#aenea stuff

[lady-stardust-incarnate]

A brief summary of how each character is doing at the end of the trojan war

Menelaus - alive!!! (somehow)

Helen - alive! was gonna get killed but she's too hot for that

Achilles - dead

Patroclus - dead

Paris - dead, shot in the dick (ha)

Hector - dead, body absolutely desecrated (you were a dick for that Achilles)

Agamemnon - alive then dead (you were a queen for that Clytemnestra)

Odysseus - blublublublub (jk he gets Penelope and Telemachus back but not before slaughtering most of the nobles of Ithica, there's kind of a whole book on it)

Ajax - dead

Penthesilea - dead

Diomedes - cucked (aphrodite's punishment for fucking up her wrist)

Aeneas - bringing the squad to Italy (there's kind of a whole book on it)

[dootznbootz]

*drops this and runs away*

lkdsj OKay but Aeneas in a sling 😂 Who did that to him? 👀

[sickfreaksirkay]

virgil tries to write 100 lines of poetry without an animal themed simile challenge (impossible) (gone wrong) (gone sexual)

[achillesinvulnerabledickandballs]

dido and aeneas gotta be the worlds first recorded situationship fr

[dilutedh2so4]

so i've been reading (that's new) about origin myths of the british isles (because i can) and i have had a revelation

HEAR ME OUT

so

a sequel to the Paris musical from 1990

but about Brutus of Troy

aka Medieval Britain's OC do not steal

ITS GENIUS I PROMISE

ASK ME ABOUT BRUTUS, I WILL HAPPILY YAP

[adriles]

im an warrior. i am marked by tragedy. i am a legendary figure whose story will be told over and over again. i am the joke of 1218 BCE. joke of the war. epic hero to all

[dearestaeneas]

okay. hi. table of contents updated

[northlt03]

Rick is known to mirror myths a lot (Silena-Clarisse and Patroclus-Achilles, Polyphemus' cave, Hercules' labors, etc) He could and SHOULD have mirrored the Trojan war in HOO.

Let me set the scene. Gaea doesn't pop up until the last couple books. It's easy to be scared of something that is mentioned but not seen, which in my opinion, is why Gaea in the HOO books just wasn't scary enough.

So the antagonists in the first few books are the Giants working under Gaea's orders. Percy is kidnapped by them and given to the Romans in the hope that the Greeks and the Romans will go batshit crazy in a fight and forget all about the prophecy of the seven and destroying Gaea or whatever.

Camp Halfblood is fully ready for war. As soon as they find out (through an oracle or smth idk) that the Romans exist and they have Percy, not even Chiron can stop them. Percy is the hero of the Battle of Manhattan, of course, and the hero mentioned in the last great prophecy. He's like their modern Aristos Achaion.

Meanwhile, the Romans have no clue what's going on. There's this guy he's funny, he has no memories, he just shows up at their wolf goddess and trains and gets sent to them. Cool.

Juno can't stand to see New Rome be attacked. Whether or not they would win is a whole different story. So she plucks Jason from CJ and brings them to the Greeks just for some sort of a balance.

This mirrors the Trojan war in the sense that Troy was a fortified city, so is New Rome with tons of forts and walls. Aeneas' lineage went on to be Remus and Romulus, the founders of Rome. And Helen of Troy was stolen from the Greeks.

Anyway so there's that conflict, but at the same time Camp Halfblood is getting ready to attack, Jason, Piper and Leo get sent on a quest to rescue Hera who has been captured by Porphyrion and Enceladus.

On the way, Jason starts to regain his memory a little bit, though he doesn't know everything yet. He's still super conflicted with everything. A pretty girl thinks they were dating, Leo says they were best friends, Annabeth says the Romans are enemies. But whom should he really believe?

Piper's whole arc through the first book could be about how she's the daughter of the goddess of beauty, she wrongly assumes her fake crush on Jason was her mom's fault. And she's learned so much bad stuff about her mom from myths, she outright rejects feminity and anything remotely girly at first but then slowly she gets to know Aphrodite isn't as bad as some myths make her out to be. Bonding and shit bc why should Poseidon be the only present godly parent?

