In a way, as I finished the myth, I realized that I was monstrous for not listening to Medusa’s side of the story all these years. Long story short, I have been troubled by Medusa’s plight ever since I read this version of the story. It’s a very disturbing trend to blame the victim instead of the perpetrator. This is the primary reason why victims of abuse don’t speak up: they are afraid that people will judge them and blame them. But most of all, it’s the people who actively choose to not look further into a victim’s story. But in reality, the real monsters are rapists like Poseidon, abusers like Perseus and victim-blamers like Athena. How many times have you heard the news call a victim an instigator? We turn the people who need our help the most into monsters. Instead, people turn them into something or someone they’re not. We don’t listen to victims now, much less hundreds of years ago. It’s even more tragic that history remembers Medusa as a monster and not the victim that she was. Then she is turned into a monster and her identity was stripped off. First, she was abused and punished for it by a woman who had the power to help her. It’s a story so powerful and relevant today, I couldn’t help but cry for Medusa. The scary part of the myth of Medusa is that she’s a rape victim with no support system. The reader can deduce that she’s still with some hero waiting to be used as a weapon again. There’s no other conclusion to Medusa’s story. Throughout many myths, Medusa is used as a weapon by other male heroes. From another angle, there are some who argue that Athena blessed Medusa with the power to protect herself from the brutality of men. I like to believe a modern Athena would have more sympathy for womanhood and would certainly not punish a rape victim. It troubles me that this powerful goddess was herself vain and sided with the wrong. She doesn’t come off as being a big women’s advocate. On top of that to ensure that her exile is complete, anyone she looks at is turned to stone.Īll of this speaks a lot about Athena’s character. Her punishment? She is turned into a hideous woman with snakes for hair and sent into exile. She is of course punished by Athena for being raped. This to me is the crux of the tale, and the main point where you sympathize with Medusa. Anybody who took one step on her island were marked now for death at the hands of the Gorgon Medusa. She took her revenge on the men that were sent to kill her. She was scared of her powers and angry at the gods for cursing her. She looked at them in fear and saw them turn to stone in front of her. She was alone and only saw men trying to kill her. Medusa was banished from her civilization and sent to an island by herself. However, despite her origins of beauty, Medusa’s name quickly became synonymous with malevolence, hatred, and monstrosity. Medusa devoted herself to a life of celibacy in the name of her goddess, Athena. As one of the Gorgon sisters, she was originally a golden-haired, fair maiden, beautiful and kind-natured. What we are rarely taught about is how Medusa was made to be “Medusa”. We see it every day: in the media, in politics, even in our own back yard. It’s no secret that the world we live in is structured by patriarchal values that uphold the power and heroism of men, and diminish the value of women.
But what we never think is what history doesn’t teach us about Medusa? What if, instead of interpreting her as a monster who tormented people, we think about her in a new light? We have been told countless times about the tale of Medusa and Perseus, who defeated the Gorgon by severing her head.
Did poseidon rape medusa full#
We’ve all heard about the scary monster Medusa, with a head full of venomous snakes, and eyes that turn you to stone. In the version of the myth I was familiar with, Medusa was born a Gorgon and hated life until she had stopped living. It wasn’t until I watched a YouTube video where they discuss the story of Medusa, I realized how wrong I was.
In a world where people can turn to trees, and goddesses are birthed from heads, this was low on the excitement scale.
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