Apollo's unusual birth circumstances are something he shares with most figures who are destined to be great. Hera decreed that he could not be born on land or sea and so with some help from the gods Leto is able to deliver Apollo on the "floating" island of Delos.
One of his first great deeds, as is normal with patriarchical systems, is to slay the serpent Python. Python is of course a symbol of the old religion that existed before his arrival and is most likely a goddess worshiping tradition. This solidifies his rule as the major deity in the region.
It is a bit troubling though that he basically kidnaps sailors to serve as the tenders of his temple.
As the god of prophecy Apollo was very important to the life of Greeks . He was the conduit the Greeks had to the realm of Olympus and becomes an attenuated version of Zeus. I will leave to you the question of his failure in love. It seems probable that the kind of release in letting go of your inhibitions to embrace love wholeheartedly would be impossible for him.
Today's lecture was odd to me, because I am the middle child, and I am a Red Sox fan. I don't really know if I hate Apollo though, because hate is a strong word.
ReplyDeleteApollo is one of the sons of Zeus, which explains a lot. Apollo has a connection with young men, their education, and their initiation into the adult society. He was also the patron of philosophy.
I think that Apollo's birth is an interesting story though. His mother was unable to give birth on earth, and so she finds a barren floating island. She went through labor for 9 days, until the goddess of childbirth was finally permitted to help Leto to have Apollo. I find it interesting how so many of the myths we have been reading seem impossible. The stories told of the gods and goddesses we have been studying seem unthinkable and impossible, which is why they are gods and goddesses and not human.
Going through labor for as long as 9 days is unimaginable to me. I believe that his question in loving whole heartedly is due to the fact that he juggles so many tasks, much like the men of our society do today. I believe that due to the fact he is so worldly with everything else, he has to worldly at love as well. Maybe he could not find anyone possible that was up to his standard. He must have expected alot already being the most loved child as well as a rather popular god. He would have to be pretty haughty to me... much like men in modern society today who were so spoiled by their parents!!
ReplyDeleteApollo having a hard time finding love isn't that odd to me. After taking alot of psychology course, I think that it is not wrong to say that people who are smart and talented often cannot find love. These people like Apollo look to lesser equal individuals than themselves to find love. The fact that Apollo was so great may also have impacted the other persons reciprocation of love. They may have felt that they were not good enough for him because of Apollo's greatness. Another angle is that after Apollo lost so many loves he may have become needy so he scared the suitors away. I have to laugh at the angle of the middle chid syndrome idea because I have three boys and I can see where my middle child being not the youngest or the oldest feels a sense of less love{even though we don't love him less} like maybe Apolo felt. This sense of less love may in fact have cause a yearn for love that no one could ever fill.
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