Leo, meanwhile, has no idea he can essentially fire bend in the first book. His arc could be about discovering his mother's death was his fault, slightly and coming to terms with it with the help of his friends.

Reyna on the Roman's side is freaking out bc Octavian wants to go to war with the Greeks who are close to attacking them, there's a strange dude who keeps trying to pick fights with gods, a horse girl and not to mention monsters won't fucking DIE.

SON trio go on their quest to Alaska to kill Alcyoneus/ release Thanatos and things are getting clearer to them as well. Just when the Greeks are about to attack on CJ, Polybotes and the monsters attack as well. Somehow, both sides end up fighting the monsters together.

They're not friends, but they're not enemies either, bc Percy is reunited with his gf and Jason is returned to his home.

The Roman senate and the Greeks somehow come to the same conclusions- that a quest needs to go to their ancient lands. Over the next few months the work of the Argo II commences.

Things seem smooth for a while. But Gaea grows restless. She poisons Octavian and manipulates him through dreams and stuff like Kronos did to Luke. As is the nature of most Roman emperors, Octavian overthrows Reyna and declares himself the leader of New Rome like his namesake Octavius Caesar. (HAHA! HISTORY PARALLEL BITCHES)

This puts the actual quest on hold bc the seven now need to find the Athena Parthenos to bring together the Greeks and the Romans and to stop Octavian's plan of trying to fuck as much shit up as possible.

Reyna, Nico and say idk, Grover, are the ones to deviate from the quest and bring the statue to USA again. But the Seven are still very much in Europe after rescuing Nico.

Percy and Annabeth fall into Tartarus which helps close the Doors of Death, except this time since Nico isn't there, Hazel has to take on control over ghosts and the dead in the House of Hades and leading up to it. The powers of mist, in my opinion, should have gone to Piper since charmspeaking is a lot like bending the mist verbally.

Piper's arc through the third and fourth book is starting to discover herself and with the help of her mother, figuring out she doesn't like Jason romantically like she thought she did.

Hazel's arc is gaining control over what she once was (dead). She's jealous her dad was there more for Nico than her, but she pushes past it and never lets her anger and grudges get the better of her which is like breaking boundaries for children of Hades/Pluto.

Frank's arc in HOH was really cool, I like that. So no change to that.

Jason, poor guy is still very much confused about everything really. He's used to being the leader, he feels lost in the large group. He has his moments to shine ofc (please take away his excess amounts of head injuries), but he starts to feel inferior, which is where Leo helps him bc the guy knows what that's like.

Anyway, in the absence of Percy and Annabeth, Jason has to take charge. He discovers he doesn't really like it. That's not what he was meant for even though he had greatness thrust upon him at a very young age.

His BOO arc is earlier this time and takes place throughout HOH and BOO. He's content with himself, even if he isn't with anyone. HE'S THE ONE THAT GETS SENT TO OGYGIA!!!

And Calypso eventually does fall for him bc he's smart, nice, and just an overall swell guy. But he helps her to realize that she can be content in herself as well. And he promises her that he'll help her.

Show me Leo, Jason and Percy trying to think of ways of helping the goddess.

In any case. BOO could have been like Iliad pt 2 also known as the Odyssey. It takes them the whole book just to get to Athens. Meanwhile, they've understood that Gaea is the main main villain. She's even raised some of the other primordials against them.

Percy and Annabeth already saw Tartarus, and then there's Oceanus who makes their travel much harder than necessary. Something something about how they get tossed all over the place and somehow manage to gather all the correct ingredients for the potion (i forgot the name lol) on their small adventures in the different places. In the end they finally make it to Athens. Except this time, there's only a few giants there bc they killed the rest before.

