Medea
*Since my daughter's name is Medea...I present for your enjoyment the
various myths of Medea.*
>
> Medea posted by Krista | 12/30/2003 11:11:25 AM | [image: Email article to
> friend] Email article
>
> Medea in The Argonautica
> The *Argonautica* by Apollonius of Rhodes was written during the 3rd
> century BCE and tells the story of Medea, who fell in love with Jason, the
> leader of the Argonauts, and helped him obtain the Golden Fleece. She was
> known as a sorceress and was able to use her magic to fight a monster called
> Talos, a bronze giant who tossed large rocks at them.
>
> And Talos, the man of bronze, as he broke off rocks from the hard cliff,
> stayed them from fastening hawsers to the shore, when they came to the
> roadstead of Dicte's haven. He was of the stock of bronze, of the men sprung
> from ash-trees, the last left among the sons of the gods and the son of
> Cronos gave him to Europa to be the warder of Crete and to stride round the
> island thrice a day with his feet of bronze. Now in all the rest of his body
> and limbs was he fashioned of bronze and invulnerable but beneath the sinew
> by his ankle was a blood-red vein and this, with its issues of life and
> death, was covered by a thin skin. (ll. 1638-1648)
>
> Medea decided to take on Talos, for as long as he was not immortal (ie a
> god), her magic would be just as powerful as his and she could win. Medea
> then proceeds to channel her hatred into a deadly weapon and attack from a
> distance to beat Talos.
>
> Thus she spake and they drew the ship out of range, resting on their oars,
> waiting to see what plan unlooked for she would bring to pass and she,
> holding the fold of her purple robe over her cheeks on each side, mounted on
> the deck and Aeson's son took her hand in his and guided her way along the
> thwarts. And with songs did she propitiate and invoke the Death- spirits,
> devourers of life, the swift hounds of Hades, who, hovering through all the
> air, swoop down on the living. Kneeling in supplication, thrice she called
> on them with songs, and thrice with prayers and, shaping her soul to
> mischief, with her hostile glance she bewitched the eyes of Talos, the man
> of bronze and her teeth gnashed bitter wrath against him, and she sent forth
> baneful phantoms in the frenzy of her rage. Father Zeus, surely great wonder
> rises in my mind, seeing that dire destruction meets us not from disease and
> wounds alone, but lo! even from afar, may be, it tortures us! (ll.
> 1659-1676)
>
> In the Medea legend told by Apollonius of Rhodes and Euripides, when Jason
> and Medea return to Pelias' kingdom, Pelias refuses to honor his oath and
> give Jason the kingdom. Angered, Medea tricks Pelias' daughters that if they
> were to boil their father in water that contained magical herbs, he'd become
> young again. Secretly, Medea gives the girls the wrong herbs and they end up
> killing Pelias. This angers the people of Pelias, who then drive Jason and
> Medea out of the land, and finally to Corinth, where Medea bears two
> children. In the meantime, the King of Corinth, Creon, decides to offer his
> daughter, Creusa, in marriage to Jason. He accepts, much to the anger of
> Medea. Hurt by Jason's betrayal, she vows to hurt him deeply and as a
> wedding present, she uses her magic to kill Creon and Creusa. She then kills
> both of Jason's children and flees to Athens.
>
> Medea in Ovid
> Ovid was fascinated by Media and wrote an epic tragedy about her that many
> considered to be his greatest work. Unfortunately, that work is lost to us.
> He also writes of her powers in his *Metamorphoses*. Ovid describes Medea
> as a powerful sorcerer that can invoke the powers of darkness - the Night,
> Hecate, the Underworld. He recounts a number of Media's deeds. This excerpt
> tells of Medea fleeing after she had killed Jason's bride and killed their
> sons.
>
> At last, the dragon's wings brought her to Corinth, the ancient Ephyre,
> and its Pirenian spring. Here, tradition says, that in earliest times, human
> bodies sprang from fungi, swollen by rain. After Jason's new bride Glauce
> had been consumed by the fires of vengeful Colchian witchcraft and both the
> Isthmus's gulfs had witnessed flame consuming the king's palace, Medea
> impiously bathed her sword in the blood of their sons. Then, after
> performing this evil act, she fled from Jason's wrath. Carried by her
> dragons that are born of the Titans, she reached Pallas's citadel of Athens.
> This once knew you Phene, the most righteous, and you old Periphas, both
> flying in the air, as birds, the eagle and the osprey: and Alcyone,
> granddaughter of Polypemon, resting on strange new wings. It was Aegeus who
> gave Medea sanctuary there, damned thereafter by that one action: and not
> content with taking her in, he even entered into a contract of marriage with
> her.
>
> Seneca's Medea
> Seneca (5 BCE- 65 CE) composed another story about Medea in which she is
> presented as a witch with a number of demonic subordinates. She is able to
> invoke various deities to curse her enemies and, feeling betrayed by Jason,
> she vows to hurt him as deeply as she can. She can also make elaborate
> concoctions and magical potions.
> Reference
>
> - Luck, Georg. "Witches and Sorcerers in Classical Literature." Witchcraft
> and Magic in Europe: Ancient Greece and Rome.
> University of Pennsylvania Press (November 1999) ISBN: 0812217055
> - Euripides. Medea.
> Dover Pubns (May 1993) ISBN: 0486275485
> - Apollonius, Richard Hunter (Translator). Jason and the Golden
> Fleece: (The Argonautica)
> .
> Oxford University Press Reprint edition (August 1998) ISBN: 0192835831
> - Harry M. Hine (Editor). Seneca: Medea.
> Aris & Phillips (December 2000) ISBN: 0856686921
> - Ovid, A. D. Melville (Translator). Metamorphoses.
