Week 2: Famous Last Words--Maximus

"There was once a dream that was Rome; it shall be realized."

Oh, Gladiator.  I finally watched this movie for the first time last Thursday, in preparation for my weekend trip to Rome.  (The same trip that can be blamed for the lateness of this and other posts this weekend.)  Three full days in Rome, with an average of 15 miles walked each day--no joke.  My feet still ache.  But it was worth it.  Totally and completely worth it.


The first day consisted mostly of the entire OUA group wandering around together, being informed of history by Kirk.  We even got to wear radios with one ear-piece, making us look very tourist/secret service, haha.  The first place we visited was the Colosseum.  THE COLOSSEUM.  Gahhh!  Are you entertained?  'Cause I was!  And it was just as cool by night as it originally was by day.  I still find it hard to believe I was actually there. . .

Later we headed over to the Roman forum, walking through while completely in shock, attempting to visualize what it must have looked like centuries ago.  Oh, the history!  I can't even describe the feeling. . .  On our way to the Pantheon (possibly my favorite place in Rome!), we visited the site of Julius Caesar's assassination.  The Julius Caesar.  Et tu, Brute?  Then fall, Caesar!

The Pantheon was incredible, beyond description.  The oculus provides such a sense of space and openness, while the various sculptures and paintings heighten the impressive aura of history and- and everything.  I can't express how amazing it was.

We walked home that night, passing monuments such as Castel San Angelo and the Vatican.  That's right, the Vatican.   It was literally a 5 minute walk from our hostel to the Vatican and St. Peter's Basilica.  Incredible. . .

The second day was spent wandering the Vatican, while the night was spent wandering the streets and historical monuments of Rome.  The second night even ended with a gelato at 11:30 pm.  No joke.  (It was from Giulitti's and had 3 flavors--champagne, Italian opera, and mint.  Best.  Gelato.  Everrrr.)  But back to the Vatican.

Not only is it the Vatican, but the sheer amount of art and history enclosed in those walls is truly remarkable.  Even spending hours and hours walking those halls, we didn't even see a fraction of the art held there.  But we saw works by Raphael, da Vinci, Matisse, Van Gogh, Dali, and so many more!  We viewed the Belvedere torso, Laocoon, Augustus d' Prima Porta, La Pieta.  The Sistine Chapel.  And The School of Athens.  So much wonderful art in one day, I was seriously overwhelmed.

That day we weren't able to enter St. Peter's Basilica because of the length of the line outside, but the following day we got up early and entered quickly.  And, goodness, once again I was overwhelmed.  Masses were going on, echoing through the gilded halls.  Mosaics decorated the walls, and statues lined the nave and aisles.  In the grotto we were able to see the supposed resting place of St. Peter, and it was simply awesome.

After venturing around the interior of the basilica itself, we walked up the 551 stairs to reach the top of the dome and the remarkable vista of Rome from above.  Though my legs felt like jelly by the time I reached the dome, again, it was definitely worth it.  Though the thin, steep staircases with sloping walls near the top were no joke.  By the time we were at the top the line to enter the basilica seen below reached all the way around the courtyard in a complete circle, and there was some kind of event occurring in the middle of the piazza.

All in all, I had an unforgettable weekend in one of the cities I was looking forward to the most.  Even if I got little sleep and walked an innumerable number of miles, I wouldn't have traded this trip for anything.  Great company, great city, ancient history. . . What more could you ask for?!



Buonanotte!


Image Information.  These are all personal photos, taken from Jan. 23-25, 2015.  In order, they are images of the interior of the Colosseum, the exterior of the Colosseum by night, Castel San Angelo, Raphael's School of Athens, the main dome of St. Peter's Basilica, and the view from partway up inside St. Peter's Basilica.

Week 2: Storybook Topics--Ummmmm. . .

Since last semester in Epics of India I wrote a storybook on epic romances, I have decided to try something different--possibly very different.  We shall just have to wait and see. . .

