#Greek Retelling

[septemberkisses]

— The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller

[namedforvalor]

I am never not thinking about Achilles screaming Hector’s name across the battlefield. Because Paris loved Helen enough to start a war in her name, and Hector loved Paris enough to be the face of that war in his place, and Patroclus loved Achilles enough to die for him, and Achilles loved Patroclus enough to kill a man that he knew would bring his own death. It was a culmination of love and all of it ended in blood.

[tellmeomuse]

And In The Night, I See The Stars

Phaidros is a sailor whose heart belongs more to the sea than any one port, and he’s spent his entire life being blown from place to place. But after being falsely accused of a crime in King Minos’s court, he finds himself locked away in a labyrinth that he may never escape. The halls of Minos’s maze are said to be haunted by a fearsome beast, one that feasts on the flesh of men, but Phaidros quickly learns that what is said is not always what is true — and false accusations may be more common in this kingdom than he’d previously expected.

And In the Night, I See The Stars is a new retelling of an ancient tale that is fully written and currently being serialized on both AO3 and Patreon.

Chapters are posted every Wednesday and Patreon is a week ahead of AO3. There are currently thirteen chapters on AO3 and fourteen on Patreon.

Patreon is also home to:

writer's commentary

in-depth posts about character designs and settings

supplemental scenes that didn't make it into the main story

blogs discussing the historical, mythological, and artistic background that went into the making of this story

If you're curious about all this, why not give the foreword a try? It's called We Must Imagine The Minotaur Loved and it talks about Crete, Athens, the myth of the minotaur, the nature of mythologized history, and why Theseus does not appear in this version of the story.

Anyway, please read AITNISTS on AO3 and Patreon!

I may be biased, but I think it's a really great story. 💜

[neptunesize]

𝓽𝓱𝓮 𝓾𝓷𝓭𝓸𝓷𝓮 𝓪𝓷𝓭 𝓽𝓱𝓮 𝓭𝓲𝓿𝓲𝓷𝓮

a dionysus and ariadne playlist

✦ Bedroom Hymns - Florence and the Machine

✦ Glitter & Gloss - Skott

✦ Fool - Børns

✦ Is Everybody Going Crazy - Nothing but Thieves

and more! listen here!

[1800naveen]

One of the many reasons why I hate Feysand is because they're a Hades and Persephone retelling.

I really hate Hades and Persephone retellings, all of it is hot garbage.

Don't be disrespecting Persephone like that, Sarah J flop...

Feyre, who ruined the spring court. PERSEPHONE WHO IS THE GODDESS OF SPRING?

Hades is one of the few gods that I like when it comes to Greek mythology but he ain't no saint either. Mans kidnapped his own niece just so he could marry her. (I see where Daemon got the idea from)

Rhysand abducted Feyre from the spring court as part of their deal and later on married her as the series progressed. (Hades solos Rhysand though)

And there's Demeter. Persephone's mother who looked high and low for her daughter, who only wanted her to be back in her arms but some people wanted to villainize her for it. The mourning mother is the bad guy of the story?

But who is the Demeter in this case of Acotar? Both Tamlin and Nesta; Nesta went looking beyond the wall to find Feyre and Tamlin did everything he could to get Feyre back, even "teaming" up with Hybern.

[cliffhangerqueen]

I am APPALLED by the lack of fics featuring Ariadne and Dionysus. Literally makes me sick to my stomach.

In fact I am furthermore SICKENED by how underrated these two are together. We have failed as a society are you kidding?

Point is if anybody has any good Ariadne/Dionysus fics and or books please drop the recs and let's become friends because I HAVE NO ONE TO TALK ABOUT THEM WITH!!!

[thegarden-ofeden]

penelope of ithaca aesthetic

greek myths masterlist <- check out other moodboards

"This was her latest masterpiece of guile: she set up a great loom in the royal halls and she began to weave, and the weaving finespun, the yarns endless, and she would lead us on:" homer, the oddessey

[moony-2001]

You know who I’d like to see more stories about? Hecuba, the Queen of Troy. Her story is genuinely so tragic.

