Medusa Timeline
Hesiod's Theogony
To
Porkys Keto bore fair-cheeked old
women 270
gray haired from birth, whom the immortals
call the Old Women as do men who walk the earth, and
Pemphredo of the lovely dress and Enyo of the saffron dress;
She bore too the Gorgons who dwell near renowned Okeanos
at the borders of the night beside the clear-toned Hesperides, 275
She was mortal, while they were immortal and ageless,
the two. With the one, Medusa, dark-maned Poseidon lay
in a soft meadow and amid the spring flowers.
When Perseus cut her head from her neck, 280
The latter had this name because he was born beside the Pagae,
while the other was born holding a golden sword in his hands.
Hesiod, Theogony (lines 270-283)
Source: http://www.english.illinois.edu/maps/poets/a_f/bogan/medusamyth.htm
Source: https://youtu.be/_vb9m3eA_X0
The poem above is the only time Medusa is mentioned in the entire poem but still one of the most important when learning about the timeline of Medusa through all cultures. This small part of a big poem tells us a lot about Medusa. First of all, she was one of three sisters but different than her two other sisters. She unlike them, was mortal. This poem can also tell us a lot about society in Ancient Greece. This poem freely talks about the gruesome aspects of characters in myths. This shows us how different society was back then compared to now. Back then talking about how Perseus cut her head off was the norm. Nobody thought anything of it because that what society was like. Now, we are so careful with children especially and try to avoid showing the more horrid aspects of stories like the ones about Medusa. It's interesting to note that as you progress in years many of these Greek myths can become altered depending on how society evolves and changes.
This next depiction of Medusa brings a different aspect to who she really was. For example, this next poem shows us what we are probably more familiar with. The poem comes from Ovid’s Metamorphoses which is a collection of poems comprising of 15 books containing over 250 myths including ones on the stories around Medusa. In the poem above, it didn’t really describe what she looked like or why she looked like it but now we can see from this depiction below. In Book IV Perseus tells the story of Medusa. We can now have a better understanding of who she was, what she looked like, and why.
Bk IV:753-803 Perseus tells the story of Medusa:
In the fields and along the paths, here and there, he saw the shapes of men and animals changed from their natures to hard stone by Medusa’s gaze. Nevertheless he had himself looked at the dread form of Medusa reflected in a circular shield of polished bronze that he carried on his left arm. And while a deep sleep held the snakes and herself, he struck her head from her neck. And the swift winged horse Pegasus and his brother the warrior Chrysaor, were born from their mother’s blood.
He told of his long journeys, of dangers that were not imaginary ones, what seas and lands he had seen below from his high flight, and what stars he had brushed against with beating wings. He still finished speaking before they wished. Next one of the many princes asked why Medusa, alone among her sisters, had snakes twining in her hair. The guest replied ‘Since what you ask is worth the telling, hear the answer to your question. She was once most beautiful, and the jealous aspiration of many suitors. Of all her beauties none was more admired than her hair: I came across a man who recalled having seen her. They say that Neptune, lord of the seas, violated her in the temple of Minerva. Jupiter’s daughter turned away, and hid her chaste eyes behind her aegis. So that it might not go unpunished, she changed the Gorgon’s hair to foul snakes. And now, to terrify her enemies, numbing them with fear, the goddess wears the snakes, that she created, as a breastplate.
Ovid. The Metamorphoses. Translated by A. S. Kline
The poem above tells us a lot more than what we originally knew about her from the poet, Hesiod. The poem tells us how she was once incredibly beautiful and admired by many suitors because of her amazing hair. As punishment though, her hair was changed to snakes. Her gaze can also cause anyone that looked at her to turn to stone. These depictions are seen in many pieces of art where she is shown with snakes for hair and plausibly the most well-known depiction of her that still stands today.
Medusa is a very notable myth which is why she is depicted many times throughout history. This next depiction is called "Medusa", which was created by Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio. Michelangelo was an Italian painter in the late 16th century. The painting below is the severed head of Medusa. This painting shows her hideousness such that anyone who looked at her was turned into stone. She is shown with snakes as hair which was mentioned in the poem above and blood is also shown in streaks falling from her detached head.
Source: http://www.english.illinois.edu/maps/poets/a_f/bogan/medusamyth.htm
After doing further research about Michelangelo, decapitation is a recurring image in many of his paintings including The Beheading of St John the Baptist, Judith Beheading Holofernes, and Salome Receives the Head of St John the Baptist (Stone, "Signature Killer: Caravaggio and the Poetics of Blood"). What it looks like Michelangelo’s is doing is showing power. While many other famous painters of the time depicted warriors, for example, this painting depicts the outcome of a warriors’, in this case, Perseus’, achievement. This art is showing a form of power. What’s interesting about this paintings story is that there was a version of it before this was made in 1597. The first version was originally named Murtula after the poet who wrote about it. The second version which is shown above is an oil on canvas painting, mounted on a convex wooden shelf which Is now displayed at Galleria degli Uffizi, in Florence Italy (Barolsky, “the Ambiguity of Caravaggio's Medusa”). The poem shows her without desensitizing it which is something that is often seen in today's times. This painting clearly shows the horrors of the myth of Medusa in just one painting.