Topic 1:  Stories from Greco-Roman Mythology
Comments:  Just in case no one has noticed yet, I am a huge fan of Greco-Roman mythology.  My fascination with ancient history and culture is why I decided to become a letters major, and I would love to be able to spread my enjoyment to others through retelling some of my favorite stories.
Possible Stories: I could go in so many different directions with this topic, but I would probably focus on some notable women.  Possible stories would be:  Atalanta, Arachne, Medea, Medusa, Pandora, Europa or maybe Andromeda.
Sample Story Comments:   I love the story of Arachne because of how varied the tellings and endings are of the various versions of this tale that we have.  In some versions she wins her weaving competition against Athena, and in some she loses.  Of course, in all versions she is turned into a spider, and I do love a good etiology.
Bibliography Information:
Sample Story:  Arachne
Website: Wikipedia.

Topic 2:  Italian Folklore

Comments:  Of course since I am studying abroad in Italy there is much about the cultural heritage that fascinates me greatly at the moment, including the Italian folklore from various regions.

Possible Stories: Stories that interest me include The Language of Animals, Zelinda and the Monster, Sir Fiorante Magician, and maybe Water and Salt.

Sample Story Comments: I really enjoyed reading the story of Sir Fiorante and his wives, as it had a lot of twists and an ending that I still don't know how I feel about.  It's definitely different from the traditional fairy tales I grew up on, and that makes it very intriguing to me.

Bibliography Information:  

Sample Story: Sir Fiorante, Magician

Website: UnTextbook.

Topic 3:  Supernatural Creatures

Comments:  I've always loved a good fantasy or fairytale, filled with monsters and wondrous creatures.  This topic would allow me to take some of these stories and either retell them with my own flair or turn them on their heads in new and surprising ways.

Possible Stories: Honestly, I have creatures in mind more than specific stories.  I'd probably throw in a dragon, a phoenix, maybe a unicorn or pegasus, a griffin, and maybe a hippocampus or a siren.  Not quite sure, since there are so many creatures and stories to choose from!

Sample Story Comments: I really love the idea of writing a story about a griffin.  There are similar versions of this kind of creature throughout so many cultures and ideologies, and the griffin stood for a variety of different things depending on who it was used by.  It's also simply a magnificent creature, and I would love the chance to portray that.

Bibliography Information:  

Sample Story: Griffin

Website: Wikipedia.

Topic 4:  Urban Legends

Comments:  Everybody loves a good urban legend--admit it!  Horror stories in particular are fun to write and even more fun to read (especially in the dark, around a campfire, in the middle of the woods, on a chilly, moonless night, haha).  So, yeah, this could be an extremely fun and engaging storybook topic.

Possible Stories: Stories such as that of Black Agnes, black-eyed children, the vanishing hitchhiker, the limousine of Archduke Franz Ferdinand and more would be awesome to write!

Sample Story Comments: Black-eyed children are really interesting to me, especially because in the past couple of years there have been a surge of stories concerning their appearance.  Besides, there is so much I could do with the topic of mysteriously present, transient, creepy children appearing from the depths of darkness. . .

Bibliography Information:  

Sample Story:  Black-eyed Children

Website:  Snopes.

Week 2: Essay--Roman Stigmas Against Incestual Love in Ovid's Metamorphoses

[Soooo. . . I'm going to get nice and heavy with the topic of incestuous relationships.  Perhaps I can find a way to throw in a few underhanded comments and such, but if unnatural and stigmatized relations make you uncomfortable, consider this your warning.]

In traditional Roman society, incest was not only stigmatized by the greater population, but was also deemed an illegal act, with incestuous relationships seen as perverted and criminal desires.  This theme of incest being looked down upon and harshly criticized can be found in numerous stories of Ovid's Metamorphoses, including the tales of Byblis and of Iphis. But more particularly, throughout the language of the story of Myrrha and Cinyras, this sentiment of perversion and crime that defines incestuous relationships is clearly evident.  For example, it is stated that romantic love for your father is a crime greater than paternal hatred, and that Cupid adamantly denied having created such love so as not to be blamed for such a distasteful passion.