She loses her husband, all of her children, and her kingdom/title

She finds out that one of her daughters, Polyxena, was “claimed” by the ghost of Achilles’ as one of his soils of war and she is brutally murdered at his tomb

Her other daughter, Cassandra, is claimed by Agamemnon the asshole as his “bride prize” and she’s carted off, never to be seen again

Her daughter-in-law is also shipped off to be a “bride prize”

Her grandson is thrown off a roof by Odysseus, the man who Hecuba becomes the “prize” of

As she sets off for Ithaca, she finds out that the man who was supposed to be keeping guard over her last remaining son, Polydorus, has not only stolen the riches meant for him, but that Polydorus had also been murdered

But despite that, in my mind, she gets the last laugh. Not only does she claw out the eyes of and (in some interpretations) kill the man who killed her final son, she manages to be free from having to belong to Odysseus by turning into a dog and even the gods take pity on her.

Hecuba’s story is another wonderful example of the rage of a bereaved mother and the incredibly sad realities of what happened to the losing side after a war.

[xjulixred45x]

Do you know something that honestly bothers me? that when they want to make retellings of Greek stories, they almost always go for the figures that really do not deserve their own story.

I KNOW IT SOUNDS BAD, BUT LISTEN.

Circe, for example, from this woman (who turned out to be quite controversial) Madeline, they try to sell you Circe's story as a "feminist" retelling and normally there would be nothing wrong with that.

The issue is that Circe (in the myths and from what I understand in the book) is not at all feminist.

I mean, she is a morally gray woman, I respect that, but is it really a good idea to use as an example of a "feminist" a woman who 1- killed a man who did not want to be unfaithful to his wife with her, 2- converted an innocent nymph in a MONSTER (Scylla) only for an unrequited love (again) and 3- in Telogony, after Odysseus dies (her supposed "lover" who in some versión she ENCHANTED, at the hands of the son they had together) she marries HIS ANOTHER SON.

Since when did a woman who tramples on men or hurts other women for her own benefit become a "feminist" or "girlboss"??

WITH SO MANY OTHER POSSIBLE SCENARIOS TO MAKE RETELINGS OF GREEK MYTHOLOGY AND THEY DECIDE TO GO FOR CIRCE?

"BUT JUlIx WHAT ANOTHER EXAMPLE DO YOU WANT THEM TO USE?? Circe is SUPER KNOWN, OBVIOUSLY it's easier to go for her"

other examples? let's see:

MEDUSA (old classic, a great allegory that still works today about how SA victims are re-victimized and blamed by the people who should be protecting them/they don't get justice because their attacker is more "relevant" and powerful than them). (Even if it's the Roman versión, You can't Say that a myth that reflects the reality of THOUSANDS of women and give streng to the víctims its not "feminist")

PENTHESILEA(Amazon queen who fought in the Trojan War, which she attended because she was depressed after having accidentally killed her sisters, but she did not leave without killing dozens of Trojans and fighting with Achilles himself. IMAGINE A BOOK ABOUT HER) .

THE AMAZONS IN GENERAL (Tribes of warlike women, daughters of Ares, whom he loved very much, who had a matriarchal system that existed without men, without competition, with a great sense of sisterhood and who participated in many velic encounters in mythology) .

HERMIONE OF SPARTA AND ANDROMACHA (the daughter of Helen of Troy and Menelaus and the wife of Hector of Troy respectively. Both were married against their wills to Neoptolemus, the son of Achilles, who was abusive (quite graphically) and they hated him. Imagine a story where the two become friends and team up to kill Neo, Hermione takes control of Sparta and Andromache is her second in command).

ATALANTA (The only woman of the Argonauts who, when the magical boar of Calidon appeared, was the one who managed to hurt him first and kept the home trophy (but FOR SOME REASON later there are myths that kill her in the stupidest way possible, thanks Aphrodite) )

In conclusion, let's give the spotlight to Greek women who genuinely deserve to be known about them❤️ (without trowing Hate to Circe, she DESERVES TO BE KNOWN, but not as a feminist story).

________

(ESPAÑOL)

¿saben algo que sinceramente me molesta? que cuando se quieren jacer retelings de las historias griegas, casi siempre van por las figuras que realmente no se merecen una historia propia.

SE QUE SUENA MAL, PERO ESCUCHEN.