> Oxford Press; Reprint edition (June 1998) ISBN: 019283472X
>
>
various myths of Medea.*
>
> Medea posted by Krista | 12/30/2003 11:11:25 AM | [image: Email article to
> friend] Email article
>
> Medea in The Argonautica
> The *Argonautica* by Apollonius of Rhodes was written during the 3rd
> century BCE and tells the story of Medea, who fell in love with Jason, the
> leader of the Argonauts, and helped him obtain the Golden Fleece. She was
> known as a sorceress and was able to use her magic to fight a monster called
> Talos, a bronze giant who tossed large rocks at them.
>
> And Talos, the man of bronze, as he broke off rocks from the hard cliff,
> stayed them from fastening hawsers to the shore, when they came to the
> roadstead of Dicte's haven. He was of the stock of bronze, of the men sprung
> from ash-trees, the last left among the sons of the gods and the son of
> Cronos gave him to Europa to be the warder of Crete and to stride round the
> island thrice a day with his feet of bronze. Now in all the rest of his body
> and limbs was he fashioned of bronze and invulnerable but beneath the sinew
> by his ankle was a blood-red vein and this, with its issues of life and
> death, was covered by a thin skin. (ll. 1638-1648)
>
> Medea decided to take on Talos, for as long as he was not immortal (ie a
> god), her magic would be just as powerful as his and she could win. Medea
> then proceeds to channel her hatred into a deadly weapon and attack from a
> distance to beat Talos.
>
> Thus she spake and they drew the ship out of range, resting on their oars,
> waiting to see what plan unlooked for she would bring to pass and she,
> holding the fold of her purple robe over her cheeks on each side, mounted on
> the deck and Aeson's son took her hand in his and guided her way along the
> thwarts. And with songs did she propitiate and invoke the Death- spirits,
> devourers of life, the swift hounds of Hades, who, hovering through all the
> air, swoop down on the living. Kneeling in supplication, thrice she called
> on them with songs, and thrice with prayers and, shaping her soul to
> mischief, with her hostile glance she bewitched the eyes of Talos, the man
> of bronze and her teeth gnashed bitter wrath against him, and she sent forth
> baneful phantoms in the frenzy of her rage. Father Zeus, surely great wonder
> rises in my mind, seeing that dire destruction meets us not from disease and
> wounds alone, but lo! even from afar, may be, it tortures us! (ll.
> 1659-1676)
>
> In the Medea legend told by Apollonius of Rhodes and Euripides, when Jason
> and Medea return to Pelias' kingdom, Pelias refuses to honor his oath and
> give Jason the kingdom. Angered, Medea tricks Pelias' daughters that if they
> were to boil their father in water that contained magical herbs, he'd become
> young again. Secretly, Medea gives the girls the wrong herbs and they end up
> killing Pelias. This angers the people of Pelias, who then drive Jason and
> Medea out of the land, and finally to Corinth, where Medea bears two
> children. In the meantime, the King of Corinth, Creon, decides to offer his
> daughter, Creusa, in marriage to Jason. He accepts, much to the anger of
> Medea. Hurt by Jason's betrayal, she vows to hurt him deeply and as a
> wedding present, she uses her magic to kill Creon and Creusa. She then kills
> both of Jason's children and flees to Athens.
>
> Medea in Ovid
> Ovid was fascinated by Media and wrote an epic tragedy about her that many
> considered to be his greatest work. Unfortunately, that work is lost to us.
> He also writes of her powers in his *Metamorphoses*. Ovid describes Medea
> as a powerful sorcerer that can invoke the powers of darkness - the Night,
> Hecate, the Underworld. He recounts a number of Media's deeds. This excerpt
> tells of Medea fleeing after she had killed Jason's bride and killed their
> sons.
>
> At last, the dragon's wings brought her to Corinth, the ancient Ephyre,
> and its Pirenian spring. Here, tradition says, that in earliest times, human
> bodies sprang from fungi, swollen by rain. After Jason's new bride Glauce
> had been consumed by the fires of vengeful Colchian witchcraft and both the
> Isthmus's gulfs had witnessed flame consuming the king's palace, Medea
> impiously bathed her sword in the blood of their sons. Then, after
> performing this evil act, she fled from Jason's wrath. Carried by her
> dragons that are born of the Titans, she reached Pallas's citadel of Athens.
> This once knew you Phene, the most righteous, and you old Periphas, both
> flying in the air, as birds, the eagle and the osprey: and Alcyone,
> granddaughter of Polypemon, resting on strange new wings. It was Aegeus who
> gave Medea sanctuary there, damned thereafter by that one action: and not
> content with taking her in, he even entered into a contract of marriage with
> her.
>
> Seneca's Medea
> Seneca (5 BCE- 65 CE) composed another story about Medea in which she is
> presented as a witch with a number of demonic subordinates. She is able to
> invoke various deities to curse her enemies and, feeling betrayed by Jason,
> she vows to hurt him as deeply as she can. She can also make elaborate
> concoctions and magical potions.
> Reference
>
> - Luck, Georg. "Witches and Sorcerers in Classical Literature." Witchcraft
> and Magic in Europe: Ancient Greece and Rome.
> University of Pennsylvania Press (November 1999) ISBN: 0812217055
> - Euripides. Medea.
> Dover Pubns (May 1993) ISBN: 0486275485
> - Apollonius, Richard Hunter (Translator). Jason and the Golden
> Fleece: (The Argonautica)
> .
> Oxford University Press Reprint edition (August 1998) ISBN: 0192835831
> - Harry M. Hine (Editor). Seneca: Medea.
> Aris & Phillips (December 2000) ISBN: 0856686921
> - Ovid, A. D. Melville (Translator). Metamorphoses.
> Oxford Press; Reprint edition (June 1998) ISBN: 019283472X
>
>