#greek achilles

[thorns-in-daisy-fields]

Icarus

flung himself

towards the

sun,

-

Orpheus

crossed

the point of

no return,

-

and Achilles

tipped the scales

at the price of his life

for the relief

of his lover's justice.

-

-

And me?

-

-

I sit on

my bedroom floor

with my head

between my knees

knowing love and grief

walk hand in hand

with fear and madness

following close behind.

-

-

I felt Icarus stumble

with clumsy wings

as he chased the one thing

that kept him from

freezing to death

-

He hugs me around the neck.

He whispers into my ear,

"It is worth it."

He squeezes me as if to beg

me to listen.

As if we'll both regret it if I don't.

"It is worth it. It is worth it. It is worth it."

-

So I ignore the warnings.

I ignore the flames.

I ignore the water.

-

Because

according to Icarus

it is worth it.

-

It is worth it. It is worth it. It is worth it.

-

-

I felt Orpheus' life crumble

at the alter

as he lost everything

that made his life

worth living.

-

He taps my shoulder

as I walk through Hades' trial.

I keep my eyes facing forward.

"There are no second chances here"

he warns me, his voice just above

a whisper.

"You might as well gouge your eyes out now

if you still want to stand a chance."

I squeez then shut instead.

-

Though, I wonder if he is right.

-

Before I know it, I'm looking for something to do it with

because Orpheus said

it was my only hope.

-

-

I felt Achilles scream and tear his hair out

when he found

his whole world

gone.

I felt the earth shudder as he

cried.

-

He stands beside me like a soldier.

He leans closer as he speaks,

his voice carrying the calmness

of a broken man.

"I say do what you will..."

-

He is quiet for a long moment.

I watch him for an answer.

He seems annoyed.

As if

his answer is obvious.

-

"...You see, you'll do everything

you can,

and they'll still be gone,

and it will still

be your fault...

And when it's over?"

He pauses again

and his silence weighs my chest down.

"Well..."

He doesn't say anything else.

-

He doesn't say anything else because he doesn't need to.

-

Icarus is a dead man.

Orpheus is a dead man.

Achilles

is

a

dead

man.

-

-

They are dead because love and

tragedy

go hand in hand,

yet they still had the courage

to follow

close behind.

-

-

-is gouging my eyes out really the answer?

[j-h-j-e]

•

Some one needs t come get them before they burn down another landmark by accident 😅

•

[retrogamingblog2]

[wolfythewitch]

Patrochilles sketch for a late holiday gift haha

[gardenlilgnome]

[kurzler]

a quick psa to anyone recently getting into greek mythology and is a victim of tumblr and/or tiktok misconceptions:

-there is no shame in being introduced to mytholgy from something like percy jackson, epic the musical or anything like that, but keep in mind that actual myths are going to be VERY different from modern retellings

-the myth of medusa you probably know (her being a victim of poseidon and being cursed by athena) isn't 100% accurate to GREEK mythology (look up ovid)

-there is no version of persephone's abduction in which persephone willingly stays with hades, that's a tumblr invention (look up homeric hymn to demeter)

-as much as i would like it, no, cerberus' name does not mean "spot" (probably a misunderstanding from this wikipedia article)

-zeus isn't the only god who does terrible things to women, your fav male god probably has done the same

-on that note, your fav greek hero has probably done some heinous shit as well

-gods are more complicated than simply being "god of [insert thing]", many titles overlap between gods and some may even change depending on where they were worshipped

-also, apollo and artemis being the gods of the sun and the moon isn't 100% accurate, their main aspects as deities originally were music and the hunt

-titans and gods aren't two wholly different concepts, titan is just the word used to decribe the generation of gods before the olympians

-hector isn't the villain some people make him out to be

-hephaestus WAS married to aphrodite. they divorced. yes, divorce was a thing in ancient greece. hephaestus' wife is aglaia

-ancient greek society didn't have the same concepts of sexuality that we have now, it's incorrect to describe virgin goddesses like artemis and athena as lesbians, BUT it's also not wholly accurate to describe them as aromantic/asexual, it's more complex than that

-you can never fully understand certain myths if you don't understand the societal context in which they were told

-myths have lots and lots of retellings, there isn't one singular "canon", but we can try to distinguish between older and newer versions and bewteen greek and roman versions

-most of what you know about sparta is probably incorrect

-reading/waching retellings is not a substitute to reading the original myths, read the iliad! read the odyssey! i know they may seem intimidating, but they're much more entertaining than you may think

greek mythology is so complex and interesting, don't go into it with preconcieved notions! try to be open to learn!

[starstrvckfool]

So I started reading the iliad

I thought this part was pretty funny, Odysseus crashes out

POV: Achilles & Odysseus hate the same guy (they would be a pretty interesting duo ngl)

[greeknerdsblog]

⚠️It does not justify their actions in a culture and period full of war and suffering⚠️

[bertholdwizner]

Could recognize him by touch alone...

[inflamedautistic]

The Iliad is probably one of the funniest books I ever read

Like I'll be having a not-so-good day, then remember how Hector had given himself an entire pep talk to fight Achilles. He saw Achilles running full speed towards him and proceeds to just book it.

Or when Menelaus got shot by an arrow in like in an ultimately nonfatal spot, and Agamemnon begins prematurely mourning him while he's standing there like 🧍‍♂️” you're scaring the men.”

Or when Odysseus is walking around the camps with a royal scepter and is just beating people with it if he finds them packing or suggesting to leave.

Or when Hector is brainstorming on how to face Achilles and for a moment goes, “Maybe I could talk with him, we’re both princes, we can both be rational, I could reason with him… that's a horrible fucking idea.”

I have more, but these, in particular, really tickle me.

[poet-by-heart]

My favorite part of the Song of Achilles:

Achilles: How could Heracles not recognize his wife?

Chiron: That is the nature of madness.

Patroclus’ inner monologue: Sounds like a skill issue. Couldn’t be me. Truly pathetic to be honest. Personally, I would recognize Achilles in the dark, or in disguise. I would know him even in madness. But that’s just me I guess.

[j-h-j-e]

A young Emer and Achilles up to mischief perhaps 🤔 this piece took me way to long and it shows as I think I became slack with it 😭😭😭

[re-kyba]

Patrochilles!!

[wolfythewitch]

But never let me die without a struggle and without acclaim

[ditoob]

“Showing Athena around the Greek Camp”

Recorded by Odysseus Laertides (1700 b.C.)

[emmikay]

Odysseus: Ask me why I love my wife.

Diomedes: Don’t-

Achilles: Why do you love wife?

Diomedes: (groans)

Odysseus: (pulls out a 200-slide presentation)

Odysseus: I'm so glad you asked.