#I JUST READ ABOUT THIS TOO BC I WAS IN GREECE AND READING THE ODYSSEY | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

wrongcaitlyn · 8 months ago

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I'm sure you've mentioned this before in previous chapters, and I just don't remember, but Will doesn't speak Greek, right?? So does that mean that Apollo never taught him, or was his greek just not good enough to teach him? 😭😭 (ignoring the fact that Apollo had neither the mentality nor the will to teach his son a foreign language at the time)

Orrr, I feel like it's very possible that Apollo just isn't very fluent in Greek anymore bc he doesn't have anyone to talk to. Also, bc he hasn't actually been in Greece in years but like idk

This is probably such a stupid question, but I was just thinking about how Nico's first language is Italian and how overtime he might lose one of the little things that connect him to Bianca 😭😭

Then ofc, my mind drifted to Apollo and about him being fluent in Greek- IDK MAN ANYWAYS I THINK I RAMBLED ENOUGH HAVE A GOOD DAY‼️🫶🫶

ahshhd omg i love this question!! i don’t think ive ever talked about it so the short answer is that no, will doesn’t know greek, he only knows a high school level spanish in this au😭

i actually imagine that apollo didn’t grow up in greece, but in the us (specifically la/hollywood)

his mom probably tried to teach it to him (bc leto is the literal best) but with everything else that he had going on, he just didn’t have the time to ever learn it - his dad always focused more on all of his other hobbies/jobs and his schedule was overloaded enough as it was

but i do imagine that in those years when raising will, he tried to learn it again, just to get in touch with his roots. this is also probably when he first read like the iliad and the odyssey bc i doubt that he read it when he was younger (once again, schedule overload) and generally just tried to learn more abt his heritage and stuff, bc his dad never really brought it up to him

he had been to greece a few times, once for the olympics and a few times for concerts, but he was never really around much to sight see (which, if you noticed, is why i had him going to tourist attractions with nico in athens, when most of the time he tends to stay in the venue or the hotel or tour bus to avoid attention/paparazzi)

but back to the main question - apollo didn’t try to teach will greek bc he was just barely learning it himself, but im sure he’d definitely want will to learn it one day - especially when he would see leo fluent in spanish and nico fluent in italian and thinking how it would be nice to connect will to his culture as well

as for nico, i promise he definitely holds on to italian as a connection to bianca - the last remaining one, too. i think that sometimes he gets scared that he’s abt to forget it, or sometimes his mind will blank on a word and he’ll be terrified (which, tbf, happens in all languages, im bilingual (or trilingual if u count my ap french class which i don’t😭) and forgetting words happens no matter how much u practice) - and so he’ll just talk to himself in italian a bit

i ALSO imagine that whenever he’s talking solely to chiara, they speak in italian. he probably was very excited to hire her for the tour when finding out she was also from italy, and they’re able to sort of keep that going even when traveling the world!

i think by this point, apollo is nearly fluent in greek, but like, the textbook sort of knowing a language. like, he’s memorized all the vocab and grammar and stuff but he’d be a bit clueless in an actual conversation. him attempting to practice his greek in athens would def be hilarious and now i’m sort of upset i didn’t write that💀💀

thank u for the askshkdjs i absolutely love rambling abt apollo and nico likeee ahdksj. so many things i hadn’t even thought abt!!

oh ALSO. ONE OF MY FAV HC’S ABT NICO is that he absolutely loves studying languages. despite being dyslexic, he picks the speaking and understanding part of languages up super easily

so i’m just imagining nico and apollo on the tour bus learning new languages together and nico picking up greek as well so they’ll sometimes try to have conversations in that as well just to practice

they both definitely have duolingo downloaded and are constantly trying to beat each other on the leaderboards

#wrongcaitlyn #talk ur talk asks

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iworshipsappho · 1 year ago

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aaah tack for the tag!! @rosetintedgreyspaces :D <33

Favourite colour and why? ooh red and honestly idk i think i was like 4 or smth when i went oooh blood = cool and blood is red therefore red=cool and i love that for me

Five comfort movies: oof uhh red white and royal blue for sure yeah, maan karate,vip and remo are some really feel good tamil movies for me and uhh badhaai do :33

Favourite season and why? oof definitely has to be whatever we have from october to january here. literally all the other months are hot humid pressure cookers :')

Favourite book(s): YOU CAN'T MAKE ME PICKKKKK. but like the obvious answers here are RWRB, the song of achilles, one last stop, ooh room on the roof by ruskin bond one of my comfort books for sure, oh and this one book i read called my life as a book, changed my life as a kid honestly. other than that we have the toa series and uhh the iliad and odyssey which i havent gotten to yet but do love

favourite aesthetic(s)and why? mmmm im a big fan of dark academia but tbf i do love most aesthetics in varying multitudes, never really got much into it

Favourite genre and why? genre as in music or media?? idk in media it is definitely queer romance atm used to be mystery and mythology. and for music i more or less listen to anything and everything thats vibey

Favourite clothes style: baggy tshirts and shorts >>>>> but thats usually for at home. when i head out ive been layering a baggy tshirt over a white shirt paired with brown pants/jeans off late. layering is one of my favourite styles for sure, the whole academia vibes or the 'teenage dirtbag' style is what i usually go for ig

Favourite music genres: ohhh music here, yeah as i said if its good me likey

Favourite artists: oof long list coming up :]] uhh taylor swift, omar rudberg, the front bottoms, wilbur soot as well as lovejoy>>>, jeff satur my beloved bottom, cavetownnnnnn, conan gray ofc, queen and then uhh mitski

Favourite song(s): i for the life of me cant possibly pick now can i???? BUT rn ive been obsessed with theseee

Favourite fandoms: young royals fandom my beloved, closely followed by mcyt bc that was my firstever proper fandom and fuck yeah for that!!! (still very much into that so les gooo qsmp and tommyinnit my beloved) and well im not really part of any fandoms save for these and rwrb tbf? oh how could i forget!!!! KINNPORSCHE!!!! love that for us

Hobbies: oof uhh reading, writing and playing minecraft or watching cubitos on minecraft probably lmao

Care language you give: i think i usually show my care in the form of words i think? pretty sure yeah

Care language you like to receive: mmmm physical touch <333

Are you an introvert/extrovert/ambivert: ehhh its pretty fluctuating. used to be introverted, getting more and more out of my shell off late. so ambivert it is ig

Morning or night person? again idfk at this point man what even is time anymore fjdksgksfg uhh night person probably tho i like satying up faaar more than i like waking up early

City, country or suburbs and why? uhhhh never really thought about it? idk on one hand i do want the quiet of the country but idk if ill survive with the constant bustle of a city ykn. and never really experienced to much of suburban life except for when i lived in australia for a few months so yeah idk

Favourite time of day and why? that time between like 5-8. the hours go by so quick and hte fucking sunset etc etc

Do you have any religious beliefs(don’t have to answer if not comfortable)? mmm vaguely religious from time to time

What does your ideal family look like to you? again its faaar too much in the future for me to have given it a thought but but ik for sure that ive always wanted kids, so thats the only definitive there

Dream future: mmm im an author lving in a little cottage just surrounded by overflowing love and creativity and nature etc etc. very ruskin bond-esque

Dream place to visit: greece and rome for sureeee. and thenn uh nyc just for the vibes of it ykn also uhh sweden for reasons ;)

Favourite type of nature: mmmm rainforests my beloved. absolutely love the earthy smell and just how fucking alive it is man like >>>>> oh also the fucking hills of north east india. lomls would drop everything and go there again no questions asked. and ofc beaches. be aches are just based

Favourite habitat (eg jungle, desert, tundra etc): mmm i have a special place in my heart for tundras and the savannah idk why. i just love that life fucking THRIVES despite ykn the harsh(er) conditions

How would you describe yourself in 4 words: dumb, enthusiastic, creative and uhhhh complicated

If you could be another thing on earth what would it be: oooo idfkkkk theres just sooooo many options i could literally be a fucking manatee!!!! or a vampire or or a mudskipper!!!!! wait can i be food?!?!?! id be garlic man ajskdsfl the fucking irony of wanting to be both a vampire and a garlic clove oooh id love to be a grapefruit ngl. omg i could be an actual monkey???? id be one of those spider monkeys man so fucking cool. gosh i could just oughhhh creatures and inanimate shit man. so cool

Favourite type of weather: i loveeeee thunderstorms. top tier weather. as long as its not during deepavali. if it rains when im trying to burst my crackers? im sorry but earth can perish /j

If you could travel anywhere right now we here would it be: is my girlfriend's house a valid answer? bc thats where i wanna be right now baksdflsd. uhh idk tbh maybe like oooh i wanna go to puducherry ngl i miss the beachhhh even tho i literally just went like a week ago man. its right here-

Do you have any fears (serious or otherwise): ehhh not as far as im aware. not materialistic ones atleast. ive always had a fear of being forgotten or left behind

Dream job: uhh a writer for sure

Would you be a pirate/vampire/cowboy/astronaut/werewolf/wizard/witch/knight/cryptid and why? VAMPIREVAMPIREVAMPIREVAMPIRE!!!!! i literally get to suck blood in the most homoerotic way possible- what more could i literally ask for ahfjdsflk pirates/knights are a close second tho fucking love them could go on a whole tirade if i wasnt to tired for it

tagging uhh @elblorbo @stygianirondiangelo @foxtriestobiteandmaimandkilland @daylightsimon @desi-yearning @altruistic-meme @spaghett-onaplate @mirabel-on-a-bicycle

💜

#tag game #methinks mesays.

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fancyfade · 2 years ago

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well finished 1-4 of sword of azrael.

its interesting to see where they're going to go w/ this. jean paul still has his mental illness vibes i found so relatable reading the 90s series but we see more of his internal monologue here.

i'll confess i can't compare him to the other jean paul writing i've seen in this continuity (justice league odyssey) bc IIRC i just found odyssey jean paul boring :P

i do like seeing JPV acknowledging he can't escape the programming and trying to find strategies to deal w/ it (like thinking morbid thoughts about saints XD).

we also saw jean paul chilling in a monastary in greece with some guy called brother umberto. no clue if it is the same brother umberto in batman: legacy who was in the order of st dumas before being exiled for sluttiness and had the book to the map leading to the wheel ra's wanted to use to take over the world or if i just read too many comics.

spoilery review under cut

i am really 👀 at JPV deciding to kill the 800 year old other angel (called satan) (or more of prevent satan from reaching the machine that restores him, but the machine is powered by the satan killed). and like. being upset taht he can't blame azrael programming for this and that was him on his own.

i also am just a sucker for whenever JPV interacts with the other potential azrael and/or brainwashed angel candidates. like o'neil dropped the other azrael plotline so bad in the 90s series the writing around the second azrael felt very dehumanizing, the only good part was seeing how jean paul reacted. so it's nice to see that here in this series w/ less dehumanizing writing and with when his azrael programming is active him being so much more judgmental to sariel/brielle but feeling so much empathy towards her when it's not.....

they also did imply the order of st dumas and knights templar had a beef with ra's in the past, just like o'neil and dixon did in 90s/2000s batfam comics.

#sword of azrael #dc comics #jean paul valley #order of st dumas

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blackswaneuroparedux · 4 years ago

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Michelangelo’s The Risen Christ: Discovering the sacred in the profane.

The true work of art is but a shadow of the divine perfection.

