The name Medusa congers up a particular image in the brain of the unenlightened person; a hideous, malevolent woman-beast with serpents replacing hair, boar-like tusks, and a gaze so intense that it turns even the strongest man into stone. In Greek mythology this may hold true, but the origins of Medusa can be tracked back to Africa. Medusa was actually imported into Greece from Libya where she was worshipped by the Libyan Amazons as their Serpent-Goddess. Originally Medusa was much more complex and symbolized many points of importance in the culture of the Libyans. She represented female wisdom, the female mysteries, and the cycles of nature as life, death and rebirth. She was the guardian of the thresholds between the realms of heaven, earth and the underworld. She was Mistress of the Beasts with a strong connection to the earth. Known as the unifying force of heaven and earth, she destroys in order to recreate balance. She reflects a culture in harmony with nature. When Medusa was adopted by the Greeks, her character was dissected, simplified, then demonized. Her female wisdom, natural forces, and unifying balance were made evil. She was somehow converted into a horrid, ugly monster. Her most popular image became that of her defeat in the myth of Perseus.
Medusa was found a new home in Greek mythology, and she differed considerably from her original, Libyan goddess persona. When Medusa became a mythological monster, she was not a monster in the beginning. She was born of the ancient sea gods Phorcys and Ceto. She has two Gorgon sisters, Sthenno and Euryale, who were both immortal, although Medusa was not. According to Ovids' Metamorphosis (a collection of poetry that is one of the foremost sources of tales of Roman mythology,) when Medusa was a virgin, she was raped by the god of the sea, Poseidon, in Athena's temple. Athena, who was the goddess of wisdom, blamed Medusa for the sacrilegious act and punished her in two ways.
Stheno ran north, Eurwale ran south, and Medusa ran east. Eventually Medusa came across Poseidon, supreme God of the sea. ... This meeting marked the beginning of Medusa and Poseidon's 3 year long affair. ... Eventually, Athena came up with a plan to ruin Medusa and her family. ... At his next encounter with Medusa, Poseidon to Medusa that he couldn't believe she was going around his back with Hates. ...
Medusa's two sisters were immortal, but Medusa could be killed. ... Who and What was Medusa? According to myth, Medusa was renowned for her particular appeal and the beauty of her hair. ... Clearly, such is not the case in the situation presented by Perseus and Medusa since Medusa is rendered not just powerless but destroyed. In either version of the myth, Medusa is undone. ...
Examples in this essay of monsters and their hero counterparts will be Medusa and Perseus, the Minotaur and Theseus, and Polyphemus and Odysseus. ... Monsters are usually very hideous, with features like Medusa's snake hair. ... Perseus was also wise to plan ahead before going to kill Medusa. ... When Perseus takes on the challenge of cutting off Medusa's head, "Athene steps in to help, warning Perseus of the difficulties he will encounter." ... (pg.310), to chop off the head of Medusa. ...
In Helene Cixous' essay "The Laugh of the Medusa- she examines how women have been oppressed through the subversive actions and mentalities of men and their patriarchal institutions. Cixous employs the myth of the Medusa as a means for examining how men have falsified and mystified the role of women in order to maintain a patriarchal order. ... The original version of the myth of Medusa portrays the creature as a gorgeous woman who is maimed, raped, and murdered by an assortment of male Gods. ... Today the Medusa has been altered pejoratively as a hideous creature with hair made of snakes...
Medusa is a very powerful and compelling poem, in which Duffy manages to make readers change their feelings about Medusa throughout the piece. ... The first impression we get of Medusa is strengthened when Duffy uses a series of metaphors to describe Medusa realising her power as a woman made monstrous by her jealous obsession. When Medusa "looked at a singing bird, a handful of dusty gravel spattered down". ... The ending of Medusa has a completely different tone to the rest of the poem. ... This also stirs the reader's sympathy felt for Medusa. ...
He would send him to hid death by killing Medusa who was impossible to kill; on account that if you looked at her you"d be turned to stone. Anyways, he invites Perseus to a wedding knowing he has no gift, Perseus being a noble person offers Medusa's head, which is exactly what the evil king wanted. ... Having the gods on his side, Athena and Hermes came down to help Perseus find medusa and have a way to kill her. ...
Alex also resembles the mythological character Medusa. Medusa was a terrible monster in Greek mythology that was once a beautiful maiden until her hair was turned into serpents. This is a good example because both Medusa and Alex were very beautiful in the beginning until their true monster surfaced. ...
After returning to Paris, Gericault presented his Raft of the Medusa at the Salon of 1819 where critics began to see the development of romanticism and how Gericault was revolutionary in his depiction of human emotion and form. The Raft of the Medusa was truly the keystone to the romantic style as it embodied the values that all other romantic artists would follow. After the success of the Raft of the Medusa Gericault left for London and continued to create lithographs, horse statues, and equestrian compositions. ... For example, the Raft of the Medusa is in the romantic style because Gericaul...