Indeed, even Myrrha recognizes the perversion in her feelings, constantly berating herself and attempting to deny her love.  But in addition to this denial, Myrrha also attempts to justify her desires, claiming that such love cannot in fact be sinful since it is so common among animals; in fact, if nature allows incestual acts then, she states, it most simply be the spiteful rule of humans which prevent expression of her passion.

But, even so, Ovid floods this story with a pervasive sentiment and vocabulary of crime, of sin, and of guilt.  In fact, in the description of her pregnancy terms such as "disgusting womb," "sinful burden," and "criminally conceived" mark Myrrha's actions with the greatest of stigmas and criticisms.  The profanity of her aberrant dalliance is clearly evident in Ovid's depiction of events, only further solidified by the satisfying end in which Myrrha receives her just punishment--a transformation into a tree which denies her both the joys of living and the relative peace of death.  Thus this myth serves to portray one of the traditional moral sentiments of ancient Roman society, that acts (or even feelings) of romantic passion between individuals sharing a familial relationship are among the most shameful of transgressions.



Image Information.  The Spirit of the Virgin Forest.  Mixed media photo manipulation by MaLize, 2012.  DeviantArt.

Sources.  Myrrha and Cinyras from Ovid's Metamorphoses, as translated by Tony Kline, 2000.  UnTextbook, Ovid's Metamorphoses Books 8-10.

Also, I utilized snippets and factoids from an essay of mine entitled "Stigma Against Incestual and Unnatural Romantic Attachment in Ovid's Metamorphoses," 2014.

Week 2: Storytelling--Feathers on the Waves

I tire of these shores. Of the pounding surf on the harsh jagged rocks, the relentless crashing of the surf.  I built the king a wondrous labyrinth, and in return he trapped me here, far away from my native lands.  But I will not let him take from me my future, my home!

If there is no way to escape by land or by sea, than our last recourse must be the sky.  For King Minos does not rule the heavens, even though in his arrogance he believes that he owns everything.  My son and I must escape through the skies, flying as the birds over land and sea, soaring through ivory clouds.

I will make us wings!  Wings comprised of feathers fallen from birds on this wretched island, of the long reeds that are used to play such sweet music, and of beeswax and thread which fasten together my invention along a gentle curve.  With them, we will defy the natural order and fly from foreign shores.

But, alas! I worry for Icarus, my dear son.  He is impulsive, reckless, and knows not danger.  I do not wish for him a life of imprisonment, and I wish that he may live once again on the beautiful shores of our homeland.  Yet I am afraid he will not heed my warnings, that he will dip low over the waters and be weighted down by the moisture of the damp sea air.  Or that he may soar too high, and that the wax binding together his wings may melt in the heat of the sun.

But I will not allow us to live here, imprisoned unjustly on this gods-forsaken isle!

And so, as we prepare to leap off into the sky, I issue to my darling son a final warning.  He nods at me eagerly, green eyes sparking with mischief.  I wish to smile back at him, but my heart is sinking, and I cannot stop the tears that streak silently down my face.  My hands tremble and shudders wrack my body as I affix his wings, and I cannot help but place a gentle kiss upon his forehead as a silent prayer to the gods.

I am prolonging our departure; it is time for us to take to the skies!  I beat my wings strongly, feeling the resistance of the air as I lift off from the accursed isle.  Anxiously I look down upon Icarus, who in his rush fails once before rising from the ground.  He looks at me with wonder, mouth dropping open, amazed at this skill, this new game.  More shudders travel down my spine, increasing my unease.  But we are flying, airborne, between the sun and the sea and on the pathway home!

No!  By Hercules, no!  Icarus, I turn away for a moment to find our path and already you have abandoned your father, your guide!  Come back to me!  Do not let your desire for the heavens overcome your sense, your reason!  Return, before devouring Helios destroys your wings, our only hope for escape and survival!  Icarus!!!

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

He is gone.  My son, my darling, beautiful, lively son is simply gone.  Swallowed by the seas after having been ravished by the sun.  His last word was my name, cried out in a moment of true terror, and I could only look on in dreadful realization--I was going to lose him.