- Michelangelo Buonarroti

While a visit to Rome’s grand squares like Piazza Navona is at the top of everyone’s list, there is much more to the Eternal City. The Piazza della Minerva, is one of Rome’s more peculiar squares and is a must-see for lovers of Bernini’s work.

As one of the smaller squares in Rome, Piazza della Minerva holds some interesting sites. Built during Roman times, the square derives its name from the Goddess, Minerva, the Roman Goddess of wisdom and strategic warfare. During the 13th Century, the decision was made to build a Christian Church on top of what was once a square dedicated to a pagan Goddess – and so the church of Santa Maria Sopra Minerva was born, a beautiful example of Gothic architecture and Rome’s only Gothic church.

In fact this is the only Gothic church in Rome. It resembles the famous Church of Santa Maria Novella in Florence. There are three aisles inside the church. The soaring arches and the ceiling in blue are outstanding. The deep blue colours dominate the structure while the golden touches promote the intricate design. There are paintings of gold stars and saints. The stained glass windows are beautiful too.

In the centre of the Piazza is an elephant with an Egyptian obelisk on its back, one of Bernini’s last sculptures erected by Bernini for Pope Alexander VII and possibly one of the most unusual sculptures in Rome. There are several theories which aim to decipher Bernini’s inspiration for the sculpture, some of which point to Bernini’s study of the first elephant to visit Rome, while others point to a more satirical combination of a pagan stone with a baroque elephant in front of a Christian church.

Tourists flock to see the elephant but more often than not they miss out visiting an almost forgotten marble masterpeiece by Michelangelo himself inside the church. This controversial statue has resided in the Santa Maria sopra Minerva Church in Rome for almost five hundred years. Indeed The Risen Christ by Michelangelo is one of the artist's least admired works. While modern observers frequently have found fault with the statue, it satisfied its patrons enormously and was widely admired by contemporaries. Not least, the sculpture has suffered from the manner in which it is presently displayed and from biased photographic reproduction that emphasises unfavorable and inappropriate views of Christ.

Around 2017 I was fortunate on a visit back to London to see once again Michelangelo’s marble masterpiece, The Risen Christ, which was being displayed in all its naked glory at an exhibition at the National Gallery.

This was another version of this great sculpture that no one has got round to covering up. It has just come to Britain. Michelangelo’s first version has been lent to the National Gallery, in London, for its exhibition Michelangelo and Sebastiano del Piombo in 2017. It came from San Vincenzo Monastery in Bassano Romano, where it languished in obscurity until it was recognised as Michelangelo’s lost work in 1997.

I found it profoundly moving then as I had seen the other partially clothed one on several visits to the church in Rome. It has always perplexed me why this beautiful work of art has been either shunned to the side with hidden shame or embarrassment when it holds up such profound sacred truth for both art lover or a Christian believer (or both as I am).

Michelangelo made a contract in June 1514 AD that he would make a sculpture of a standing, naked figure of Christ holding a cross, and that the sculpture would be completed within four years of the contract. Michelangelo had a problem because the marble he started carving was defective and had a black streak in the area of the face. His patrons, Bernardo Cencio, Mario Scapucci, and Metello Vari de' Pocari, were wondering what happened when they hadn't heard for a while from Michelangelo. Michelangelo had stopped work on The Risen Christ due to the blemish in the marble, and he was working on another project, the San Lorenzo facade. Michelangelo felt grief because this project of The Risen Christ was delayed. Michelangelo ordered a new marble block from Pisa which was to arrive on the first boat. When The Risen Christ was finally finished in March 1521 AD Michelangelo was only 46 years old.

It was transported to Rome and this 80.75 inches tall marble statue was installed at the left pillar of the choir in the church Santa Maria sopra Minerva, by Pietro Urbano, Michelangelo's assistant (Hughes, 1999). It turns out that Urbano did a finish to the feet, hands, nostrils, and beard of Christ, that many friends of Michelangelo described as disastrous). Furthermore, later-on in history, nail-holes were pierced in Christ's hands, and Christ's genitalia were hidden behind a bronze loincloth.

Because people have changed this sculpture over time; many are disappointed with this work of art because it is presently different than the original work that Michelangelo made. The Risen Christ had no title during Michelangelo's lifetime. This sculpture was given the name it has now, because Christ is standing like the traditional resurrected saviour, as seen in other similar works of art.

It was in discussion with an art historian friend of mine currently teaching I was surprised through her to discover the sculpture’s uncomfortably controversial history. There is no doubt Michelangelo’s marvellous marble creation has raised robust debates about where beauty as an aesthetic sits between the sacred and the profane. And nothing exemplifies that better than the phallus on Michelangelo’s The Risen Christ.

For the majority of its time there, however, the phallus has been carefully draped with a bronze loincloth - incongruous at best, and prudish at worst, but either way a less than subtle display of the historic Church’s discomfort with the full physicality of Christ.

Indeed, it is worth noting that this attitude prevails, at least in some sense, into the twentieth-century: the version of the statue in Rome remains covered to this day, and much of the critical attention the sculpture has received after Michelangelo’s death has been grating. Romain Rolland, an early biographer, described it as ‘the coldest and dullest thing he ever did’, whilst Linda Murray bluntly dubbed the work ‘Michelangelo’s chief and perhaps only total failure’. But Michelangelo himself saw no such mistake. The censored statue seen in Santa Maria sopra Minerva is what we might call his second draft.

It’s interesting to note that when artist was originally commissioned to sculpt a risen Christ in 1514, he had all but completed it before realising that a vein of black marble ran across Jesus’ face, marring the image of classical perfection which he so wished to emulate. It had nothing to do with the phallus. Furious, Michelangelo abandoned this Christ - the one I saw at the National Gallery - and began again. Even given a fresh chance, he chose to retain Christ’s complete nudity.

Why was this of such importance to Michelangelo? Why did he so strongly wish to craft the literal manhood of Christ, as never depicted before? Part of the answer may lie in his historical context: the Renaissance in Italy was driven in the part by the remains of Roman antiquity discovered there; study of the classics became commonplace, and scholars tended to consider the Graeco-Roman world as a cultural ideal, with ancient art in particular being emblematic of a lost Golden Age. Famously, classical sculpture was almost always nude.

In his interview with The Telegraph in 2015, Ian Jenkins, curator of the British Museum exhibition “Defining Beauty: The Body in Ancient Greek Art”, attempted to explain this tradition. ‘The Greeks … didn’t walk down the High Street in Athens naked … But to the Greeks [nudity] was the mark of a hero. It was not about representing the literal world, but a world which was mythologised.’

We see evidence for this trend in Greek literature as well as sculpture: Homer’s Iliad and Odyssey, considered by some to be the earliest known works of Western literature, were likely written between the 8th and 7th centuries BC, but their setting is in Mycenaean Greece in the 12th century. The Greeks believed that this earlier Bronze Age was an epoch of heroism, wherein gods walked the earth alongside mortals and the human experience was generally more sublime. In setting the texts at this earlier stage in Greece’s history, Homer echoes the belief held within his contemporary society that mankind had been better before (what we might now call nostalgia, or, more colloquially, “The Good Old Days syndrome”). There is a real feeling of delight present in the distance Homer creates between his actual, flawed society, and the idealised past.

Indeed, it calls to mind a line I once read in an introduction to L.P. Hartley’s The Go-Between, by Douglas Brookes-Davies: ‘Memory idealises the past’. Though modernist texts such as The Go-Between problematise this, in antiquity it was not only commonplace but celebrated to look back to a more perfect existence and relive it through art. The very fact that Michelangelo abandoned his sculpture after years of work on account of a barely noticeable flaw in the marble is evidence that he, too, was striving towards the classical ideal of perfection. ‘Unfortunately,’ Hazel Stanier has commented, ‘this has resulted in unintentionally making Christ appear like a pagan god.’

This opens up another question – why does such a rift exist between the way ancient cultures envisaged their divinity and our own conceptions of a Christian God? Why are we not allowed to anthropomorphise the deus of the Bible in the same way that the Roman gods were?

Christ, of course, makes this somewhat confusing, given that he is described in the Bible as ‘the Word made flesh’, a physical and very human incarnation of the spiritual being that we call God. Theology tells us that he is fully human and fully divine, and yet the Church have excluded him from many aspects of life that a majority of us see as typifying a human being. Christ has no apparent sexual desires or romantic relationships, and though not exempt from suffering, he does not play any part in sin (which, as the saying goes, is ‘only human’). I think that the enormous controversy caused by films such as The Last Temptation of Christ (1988), which explore the possibility of Jesus having a sex life, is reflective of the possibility that - though in theory the Christian messiah is fully human - we feel significant discomfort at the notion that he may have explored particular aspects of the human experience.

Purists and the prude and liberals rush to opposite sides of the debate. If purists run one way to completely deny Christ had any sexual desires or even inclinations as all humans are want to do, liberals commit the sin of rushing to the other extreme end and presuppose that Jesus did act on sexual impulses simply because it was inevitable of his human nature.

I think the truth lies somewhere between but what that truth might actually be is simply speculation on my part. It doesn’t detract for me the life and saving mission of redemption that Jesus was on - to suffer and die for our sins as well as the Godhead reconciling itself to sacrificing the Son for Man’s sins and just punishment.

Of course, it is well-known that the classical gods had no qualms about sexual activity. It is difficult to make retrospective judgements about citizens’ opinions on this but, as it was the norm, we might assume that they felt it was rather a non-issue. I can empathise with some critics who reason that the Christian God is not entitled to sexual expression is because of the traditional Christian idea that sex is inherently sinful – that original sin is passed on seminally and so by having sex we continue to spread darkness and provoke further transgression. It is from this early idea that theological issues such as the need for Mary to have been immaculately conceived (she was not created out of a sexual union, much like her son) have stemmed. But here - the immaculate conception - the critics are profoundly wrong in their theological understanding of why God had to enter the world as Immanuel in this miraculous way.

Some Christian critics - and I would agree with them - assert that the vision of a naked Christ might make a powerful theological point in a world where sex still carries these connotations. They rightly point out that clothing - and I might extend this to mean the covering-up of the sexual parts of our body - was only adopted by humankind after the Fall, the nudity of Christ is making a statement about his unfallen nature as the second Adam. In other words, Christ has no shame, because he is sinless and has no need for shame. Perhaps what Michelangelo intended was actually to disentangle nudity from its sexual, sinful associations, instead presenting us with a pre-lapsarian image of purity taking the form of the classical Bronze Age hero.

There is another, less theological explanation for the sculptor’s obvious use of the classical form. It reminds us of a time when gods walked the earth alongside us, when they were fully human – us, only immortal. Maybe he wanted to emphasise that fully human aspect of Christ’s being. Questionable as much of their behaviour was, the classical gods were certainly easy to identify with. For Michelangelo, this may have been his own way of embodying John 1:14 in marble: ‘The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us’.

It is here critics may have gotten hold of the wrong end of the stick with The Risen Christ when they point out the odd proportions of the figure: that it has a weighty torso, or the broad hips atop a pair of tapered and rather spindly legs, or even a side or rear view of the figure that show Christ’s buttocks.

For a start, this ungainly rear view was not supposed to be seen. The statue was meant to go in a wall niche, so that the back of the statue was hidden. Michelangelo of course knew this, and shaped the statue so that it would appear well proportioned from the front. If we view the sculpture from the front left, perhaps its best side, then Christ is no longer a thickset figure. Rather, his body merges with the cross in a graceful and harmonious composition.