Circe, por ejemplo, de esta mujer(que resulto ser bastante polemica) Madeline, tratan de venderte la historia de Circe como un reteling "feminista" y eso normalmente no tendria nada de malo.

el tema es que Circe(en los mitos y por lo que tengo entendido en el libro) no tiene nada de feminista.

digo, es una mujer moralmente gris, eso lo respeto, pero ¿realmente es buena idea usar de ejemplo de "feminista" a una mujer que 1- mato a un hombre que no queria serle infiel a su esposa con ella, 2- convirtio a una ninfa inocente en un MONSTRUO(escilla) solo por un amor no correspondido (otra vez) y 3- en Telogony, después de que Odiseo muere(su supuesto "enamorado", a manos del hijo que tuvieron juntos) ella se casa CON SU OTRO HIJO.

¿¿desde cuando una mujer que pisotea a los hombres o hace daño a otras mujeres por beneficio propio paso a ser "feminista" o "girlboss"??

CON TANTOS OTROS POSIBLES ESCENARIOS PARA HACER RETELINGS DE LA MITOLOGÍA GRIEGA Y DECIDEN IR POR CIRCE?

"PeRo jUlIx ¿¿QuE oTrO eJeMpLo QuIeReS qUe UsEn?? Circe Es sUpEr cOnOcIdA, OBVIamente es mas facil ir por ella"

¿otros ejemplos? veamos:

MEDUSA(viejo clasico, una gran alegoria que sigue funcionando hasta hoy sobre como las victimas de SA son re-victimizadas y culpadas por la gente que deberia protegerlas/no obtienen justicia porque su agresor es mas "relevante" y poderoso que ellas).

PENTESILEA (Reina amazona que peleo en la guerra de Troya, a la cual asistio por estar deprimida al haber matado accidentalmente a sus hermanas, pero no se fue sin matar a decenas de troyanos y pelear con el propio Aquiles. IMAGÍNENSE UN LIBRO SOBRE ELLA).

LAS AMAZONAS EN GENERAL (Tribus de mujeres guerraras hijas de Ares, a las cuales el amaba mucho, que tenian un sistema matriarcal que existia sin hombres, sin competencia, con un gran sentido de hermandad y que participaron en muchos encuentros velicos en la mitología).

HERMÍONE DE ESPARTA Y ANDROMACA(la hija de Helena de Troya y Menelao y la esposa ee Hector de troya respectivamente. ambas se casaron en contra de sus voluntades con Neoptolemo, el hijo de Aquiles, que era abusivo(bastante gráficamente) y lo odiaban. imaginense una historia donde ambas se hacen amigas y se alian para matar a Neo, Hermíone toma el control de Esparta y Andromaca es su segunda al mando).

ATALANTA(La unica mujer de los argonautas que cuando aparecio el jabali magico de calidon fue quien logro lastimarlo primero y se quedo con el trofeo de casa(pero POR ALGUNA RAZON después hay mitos que la matan de la forma mas estupida posible, gracias Afrodita))

en conclusión, demosle el reflector a mujeres griegas que genuinamente merecen que se sepa de ellas❤️(sin titarle Hate a Circe, MERECE SER CONOCIDA, pero no como historia feminista).

[murosakiiro]

And here it is, my latest attempt at making a webcomic!

Psyche’s beauty has made her the envy of mortals and gods alike. Worshipped by her village and despised by the goddess Aphrodite, she’s sacrificed to appease the gods—only to be spirited away by Eros. However, he is far from Psyche's savior: he wants to make her fall for him so he can take a piece of her power for himself. But in a world where love can be a curse, will Psyche manage to carve her own path?

I really intend to try and see this one through to the end, as I am heavily invested in the story and worldbuilding and my life is probably the most stable it's been in a long time. Anyway, you can read on both Tapas and webtoons!

[sarafangirlart]

I hate when my criticism is boiled down to “it’s not accurate therefore it’s bad” bc that’s rarely what I’m trying to say at all, what I’m trying to say is “the themes of the original story go like this and this retelling throws that away for something less interesting and doing a bad job at it”, believe it or not but mythology is very lucid and can go through multiple interpretations while still keeping its core themes, just look at how Euripides and Aeschylus portray the tragedy of the House of Atreus differently. I’m actually very lenient when it comes to changes in adaptions, if I like it and find it interesting then I wouldn’t care, so for me to say that your retelling isn’t interesting or doesn’t make sense I mean it.

[tumblingdownthefoxden]

Headcannon that during Monster, Polites was watching it all go down but wouldn't do anything.

