death drive, generates the tendency of an organism to seek its own destruction and return to a state of non-existence."
"In Freudian psychology, eros, not to be confused with libido, is not exclusively the sex drive, but our life force, the will to live. It is the desire to create life, and favors productivity and construction. In early psychoanalytic writings, instincts from the eros were opposed by forces from the ego. But in later psychoanalytic theory, eros is opposed by the destructive death instinct of Thanatos (death instinct or death drive)."
"Whether by "first sight" or by other routes, passionate love often had disastrous results according to the classical authors. In the event that the loved one was cruel or uninterested, this desire was shown to drive the lover into a state of depression, causing lamentation and illness. Occasionally, the loved one was depicted as an unwitting ensnarer of the lover [...]"
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Also, you can expect the concept of the Thanatos drive to make a minor appearance in Rafal's psyche in TOTSMOV41, if I have the opportunity to allude to it. I think the concept just lends itself well to Nevers in general. And, the Eros drive, its counterpart, works just as well for most Evers.
An AU Concept: The myth of Eos and Tithonus but applied to Rafal and Rhian. (Except, it would have to be interpreted platonically, and besides, Tithonius taking the form of a cicada for the rest of his days recalls Rhian in his moth form in my mind.)
I think it would be simultaneously hilarious and angst-ridden, actually. Like, curse the Storian! (The Pen would be cast as Zeus.) Except, in reality, the fault would really lie with Rafal lacking foresight, and the "precision of language" or inexact-requests-from-deities trope, which I'm often fond of.
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Here's a brief reference to the story if anyone needs it:
I was thinking of the naming conventions in the prequels, and it occurred to me that the characters could easily be cast in the roles of the original myth of Venus being married off to Hephaestus against her will. (The only factor that doesn't fit is that the brothers have an obviously platonic bond. So, disregard the actual type of union involved.)
Rhian = Venus/Aphrodite (assuming this whole sequence would occur while he's both desirable and desires romantic love for himself)
Rafal = Vulcan/Hephaestus
Vulcan or Hook = Mars/Ares
The Storian = Jupiter/Zeus
This set-up would mean that Rafal would catch Rhian and his forbidden lover in an impenetrable golden net. And well, I like the image for its comedy potential. Rhian would blush when he's caught red-handed at the enormity of his own deeds, of "cheating," like in Rise, but it would be worse than what went down with Gavaldon's barrier and Marialena since he'd literally be in bed.
Of course, the brothers couldn't be married like in the myth as I explained before, so their bond would have to be platonic and yet still legally-binding in some other way, like how it was sealed by the Storian in canon, or in the myth, sanctioned by Zeus. The whole scenario would dissolve their trust while being more operatic than usual.
And then, the Storian and all the rest of the Woods would gawk and laugh at Rhian, humiliated in a storybook, as, in the myth, Hephaestus drags the net with the lovers tangled in it to Mount Olympus, to shame the adulterous pair in front of all the rest of the gods.
And Rafal's character has a fair bit of overlap with Hephaestus' (the mythological god's, not the Ever's). He's the gruff, bitter, surly, unsociable man, cooped up in his stithy, or rather, in Rafal's case, his study in the tower.
Thoughts That Go Whump in the Night for Rafal
Note: I tried to find as many torture methods as I could that involved the bird motif. Do not search for these if you do not want visual representations of them.
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Caught in a snare trap like a dumb woodcock à la Hamlet.
Eyes plucked out by doves à la "Cinderella."
Bird-who-was-formerly-a-ghost-boy-now-reincarnated drops a millstone onto his head à la "The Juniper Tree."
Transformed into a bird and stabbed by pins on a windowsill upon landing à la "The Canary Prince."
Chased by geese in the park.
Hitchcock-style bird attacks.
Viking blood eagle execution method. (When the rib cage was broken and opened, the lungs allegedly fluttered like "wings.")
Gibbeted in a cage.
Cucking and ducking stool.
A mock-Icarus scenario, flying too close to the sun and overheating, perhaps afflicted by the drip of burning wax.
Tarred and feathered à la American Revolution.
Bound to a rock to have his liver feasted on by an eagle everyday à la Prometheus.
Pau de arara or "parrot's perch," a stress position. (Bird sellers use it for transporting birds.)
White torture. (A form of psychological torture and sensory deprivation—everything in sight is white. Would be halfway decent camouflage, actually.)
The whirligig. (It has a whimsical name, yet it involves a spinning cage.)
Strappado or "pigeon torture."
Live burial. (Self-explanatory. Fits the vibes of TLEA.)
Second Circle of Hell. (Whipped around in an endless cyclone, representing Rafal's wind motif. That motif is actually more present in the main series than in the prequels and it featured in an OTK flashback.)