The turn of Christ’s body and his averted face suggest something like the shunning of physical contact that is central to another post-Resurrection subject, the Noli me tangere (“Touch Me Not”). The turned head is a poignant way of making Christ seem inaccessible even as the reality of his living flesh is manifest.

We are encouraged to look at not Christ’s face, but the instruments of his Passion. Our attention is directed to the cross by the effortless cross-body gesture of the left arm and the entwining movement of the right leg. With his powerful but graceful hands, Christ cradles the cross, and the separated index fingers direct us first to the cross and then heavenward. Christ presents us with the symbols of his Passion – the tangible recollection of his earthly suffering. Behind Christ and barely visible between his legs we see the cloth in which Christ was wrapped when he was in the tomb. He has just shed the earthly shroud; it is in the midst of slipping to earth. In this suspended instant, Christ is completely and properly nude.

We must imagine how the figure must have appeared in its original setting, within the darkened confines of an elevated niche. Christ steps forth, as though from the tomb and the shadow of death. Foremost are the symbols of the Passion, which Christ will leave behind when he ascends to heaven.

Why was Michelangelo compelled to portray Christ completely naked in a way that was bound to trouble some Christians? It was not out of a desire to blaspheme. On the contrary, this genius – poet, architect and painter as well as the greatest sculptor who has ever lived – was not only a faithful Christian but someone who thought deeply about theology. You can bet he had good religious reasons to depict Christ in full nudity.

But it would be complacent to think there was no tension in showing Christ nude. The fact that The Risen Christ in Santa Maria still has its covering proves how real those tensions are. The fundamental reason Michelangelo could get away with it was that he was Michelangelo. By the time he created this statue, he had the Sistine Chapel ceiling (with all its male nudes) under his belt and was the most famous artist in the world.

For centuries, the faithful have kissed the advanced foot of Christ, for like Mary Magdalene and doubting Thomas, they wish for some sort of physical contact with the Risen Christ. To carve a life-size marble statue of a naked Christ certainly was audacious, but it is also theologically appropriate. Michelangelo’s contemporaries recognised, more easily than modern viewers, that the Risen Christ was a moving and profoundly beautiful sculpture that was true to the sacred story.

#the risen christ #michelangelo #marble #church #christian #beauty #aesthetics #statue #religious #renaissance #history #rome #bernini #art #arts #culture #society #religion #sculpture

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therealvinelle · 4 years ago

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I agree that Aro definitely is not straight, but if he is gay and not bi, why window shop for a wife? If he wanted a partner for some reason, why not find a male one? It was a different era, yes, but are vampires really homophobic?

So, for this meta, we’ll have to get historical. Before we do, keep in mind that while I know Ancient Greece better than most, having studied it (introductory level classes only, mind), I don’t know it well enough to be any kind of authority on the matter. History, more than any other discipline I can think of, is not respected as an academic field, and people with poor to no understanding of historical hermeneutics will make very bold assumptions that they then have too poor understanding of history to realize are bullshit. This is a disclaimer because I don’t want to join in on the chorus of authoritative-sounding people on the internet with no verifiable credentials who spout things about history that are then taken to be gospel truth by readers because the author made it sound good.

More, I say this because your question is asking me to explain the morality and social norms surrounding a character from 14th century BC Greece. And this man would not, for the record have been Ancient Greek, he would have been Mycenaean Greek. Very quick history lesson: Mycenaean Greece was a flourishing society that suffered a downfall, Greek civilization fell into its very own dark ages, until around 800 BC when Greeks began forming what would become the Ancient Greece we know and love. This in turn means that I can’t very well read up on the marital and sexual norms of Ancient Greece when I’m researching for Aro, because he was five hundred years old already when Ancient Greece became a thing.

And your question concerns cultural history. And for that we’re going to have to look at how we know the things we know about history. How history is studied.

Historians have two kinds of sources: archeological findings and written records. (I’m aware that oral tradition, like the one carried by the Aborigine people, isn’t technically one of these, but to my understanding it’ll be treated to similar analysis as written records, which leaves us with the two types of sources standing strong.) These sources are analyzed, and we apply various theories and models onto them to make sense of the context they were written in. The more sources we have, the more we can refine or eliminate these theories or models.

More, history is an ever evolving field. There are movements and schools of thought that influence how history is written (marxism in history, that is, history as a class struggle, was heavy in the 60′s and I think until the 80′s), which means that how a certain culture will be perceived today is not the way it was perceived a few decades ago, nor will it be perceived the same way a few decades in the future.

You see why I am daunted by you asking me to give you an answer about sexual and marital norms for a guy who lived 3000 years ago, and I hope you’ll understand why I feel this word vomit is necessary.

Now, the danger with Mycenaean Greece is that it’s a society it’s easy to feel we know a lot about, because it was the precursor to Ancient Greece, and we know a lot about the latter. But, first of, the reason why we know as much as we do about the Ancient Greeks is the Romans. The Greeks wrote about their history, their philosophy, their government, and they wrote plays and told stories. However, that was two thousand years ago and their writings would have been lost to the sands of time if the Romans hadn’t idolized and sought to emulate their society. This meant preserving their written records. This tradition was carried on by the Christians, in part because Hellenistic philosophy was incorporated into Christian philosophy. We have neo-platonism to thank for Christian asceticism, the “mind over matter” cornerstone.

What I’m getting at with all of this is that we know the insane amount about Ancient Greece that we do because of some very unique circumstances, and so we can make very sophisticated theories about what the Hellenistic world was like. It’s still detective work, but not Pepe Silvia type of detective work. This is not the case for Mycenaean Greece. We know a comparative lot about Mycenaean Greece, considering how long ago it was, but there is very much we don’t know.

With Mycenaean Greece, we are dealing with a lot more uncertainty. We haven’t deciphered one of their two writing styles, and a lot of the text we do have is very fragmentary. Coming up with detailed societal models for Mycenaean Greece, and for the 14th century BC specifically, is... well I don’t know enough about what this society left behind to know what historians have to work with, but I imagine they have their work cut out.

More, I haven’t studied this at all, which means that any attempt on my end to research this would be stumbling around in the dark.

One example: the Illiad and the Odyssey, while composed around the 8th century BC, were set in the early 12th century BC, which is nearly Aro’s time period. The Illiad depicts a homoerotic relationship between Patroclus and Achilles, and both works depict a lot of matrimonies, so I wish I could use it as a source. However, not only would this time gap alone make these sources questionable, but there’s also the matter of the Illiad and the Odyssey being transmitted orally, from bard to bard. Changes were made over the years. For example, the technology described in the Illiad is from several eras, as the warriors will be using bronze weaponry in one book and then switch to iron in the next. This game of telephone is what happens when a story is transmitted orally from person to person. So, while it’s tempting to use these works as a sort of reference point, the possibility, likelihood even, that the bards made adjustments to keep the old story entertaining for their contemporary audience is strong.

For this reason, I can’t give you any kind of historically correct analysis on what the marital or sexual mores would have been like in Aro’s time. Even if the knowledge is out there, I don’t have it.

But I can say this, spouses have for the longest time been partners. Men and women got married, even in the gay, gay, Ancient Greece, not just to have children but because they complemented each other, they were partners. Men needs wives, and women needs husbands. And a partner was canonically exactly what Aro was looking for, feelings had nothing to do with it:

After Caius and Marcus had found their romantic attachments, Aro decided to find his own, although rather than finding his other half in another vampire Aro decided to create his own instead. Aro had a certain type of woman in mind and he found what he was looking for in Sulpicia. He successfully courted her and she came to fall in love with him.

As for vampires being homophobic, I think that is for another post about what culture they bring with them into their new life. But to be brief I’ll say that while the individual vampire can be homophobic, there can be no homophobia at an institutional level because vampires have no institutions. And it’s the institutional homophobia that gets ya. It’s what the whole fight for gay rights has been about: secure legislation against discrimination and that protects gay people. (The right to marry and protection from employees firing LGBT employees comes to mind as examples of this.)

So, no one could force Aro to marry a woman.

And I’d go into a rant here about how the prospect of gay marriage, of even identifying as homosexual (the labels homosexual, bisexual, and heterosexual are very new and, to my recollection, were born off of the Western psychiatric discipline as men who slept with other men were diagnosed with homosexuality. I imagine a man from the Antiquity would be confused at the notion that just because he likes to sleep with dudes he shouldn’t get married to a woman), was unthinkable up until very recently, but I just made this obscenely long rant about how I can’t really make these kinds of guesses, so I’m not gonna.

I think being married to a woman and then banging hot dudes who came along suited Aro just fine.

Also, I can’t believe I’m doing this, but - I’m going to encourage history asks. Because this fandom has a bit of a history problem, as a lot of the characters are from different time periods and many feel unsatisfied with the way Meyer handled that. I am by no means a historian, but I know several of the historical periods the characters of Twilight are from well enough to make educated guesses.

So, hit me with your worst.

#WHEW #aro #sulpicia #aro/sulpicia #history #twilight renaissance #twilight meta #twilight #this is very long and I'm tired so I didn't proofread #GERONIMO as they say #hope there are no embarrassing mistakes #also yes I know I just made a pretentious ass of myself #but i'm writing twilight meta on tumblr so i left my dignity behind long ago #doktrajediscovery #ask

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lilatreus · 4 years ago

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im new to the ac fandom and i didnt know there were any books should i be reading them?? or are there certain ones that i absolutely need to read or would i be okay if i skip them?

Yeah it’s okay to skip them if you want! They’re mostly there to give some more insight on some of the characters. If you want to read them but you don’t have to money to buy the books, you can read them here. I actually have all the books already on paper copy so I would definitely recommend buying them if you really enjoy them.

There’s also some comics and graphic novels about them too which I have included in on the master list. They actually follow the modern storyline of you want to read up on that. If you want to read them just do readcomicsonline. They have them all, only watch out for ads.

Anyway here’s the master list, it’s pretty long won’t lie:

The books, in order of strictly historical events:

Assassin’s Creed Odyssey by Gordon Doherty (2018)

Basically this books gives the canonical story to assassin’s creed odyssey following Kassandra around Greece. If you had the “best” or good ending from the story then you’re probably going to be upset with the book. I actually liked it and if you were ever confused about the game then this is definitely for you to read.

Assassin’s Creed Origins: Desert Oath by Oliver Bowden (2017)

This book takes place years before Origins. It follows Bayek who a teenager at the time. We learn how Bayek and Aya start their relationship and it kind of explains some of the side missions that talk about Bayek’s past. If you love Bayek and Aya’s relationship you will love this book.

[ insert for whenever an ac valhalla book is written ]

Assassin’s Creed: The Secret Crusade by Oliver Bowden (2011)

This book is the one I’m currently rereading, so it takes place with the father of Marco Polo talking about Altaïr’s life. It talks about his—Altaïr’s—dad within the first few chapters, events that happened in the game, and then what happens after. It gives more insight on what happened between the events of ac one and the little bits of scenes we see in ac revelations of Altaïr in game. If you want to know how Maria and Altaïr got together you’ll like this book it’s very sweet and I love how smitten Altaïr was. If you love Atlmal (Altaïr and Malik) you’ll also like this book but it will crush you.

Assassin’s Creed: Renaissance by Oliver Bowden (2009)

This follows Ezio through assassin’s creed two. Literally just the book version of the game. Does talk about how Ezio and Cristina got together and a few of the memories you get to play in Brotherhood are in this book. I like it. It pretty much follows the game exactly so if you want to skip it, you can but still a really good book that I recommend reading.

Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood by Oliver Bowden (2010)

Follows the plot of the game. It’s pretty similar to it as opposed to a few differences. While I like this book, I will always say the game is better than this book entirely. Still, it’s pretty good and explains a lot of plot.

Assassin’s Creed: Revelations by Oliver Bowden (2011)

It explains why Ezio is doing what he does in the game. Why he’s there and what is reasoning is. You get a little small bit about Claudia but that’s it. Ezio does, in book, visit Leonardo on the last few days before the artist dies :( that’s pretty much it. Only some minor differences to the game. If you’re looking for something about Desmond, you won’t find it in this book.

Assassin’s Creed: Black Flag by Oliver Bowden (2013)

I’ll be honest I only read this book once so my memory is pretty poor on it but from what I can remember it’s about Edward and Caroline and how they got together. And then there’s something about Anne Boney and Edward towards the end I believe. Kind of explains his backstory from the little scenes we’re shown in the game I think? (Correct me if I’m wrong on this one but I’m certain that’s the gist of it).

Assassin’s Creed: Forsaken by Oliver Bowden (2012)

This one was the first assassin’s creed book I read. Now fair warning: if you do not like Haytham Kenway, I strongly advise you to not read this book. It is all about Haytham until the final few chapters and then Connor takes over the book once you’ve killed him in game. This book explains how he (Haytham) came to be apart of the Templars and how Edward dies. It talks about his relationship with Ziio and how he built the Templar order up during the seven years war. I’ll be honest it was okay when I first read it because I was like 11 and the only other thing I had read was like just percy jackson. Looking back on this book though, it’s not that great. I do not like Haytham at all so I, personally, would not recommend this book. I went in reading it expecting for it to be about Connor and I was very disappointed and upset that it wasn’t. So you can skip this book if you like because the only thing it does is give insight to a lot of what Haytham does.

Assassin’s Creed: Unity by Oliver Bowden (2014)

This is my favorite book. This is about Arno reading Elise’s diary after she passed. There’s little bits where Arno writes in here and there throughout the novel. It’s pretty sad I won’t lie. Explains how Elise grew up, what she did during the parts where we didn’t see her in game, and talks about how she felt during the parts where we did see her in game. Basically at the end of the book it’s Elise asking Arno to please help seek unity and stop the war between the Templars and Assassins.

Assassin’s Creed: Underworld by Oliver Bowden (2015)

This book follows Jayadeep Mir, also known to us as Henry Green. There’s two parts to this book. The first part takes place six years before the events of syndicate and you get to really learn about the twin’s father and then the second part takes place during the events of the game. It talks about Evie and Henry’s relationship during the second part and it’s pretty good!

There are no books about assassin’s creed chronicles (ac China, India, and Russia) if you’re wondering why they’re missing :(

The comics:

*most of these take place during the modern storyline I’ll try my best to explain when they come in and how it adds up to the new our modern storyline at the end

Assassin’s Creed the Fall

There’s three issues with this it’s just a graphic novel honestly. Takes place with the main character from AC Chronicles: Russia

Assassin’s Creed the Chain

Graphic Novel sequel to the Fall

Assassin’s Creed Brahman

Written by the same people who wrote The Fall and The Chain, however this focuses on Arbaaz Mir who is the main character from Assassin’s Creed Chronicles: India.

Now from what I’ve seen, correct me if I’m wrong, but the templar and assassin comics pretty much take place around the same time.

Assassin’s Creed: Trial by Fire

Assassin’s Creed issue #1, #2, #3, #4, #5

Assassin’s Creed Templars: Black Cross

Assassin’s Creed Templars issue #1, #2, #3, #4, #5

Assassin’s Creed: Setting Sun

Assassin’s Creed issue #6, #7, #8, #9, #10

Assassin’s Creed Templars: Cross of War

Assassin’s Creed Templars issue issue #6, #7, #8, #9

Assassin’s Creed: Homecoming

Assassin’s Creed issue #11, #12, #13, #14

Assassin’s Creed: Uprising

Common Ground Vol 1: issue #1, #2, #3, #4

Infection Point Vol 2: issue #5, #6, #7, #8

Finale vol 3: #9, #10, #11, #12

Assassin’s Creed Reflections (pretty much a stand alone I would say, focuses entirely on past assassins but canon to the templar comics).

Reflections 1: modern story focuses on Otso Berg historical story focuses on Ezio where we learn Ezio is implied to have hooked up with the woman who in the Mona Lisa painting.

Reflections 2: same thing for modern story but now Otso is looking into Altaïr’s story. We get to see Maria, Altaïr, and their son Darim.

Reflections 3: Otso is now looking into Edward Kenway.

Reflections 4: Otso looks into Connor and we see him with his daughter. It’s super cute this issue is my favorite.

Last Descendants

The Last Descendants (Novel)

Locus: issues 1 - 4

The Last Descendants: Tomb of the Khan (novel)

The Last Descendants: Fate of the Gods (novel)

Assassin’s Creed: the French Books (these have all been translated into english and theyre all graphic novels).

These books I would say to skip. If you want to read it you can, however the modern storyline has been said to no longer be canon anymore. The historical storyline however is still canon but not actually necessary to the plot of anything.

Cycle 1

Assassin’s Creed 1: Desmond

Assassin's Creed 2: Aquilus

Assassin's Creed 3: Accipiter

Assassin's Creed 4: Hawk

Assassin's Creed 5: El Cakr

Assassin's Creed 6: Leila

Cycle 2

Assassin’s Creed: Conspiracies

This takes place during WW2

Vol 1: Die Glocke

Vol 2: Project Rainbow

Cycle 3

Assassin’s Creed: Bloodstone

This takes place during the Vietnam War. A follow up on Conspiracies.

Vol 1: book one

Vol 2: book two

The last two I have listed (Conspiracies and Bloodstone) are canon to the comics’ modern storyline as well as the historical. Cycle one is not. They’re both graphic novels. Also I want to say that I have not read these two yet so idk if I’ll be allowed to recommend them but they’re there. I have no idea where they’re placed in terms of modern storyline bc these two are very confusing seeing as they originally were canon then told they weren’t and now they are again.

Other comics that I really have no idea where to place but they do exist if you want to read them:

Assassin’s Creed: Origins (mini series)

Four issues for this comic takes place following Aya and her journey. You get to see what happens with Cleopatra. I personally really like this comic you get some lore on the Brotherhood and Aya so it’s good. Read this after the video game. (Pretty positive it takes place after the game events but before the DLC: hidden ones)

Assassin’s Creed: Valhalla: Song of Glory (mini series)

There are three issues in this. Haven’t read this one yet, however it focuses on Eivor. Read this alongside the video game.

Okay so for canon timeline purposes here is the exact order of everything I’ve listed and where they fall in for strictly the modern storyline:

1 The Fall and the Chain (also called subject four which is just the two of the books into one)

2 Desmond’s story

3 Brahman

4 Assassin’s Creed: Trial by Fire 1 - 5

5 Assassin’s Creed Templars: Black Cross 1 - 5

6 Assassin’s Creed: Setting Sun 6 - 10

6 Assassin’s Creed Templars: Cross of War 6 - 9

7 Assassin’s Creed: Homecoming 11 - 14

Assassin’s Creed Reflections (stand alone don’t have to read if you don’t want to but if you do, read along side the templar stories.)

8 Assassin’s Creed Syndicate modern storyline takes place here

9 Assassin’s Creed: Uprising

10 Origins modern storyline starts here and continues for assassin’s creed odyssey and valhalla*

*If you’re confused as to why Juno isn’t in the game plot anymore the comics explains it. Ubisoft has completely moved her story to the comics entirely and in doing so completely finished the story.

#assassin’s creed #Desmond miles #assassin’s creed comics #assassin’s Creed books #ac master post #assassin’s creed masterpost #I’m not tagging all these games I’m sorry #I didn’t include the movie bc a lot of fans will probably argue over that and I’m not dealing with it #if you catch a mistake please let me know!#also I hope this doesn’t look too messy bc I tried to organize and explain it best I could #asks #anon

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tornsuits · 4 years ago

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no wait keep going (if you want no pressure) i’m now really interested in greek myths orpheus!

oh oh yeah !! he’s a funky dude

the other main myth about him, besides the obvious, is jason and the argonauts, during which he sailed with the rest of the argonauts to recover the golden fleece! ( this is actually referenced in udad, with the ‘fleece job’ ). he’s actually one of the few argonauts that all six major accounts of the story agree on being there. ( they all agree that there were fifty argonauts, but who those argonauts were varies a lot. most of them don’t do a single thing, which is why they were pretty much interchangeable ).

he was the harpist, officially, which meant he didn’t really do much either until they came across the sirens on their way back and he had to play really loudly to drown them out. by most accounts they probably wouldn’t have made it through the sirens without orpheus ( because apparently the wax solution from the odyssey is no longer an option?? djsjdf )

during the journey is also where he met calais, which is the other main guy he’s depicted as being in love with ( it’s?? unclear if they were actually together or if orpheus just, like, had a thing for him. it might be more clear in the main poem about it but i haven’t actually read that yet because my reading comprehension is negative fifty when it comes to things written before 1600 ). one version of his death is actually that some maenads got pissed at him for being in love with calais and not,, women? ig? so they killed him. homophobia at its finest

( calais himself is one of the sons of the west wind who was also on the golden fleece mission. his big accomplishment was scaring away some harpies long enough that jason could talk to a prophet about how to pass the clashing rocks )

his death is also. very funny to me because in most versions the maenads kill him for being too sad about euridice’s death and not like, partying with them like he used to ( bc he was also a follower of dionysus until he turned more to music!) so the maenads just,,, tear him apart. like the just Rip him apart. objectively the sexiest way to die

in some other versions the maenads are mad at him because he only took male lovers after euridice died, which would be cool except in most versions they were. preteens. because jesus christ pedophilia was common in ancient greece

also euridice didn’t exist in the earliest versions of the myth?? orpheus just went into hades like?? for kicks??? anyway euridice is my beloved so i support this change but i DO want to know what motivated him to do that sjbjsfj

#there's. so much more. i could go on. but #also it's not like this information is hard to find.. most of it was on wikipedia i just had to fact-check it #but it's not in most adaptations or recountings of the basic myth bc. idk. it was a Bit obscure i guess #but!!! you can see how some of this played into orpheus's character in u.dad!!!! which is really neat i think!!#pedophila ment #literally almost every greek hero has commited pe/dophila or in/cest or both and it makes me want to throw things #swordfaery #asks

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my-name-is-apollo · 4 years ago

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Apollo and Hermes: best bros

For @lazyreddd and @greek-mythographer this is a bit of an overdue, but anyway, here are some of my favorite Apollo - Hermes moments from mythology:

First of all, the Homeric hymn to Hermes! aka where Apollo and Hermes become best friends! I'll put in my favorite lines from it, but you should really read it if you haven't already

[Apollo]: This I will declare to you exactly: by this shaft of cornel wood I will surely make you a leader renowned among the deathless gods, and fortunate, and will give you glorious gifts and will not deceive you from first to last.”

