Medusa: Her story has roots in the most ancient beliefs of pre-Hellenistic Greece. One
of the three Gorgons, Medusa was the only mortal. Her sisters Stheno and Euryale
were born immortal, but shared their sibling’s stone gaze, snakes for hair, and wings.
Seen primarily as guardians and vengeance goddesses/demons, their images were
used as symbols of protection in jewelry, architecture, and pottery all over the ancient
world.
The origin myth of Medusa’s violation and punishment comes, dare I surmise, at a
time when men were changing the nature of power by cutting out women from their
own narratives, turning the source of her power and freedom into a mark of shame.
In recent years, Medusa has been seen as a survivor, a symbol of strength enduring
the reminder of her ordeal as a tool to free herself from the oppression of men. My
Medusa embraces her own power and glories in her own independence. With
hedonistic joy, she consumes her enemies’ hearts—the seat of their vainglorious
desires—as tribute and fitting punishment for trespassing into her sanctuary.
of the three Gorgons, Medusa was the only mortal. Her sisters Stheno and Euryale
were born immortal, but shared their sibling’s stone gaze, snakes for hair, and wings.
Seen primarily as guardians and vengeance goddesses/demons, their images were
used as symbols of protection in jewelry, architecture, and pottery all over the ancient
world.
The origin myth of Medusa’s violation and punishment comes, dare I surmise, at a
time when men were changing the nature of power by cutting out women from their
own narratives, turning the source of her power and freedom into a mark of shame.
In recent years, Medusa has been seen as a survivor, a symbol of strength enduring
the reminder of her ordeal as a tool to free herself from the oppression of men. My
Medusa embraces her own power and glories in her own independence. With
hedonistic joy, she consumes her enemies’ hearts—the seat of their vainglorious
desires—as tribute and fitting punishment for trespassing into her sanctuary.