Annabeth and Percy are taken hostage, like it happens in the books, but PERCY WILLINGLY GIVES UP HIS BLOOD TO RAISE GAEA RATHER THAN LETTING ANNABETH GET HURT BC OF HIS FATAL FLAW LIKE ATHENA TOLD HIM WOULD HAPPEN EVENTUALLY!!

The Gods DON'T SHOW UP PLEASE!! That was so lameee. Why even do the whole quest if their mommies and daddies were going to show up to help them????

So while Percy and Annabeth are battling the remaining few Giants, Leo, Piper, Hazel and Frank go up against Gaia herself. In the old myths four titans held Ouranos down while Kronos chopped his essence up. In the same way, they battle Gaia away from her turf in the air, keeping her distracted enough. All these demigods are needed because she's a primordial dammit!

Jason, my guy, comes in a clutch, chops her to pieces and sends her essence to Tartarus!!

The world is saved, the end!

[ithacanfountain]

so uhm i was reading stuff about the aeneid earlier today and found out about this guy named achaemenides who was odysseus' crewmate that got left behind when they were escaping polyphemus before aeneas took him and i thought it would be so funny if epic mentioned him so uh yeah💀

another thing i made for him LOL

[audreyscribes]

PJO ROMAN DEMIGOD HEADCANONS:👰🏻 JUNO: GODDESS OF MARRIAGE AND WOMAN, PATRON OF WOMEN, QUEEN OF THE GODS, COUNSELLOR OF STATE, JUNE 👑

Author’s Note: So there may be some overlap and not neccessarily a clear distinction, but I also included some stuff from the HERA DEMIGOD H/Cs I did into this, and you can see a connection between Hera and Juno. Thanks for reading! ROMAN DEMIGODS H/CS MASTERLIST LINKS: [TUMBLR] // [AO3]

Oh boy, I hope you are ready for this. There are many similarities and many differences whether or not you are a child of Hera or Juno. But whether you are a child of Hera actually doesn’t change in this case when you find yourself in the company of the Romans.

You’re absolutely given the royal treatment with carpet being rolled underneath your feet with people at your beck and call, waiting and acting for your comfort. While it may sound nice, if Camp Halfblood has the aura of uncertainty, then Camp Jupiter is the opposite. The treatment towards you is with reverence but because Juno is so revered, being her child makes you feel isolated. They see you as your mother’s daughter but not yourself; an avatar of your mother and their idol. You also become Juno’s ambassador; a different tune but in a similar manner which Nico di Angelo is Pluto’s Ambassador. When you talk, they listen to you with silence and unblinking eyes and if you want to be friends with someone, they are either too scared to or too respectful to be even called friends. You feel much like a reverent statue and much less a person.

Unlike Camp Half-blood where people are a bit skeptical and luke-warm to you at all with how unusual your existence is, Camp Jupter is the opposite. They don’t question how you were conceived because to even insinuate Juno of anything would be utter blasphemy; so no matter how you were born or conceived, you can’t even say anything because of the pressure.

You find out the reason for both the reverence and fear, beyond the general respect towards the gods. You learn of the stories of Juno and you find out just as much as Juno is the patron goddess of Rome, she has just as many times from her time as Hera to Juno, inflicted much harm and trial towards the foundation of Rome; from interfering Aeneas from founding it from the Fall of Troy to supporting the Sabines against Rome. Thus honouring her with reverence and fear is a reminder that she is both the Patron goddess of Rome, but was also its greatest enemy; and that treatment extends to you. This changes the perception of adoration from reverent and celebrity treatments towards you to something else.

Gods forbid there’s an actual child of Jupiter because the people of camp will be expecting the two of you to get together regardless of your own thoughts of it. It’s like the whole expectation of being Prom Queen and the Prom King having to date each other and be absolutely happy in that arrangement. It's as if Venus has been conspiring with the people of Rome to put you together for her own amusement; and considering how much power Venus has with the Romans, that’s not far-fetched either. If Camp Half-blood has a son of Zeus, then expect the people of Rome doing their absolute damn best for the two of you to get together even if they have to make it happen in any way possible.