Seventh Circle of Hell. (Preyed on by harpies.)
Stymphalian birds. (Sorry to the Stymphs, but they were originally man-eating in classical mythology.)
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I feel like all this shouldn't need a disclaimer, but obviously, don't try any of this at home, not that anyone could in most cases. These ideas are for strictly fictional purposes.
Also, suppose Vulcan could've used any of these? I have another post with less graphic mentions of torture here.
credits(from left to right):
Persephone by Purrcelot(Twitter)
Hades and Persephone by Nixeu(Facebook)
Hades and Persephone by Annie Stegg
Hades and Persephone by jodeee.
Thanks to @vanellq77 ❤️❤️
"if i was orpheus i would simply not turn around" yes you would. if you were orpheus and you loved eurydice, you would. to love someone is to turn around. to love someone is to look at them. whichever version of the myth — he hears her stumble, he can't hear her at all, he thinks he's been tricked — he turns around because he loves her. that's why it's a tragedy. because he loves her enough to save her. because he loves her so much he can't save her. because he will always, always turn around. "if i was orpheus i would simply —" you wouldn't be orpheus. you wouldn't be brave enough to walk into the underworld and save the person you love. be serious
Minotaur is not a species
The Minotaur was named that because he was the son of King Minos. Anyone with a bull head has to be named after their dad, like the Kyletaur or something.
Hades: can I be frank with you?
Hermes: sure, Frank
Hades: what
Hermes: what
‘The Homeric Hymn To Demeter’ - Helene P. Foley
Chronological framework of the Second Trojan War (1193-1184)
A rough chronology of the Second Trojan War, including events leading to it. This will be fleshed out as I develop the biographies of the main characters. Comments & criticism are welcome.
1215 | MARRIAGE OF PELEUS & THETIS on the slopes of Mount Pelion. Eris throws the apple of discord at their wedding feast and the goddesses quarrel for the prize of being the fairest. Zeus takes the apple and declares that the matter shall be settled later.
1214 | OATH OF TYNDAREUS in Sparta. Tyndareus announces it is time for his daughter Helen to marry. Many suitors show up. Tyndareus makes them swear an oath to assist Helen's chosen husband in time of need. Menelaus is chosen and marries Helen.
1209 | JUDGMENT OF PARIS on the slopes of Mount Ida. Zeus, impressed by Paris's fairness, sends him Hera, Athena and Aphrodite, for him to judge which is the fairest. Paris chooses Aphrodite, thus gaining the promise of the love of Helen.
1204 | PARIS ABDUCTS HELEN. Paris and Aeneas, with a contingent of men, visit Sparta. Menelaus welcomes him but must leave for Crete for his grandfather King Catreus's funeral. Helen is smitten with love and leaves with Paris, taking her treasury with her. They detour south of Crete, and go to Cyprus and Phoenicia. Menelaus invokes the oath of Tyndareus and summons his allies. Calchas predicts a war with Troy and that Achilles will be needed to win it. Thetis fears for her son's life and hides him in Scyros.
1200 | FIRST GATHERING OF THE FLEETS in Aulis. Calchas predicts the war against Troy will last ten years. EXPEDITION TO MYSIA. Thersander, king of Thebes, is slain. Telephus is wounded by Achilles. The Greek fleet is dispersed by a storm. Many ships are lost and the Greeks take time to recover.
1193 | SECOND GATHERING OF THE FLEETS in Aulis. Achilles heals Telephus, who reveals the way to Troy. Sacrifice of Iphigenia. Philoctetes is left in Lemnos. Achilles slays Tenes. Failed diplomacy attempt by Menelaus & Odysseus. Protesilaus is slain by Hector. THE WAR BEGINS. Cycnus is slain by Achilles.
1193-1185 | The Greeks, especially Achilles and Ajax the greater, carry out multiple campaigns around Troy to cut Troy off from supplies and allies. Many cities are sacked in both Thrace and Asia Minor. During that time, the Greek beachhead near Troy is fortified but never fully manned. Ajax the greater manages to secure and exploit farmland on the Thracian peninsula for the benefit of the Greeks.
1191 | Achilles ambushes and kills Troilus, young son of Priam, because of a prophecy saying that if he reached the age of 20, Troy would never fall.
1190 | Death of Palamedes. His father Nauplius, denied justice, encourages the Greek wives to be unfaithful.
1188 | A small earthquake hits Troy, killing Paris's sons.
1187 | Ajax the greater and Achilles play a game of petteia on the battlefield, saved in extremis by Athena.
1186 | Lack of supplies and mutiny among the Greeks. Intervention of the Wine Growers.
