Myth Commentaries/2014519/11
(editing)
Commentary %231 %E2%80%93 The Myth of the Flood %5BPindar%2C Ovid%2C the Bible%5D by Emily Fuller %28998285957%29%0D%0A%0D%0AThe recounting by Ovid in Metamorphoses focuses much more on the actions%2C motivations and purposes of the Gods. The tale starts with the careful considering of Zeus %28Jove%2C Jupiter%29%2C and his deciding that the destruction of mankind should not be accompanied by the destruction of the planet%2C so he sets aside his thunderbolts and instead calls up the waves. From here we see the deified Southwind and Northwind%2C the messenger Juno%2C the River Gods and their ruler Neptune each play their part to bring for the roiling waves to cover the earth and sweep men away. Ovid%E2%80%99s tale does mention a surviving man and women%2C who are discovered floating alone on the waves%2C and deemed to be just and worthy. The man is Deucalion who we know very little about%2C besides the fact that he is good and just. And he is accompanied by %E2%80%9Cthe consort of his couch%E2%80%9D Pyrrha%2C who is described as fearful of the gods. At this point Jupiter decides that his destruction has been sufficient. Triton rises up from the waves and blows his shell%2C calling back the waves to settle in the sea%2C bringing forth the shores once more. The second sections of the story involves the will of Deucalion and Pyrrha more%2C it recounts their fear at being so alone%2C their desire to seek guidance from the oracles%2C their confusion at the oracles troubling words %E2%80%9Ccast behind you as you go%2C the bones of your great mother%E2%80%9D. %0D%0AThere is a parallel between Pindar and Ovid%E2%80%99s tellings of the myth%2C both involve individuals named Deucalion and Pyrrha who bring forth stone offspring without the help of the %E2%80%9Cmarriage bed%E2%80%9D. There is an implication of a stronger%2C more resilient line of man coming from stone rather than clay %28as is mentioned briefly by Deucalion in Ovid%E2%80%99 recounting and is the origin of man in the Bible%29. Pindar%E2%80%99s recounting also focuses much more on the motivations and actions of the Gods than that of men. %0D%0AIn the tale told in the Bible the relationship between God and man is very apparent. God is sick of the evils of his creation but he still loves Noah enough to give him careful%2C intricate instructions for his own survival%2C long before the floodwaters rise up. And Noah is a devoted follower of God%2C he does everything exactly as God commands%2C and because of his faithful obedience he is saved from the utter desolation that destroyed every living thing upon the earth. This recounting is told much more from the perspective of Noah and his family. This recounting supposes that the new population of the earth comes not from stones but from Noah and his sons and their wives reproducing in the marriage bed. Similarly are the beasts of the earth supposed to reproduce in order to become food for Noah and his family%2C because two of each kind have been saved.%0D%0A
May 19, 2014 15:41
Myth Commentaries/2014519/11
(editing)
Commentary %231 %E2%80%93 The Myth of the Flood %5BPindar%2C Ovid%2C the Bible%5D by Emily Fuller %28998285957%29%0D%0A%0D%0AThe recounting by Ovid in Metamorphoses focuses much more on the actions%2C motivations and purposes of the Gods. The tale starts with the careful considering of Zeus %28Jove%2C Jupiter%29%2C and his deciding that the destruction of mankind should not be accompanied by the destruction of the planet%2C so he sets aside his thunderbolts and instead calls up the waves. From here we see the deified Southwind and Northwind%2C the messenger Juno%2C the River Gods and their ruler Neptune each play their part to bring for the roiling waves to cover the earth and sweep men away. Ovid%E2%80%99s tale does mention a surviving man and women%2C who are discovered floating alone on the waves%2C and deemed to be just and worthy. The man is Deucalion who we know very little about%2C besides the fact that he is good and just. And he is accompanied by %E2%80%9Cthe consort of his couch%E2%80%9D Pyrrha%2C who is described as fearful of the gods. At this point Jupiter decides that his destruction has been sufficient. Triton rises up from the waves and blows his shell%2C calling back the waves to settle in the sea%2C bringing forth the shores once more. The second sections of the story involves the will of Deucalion and Pyrrha more%2C it recounts their fear at being so alone%2C their desire to seek guidance from the oracles%2C their confusion at the oracles troubling words %E2%80%9Ccast behind you as you go%2C the bones of your great mother%E2%80%9D. %0D%0AThere is a parallel between Pindar and Ovid%E2%80%99s tellings of the myth%2C both involve individuals named Deucalion and Pyrrha who bring forth stone offspring without the help of the %E2%80%9Cmarriage bed%E2%80%9D. There is an implication of a stronger%2C more resilient line of man coming from stone rather than clay %28as is mentioned briefly by Deucalion in Ovid%E2%80%99 recounting and is the origin of man in the Bible%29. Pindar%E2%80%99s recounting also focuses much more on the motivations and actions of the Gods than that of men. %0D%0AIn the tale told in the Bible the relationship between God and man is very apparent. God is sick of the evils of his creation but he still loves Noah enough to give him careful%2C intricate instructions for his own survival%2C long before the floodwaters rise up. And Noah is a devoted follower of God%2C he does everything exactly as God commands%2C and because of his faithful obedience he is saved from the utter desolation that destroyed every living thing upon the earth. This recounting is told much more from the perspective of Noah and his family. This recounting supposes that the new population of the earth comes not from stones but from Noah and his sons and their wives reproducing in the marriage bed. Similarly are the beasts of the earth supposed to reproduce in order to become food for Noah and his family%2C because two of each kind have been saved.%0D%0A