If a child of Jupiter is expected to be with a child of Venus as an alternative, aside from a child of Jupiter, you’re expected to be together with a child of Janus, god of beginnings and passages. This is because of the relationship between Juno and Janus is reflected in their association with the kalendae (Roman calendar) of every month, particularly the first days, belonging to them both, as well as the festival of the Tigillum Sororium. Though not in the same realm, you’re accompanied by a child of Mars, since Mars is Juno’s son and the guardian of the Romans, so it would only be natural to have a child of Mars to accompany a child of Juno. So you’re given a body-guard basically which you can’t refute.

You oversee many of the rites, events, and meetings of Camp Jupiter and New Rome. Its less of your own accord and much like a child of Jupiter, both Jupiter and Juno are part of Rome itself, so you’re going to be forced to listen and be involved in the inner workings of Rome whether you like it or not. You feel much like every prince and princess of any royal family, expecting you be just as much of a Queen/King/Monarch, with your every move and words being watched for, even your breathing. You feel the non-existent crown on your head weighing heavier and heavier, it’s band tightening over your head as you have to keep your neck and head straight up.

I don’t think you’ll be put into a cohort but if you have to be put into one, you’ll be associated with the 1st cohort. Again, not because of your own achievements but because you’re Juno’s ambassador with both the reverence and fear mixed in. 

[dootznbootz]

This might be mean and very silly...But if I were to meet Percy Jackson and the rest, I think I'd want to read the actual Odyssey and Iliad with them and help them learn real shit as they were given misinformation

[wolfythewitch]

Tis I, your local italian, who just spent a few minutes looking up how Aeneas is described in the Aeneid.

Long story short: he has well-styled long hair and he's handsome.

We don't have many physical descriptions (thanks Virgil!), but there's this passage in the first book, when he is being introduced to Dido I think, where he's compared to a god, and he's inundated in light and yadda yadfa the usual stuff (in luce refulsit), which makes him look even more king-like and beautiful than usual (his mother is Venus, after all).

There's also a reference to his hairstyle that seems to suggest it was worn long and in an elaborate way, at least here. He probably had more of a bed head while fleeing Troy (although now that I'm thinking about it it would be fun if, being the son of the goddess of beuty, his hair always looked perfect).

Hoped this helped, can't wait to see him! (And Dido, pleaase draw Dido!!)

HAHAHA

Aeneas: can a depressed person do this??

[theprettynosferatu]

CW: Girl / Girl (Girl / Deity?), giantess, light mind stuff.

She was born from the sea.

Antigone’s faith was rarely challenged, but the Ox’s eyes, black, large, accusatory in their innocence, did provoke a moment of doubt. Tied behind the temple, it seemed to suspect, if not understand, his fate as a future sacrifice. But whenever she felt herself hesitate, the priestess reminded herself of a simple fact about her Goddess.

She was born from the sea.

Who was Antigone to question a being who, by her very nature, hid within herself the very mysteries of the deepest oceans? The sea was giver of sustenance, but as even the humblest of fishermen knew, it also took life when it deemed it proper. It was the light playing on the waves and the sheer darkness of bottomless pits. And was that not also the case with love? Her Goddess was delight and madness, pleasure and longing. Venus was born from the sea, and the sea of love was her eternal domain.

Antigone sighed as she kept cleaning the temple for the following day’s ceremony. Had Rome not been founded by Aeneas, himself a scion of Venus? And yet the biggest festivals were held to honor Mars and Jupiter. It seemed folly to her. Well, she would honor Venus with her devotion, even if the city didn’t pay her the homage she was owed. Not a speck of dust would sully the hallowed marble floor. Her fellow priestesses scoffed at such duties. Antigone didn’t mind. She liked being alone in the temple. It felt like an intimate moment with her Goddess, away from prying eyes.

And yet the sensation of being watched pricked the back of her neck. She turned around, ready to mock herself for her childish fear.

She was there. 