1185 | THE WRATH OF ACHILLES. Deaths of Patroclus and Hector. Intervention of the Amazons.
1184 | Intervention of the Ethiopians. Death of Achilles. The Trojan horse and the FALL OF TROY. Athena is angered against the Greeks.
1184-1175 | THE RETURNS. Many Greek commanders suffer tragedy and turmoil during their return from Troy.
1177 | Aeneas reaches Carthage.
1175 | Odysseus reaches his home in Ithaca at last, ending the longest of the returns.
People are reading the Iliad, and conclude that the meaning is anger, ok that's what Homer said too, let's think more.
They didn't understand the destruction of human life, how important it is to be remembered, and whether it all make sense. War is evil, and if you want to win, you have to be evil, and only the gods are responsible, and they are the only ones who can stop it.
THE MEANING IS HUMANITY IN WAR AND IS IT IMPORTANT TO BE REMEMBERED IDIOTS.
Read books 6,9, and 24 again and really read the books nicely and carefully.
Pay attention to every man who has a family and will leave it for what for the gods who are ready to use them as playthings.
AND ALSO, this is an old ancient culture that was very important the sentence "tooth for tooth eye for eye son for son."
Greek Mythology is nasty nasty please don't forget that.
Oh yeah and this too
Kleos (Ancient Greek: κλέος) is the Greek word often translated to "renown", or "glory". It is related to the English word "loud" and carries the implied meaning of "what others hear about you". A Greek hero earns kleos through accomplishing great deeds.
According to Gregory Nagy, besides the meaning of "glory", kleos can also be used as the medium (in this case, the ancient Greek poetry or song) which conveys glory.
Ok, thanks, that's my thought for the day <3
The Iliad and The Odyssey books
1) Absolutely, I’d love to read it!
2) However (lol)… here’s my take on the comparisons between the two couples (with my perception of Enjoltaire heavily influenced by fandom sources and Patrochilles by my Classics A level)
Whilst both couples have the same aesthetic appearance (the famous blond leader/devoted brunette follower), and it could be argues that Achilles holds the same passion (?) as Enjolras, however untimely I’d argue that Achilles is fundamentally different - he refuses to fight in the war for purely selfish reasons (Agamemnon taking Briseis being an insult to Achilles’ Kleos (reputation)) Whilst for Enjolras, nothing, not even his narrative foil, can get between him and his cause (His gf Patria (France)). Additionally whilst Grantaire is cynical of said cause and possibly only there for Enjolras, Patroclus is 100% for the Trojan war, and eager to fight, only held back by Achilles’ ‘sulking.’
On the other hand, both Patroclus and Grantaire possess similar fateful devotion which ends in their deaths due to their hamatia’s (fatal mistakes), however the significance of these deaths in a narrative context can be debated- whilst Patroclus’ death is central to a story so clearly stated at the begging as about the ‘anger of Achilles,’ finally influencing him to fight, and giving Achilles an Aristeia (heroic killing spree), Grantaire’s death is a final sign of devotion as the two die together. Furthermore, they (much to all our chagrin) remain side characters to the (worse) plot of Jean Valjean and Cossette ect, not allowing their death to accomplish much within the story but set narrative stakes for Marius (potentially purposefully to reflect the fruitless nature of their defiance and death).
I could go on but it’s very late and I won’t bore anyone any longer lmao
um, so... i've been thinking about doing an essay on why patrochilles and enjoltaire are literally the same but reincarnated???? lmk if you wanted posted here or something idk lmao.
horror girls + flower crowns
viy (1967)
the blood on satan’s claw (1971)
midsommar (2019)
In love with Leo and Diane Dillon’s Greek mythology art, from the 60s Classical Greece book by Time-Life
The chimera I designed for our new LEGO show. I cannot express how much of a labor of love this was. It took over 100 hours just to design, let alone build and is one of the largest and most complex sculptures I’ve done.
Fun fact: This model used every single LEGO color available in standard brick.
✨These are going to make some Hellenics mad but the visuals are stunning🤩
celine loup
Juuuuust before the pandemic hit I used to go to the Walters and sketch every week; this became a regular series on my Patreon called Trove. I want to finish this sketchbook and reboot the series this year!
Sketches of Callisto and Arcos - AKA Ursa Major and Ursa Minor from Greek Myth. Fashion Design inspired by Xena, Warrior Princess.
"Xena, Warrior Princess" was a show made in 1995. Although this show primarily focused on the folktales from ancient Greece, it often took on a more modern fantasy look.
The costume design aimed to capture 'modern" mid 90's fashion blended with Greek,Celt, and Viking looks.
Not too much history on this one, mostly a Fashion Design Post.
Thanks for reading! 🐍💕