Agony rips through me, tearing my very soul in two.  I did this.  I did this.  My quest for escape, my desire for home, the inventions of my mind led to this inevitable end.  I killed him.  I killed my son.

Icarus!  Your feathers survived the fall, now decorating the waves below like streamers left dejected on a street after the festival has passed through.  A last testament to your downfall, a decoration on what may well be your unforgiving tomb.

Icarus!  Where are you?  Which way should I turn, to find you?!  Your scorched body lies below, tormented and tossed by unrelenting waves.  But even as I swoop down to retrieve you, I know it is too late.

So rest, my darling son, on this peaceful isle, far from the land of our imprisonment.  Rest, and remember only the glory of flight, and not the terror of the fall.  Rest, and remember our wondrous homeland, its fertile soils and gentle slopes.

Rest, Icarus, and forgive me, a father who only wished the best for his child.

Author's Note.  Hey, all!  So I decided to tell the story of Daedalus and Icarus, one of my favorites from Greco-Roman mythology.  I told it from the perspective of Daedalus, simply because whenever you read other versions of this tale, you just know what is going to happen, and you know he knows it, too.  Yet he still attempts escape, even realizing he may well lose his impulsive son.  Imagine the heartbreak of knowing you invention may--and then does--kill your son.  That you have to watch on in agony and horror as he falls from the skies, first burned by the skies and then tormented by the seas.  How heartbreaking must that moment have been? . . . Anyways, I hope that you enjoyed my retelling!  Ciao!

Image Information.  The Glory of Icarus, photo manipulation; ReyeD33.  DeviantArt.
The Fall of Icarus, photo manipulation; ramastom.  DeviantArt.

Bibliography.  "Daedalus and Icarus" from Ovid's Metamorphoses, translated by Tony Kline (2000).  Web Source: Poetry in Translation.

Week 2: Reading Diary B--Ovid's Metamorphoses

Now let's continue reading Ovid's Metamorphoses, Books 8-10, to see if anyone besides Baucis and Philemon will receive a fairytale ending:

(The Rape of Ganymede, engraving by F. Kirchbach 1892.  Wikimedia.)

11.  Ganymede and Hyacinthus-  Anybody else find it intriguing and yet pedophilic how much famous Greco-Roman deities and heroes loved young boys?  Passions and ideals of a bygone era that continue today but with a very different perspective. . . Fascinating and curious in the possible reasons for and causes of changes in ethics/morality.  Also, you can't help but feel bad for Hyacinthus, who was only trying to please and play with the handsome and shining Phoebus Apollo.  And for Apollo to accidentally kill Hyacinthus like that and have all efforts to save him fail?--how traumatizing that must have been.  All-around, this was quite a depressing tale.

12.  Pygmalion-  You've gotta love the absurdity of this tale, and how many iterations have been made of it in modern times--just look at the newest TV adaptation, Selfie.  (*shudder* Then again, that show isn't a sterling example of a well-executed retelling.)  But to be able to create the perfect man/woman simply by carving it out of stone and praying to the gods--how much easier (if less eventful/exciting) would our love-lives be?!  Granted, this whole tale is another brand of creepy, and yet it is about as fairy-tale as these myths can be. , ,

13-15.  Myrrha and Cinyras, Myrrha and the Nurse, Myrrha's Punishment-  Earlier this year I wrote a paper about Myrrha and some other characters from the Metamorphoses who entertain innappropriate and/or unnatural romantic desires, and let me just say that stuff can get weird reallllly quickly, haha.  But seriously, fathers and daughters, KEEP AWAY!!!

16.  Venus and the Adonis-  At least this tale is back to a more traditional love, I guess?  The most beautiful boy and the passionate goddess of love wounded by Cupid's arrow--an odd but apt pairing.

(Atalanta and the Boar, image by BeatrizMarinVidal.  DeviantArt.)

