#and the prof was talking abt the trojan war

[demeterdefence]

my energy has been low lately so i've stuck to just liveblogging chapter releases, but i was thinking earlier about why lore olympus really nettles me and it's truly indicative of a wider issue.

it's disappointing that a major ancient religion that is still practiced by some people today has been reduced to a caricature of itself, and i say this knowing that there are thousands of reinterpretations of the greek myths, there will always be a new opinion or retelling of them. retelling the myth of hades and persephone isn't necessarily the issue, so much as the constant and dripping disdain to the cultural roots. we don't need to be greek to appreciate the story, but why remove everything greek from it? why westernize every aspect and remove ties to the cultural roots? why whitewash everything from a myth thousands of years old?

part of the reason these myths continue to resonate with us is because the themes are still relevant today. the loss of a child, the struggle against impossible forces, the (often patriarchal) powers against you, a mothers love. these stories hold power, they gave hope and inspiration, they created meaning and connection, and they were vital to the people who lived in that time, in that place. they will resonate with us for many years still, but stripping the roots and core of it out only makes it a hollow, shallow imitation. it's reality tv with neon colours, no love or heritage present; it's cold and shiny and plastic, and it insults what it claims to portray.

#anti lo #anti lore olympus #i have more thoughts actually but putting them down coherently? difficult #also im procrastinating doing the dishes lmao #anyways i can remember in undergrad studying the greek myths and early playwrights #and the prof was talking abt the trojan war #and the way he explained was that the power of this myth was that it vastly exceeded greece #it reached further beyond the borders it stretched so far that the entire world knew of achilles and paris and hector #everyone knew helen everyone knew priam #when priam kisses achilles hands and says #for I have steeled myself as no man yet has ever steeled himself before me #and have raised to my lips the hand of him who slew my son #??? like? the raw grief and power of that??? #and it is that grief of a father to the killer of his son that resonates with us still in modern times #but their home was still the ancient world in the dust and sea of greece and troy #they wore clothing and ate food and drank wine that was theirs #and when we strip it away we remove the core of the story #a father in troy whose son stole a greek bride and must watch as his family and people are destroyed #anyways idk what these tags are i am so sorry mobile users