Then wise Zeus was glad and made them both friends. And Hermes loved the son of Leto continually, even as he does now, when he had given the lyre as token to the Far-shooter

But Apollo, son of Leto, swore to be fellow and friend to Hermes, vowing that he would love no other among the immortals, neither god nor man sprung from Zeus, better than Hermes: and the Father sent forth an eagle in confirmation

Apollo swear also: “Verily I will make you only to be an omen for the immortals and all alike, trusted and honored by my heart. Moreover, I will give you a splendid staff of riches and wealth

Thus the lord Apollo showed his kindness for the Son of Maia by all manner of friendship: and the Son of Cronos gave him grace besides.

- Homer, Hymn to Hermes

Apollo showers him with gifts and honors, and it ends with them being friends and promising to love each other.

And it looks like they stayed close friends. Hermes participated in the Pythian games hosted by Apollo:

"Apollon organised funeral games in honour of Python [the Pythian Games of Delphoi]; Hermes contributed to it, like Aphrodite; she won and accepted as prize a zither."

- Ptolemy Hephaestion, New History (trans. Pearse)

And they both participated in the Olympic games

The record of victors include Apollo, who outran Hermes and beat Ares at boxing. It is for this reason, they say, that the Pythian flute-song is played while the competitors in the pentathlum are jumping

- Pausanias, Description of Greece (trans. Jones)

Hermes lost XD But I don't think it affected their friendship at all. They have a lot of interactions in various texts. For example, this little banter they have when Ares and Aphrodite get caught having an affair:

Thus they spoke to one another. But to Hermes the lord Apollo, son of Zeus, said: “Hermes, son of Zeus, messenger, giver of good things, wouldst thou in sooth be willing, even though ensnared with strong bonds, to lie on a couch by the side of golden Aphrodite?”

Then the messenger, Argeiphontes, answered him: “Would that this might befall, lord Apollo, thou archer god—that thrice as many bonds inextricable might clasp me about and ye gods, aye, and all the goddesses too might be looking on, but that I might sleep by the side of golden Aphrodite.”

- Homer, Odyssey

Here is Hermes going around and showing off Apollo's son Aristaeus:

There shall she bear a son, whom glorious Hermes will take from his fond mother's breast, and carry to the enthroned Horai (Horae, Seasons) and Mother Gaia; and they will gently nurse the babe upon their knees

- Pindar, Pythian Ode 9 (trans. Conway)

And in one version, he even helped Apollo save Asclepius

She (Koronis) was killed by Artemis to punish her for the insult done to Apollon, but when the pyre was already lighted Hermes is said to have snatched the child from the flames.

- Pausanias, Description of Greece (trans. Jones)

they also once shared a lover named Chione (not the goddess) and she gave birth to twins, one Apollo's and one Hermes' (I'm ignoring Ovid bc he ruins everything)

Apollo and Mercurius [Hermes] are said to have slept the same night with Chione, or, as other poets say, with Philonis [an alternative name for Chione], daughter of Daedalion. By Apollo she bore Philammon, and by Mercurius [Hermes], Autolycus. Later on she spoke too haughtily against Diana [Artemis] in the hunt, and so was slain by her arrows. But the father Daedalion, because of his grief for his only daughter, was changed by Apollo into the bird daedalion, that is, the hawk."

- Pseudo - Hyginus, Fabulae (trans. Grant)

(this is a headcanon, I think Hermes and Apollo raised the kids together. It's not far fetched because they're both good dads, esp Apollo)

And These dialogues from Lucian's "Dialogues of the gods" are a treat. This one isn't avaliable on theoi.com (I found it after scrolling down a great deal on another website) so I'll save you the trouble

Just them gossiping, goofing around on Olympus ☺️

They share a few domains too, and their symbols are literally the gift they received from the other (lyre and caduceus). Need I say more? Apollo and Hermes are best of the best bros✨ I love them so much!

#Apollo #Hermes #Greek mythology #Greek gods #I'm dissapponted that popular mythology adaptations sleep over their friendship #*cough* pjo *cough*#There's so much potential #Long post #Mine #Best bros

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thepringlesofblood · 3 years ago

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why the ending of hades (the game) kind of makes sense

spoilers obvs

so. if you’re me, and you played 45 minutes of hades before going ‘oh, i am simply not skilled enough and not available enough to beat this game’ and looked up the ending and watched it, you may have been a Little Confused

i have the explanation under the cut bc I talk too much and also obvs mega spoilers

like, if its been such a concern for so long that olympus finds out about Everything and starts a war, why the fuck would just inviting them to a party wrap things up nicely?

and you would be right. it’s a little anticlimactic, and that’s fine - the credits roll when they’re still traveling down the river, and for me at least that works as the ending to the game - nice and ambiguous and hopeful.

the rest is “epilogue” and as an epilogue it works pretty well. it is a lil bit of a letdown in terms of narrative tension. but that’s also just sort of how epilogues work (at least in stories with happy/comedic endings). the conflict is resolved and you’re in fluff town for the most part learning how everything shakes out for the characters.

but if you’re just thinking “the plot mechanics of this make no sense, if the threat of olympians finding out was serious enough to justify killing your son a bajillion times then why does this one party settle everything?”

allow me to introduce you to a very important aspect of Ancient Greek culture

xenia - hospitality

the laws of hospitality in Ancient Greece were a BIG DEAL. like, if some guy came in off the street like “hi i am a weary traveler in search of a good meal’” you had to go through this whole process of offering food and water for (hand-washing) and wine and everything or you’d be considered a bad host. likewise, just hanging around someone’s house for days on end would make you a bad guest. read the odyssey if you want some fun examples - odysseus just crashes at ppls houses.

and i cannot express how much you do NOT fuck with these rules. it’s not like fae levels of fuckery, but it was socially and morally unacceptable to be a bad host/guest - it’d be like someone cheated on their spouse.

in actual ancient greece, its bc the popular religious belief dictates that you never know when a god is going to come down in mortal form to test you on being a good host. but it was also bc travel SUCKED back then, so it was just a general system that if a guy crashes on your doorstep, you help em out. and bc everyone was subject to the general Travel Suckage, you never know when that guy could be some king from a distant land who will be in your debt for helping him

now why is my classics major ass going off about these rules of hospitality?

because they also apply for parties

feasts, symposiums, generally whenever you have a guest, xenia is in play.

the reason why persephone is a fucking genius is because she is making sure that this huge, world-threatening news is dropped on the olympians in a space where everyone present is under this very serious set of social rules.

if all of the olympians are invited guests of the underworld, the social ramifications of taking any hostile actions against their hosts? astronomical. especially considering how ludicrously powerful all of these beings are. im talking your reputation TRASHED for at least like a century.

and by acting as good hosts, hades, persephone, and zagreus have all boosted their reputations significantly, making it even harder to justify hostile actions against them.

now, obvs in the context of the game i’m sure the exhaustive rules of ancient greek hospitality are not made clear, so idk how much this adds to the experience of the game

i just thought it was really cool

#hades #hades spoilers #me being a nerd about ancient greece #and a terrible gamer

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organabanana · 4 years ago

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30 Questions Tag

Thank you to dear @howdywrites for the tag!!

Rules: Answer 30 questions about yourself and tag 20 others you wanna know more about 😊

1. Name/Nickname: Wen is not my real name but I’ve been going by it forever so that works!

2. Gender: Female

3. Star Sign: Aries. I’m very aries (derogative).

4. Height: 5′6 ish? I think? Your American fairy units I swear. I’m 166cm.

5. Time: 5.44PM

6. Birthday: March 28

7. Favorite bands/groups: ABBA (unironically btw, they slap), The Rolling Stones, The Beatles, Led Zeppelin, ummmm Spice Girls? I’m a hot mess I don’t know what to tell you. 90% of what I listen to are showtunes so these questions always feel unfair.

8. Favorite solo artist: way too many but my absolute top I rarely go more than a couple days without listening to are Vanesa Martín, Idina Menzel, Adele, India Martínez, and Sara Bareilles.

9. Song stuck in my head: Safaera by Bad Bunny

10. Last Movie: Gone Girl

11. Last Show: I’m currently watching both Supergirl and She-Ra so both of those.

12. When did I create this blog: January 2020

13. What do I post: 90% fannish things, 10% writing with some random art sprinkled in for flair.

14. Last thing I Googled: ok I have a perfectly reasonable explanation for this but it’s funnier if i don’t tell you so I’ll just say the last thing I googled was ‘tropical fish urethra’and leave it at that.

15. Other blogs: my writeblr blog is @meadowclarke

16. Do I get asks: once in a blue moon, but I love them! Attention feeds my soul.

17. Why I chose my URL: I like star wars and rhyming. Also, bananas are great for muscle cramps.

18. Following: 169

19. Followers: 75

20. Average hours of sleep: 5ish

21. Lucky number: 25 and 5

22. Instruments: I can play the guitar, both classical Spanish and acoustic. And a number of obscure regional instruments (mostly percussion) from my area bc I grew up super involved in regional folklore groups/classes.

23. What am I wearing: jeans, dark blue socks with glittery gold stars, red converse, a plain white long sleeve t-shirt and a navy blue hoodie with the sloth from Zootopia on it.

24. Dream job: I’m a special ed teacher. My dream job is my job but with decent pay so I don’t have to do extra tutoring a bunch of hours a day and I can write and chill instead.

25. Dream trip: my #1 dream destination is Greece, and I want to see a whale in the wild before I die.

26. Favorite food: I am a simple woman with simple tastes so I’ll say tortilla de patata.

27. Nationality: Spanish

28. Favorite song: I can’t pick just one so I’ll pick four because they are all my favorite song depending on the day: Being Alive (Rosalie Craig), Brave (Sara Bareilles), Tomorrow (Idina Menzel), 90 Minutos (India Martínez feat. Vanesa Martín).

29. Last book I read: I’m currently reading Homework by Julie Andrews. Last book I finished was The Barefoot Woman by Scholastique Mukasonga.

30. Top three fictional universes I’d like to live in: Assassin’s Creed Odyssey so I can just stare at Kassandra and ask her to go gather me some herbs and nuts and hope she’ll get some romancin’ interactions afterwards. Tomb Raider (I am Not Athletic so I’d volunteer as housekeeper and simply yearn in silence). The DCU, in general, but frankly I’d thrive in Themyscira.

Tagging I don’t KNOW 20 people, goodness, but with absolutely zero pressure involved I’ll tag the last 10 people I followed: @mayalice18, @halfclementine, @trixicbean, @red-cape-morgana, @red-priestess-of-scully-romanov, @maxcaulfield, @ashen-crest, @spicysequoia, @fairymascot, @hrwinter and anyone else who wants to do it!

#tag game

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strangeandforlornbooks · 4 years ago

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best books with morally ambiguous narrators!

all y’all’s problematic faves and villains! :) also included are third person narrators but in books with morally ambiguous leads/themes

Sci-fi

Scythe by Neal Shusterman: in a future free from pain, disease, and war, people can live forever. ‘scythes’ are given the power to decide who lives and who dies to preserve the balance. sad and kinda gives of hunger games vibes, if you like that.

Neuromancer by William Gibson: basically invented the cyberpunk genre. strange and removed protagonists. (a team of computer hackers have to face off against an evil AI). you kind of dislike everyone and suddenly you’re crying over them. one of those trippy sci-fi classics.

The Sirens of Titan by Kurt Vonnegut: very beautiful and very very sad (same author as slaughterhouse five). the richest man in america has to face a martian invasion. more about free will and bad people doing good things than a plot that makes any kind of sense.