17.  Atalanta and Hippomenes-  A beautiful, talented, athletic girl, a hapless boy, and innumerable deaths when the race cannot be won.  What more do you need to craft a wondrous tale?  Also, the fact that a boy's mind can be so easily swayed by outward beauty is kind of disappointing, if somewhat realistic.  What happened to inner beauty, to personality and mind over appearance?  *sigh*

18.  The Foot-Race-  To think girls can be so easily swayed by shiny things--there is nothing at all sexist about that.  Ughhhh.  Not to mention the whole forbidden intercourse encounter which just twists this whole tale into something. . . unseemly.  Though to be transformed into a lion isn't that bad; I mean, goddesses can be pretty ruthless, so that was a relatively tame punishment.

19.  The Death of Adonis-  Oh, Adonis, how painful and gory your end!  But you get a pretty flower created in your name, so it's not all bad.  (Goodness, that sounds totally apathetic.)

And there you go!  Story selections from books 8-10 of the Metamorphoses, along with some brief thoughts and comments!  Now to decide which story to retell. . .

Buonanotte!!!

Week 2: Reading Diary--Ovid's Metamorphoses

Soooo. . .  Last semester I had lots of issues in keeping reading diaries short.  Let's see if I can remedy that issue this semester!

(Image of Icarus flying too close to the sun; unknown origin, found on rscheuring.wordpress.com)

Jumping right in to Ovid's Metamorphoses, Books 8-10:

1.  Daedalus and Icarus-  I, for one, have always been intrigued by the Minotaur; he's just such an impressive and yet unsettling character, and it seems unfair that he suffers so much for his mother's transgressions.  As far as Daedalus goes, you cannot help but sympathize with a guy who builds a labyrinth because of his skill and renown, only to be imprisoned by the king because of the shameful thing his maze hides.  Then to be so ingenious as to create working wings, only to have an impulsive and bold son die by your invention as you look on helplessly so close to home--goodness, I can't even imagine.  Poor, poor Daedalus.  :(

2.  Philemon and Baucis-  Another of my favorite tales, this is one of only a few stories in the Metamorphoses with a truly happy ending.  Also, it's just plain adorable.  I can easily picture an old, bent couple with kindly smiles and crinkles around their eyes opening their door to a couple of travel-weary strangers and providing a feast out of what little they have while doting merrily on the pair. . .

3.  Transformation of Philemon and Baucis-  Granted, the ending is only so happy when everyone around the couple dies, but still.  The adorable old people got to live together, die together, and remain together until the end of time.  I'd say that's the happiest ending to be expected in a Greco-Roman myth.

4.  Ceres and Erysichthon-  A bleeding tree is one of those things that freaks me out considerably.  If trees bleed, and animals bleed, and all suffer pain, what are we supposed to eat?

5.  The Famine-  "baleful Hunger". . . Anybody else find that appositive/address somewhat oxymoronic?  No?  Just me?  'K then.  (Also, I never want to come across Famine, like ever.  Talk about creeptastic. . . )

6.  Achelous-  "I was like a massive pile that the roaring flood assaults with all its might: it remains, secure in its own bulk."  <--This perfectly describes how I feel after a four-course Italian meal, haha.

7.  The Shirt of Nessus-  Always the jilted lovers kill off everyone else--why can't they just admit defeat and let somebody live on happily?  Why?!

8.  The Death of Hercules-  Most gruesome and detailed death scene ever.  You kinda feel bad for Hercules but, I don't know, he's just not all that he's cracked up to be.  So die, Hercules, die!  (I am not a violent person, really.  Believe me or don't, that's your prerogative, haha.)

9.  The Birth of Hercules-  A story about the pain of childbirth--this is why I don't really want to have children; perhaps I will just adopt.  It's less torturous that way, lol.

10.  Orpheus and Eurydice-  Oh, a romantic tale of love that will transcend Death to last a little bit longer!  Except, you know, then Orpheus fails and his love is abruptly cut short and he turns to little boys for pleasure. . . So, yeah, not really a romantic tale of transcendent love after all. . .


To be continued!!!  Arrivederci!