She was a scent, at first. Seawater and sweat, the bark of an olive tree and fresh morning dew, the intimate smell of lovers and a single violet hidden in the valley, secretly spreading her sweet perfume in the breeze. Antigone could feel a delightful shiver traveling up her spine as the air shimmered in front of her, as if the silvery moonlight was taking form, gaining the most delicate shape, as if a sculptor was crafting their masterpiece from the very aether… and then, before she could begin to realize what was happening, the Goddess stood before her.

She was small, a perfectly painted being of exquisite proportions with long hair of shifting colors, now coppery, now spun from the purest gold, now dark as the deepest night. Her eyes seemed to contain a multitude of stars within them, shining with the soft glow of the Sun’s first rays. Her smile was maternal warmth, the fangs of a predator, the mischief of a best friend telling a secret, the pure joy of a lover seeing her feelings reciprocated for the first time. Her body appeared at once exposed and strategically covered up, almost as if she was wearing wet silk clinging tight to every curve- hiding only to enhance, building anticipation, teasing in a dance of reflections and shadows. She wore the very night as her garment.

There was no need for words. Antigone knew exactly who was in her temple. Part of her wanted to think it was a reward for her devotion, but she knew better. Her Goddess chose as she willed, and any attempt to understand her motives was to deny what made her Goddess so special. The priestess felt naked. Every inch of her spirit, of her body, every secret desire and half-formed fantasy, every errant thought was exposed to those perfect eyes. She could not pretend to be anything other than what she was, mask even the darkest of her impulses- and yet she felt no judgment, no shame. Her very core was naked and Antigone felt beautiful in her openness. Venus’ eyes made Antigone see herself for a moment as the Goddess saw her, and she desired herself as much as she desired the being that now walked slowly, seductively, towards her.

All it took was a slight caress from The Goddess' finger to send Antigone into the ground, her entire body aflame with pleasure. Her already light clothes feel stifling, coarse when compared to the purity of the sensation of skin on skin. Antigone tears them off and looks up at her Goddess, ready to worship, to give in, to share in whatever small part of divinity She chose to show her servant, even if the pleasure would destroy her. Suddenly, the priestess was on the ground, her hands pinned to the ground, grabbed by the wrists by the unbreakable grip of a single olympian hand. The Goddess looked her servant in the eyes as her available hand barely touched her chest, sending thunderbolts of pleasure through her body and slowly, teasingly, making her way down. Antigone could feel Venus on her body, in her mind, deep inside her spirit. Every sensation was a song, and a dagger, and the guilty pleasure of stealing someone’s lover. And the more the pleasure grew, the more the Goddess grew, both in body and inside Antigone’s soul. 

As soon as Venus released Antigone’s arms, they instantly wrapped themselves around the Goddess’ growing body. She was feeding on pleasure, growing in power, becoming more and more her full self. Antigone felt perfect lips teasing her nipples, kisses and small bites driving her into a frenzy. She dug her nails on Venus’ back as her hips moved on their own, seeking with desperation. She could feel the Goddess inside her, inside her body, inside her mind, toying with her, teasing out secret desires, making them grow. She was in many places at once, with every partner she had ever fantasized about. All her fantasies felt real, were real, all at the same time. She was being used by a group of people, men and women, in the middle of the Forum. She was sneaking into the room of her best friend, sliding into her bed. She was wielding a whip and being whipped. She was Queen and she was Slave. She was perfect and she was a useless, humiliated piece of meat to be used and abused. Soon her arms couldn’t go around the being on top of her. Every pang of pleasure, every shameful fantasy brought to life fed the Goddess, made her grow and grow, made her power more tangible, conquering. 

Suddenly a whispered word hit Antigone’s ear. It was a word that contained in itself all the words she secretly longed to hear, compressed into a single, deadly thrust in her mind. I love you. You complete whore. Docile slave. My beautiful toy. You are perfect. Degenerate slut. Stupid little pet. Be with me forever. 