The Man in the High Castle by Philip K Dick: set in an alternate universe where the germans and japanese won world war two. not really like the tv show at all- it’s not an action story, and there’s not really the hope to somehow fix the world that drives a lot of dystopia stories. instead its about how people survive and connect to one another in a hopeless society.

The Scorpion Rules by Erin Bow: a supercomputer convinces the leaders of the world to keep the peace for hundreds of years by taking their children hostage and obliterating any city that disobeys. what happens to the hostage protagonists when war seems inevitable? lots of morally fraught decisions and characters slowly losing their identity. (plus a fun lesbian romance)

Cryptonomicon by Neal Stephenson: a brilliant mathematician and a dedicated marine fight to keep the ultra secret in world war two. fifty years later, a tech company discovers what remains of their story. one of the most memorable sequences in the book is a japanese soldier slowly becoming disillusioned with his nation and horrified by the war even as he continues to fight.

Blade Runner by Philip K. Dick: another one of those sci-fi classics that’s not at all like the movie. there is a bounty hunter for robots, though, as well as a weird religion that probably is referencing catholicism and a decaying society with a shortage of pets. kind of a trip.

Wilder Girls by Rory Power: girls trapped in a boarding school on an isolated island must face a creeping rot that affects the animals and plants on the island as well as their own bodies. the protagonists will do anything to survive and keep each other safe. very tense (and bonus lesbian romance whoo)

The Fifth Season by N K Jemisin: three women are gifted with the ability to control the earth’s energy in a world where those who can do so are forced into hiding or slavery. some veryyyy dark choices here but lots of strong female characters.

Historical Fiction

Fingersmith by Sarah Waters: two victorian lesbians fall in love as they plot to betray each other in horrific ways. lots of plot twists, plucky thieves, gothic settings, and a great romance.

Quo Vadis by Henryk Sienkiwicz: a powerful roman soldier in the time of Nero plots to kidnap a young woman after he falls in love with her, only to learn more about the mysterious christian religion she follows. very melodramatic but some terrific prose.

All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr: a blind girl in France and a brilliant German boy recruited by the military struggle through the chaos of the second world war. ends with a bang (iykyk.) very sad, reads like poetry.

Boxers by Gene Luen Yang: graphic novel reveals the story of a young boy fighting in the boxer rebellion in early twentieth century china. the sequel, saints, is also excellent. beautifully and sympathetically shows the protagonist’s descent into evil- the reader really understands each step along the way.

Fantasy

Three Dark Crowns by Kendare Blake: three triplets separated at birth, each with their own magical powers, have to fight to the death to gain the throne. lots of fun honestly

Six of Crows and Crooked Kingdom by Leigh Bardugo: everyone in these books is highly problematic but you love them all anyway. a ragtag game of criminals plan a heist on a magical fortress. some terrific tragic back stories, repressed feelings, and revenge schemes.

The Dark Tower series by Stephen King: idk how to describe these frankly but if you can put up with King’s appalling writing of female characters they’re pretty interesting. fantasy epic about saving the world/universe, sort of. cowboys and prophecies and overlapping dimensions and drug addicts galore.

The Amulet of Samarkand by Jonathan Stroud: lots of fun! a twelve year old decides to summon a demon for his cute lil revenge scheme. sarcastic demon narrator. lighthearted until s*** gets real suddenly.

Elegy and Swansong by Vale Aida: fantasy epic with machiavellian lesbians and enemies to lovers to enemies to ??? to lovers. charming and exciting and lovely characters.

The False Prince by Jennifer Nielsen: an orphan boy must compete with a few others for the chance to impersonate a dead prince. really dark but very tense and exciting and good twists.

The Grace of Kings by Ken Liu: fantasy epic. heroes overthrow an evil empire and then struggle as the revolution dissolves into warring factions. interesting world building and three dimensional characters, even if they only have a small part.

Circe by Madeline Miller: the story behind the witch who turns men into pigs in the odyssey. madeline miller really said, i just used my classics degree to write a beautiful gay love story and now im going to write a powerful feminist retelling because i can. queen. an amazing and satisfying book that kills me a lil bit because of the two lines referencing the song of achilles.

Heartless by Marissa Meyer: the tragic backstory for the queen of hearts in alice in wonderland. a little predictable but very fun with a compelling protagonist

A Song of Ice and Fire (Game of Thrones) by George RR Martin: ok I know we all hate GRRM and rightfully so but admittedly these books do have some great characters and great scenes. they deserve better than GRRM though. also he will probably never finish the books anyway....

A Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket: not really fantasy but not really anything else either. plucky, intelligent, and kind children fight off evil plots for thirteen books until suddenly you realize the world is not nearly as black and white as you thought.

Classics

Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier: gothic romance!! a new wife is curious about the mysterious death of her predecessor in a creepy old house in the British countryside...good twists and lovely prose.

A Separate Peace by John Knowles: not really morally ambiguous but one awful decision suddenly has awful consequences and certain people are haunted by guilt forever.... really really really beautiful and really really really sad. boys in a boarding school grow up together under the shadow of world war two.

Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy: while imperial russia slowly decays a beautiful young woman begins a destructive affair. a long book. very russian. the ending is incredibly tense and well written.

Lord of the Flies by William Golding: I think you know the plot to this one. the prose is better than you remember and the last scene is always exciting.

And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie: one by one, the guests on an island are slowly picked off. one of Christie’s darkest mysteries- no happy ending here! very tense and great twists.

Contemporary

The Secret History by Donna Tartt: inspired the whole dark academia aesthetic. college students get a little too into ancient greece and it does not end very well. lovely prose but I found the characters unlikable.

Honorable Mentions

The Dublin Saga by Edward Rutherford: has literally a billion protagonists, but some of them are morally ambiguous ig? follows a few families stories’ from the 400s ad to irish independence in the 20s. beautifully captures the weight and movement of irish history.

Artemis Fowl by Eoin Colfer: how morally ambiguous can you be if you’re, like, eleven? a lot if you’re a criminal genius who wants to kidnap a fairy for your evil-ish plan apparently!

Redemption by Leon Uris: literally my favorite novel ever. the sequel to Trinity but can stand alone. various irish families struggle through the horrors of world war one. the hero isn’t really morally ambiguous, but the main theme of the novel is extremely bad people suddenly questioning their choices and eventually redeeming themselves. sweeping themes of love, screwed up families, redemption, and patriotism.

The Lymond Chronicles and House of Niccolo by Dorothy Dunnett: heroes redeem themselves/try to get rich/try to save their country in early renaissance Europe. if I actually knew what happened in these books I'm sure it would be morally ambiguous but its too confusing for me. in each book you spend at least a third convinced the protagonist is evil, though. lots of exciting sword fights, tragic romances, plot twists, and kicking english butt.

Bonus: Protagonist is less morally ambiguous and more very screwed up and sad all the time

The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt: you know this one bc its quoted in all those quote compilations. basically the story of how one horrible event traumatizes a young man and how he develops a connection to a painting. really really really good.

Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro: hard to describe but strange... not an action novel or a dystopia really but sort of along those lines. very hopeless.

#book recs #morally ambiguous protagonists #dark academia #book recommendations #mine

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legolaslovely · 5 years ago

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Summer Rain

A/N: Happy Fili Friday! Today, Iolaus is also getting some love! BECAUSE HE DESERVES IT OKAY. Sorry, I’m a little emotional. Hope you guys enjoy this one! I certainly loved writing it. Get ready for some ROMANTIC FLUFF.

Pairing: Iolaus x Fem!Reader

Word Count: 3,186

Warnings: fluff, makeout sesh

Summary: BF&GF Playing hooky< all you need to know. But also (lemme geek out for a sec) I like to think (Y/N) is the top cadet academically and she HATES Iolaus for his cocky and lazy demeanor UNTIL Fiducious asks her to tutor him. Then she falls head over sandals in love with this golden boy’s true heart because wouldn’t we all

A Note About the Poetry/References: The poem (please just read it for me and my romantic little heart, okay?) is called A Lover’s Sigh, written by Anacreon who lived in Ancient Greece (in Teos AKA across the Aegean Sea from Corinth) around 500 BC. ISN’T THAT COOL. Also, some of The Odyssey (translated to English, of course) is quoted here.

LOOK AT HIM LOVE OF MY LIFE

(Y/N) loved falling asleep to the symphony that came with the falling rain. Whether it be a downpour slapping against the soft grass or a sprinkling of misty drops landing on a roof of thatch, the lullaby was always welcomed. However, it was especially cherished after a day of endless drills and exams that left her with an exhausted mind and aching muscles to match. When she climbed into bed, her woes were forgotten and replaced with nature’s soft tune raining down and the scent of fresh earth sneaking through the cracked windows in the academy. (Y/N) loved every part of the rain.

Except training in it.

She woke the next morning with a start at the rumbling thunder that snapped to a crack right above the academy. Some of her classmates were already awake, watching the storm from the doorway and planning their route across the wide grounds to the dining hall’s entrance. She had rebraided her hair for the day by the time those cadets had mustered up the courage to skitter out from under the doorway and across the fields. She snorted as she pulled on her boots.

“Don’t laugh, (Y/N),” Hercules said from his bed above. “That’ll be us next.”

“Can’t you ask your dad to chill out with the thunder already? He’s been at it all night.”

Hercules noisily mocked her. “Yeah, sure, I’ll send a request right up. Anything for your convenience, (Y/N).”

“I appreciate the diligence,” she said. She chased Hercules to the door and pushed him outside into the drip. Cold droplets fell down the back of his neck and he shivered and cringed, dancing back into the shelter. He grabbed her shoulders but she slipped out of his grasp, giggling. “Not fast enough, Herc,” she said.

Jason stepped between them, acting as (Y/N)’s shield as Hercules shook his dripping hair. “Listen, the quicker we run to the dining hall, the quicker we can eat, okay? By the time we go to morning drills, we’ll be dry.”

“Just in time to get soaked again,” Iolaus said. As usual, he’d been the last to wake up. He ran a hand through his messy curls and placed the other discreetly on (Y/N)’s back for no one to notice but her. “You know they’ll make us train in the storm today.”

“It builds character,” he and Hercules said at the same time, both mocking Chieron perfectly.

“I’m not intending on training anywhere on an empty stomach so are you all coming to breakfast with me or not?” Jason said.

“You’re grumpy,” Hercules mumbled.

(Y/N) laid a hand on Jason’s shoulder. “All right, all right. Herc, take the starving king to breakfast, I’ll meet you guys there,” she said, having to gather her scrolls and bag for classes. Probably a few towels as well.

She turned and dug her things out from under her bed, sighing to herself.

“I thought you liked the rain?”

She leapt from her place in fright. “Gods, Iolaus, you scared me. I thought you went with the guys.” She set down her scrolls and watched the wet sheets fall through the doorway again. “I do like the rain, but not when I have to go out in it.”

Iolaus hummed, following her gaze. He didn’t notice her sneak behind him until she rested her head on his shoulder.

“I’d much rather spend a day like today in… the hay loft? The barn is empty until after dinner is served anyway. No one will be up there, especially on a day like today.”

“Are you, (Y/N), stealer of library scrolls, actually suggesting we play hooky?” Iolaus asked.

Her head snapped up. “I do not steal scrolls!”

“Only the ones Fiducious doesn’t let you borrow,” he said with a poking finger. “You aren’t supposed to know about that.”

“Oh, (Y/N), you are forgetting about the life I led before I came to this charming academy. I know a lot of things I’m not supposed to know.”