May 20, 2014 02:11
Myth Commentaries/2014526/35
(submitted)
War is a broken thing%2C on both sides there are good an evil and on both sides much loss is suffered. In the first passage Achilles speaks to Priam. Achilles has been on a murderous rampage after having witnessed the murder of his loved ones. Most recently%2C he killed Priam%E2%80%99s son Hector. Priam could not bear it and%2C as we see at the end of the passage%2C has not eaten%2C drank%2C or slept throughout his mourning. And yet%2C the two speak now. Achilles gives back the body of Hector to Priam%2C and then talks of the importance of meat and the breaking of bread. No doubt both Priam and himself were starving at this point%2C have fought hard and fasted hard respectively. Achilles speaks of the gods Apollo%2C Artemis and Cronos. But mostly he speaks of Niobe%2C he compares his grief and his loss to hers%2C he compares his need for sustenance to theirs. In their breaking of bread together Priam seems to see Achilles as a god among men%2C remarking on his stature. Priam speaks a few words at the end of their time together%2C words of affirmation %28%E2%80%9CO thou nurtured of Zeus%E2%80%9D%29 and words of contentment%2C asking for a place to lay his head after having finally taken wine and meat that he had not had since his son lost his life. Priam seems to have finally found some peace.%0D%0AThe next passage is a solemn conversation between a Chorus and Antigone. Antigone is walking to her death. Antigone speaks of never singing her bridal song and compares the place where she will lay her head for the last time to her marriage bed. The Chorus beseeches her to be grateful for the way she is going to die%2C %E2%80%9Cneither struck by wasting sickness%2C nor having won the wages of the sword%E2%80%9D. Antigone cannot look with gratitude upon this moment. It makes one think back to the life of Hector%2C cut short in his prime%2C having won the wages of the sword that Achilles swung. It makes one wonder what his thoughts were as he went to meet Hades.%0D%0AIn the first passage%2C Achilles alludes to the story of Niobe and her great loss. In the last passage we read the story in full. Niobe was a proud woman%2C she was most boastful of her children. She committed the ultimate hubris and raised herself above the goddess Latona. Latona%2C in her wrath sent her two children%2C Phoebe and Phoebus%2C to desolate Niobe%E2%80%99s 14 offspring. And desolated they were%2C first the seven sons%2C then the seven daughters as they grieved in black. Niobe%2C like Priam lost her beloved offspring due to an offense committed against the gods. Achilles speaks of her kneeling in a field of blood and slowly turning to stone%2C which we see happen at the end of the third passage%2C her utter grief turns her completely to marble%2C all except her tears which still pour forth to this day.
May 26, 2014 15:27
Myth Commentaries/201462/5
(submitted)
These hymns about Pan introduce him as a celebrated%2C joyful character that is loved well by the gods on Olympus and the people of earth. We learn from the Homeric hymn that he was born to Hermes and the %E2%80%9Crich-tressed daughter of Dryops%E2%80%9D. When Pan was born he startled his nursemaid because of his unusual%2C %E2%80%9Cunhuman%E2%80%9D appearance. By human standards%2C Pan is not physically attractive%2C being hairy and horny and hoof-y all at once. But his father loved him dearly and was very pleased to look upon his face. Which is very interesting and is made more interesting when Hermes brings Pan to Olympus and lays him by Zeus%E2%80%99s feet%2C presumably to show him off. All of the gods seem to love him dearly%2C and together they name him Pan%2C which apparently means %E2%80%9CAll%E2%80%9D in Greek%2C because he delighted all of their hearts. %0D%0A%0D%0AThe Homeric hymn also tells us that Pan loves to roam through the wilderness and feels great kinship with the mountains%2C streams%2C and forests. He seems to be able to play music that accompanies the natural world very well. Perhaps it is his light%2C melodic tunes and his joy at the natural world that makes him so loveable. It%E2%80%99s very interesting that Echo is mentioned in both of the hymns. It seems that she lives in the hollow places on the mountainsides. It seems that these are lonely places that are hard to get to. But Pan is nimble like a goat and can spring over any wild terrain. Maybe Pan brings something beautiful%2C light%2C and happy for her to echo%2C maybe Pan brings her joy. %0D%0A%0D%0APan seems very different to other satyrs. He is born the son of an Olympian god and that gives him more power %28maybe%3F%29 and more entitlement. He seems to live with a careless abandon. The fact that he is so favoured on Olympus gives him certain liberties as well. In the Homeric hymn special acknowledgement is given to Dionysus when mentioning the gods who love him. This makes me think that Dionysus pursued Pan sexually at some point and that they engaged in relations at some point%2C especially if all the gods were already smitten with him. In this sense it seems that Pan would have grown up very aware of his sexuality%2C which may explain the sculpture by Heliodorus. In the image Pan has both of his arms around a young shepherd boy who is timidly holding his flute. The imagery is slightly sexual%3A Pan is encouraging him to put the flute to his lips%2C even lifting his hand closer to his mouth. Pan is very clearly courting this young boy%2C possibly in the same way that he was courted when he was young. %0D%0A
June 02, 2014 02:24
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