Polites stood by and watched Odysseus throw away his philosophy of "open arms" in exchange for ruthlessness. In the heat of moment, Odysseus was unreachable. It was Man vs Man. Man vs Self. Man vs Monster. No one could intercept, nothing would stop the moral transformation.

Polites wasn't mad at Odysseus for what he was doing. He was sad but also sympathetic. Sad at the death of the man he knew since his childhood, sad at Odysseus dropping his kindness towards strangers; Sympathetic that if this was the only way for Odysseus and his remaining crew to make it home, then it must happen. Polites wouldn't jeopardize that.

So he stood at the shorelines and waved goodbye to the monster that was his best friend. Praying that even with ruthlessness as his main guide, he would remember kindness and the few times it had helped him.

[spicylove4ever]

From the mind of @artemisnightingale216 here's my take of how the firsts moments of the chapter 5 from Fantasies Unwind, a Hazbin Hotel Au turned an Hades and Persephone retold.

On this moment, Charlotte, who has to get over a brainwashing, just rejected Alastor, and he's taking as well as he can (he's emptying booze glass after another so yeah... and it's lucky he's aware of the brainwashing and or else this could have gone worse).

I basically mixed the style of the Hotel and Alastor's personal room in order to design the room, since he's a more classy version Alastor, so no swamp related stuff.

[just-an-enby-lemon]

"I don't like TSOA/Circe because it doesn't fit the original mythos."

So read the mythos. You can still do that.

"Actually things happened like that *source PJO*"

No. They didn't. It's okay, you can love your retelling/adaptation anyway.

"I don't like A Thousand Ships because it doesn't tell the story the way I want it to be/see it. "

Great. Try to find a story that does. Is okay.

"Epic is the new Hamilton".

Historical revisionism is diferent from mythological retellings. But hey glad you found your new fav musical.

"Wait wait so RQG is like Hamilton?"

Nope. RQG does never sell itself as a biography is not historical revisionism is historical fiction. No one EVER looked at Oscar Wilde and assumed he was a magical bard that worked as a spy for dragons. Not a single person in the world got gnome rebel from Emília Earhart and if your take on Einstein was that he can telleport honestly why? The list just goes on. And historical revisionism is necessarialy political - all art is political but historical revisionism is made with an agenda (good or bad) that silly "what if Geoffrey Chauncer was a Lich living on London's underground" doesn't.

"I don't like Disney Hercules."

It's fine, you'll be there someday, you'll go the distance.

"So you're fine with retellings."

Yes. As long as you can separete it from the actual mythos and each other. And more importantly is seing aa separated from actual pagans abd their religious beliefs.

"Why is Lore Olympus in the garbage?"

Is really bad. Not only as a retelling is just bad as a story.

[1800naveen]

I hate Greek retellings.

I don't actually hate them like that. I have a few that I love (Percy Jackson, God of war, etc).

Shit like "a Hades and Persephone retelling!" Pisses me off.

Lore Olympus did some damage, fuck Rachel Smythe. Persephone is a self insert of her and Hades is apparently based on Mads Mikkelsen.

AND HOW SHE PORTRAYED APOLLO? He's one of my favorite gods and I don't remember a myth where he "assaulted" someone (correct me if I'm wrong!)

How did she see Apollo and go "I'm going to make him a rapist!" There are a bunch of gods and goddesses who are that, why him?

People had the sheer fucking audacity to attack pagans/witches who work with Apollo. Bitch, it's a real religion/belief that people have been following since the ancient times?

Is this a safe place to say I'm not a fan of Madeline Miller? Circe assaulted Odysseus and Achilles tries to assault Tenes' sister, murdered Tenes, and assaulted Troilus who is Apollo's son in APOLLO'S OWN TEMPLE.

Paris is an icon for putting him down🙏🏾

[laladanefilm]

"Achilles, prince of Phthia, swiftest of all the Greeks, best of the Achaian warriors at Troy. Beautiful, brilliant, born from the dread nereid Thetis, graceful and deadly as the sea itself."

"Then the best part of him died, and he was even more difficult after that."

"What was his best part?"

"His lover, Patroclus. He didn't like me much, but then the good ones never do. Achilles went mad when he died; nearly mad, anyway."

– excerpts from "Circe" by Madeline Miller