Medusa continues to be a part of culture even in today’s society. Many films, television shows, video games, music and more refer to Medusa in their works because of the popularity of the myth. One of which is in the children’s TV show, Hercules. This depiction deviates from most traditional depictions of her, mainly because it is directed at kids. The video below is a scene from the show Hercules which shows Medusa. In the video, it is clear to see how Medusa is altered in a way that is different than a way how she was depicted in the most of history, especially in ancient Greece. The video below is a full episode of the show and there are parts where Medusa is in it but in a way, sensationalized. Medusa is shown differently though because of it being a children’s cartoon TV show.
The scene above shows us the difference of how children view, for example, this myth differently than in ancient Greece where it was the norm to reveal the whole truth. In ancient Greece, like mentioned in the previous depictions of Medusa, they were not afraid for their children to learn the more discouraging sides of a myth. This has changed drastically. Kids now have basically a protective shield hiding them from the truth a lot of the times. According to the book The culture of classicism: Ancient Greece and Rome in American intellectual life, death was very common in Ancient Greece in the children’s learning. Growing up in ancient Greece the children learned the words of Homer. They read his poetry which depicted many instances of death (Winterer). Today children aren’t as free to learn what the children of ancient Greece did which is shown in this episode that depicts Medusa. In the scenes where she is in, it clearly shows that she is actually seen to be a benevolent person unlike the many myths in ancient Greece representing her to be more of an evil creature. This depiction is also seen in most painting, poems, etc. about Medusa but is different in this show. While we already know that she can turn those that look upon her to stone, in the episode she is seen as someone that the audience feels sorry for. One thing I have noticed that in many myths, her turning ugly by Athena made her evil which isn’t really shown in the episode above. She is seen as more of a comical character that the audience feels for. “Another difference to note between her and her original counterpart is that she seems to have no ill feelings towards the gods, even praying to them for help. Which is odd since it was her being used by Poseidon and Athena's wrath that lead to her being cursed in the first place” (Medusa (Hercules)”). This really shows how over years a myth can change drastically especially when its directed at a specific audience. The alteration made to Medusa in this show tells a lot about how society sometimes hides truth which can be due to entertainment purposes or just protectiveness over children.
This next depiction is another modern example of how Medusa is portrayed but in a different light than the previous one. While the others target audience was for children, this one is mainly directed more towards teens and older which provided more opportunities for the truth of myths even it is still grim. The scene below is from the movie Clash of the Titans, a 2010 film and remake of the 1981 film. The story is based on the Greek myth of Perseus who was the one to actually kill Medusa. Instead of humanizing Medusa, this movie portrays her in a way more similar to the myths about her from ancient Greece as well as paintings and poems about her that were inspired by the ancient Greece texts about Medusa. Unlike the Hercules episode, this depiction of Medusa isn’t sympathetic, she is just seen as pure evil who is trying to kill, or turn enemies to stone.
As you can see from the scene above, Medusa is portrayed very differently than the last modern depiction of the myth of Medusa. In the above scene, she is seen as an ugly looking creature. One thing to note is than the bottom half of her body is that of a serpent as well as having snakes for hair. This is different than what many depictions of her are because she is usually described as looking more human than serpent except for her hair, so having no legs and just a serpent lower half is something to be noted. Just comparing the last 2 scenes the Hercules one shows her as a compassionate creature more resembling humans which is most likely due to their target audience. This is very different comparing to Clash of the Titans where she is just seen as an extremely dangerous creature trying to turn everyone into stone. Because this has an older audience, it is more understandable how she is depicted in this movie. Just like the myth portrays, in this scene we see Perseus cutting of Medusa's head. Although having been made in 2010 and being a very modern depiction of the myth of Medusa, the accuracy is definitely seen in this movie, what she looks like, her evil intentions, as well as the events surrounding her death. While it is the most modern depiction in this timeline, it still shows an authentic version of her.
Works Cited
Barolsky,
Paul. "the Ambiguity of Caravaggio's "Medusa"." Source:
Notes in the History of Art, vol. 32, no. 3, 2013, pp. 28-29.
Bogan,
Louise. “Medusa in
Myth and Literary History.” Modern American Poetry,
www.english.illinois.edu/maps/poets/a_f/bogan/medusamyth.htm.
Donn,
Lin. “Education in
Ancient Greece.” Ancient Greece History,
Good Year Books, greece.mrdonn.org/education.html.
"Hercules and the Gorgon."
Disney’s Hercules. ABC, KCAU-TV, Burbank, 9 Jan.
1999.
Hesiod, Theogony 270-283
Iwanyk, Basil, et al. Clash
of the Titans. Warner Bros. Pictures, 2010.
Jones,
Jonathan. “Medusa,
Caravaggio (c 1598).” The Guardian, Guardian
News and Media, 24 Jan. 2003, www.theguardian.com/culture/2003/jan/25/art.
“Medusa (Hercules).” Disney Wiki, 25
Jan. 2010, disney.wikia.com/wiki/Medusa_(Hercules).
Menken,
Alan, and David Zippel. Disney's Hercules. United States: Wonderland
Music Co. and Walt Disney Music Co, 1997.
Ovid.
“Perseus
Tells the Story of Medusa.” Metamorpheses,
translated by A. S. Kline, 2nd ed., CreateSpace Independent, 2000.
Stone,
David M. "Signature Killer: Caravaggio and the Poetics of Blood."
The Art Bulletin, vol. 94, no. 4, 2012, pp. 572-593.
Winterer,
Caroline. The culture of classicism: Ancient Greece and Rome in American
intellectual life, 1780-1910. JHU Press, 2004.
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