She scoffed, but grabbed his hand and her bag. “Fine, then, Master Burglar, how do we get to the barn without being seen?”

He led her to the opposite exit of the small building. “Considering the barn is on the other side of the grounds and we will have to pass the window of Chieron’s office and his horses don’t exactly like me-”

“What did you do to the horses, Iolaus?”

“Not important- we just have to RUN!”

He dragged her out into the rain, shushing her surprised squeal with smiling lips. Their sandals squeaked in the wet and squished in the mud as they ran past the well, jumped over the short wall, and skittered along the side of the main building of the academy.

“Wait!” he cried out in a harsh whisper. “Wait here. That’s Chieron’s window.”

Before he could formulate a plan, (Y/N) slipped from his clammy grasp and bent forward, crawling underneath the window. She called him to follow. “We’re almost there!”

With no roofs to slither under, Iolaus tore off his vest and it quickly became their umbrella for the second half of the journey through the wide field. As they neared the barn, (Y/N) was just as relieved as Iolaus to see the horses already inside. That meant they truly would be alone in the hay loft until someone came to feed the animals at night. The barn was all theirs.

“Do you think anyone saw us?” (Y/N) asked after they’d slithered inside and closed the barn door. Iolaus held the ladder for her as she climbed up to the hay loft.

“I don’t think so,” he said. “Everyone is in the dining hall at this hour.” He followed her up, sending nervous glances to the horses below. A shiver ran up his spine. Whether it was from the dark eyes staring up at him or the icy beads of rain still trickling down his bare skin, he wasn’t quite sure.

He threw his sopping vest over a bale. “Well, I won’t be putting that back on any time soon,” he said with a wide mouthed wink.

(Y/N) shook her head at his never ending antics, but smiled at him all the same. “Good thing I brought something dry and warm for you, then.” Out of her bag came one of his own tunics he didn’t realize had been stolen.

“You sneaky little cadet,” he said, putting it on. “You planned this.”

“Maybe.” She had pulled her braid apart and was squeezing her hair dry with one of the towels she’d brought.

“Lucky for you, I too came prepared.” He slid the tunic over his head and it didn’t take long for drenched, golden curls along with a dimpled grin to pop out of the neck. Then he reached for his bag, rummaging around the small rips in the lining until he uncovered two loaves of fresh bread. He gave one to (Y/N) with a flourish and a bow, savoring her laugh. But as she leaned forward to take the treat from him, a stiff, crinkling chattered that was just loud enough to hear over the rain outside. He watched her sit quickly upright and hide her twitching lips behind the crust of bread. “What was that?” he asked.

“Nothing.”

“No. You-you didn’t.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” she said around the hunk of bread in her mouth.

“You brought a scroll? We are playing hooky and you brought homework! I knew this was too good to be true.”

She stood, pulling the small scroll out from under her shirt. She’d managed to pack everything else for the day when Iolaus wasn’t looking, but this was a last minute addition that didn’t quite make it into her bag.

“It’s not homework,” she said. “It’s for pleasure.”

“That is no pleasure I’d like to be a part of!”

She laughed out loud at that and Iolaus only half enjoyed it. She skipped to his side, turned his stubborn face to her, and wrung out his curls into her towel. “Come on, Iolaus. With all our exams coming up, I never have time to read anymore. Especially not poetry because we haven’t covered any of it in our modern literature classes yet. Now I have the whole day free to-”

“To read poetry,” he grumbled.

Her soft touch through the towel traveled over his shoulders and down his chest, collecting the raindrops that still gathered in the hollows of his tanned skin. “I know you don’t like poetry much, but what if I promise to read you something I know you’ll enjoy?”

“Then you don’t know me very well.”

She took his chin in her fingers. “You are such a grump! Let me read for one hour and then we can do what you want.” She wriggled out of his grasp that consisted of roaming hands and squeezing fingers. “Within reason!” she said, snapping the towel at him.

A childish, roaring groan filled the barn as she sat on a bale of hay. She patted the spot next to her, beckoning him to sit. “Just trust me.”

Heavy feet stomped across the loft until Iolaus sat on the floor beneath her, scooting around until he could lean back between her knees. He looked up at her, chin to the sky and blue eyes gleaming. “Tell me about this poem.”

“It comes from across the sea,” she said, unrolling the scroll by its pins. “Listen.”

“The Phyrgian rock that braves the storm Was once a weeping matron’s form; And Procne, hapless, frantic maid, Is now a swallow in the shade. Oh that a mirror’s form were mine, To sparkle with that smile divine; And like my heart I then should be, Reflecting thee, and only thee! Or could I be the robe which holds That graceful form within its folds; Or t-”

“Wait, wait, wait, wait. This is a dirty poem?” He spun and took the scroll from her, turning so fast, his hair sprayed droplets over her and the parchment. He stared at the words, then turned to her. “You read dirty poetry?”

She laughed. “They’re not all like this.” She swiped his curls over his shoulder, running a fingertip around his ear and down his neck. “Read the rest of it.” Gentle hands turned his shoulders forward and she asked again. “Read to me, Iolaus.”

He coughed, unconsciously leaning toward her breath on his bare skin.

“Or could I be the robe which holds That graceful form with-”

She was kissing his neck. Warm, soft lips over his jaw, under his ear, down his neck to the bit of shoulder his tunic left open to her. The little clicking sound of her mouth against his skin sounded louder than any lightning crack Zues could send down to them. He curved into her hold.

“Keep reading,” she said.

“How am I supposed to concentrate with you… kissing me like that?”

“Does it feel good?” The tip of her nose traced over the sensitive skin that her lips left damp.

He could only hum his appreciation. Her hands rolled forward to the front of his tunic, wanting the deep rumble to sound again so she could feel it in her palms.

“Keep reading or I will stop.”

He grumbled. “Her gifts were mixed with good and evil both.”

She breathed out a laugh, tightened her grip, and sunk her teeth into his skin. He lifted the scroll.

“...Within its folds; Or, turned into a fountain, lave Thy beauties in my circling wave; Or, better still, the zone that lies Warm to thy breast, and feels its sighs! Or like those envious pearls that show So faintly round the neck of snow! Yes, I would be a happy gem, Like them to hang, to fade like them. What more would thy Anacreon be? Oh, anything that touches thee, Nay, sandals for those airy feet-- Thus to be pressed by thee were sweet!”

Iolaus rolled up the scroll and set it aside, turning in her arms to kneel between her legs so they were face to face. Her damp hair fell around her as if to frame the portrait of a goddess. He kissed her lips.

“Did I not say you would enjoy the poem?” she asked.

He kissed her cheek and ran his fingers through her hair. The sight of untied tresses was rare, and he took this chance to feel their softness and marvel at the delicate waves. “I would enjoy anything as long as I am with you.”

When he drew away from her cheek, he saw her eyes had closed from his tender touch. Half of him wished she’d open them for they were the brightest light there was on this dreary day. However, the more selfish half of him wanted them to stay closed. She’d never permit his staring if she saw the way he was watching her, taking her in. His finger curled over her forehead down to her chin to hold her face still. Even as her curious eyes opened to him, he gazed on.

“Never have I set my eyes upon such a beauty, in either man or woman. I look at you and I am bedazzled,” he said.

All breath left her. “Where did you learn that?”

“I said I would enjoy anything as long as we were together. Do you really think I’d ignore your passion for poetry and stories? That I’d leave you alone in it?”

She shook her head, left speechless by his words.

Just as a log split open by a heavy ax, so seemed Iolaus’ armor of deceptive reputation: cracked and gaping, revealing a true, tender heart underneath. From its center radiated unmatched compassion and care that shone brightly enough to play the part of the sun on this murky morning. Her own thoughts cowered from his brilliance.

“No, I-just-”

“I love you, (Y/N).”

She kissed his lips, arm circling his shoulders to pull him close. His dimples caved in under her thumbs as she cradled his face, pouring her appreciation, astonishment, admiration- all of it into her kiss.

“I love you too,” she whispered against his lips.

He dove into her again- lips, tongues, hands, fingers- and she keened, falling into his lap on the floor.

“Iolaus.”

Over her own sigh of his name, she barely heard someone else’s voice. She drew away to listen, but Iolaus’ lips only fell down her cheek to her neck, serving as a further distraction.

“Do you hear that?”

He hummed against her skin.

Thunderous footsteps banged outside, squishing and spurting in the puddles of mud while the looping chains of the hitching posts crashed together, sending a harsh, bright clanging sound up to the loft of the barn.

“What is that?” (Y/N) asked.

“You know exactly what that is,” Iolaus said, tugging her hips closer.

The slam against the barn door sent the large handle rattling and yanked Iolaus from his heated stupor. Surely the storm’s angry power couldn’t be the manifestation of a godly punishment for two students playing hooky, they thought. But that fear shifted as the warning voice outside eventually gave them a different, but no safer, solution.

“I don’t think (Y/N) and Iolaus would be in here, sir, Fiducius, sir. I really don’t. But if you insist, I guess we’ll have to go inside the barn and see!”

The pair in the loft shared a look. Eyebrow waggles and waving hands gave silent orders of “Tuck in your tunic” and “Tie back your hair,” while soggy clothes and bread were thrown into their bags. A wicked bale of hale sent Iolaus hurdling to the floor. Then the barn door below slid open. The drumming of rain and Fiducius’ prattling of Iolaus corrupting his best student were deafening to ears that had grown used to accelerated breaths and soft whispers.

“(Y/N), are you in here? With that Iolaus?” Fiducius called.

Her eyes blew wide, wordlessly begging Iolaus for advice. “Um, yes! Up in the loft?”

Iolaus holding his head in his hands told her she’d given the wrong answer. She slapped his shoulder. The rungs of the loft’s ladder squeaked and Fiducius’ head popped into view.

“What are you doing up here? You should be in class!” he said.

“Is it that time already?” Iolaus asked. He shut his mouth when (Y/N) pinched him.

“I’m sorry, sir,” she said. “I lost track of time. We were only trying to get some studying in before breakfast.”

Their teacher’s nose wrinkled. “Studying?”

“Yes. I’ve been helping Iolaus with his classwork in the mornings and this is the best place to go. It’s… quiet.”

“And!” Hercules added from below the loft. “And with all the rain this morning, you had no idea what time it was because-”

“Because there was no sun,” Fiducius finished. “I see.” His eyes narrowed in on Iolaus’ strategically covered lap. “What is that scroll you have there?”

Iolaus shifted on the bale of hay, moving as far from (Y/N) as possible in the small space. He inspected the scroll, wondering if it could give him any answers for this type of exam. “Poetry, sir. (Y/N)’s been teaching me about… Anna-cree-on…”

“Anacreon,” she corrected.

“Yeah. His poetry. From across the sea.”

Fiducius was not impressed. “Odd thing to study since we’ve never covered modern works in class.”

A noise caught in Iolaus’ throat. He looked to (Y/N) for help.

“Iolaus asked for it,” she said. “He enjoys poetry.”

Another suspicious hum traveled across the loft. “Come down here now, please. I will escort all of you to class this instant.” Then his head fell as he descended the ladder.

Before (Y/N) could rise from her seat to follow, Iolaus pulled her into one last kiss. Though it was against her nature, she could have defied all orders to steal another, but Iolaus only smiled at her and stood, leading her to the edge of the loft.

He climbed down the ladder first, ignoring (Y/N)’s mumblings of “I don’t need help” and “I’ve fought off gods, I can handle a shaky ladder.” Before her foot could touch the ground, he grabbed her hips and pulled her out of the barn, clear from Fiducius’ view.