Antigone was gone, lost in an ocean of delight and pleasure and shame and desire. She was wracked over and over by tidal waves of sensation, sinking deeper and deeper into the ocean of feeling, of emotion, of currents and riptides. She moaned and babbled and drooled and writhed, becoming less than human and yet being more complete then she had ever been.

By the time she could open her eyes, take stock of the world around her, the Goddess was in her full glory. Magnificent as the moon. Large as imagination itself. Attractive as the night air. She opened her legs, beckoning. 

The priestess, diminute, tiny as a speck of sand before Venus’ might, walked forward. She went inside those pink, wet, beautiful gates, leaving her garments behind. 

She was home.

Did you enjoy this story? You can support my work at patreon.com/prettynosferatu

[awordwasthebeginning]

Ich seh's auch. :D

Reminder an mich selbst, Schrägstriche auch wirklich schräg zu machen

[katerinaaqu]

Hi there! You seem to be an expert on Greek myths and Odysseus as a character so I was wondering…I hear stories about stuff pre-Iliad and during the war. Like Odysseus pretending to be mad or stabbing Diomedes. Where do I find these stories?

Also if you don’t mind me asking what’s your opinion on Odysseus’ character change in stories besides Homer’s? How do you handle it as a writer yourself when you portray Odysseus?

Hello!

My, oh, my! Calling me an "expert" is definitely a stretch! You are the most kind. It is true that I have a degree and a post-graduate degree in archeology but I have to admit that I have a lot of dusting off to do in my knowledge in regards to many different sources and asks like yours allow me all the more to research and better myself! So thank you both for the compliment and the opportunity to answer this question!

[Warning for a long text. Please bear with me! ^_^]

It is true that stories of pre-Iliad are rescued more from post-homeric sources (which makes sense given that many researchers actually point at Homer as the oldest known source for epics even than Hesiod, although th discussion is still going on). The only pre-Iliad events we actually know in regards to Odysseus from Homer is his naming from his father Autolycus in Rhapsody/Book 19, his scar from the boar and his trip to Messina in which he receives his infamous bow as a gift.

A large number of works in regards to Odysseus come from sources such as the Epic Cycle, which is the closest we have to the epic tradition however there is a large number of sources coming from Romans such as Pausanias (who mentions how Odysseus takes Penelope as a wife) but most of all Higenius and Pseudo-Appolodorus. There are others sources as well but mostly come from entertainment department such as the theatrical writers of 5th century BC such as Eurypedes who use the events of the myths to create their dramas. By n large I tend to separate those because they are just for entertainment reasons (pretty much like the...adaptations from nowadays! Hahaha although those are valid interpretations as well)

A large number of stories that show Odysseus as the most devious and scheming fellow come from roman sources. No surprise there that his fake madness story comes mainly from Higenius, Fabulae (which is also the writer who mentions the story of how Odysseus frames Palamedes for treason to get back at him for unmasking his scheme). The story of him trying to stab Diomedes at the back seems to be mostly apparent in later roman times historians and researchers. More specific I find more reference for the augustian times writer Conon, who claims that Odysseus tried to stab Diomedes in the back in order to take the full credit for the stealing of the Paladium of Athena. Diomedes sees the shadow of his sword reflected by the moonlight and repels Odysseus. This event apparently seems to be giving the name to a proverb that we call "Diomedes's necessity" (διομήδεια ανάγκη) which basically means that you do something unpleasant because you have no choice (given that Diomedes knew that Odysseus was essential for the taking of Troy he didn't try to injure him back even if Odysseus backstabbed him)

By n large the wave of anti-Odysseus narrative did start by many of the classical greek plays because they wanted to create propaganda for the straightforward battle, something that Odysseus didn't always stand for but it definitely skyrocketed with Virgil's Aenead, in which Odysseus is more often whatnot referred to as "cruel" or "deceitful" and he is depicted more or less as a villain. And as we see from sources like Higenius, Odysseus keeps being pretty much a shady till villanious figure in many roman texts mainly because of his connection to Troy since he took Troy with trickery and from Troy escaped Aeneas, the mythological progenitor of Rome (aka Odysseus is a villain for roman literature because he took their origin city from them)

Well I believe you can read and study these stories to your local libraries but if you do not have much time I would suggest you the site that I often use to see the original texts called perseus.tufts . It is a very useful site that has most of classics even in the native tongue and you can also research names and terms and find them faster through the site. It often has some useful commentary as well.