“You didn’t get your hour of reading,” he said.

She shrugged. “I think I got something just as good.”

They parted as Fiducius emerged from the barn and led the way to the main building of the academy, thanking the gods for stopping the rain and mumbling about students turning into muddy hogs to be slopped. He was easily ignored by the couple behind him twisting together like vines of ivy.

(Y/N) looked up to the sky as if watching the dark, rumbling clouds move on to the next village. Truthfully, she was leaning into the arm Iolaus was holding around her and looking into the summer sky of her love, all clear blue eyes and curls like golden rays of sun.

@emrfangirl @misslongcep @raindancer2004 @ladybugg1235 @xxbyimm @burningcoffeetimetravel @fire-flv @nerdbirdsworld @dashesofink @teagarages @dreams-of-wander @winchesterandpie @bluebellcotton @tumblinglringlring @fxngsfogxarty @specialagentsnark @afeistyfairy12 @queenofmankind @karlthecat15722 @sagabriar @marymegger

#young hercules #iolaus x reader #iolaus x fem!reader #yh #young hercules fic #young hercules fanfic #young hercules fanfiction #dean o'gorman x reader

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khorapodcast · 4 years ago

Note

"consult the oracle" is the best name for an ask box BUT ALSO what are some of the creator's favorite myths? :0

eros and psyche or orpheus and eurydice !!

-Annabelle

fucking. that one where artemis shoots a dude and he turns into a tree. good for her. also prometheus

-Mq

ORPH AND EURY 100000000000%

- Emily

i mean okay I do quite like the one uhhhh christ i JUST had it and now I’m blanking. okay tentatively I’m gonna say sisyphus he’s a bitch and I like him SO much

- Sats

Prometheus!

-Ibrahim

I find the story of how the myths developed over time from in some cases Mycenaean Greece all the way through to Rome sometimes more interesting than the individual myths. but sisyphus and maybe hyacinthus if i have to pick

-Lucas

I’m really far too obsessed with the Odyssey for someone who’s never read it and only listened to podcast episodes about it because I’m TERRIBLE at reading through whole myths. Also Medea is the literal love of my life I love everything with her in it but ESPECIALLY the ones where she’s a cool heroic sorceress lady instead of just an Evil Woman Falls In Love With Jason. Last writing meeting someone had to yell at me to stop talking about how much I love Medea and actually focus on writing her.

-Jules, always long winded

Imagine being able to choose a favorite myth couldn't be me but also it's Oresteia. Don't ask me why or else I'll start copy-pasting posts from classics tumblr again. And also Bacchae and Medea and Antigone and Euripedes' Orestes and I know you didn't ask for favorite retellings that stay close to the myths but Lavinia and Penelopiad,,, effervescent. (except for Margaret Atwood's treatment of Helen please ma'am she's been through enough)

- Bean, who has never been able to make a decision ever

Orpheus and Eurydice is GOOD bc I'm a hardcore Mabel Podcast fan, but I adore Geryon's myth as told by Anne Carson (blease go read Autobiography in Red y'all) and the myth of Echo! Embarassingly. I'm more of a goner over greek myth retellings in general (more than the actual myths!) so it's honestly a joy to work on this podcast and make them even more tragic

- Clary, who should probably rescind her nerd license after this

The Minotaur!! Theseus was so terrible to Ariadne. Girl solved the maze FOR YOU and you just LEAVE HER on an ISLAND? I know it doesn't sound like I love this myth but I love this myth. Pasiphae getting it on with a sacred bull? Absolutely wild.

-Andie

dear anon. I am in so much pain how am I expected to choose. I might have to say the odyssey because I associate it with a really nice english teacher, but I recently got Anne Carson’s orestia and I am all for different sides of a story being revealed to prove that the evil lady isn’t evil. This might be because I just woke up, but I will also have to agree with Andie about the sacred bull being buck wild.

-Georgie, who is indecisive and too tired to form opinions

#answered #ask #long post

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bendthekneejon · 5 years ago

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Daenerys and Odysseus (and a bit of Jon, too)

Epic poems have strongly inspired ASOIAF. But The Odyssey, The Aeneid, and The Divine Comedy, in particular, caught my eye. Now, I’ll talk about Odysseus and Dany. Comparing them has helped me understand GRRM’s view of Dany: is she really taking the path of a villain for him?

Odysseus is the main hero of the Homeric poems. These poems were so inspiring that they helped Greece get out of four centuries of dark ages and into a renaissance in the 8th century BC. So let’s explore this hero, whose example and teachings remain present to this day.

In short, Odysseus is a war hero who, after winning the war against Troy in The Illiad, has to come back home to Ithaca to his family and rule as king. However, he finds plenty of obstacles in his journey and spends a decade sailing from one island to another. Meanwhile, several men are trying to steal his throne and marry his wife Penelope in his absence. The character goes through a process of anagnorisis—taking back what is his and returning to his home and family.

Likewise, Dany’s journey is characterized by the search of a home and a family. She is the exiled daughter of a king whose throne was taken. Just like Odysseus, she has a strong sense of duty and wants the throne back. Both she (and Jon) and Odysseus, though, want above everything their family and home (Ithaca, Westeros) back: Odysseus wants the family he already has in Ithaca, and Dany has no family but longs to have one.

However, the problem that they both face is that they cannot go home nor have a family. They have a will and a duty, but no capacity to fulfill them: she is exiled and can’t get to Westeros, and he is held captive in an island by the nymph Calypso.

Now, let’s compare the characters. The opening of the Odyssey describes Odysseus' character. Take a look:

“Tell me, Muse, of that man, so ready at need, who wandered far and wide,”

They both sailed for years, from one city/island to another.

“and many were the men whose towns he saw and whose mind he learnt,”

Dany met different cultures and learned from all of them--the Dothraki, the Astapori, the Meereenese. So did Odysseus. This was, in the end, one of the characteristics that made him a great leader and king once he was back in Ithaca. This journey taught them a great deal. They both took advantage of the negative situations to watch and learn from them. Jon Snow has this in common too: the wildling’s, the Night’s Watch…he learned from all of them and these learnings are what make him a capable ruler. (It’s no news for any of us that Jon and Dany have parallel stories. So the parallels with epic heroes apply to Jon too in many cases.)

“and many the woes he suffered in his heart upon the deep, striving to win his own life and the return of his company. Nay, but even so he saved not his company, though he desired it sore. For through the blindness of their own hearts they perished...”

Odysseus tried to save his company, his friends and fellow sailors, but couldn’t save everyone. Some of them perished, for example, being eaten by the cyclops Polyphemus or eating the lotus in Circe’s island and wanting to stay there. Likewise, Dany tried to save all her people from their hardships, like the Dothraki in the Red Waste, but some of them perished.

This is what The Odyssey is about. Taking advantage of suffering. Learning from it. Becoming a stronger person, and a better ruler in the end because of it.

What about their weaknesses? They are similar, too. For example, when he arrived at Ithaca, he murdered the men who were trying to steal his wife and throne. He had a vengeful side. Dany has had vengeful moments too, crucifying the masters of Meereen, for example. They both, however, regret using violence. Dany despises violence. This was evident when she was so insistent about not reopening the fighting pits in Meereen, when she chained her dragons, or when she left Daario, a violent man. These are all constant proofs of her aversion to violence.

Odysseus also had an arrogant side. His wish to be remembered, to stand out, pushed him to shout his name to Polyphemus-- a mistake that almost got him killed as Poseidon, the god of the seas, made Odysseus’ journey at sea a living hell after that. Dany’s been proud a bunch of times, saying her name and titles too. But in the end, did these wrongs make Odysseus a crazy, unsuccessful ruler? No. All heroes have weaknesses. What matters is what they do about them. They can be willing to change, they can redeem themselves, they can learn to control them.

I could go on for a while. They are both brave. They are both patient: they go through a long journey but they don’t rush to get home and leave it all behind the way it is. Dany made sure she left Meereen with an army and a strong council, for example, learning from her mistakes in Yunkai and Astapor. They both seek to experience different cultures and experiences willingly to learn more. They know how to listen to advice from others.

“A queen must listen to all. The highborn and the low, the strong and the weak, the noble and the venal. One voice may speak you false, but in many there is always truth to be found.” (ASOS, pg. 92)

Now, Penelope’s suitors are strongly criticized by the author (and greek gods) in this story because they are trying to get to power with no merit whatsoever. Odysseus is the one who has merit, clearly. Just like Dany and Jon are the ones who have merit, not those assholes who are in the council at the end of GOT. Jon and Dany have ruled, traveled, known different people and most importantly, put people first.

Dany fought for the throne to give freedom to people and a just life, while others only fought for the throne in a succession war. She literally freed and saved people. She learns to rule, she helps people, she puts them first in her decisions. She even puts them before her lover (a parallel with the epic poem ‘The Aeneid’ by Virgil). And D&D give the power to people who aren’t intelligent at all, who haven’t even fought for the people, just like Penelope’s suitors in the palace of Ithaca. Bran has never fought for the people nor has had any experience in power. How can he bring “peace for the kingdoms”? How can he and the others in the council have more merit than Dany and Jon? To me, they are as worthy of ruling as Penelope’s suitors.

And at the end of The Odyssey, there’s a new world order. The law of vengeance is replaced by a law of peace, harmony, and love. Odysseus is back with his family. He goes back to his throne and rules Ithaca. Not only it was his duty (by bloodline), but he was also the fittest for the job, given everything he had learned on his journey.

When I noticed all his similarities with Dany I wondered: why would GRRM write such a downfall for her, if she’s a modern, female version of one of the biggest heroes in the history of literature? It would be like saying that Odysseus shouldn’t have had a happy ending.

So, either GRRM hates Odysseus (unlikely) or he didn’t get his story (unlikely). I mean, imagine finishing the Odyssey with Odysseus turning mad.

The Illiad and the Odyssey might be the greatest epics of all time, and GRRM seemed to be writing his own epic. And what’s the historical role of epics? To teach. Storytelling has always been a powerful teacher (if you read the Bible, you know Jesus shared his teachings by telling stories, called ‘parables’), and epics were a way to teach values to society. I think this is what GRRM is trying to do too with ASOIAF. Not to show the world the absurdity of life, or anything of the sort. It’s a story to teach values, like any other epic. It seems most fitting, then, that his heroes will teach with their example, just like the heroes in the great epics did.

Dany and Jon, on their own, have learned to rule. They empathize with people, with the less privileged ones, a characteristic that makes them better rulers. The other rulers just know the life of the aristocrat. GRRM has hinted often that their fates are tied. He molded them as people and leaders. Plus, they are the saviors of the world and would rule better than others given their odysseys. They would make a freer and juster world. I still have hope. I don’t know if I’m naive. I still have hope that this isn’t GRRM’s view, because Dany and Jon’s ending (in GOT) is condemning Odysseus, Aeneas, Dante, and many other epic heroes in which they are based on.

What about GRRM’s ‘message about power’? There will be always someone in power. What matters is that the right people are in power. Heroes can be teachers, examples to actual or future rulers. I think Jon and Dany were meant to be the ones to teach with their example.

PS. There are some clear hints that ASOIAF is inspired by The Odyssey. When the cyclops Polyphemus asked Odysseus, “what’s your name?”, he replied: “My name is ‘no one’.” Sounds familiar? ;)