***

If I mind?! I am honored when people ask my inspiration! ^_^

Well in my humble opinion I think Homer's Odysseus is the most solid Odysseus. I do see both his good and his bad side and we can see that despite the fact he is undoubtedly the hero, he is also deeply flawed and one can both relate to him but also critisize him for what he does. Now for the rest of the stories I believe we must take some of them with a grain of salt depending on what the poem or work was about. For example using Eurypedes's plays to make an assumption about Odysseus's saga seems to me equivalent on using Shakespere to learn about King Richard or James Cameron to learn about American history. One can recognize the creators' research but in the end of the day dramas are plays that are supposed to cause emotions to the audience for their pleasure (which ironically was also what the homeric poems originally were) so certain details on characters' personalties might have been over-sensationalized for the sakes of dramatics or pass the messages they wanted to pass.

Given that in antiquity greeks used Homer almost like a sole reference for these characters means that they might as well used the homeric poems as their initial stop and enriched it with local traditions in regards to the characters as well as their personal tastes. This can be apparent for example in differences such as that Homer initially wrote that Calypso was forcing herself on Odysseus and yet Hesiod says "they made sweet love", possibly taking over from one or two lines from Homer's work (I had made a small analysis on those in the past). There are also other epics such as Telegony that straight out contradict major points of the Odyssey making many people even here saying that "telegony is not canon" and I agree on the take that yes is a completely different story than the line Homer created, even if it does seem taking the story from where Homer left it.

It is hard to pintpoint how much Homer changed to make his Odysseus and how much of his poems are his invention and how much was the oral traditions he undoubtedly gathered to create his poems so it is hard to tell which accounts of Odysseus were accurate to depict him as cruel and which were not. But I tend to side with Homer's writing given that Homer didn't spare his audience from Odysseus's tendency to cruelty or violence, starting from the beating of Thersytes in Iliad till the murder of the suitors and his preparation for a war with the nobles of the Cephallinians in the Odyssey. It is this lack of overexaggeration on Homer's part which still doesn't sugar-cot his hero's flaws that make me side with his interpretation.

Now as you might have noticed from my own stories (which you can find to my pinned post here if you ever were to honor me with your insight on them!) I mostly use Homer as my source but I do like to selectively read some of the post-homeric sources and pick those that fit the most with the narrative I assume aligns more with Homer. For example in both my story "Guilt" as well in my one-shot "Screams and Shadows in the Night", I use Pausanias as a source for Palamedes's death with the fishing expedition assuming that Odysseus wouldn't risk his own skin to get caught just to frame someone else 10 whole years after Palamedes revealed him as sane. I would imagine more that Odysseus on impulse would push Palamedes in the water and then just let him drown so that he wouldn't get caught along with the personal grudge against him rather than him building an elaborate scheme for him like that. That is because I saw in the Odyssey a guy that seems to be pretty straightforward when it comes to his vengeance (see the suitors) to which he took his time trying to be as just as possible giving the chance on some people to repent on their sins and save their lives.

Maybe I am way too...prejudiced with Odyssey and Iliad but as a general rule I try to read the post-homeric sources and try to analyze which of the actions ellegedly portrayed by Odysseus would have aligned with the spirit of Homer so I try to pick some of those that suit that same line. I hope that makes sense!

Forgive me for the extra long reply and thank you so much for the amazing question! I will have to research some more on that department! I hope in the future to be able to become more specific! Thank you again!

[please-be-nice-im-sensitive]

hey

hey

guys

follow @brainrotroulette, they are super super cool and they are very nice to me and they like the cowboy au, and inspired me to create all the Aeneas stuff!!