The Secret Writings

[codenamecamilla]

I Will Never Stop Posting About Emilia

Emilia: *staring at pictures of Arcite and Palamon* I guess Arcite is more handsome? So I guess I should pick him? Or maybe Palamon is prettier? *throws down pictures failing to be hetero* ermigerd i hate straight people.

[codenamecamilla]

More Emilia Because I Love Her

Theseus: Whelp, I guess you’ll have to marry one of these two fine, strapping young lads who are gorgeous. I bet you could marry both of them? UGH. So Pretty.

Emilia: Uhhhh... I couldn’t possibly choose. You could just banish them.

Theseus: NOPE! Marriage or I kill them both.

Emilia: I don’t really want to be the reason they DIE.

Theseus: Chose one then!

Emilia: gods i hate straight people.

[codenamecamilla]

More Proof Emilia is a Lesbian

Arcite: *prays to Mars*

Palamon: *prays to Venus*

Emilia: *prays to Artemis, who is surrounded by her pretty handmaidens who are forbidden to have sex with males* please help me i would rather be a virgin forever than marry a man.

Hetero Academics: This Is Not Proof She Was a Lesbian.

All the Lesbian Lit Lovers: ermigerd LESBIAN. 

[codenamecamilla]

Theseus in The Two Noble Kinsmen

Theseus: *goes everywhere with Pirithous*

Theseus: I am so Excited to see those two Thebans. They are so handsome. Don’t you think they’re handsome?

Emilia the Lesbian: Um. They are proportionate.

Theseus: goooooooods they’re so pretty. Don’t you agree, Pirithous?

Pirithous: *glares in a jealous rage*

[codenamecamilla]

Reading the Two Noble Kinsmen

Arcite: I love you so much I could never love anyone more.

Palamon: I love you so much more.

Arcite: We don’t need anyone else. It can just be the two of us.

Palamon: Absolutely.

*lesbian walks by*

Palamon: ermigerd I love her.

Arcite: No way I love her.

Palamon: We will be enemies forever now.

Arcite: FOREVER WE WILL BE ENEMIES.

---

Has anyone read this play? It is bonkers.

[codenamecamilla]

Orestes & Pylades

I ship Orestes and Pylades almost as much as I ship Patroklos and Akhilles.

Pylades and Orestes’ relationship in “Iphigenia in Tauris” gives credence to this i swear. Orestes is going Mad Crazy Bonkers and Pylades is so supportive and loving *sobs*

The playwrights keep trying to marry Pylades off to Elektra, but they both obv. love Orestes more than each other so i don’t think that will work.

[codenamecamilla]

Thoughts on Orestes, Elektra, Pylades, and Incest

Please tell me someone else reads the Greek Tragedies with Orestes and Elektra and reads their relationship as semi-incestuous, if not outright incestuous? Elektra refuses to marry because she loves her brother so much. She is like, violently attached to him. I have two brothers and I can assure you I would never speak so lovingly about them the way she does. Maybe that makes me a bad sister? But I don’t think so. I think it just makes me not incestuous.

Also please tell me someone else reads Orestes and Pylades as gay because they are so gay. I ship them almost as hard as I ship Patroklos and Akhilles.

[codenamecamilla]

Thoughts on Anna Dressed in Blod Part 2

I have some rage over this particular issue/topic, so bear with me please as I try to be coherent and fair.

In the book Obeah is described as “West Indian Voodoo Magic.” It is not like Voodoo, which follows the rules “as the magic we all practice” (i.e. European magic). Obeah, on the other hand “has no rules” (i.e. dangerous because not European). As soon as I read this all sorts of alarums went off in my head. I do not practice Santeria or Voudon and I have no personal experience with them. HOWEVER, I have read a decent amount on the subject, have a profound respect for the Orishas, and sat in a talk by a Voudon priestess and realized I know a great deal more about Voudon than I probably should for a white girl. That happens when Baron Samedi comes into your life and asks for a conversation. ANYWAY. Immediately I poked around and found out some info.

- Obeah has been predominantly defined by White Dudes.

- One of the first written accounts that mention Obeah is in reference to Nanny of the Maroons (if you do not know about her Look Her Up). Nanny refused to be a slave of the British, escaped from them, settled her own land in Jamaica, started freeing slaves, was insanely good at military tactics. She was even rumoured to be able to stop bullets with her bare hands. ALSO rumoured to be practicing Obeah shit.

- Nanny of the Maroons represented a threat to British supremacy (aka White supremacy), the male ego, patriarchal norms, gender norms, and so forth.

- Obeah was a threat to the Christian male cis-gendered hetero males very identity and religious beliefs.

- Obeah was not just demonized by The Church, but also by a rival tradition, the Myal.

- Practicing Obeah could lead to up to 6 months in prison (I think this is still in place but would have to do more research) and if someone accuses you of having Obeah talismans you could be seized and searched without warrant and immediately imprisoned without trial (I also believe this is still a thing. Need more research!)

- Obeah doesn’t have “rules” the way written religions do, the same way that any spiritual practice does not have “rules” if it’s not a Religion of the Book. This doesn’t make it EVIL. It makes it non-monotheistic. *GASP!* I know. How terrible.

All of this to say: I am so damn tired of people using traditional African religious/spiritual traditions as EVIL in books. It’s offensive, it’s rude, and it smacks of racism and white privilege. The abuse of Obeah also has the fun layer of sexism and misogyny. Yay!

GODS PEOPLE. Can you please stop 1) White-Washing Voodoo (why is this a thing? can I throw up that this is a thing?) and 2) declaring an African spiritual tradition as Evil. kthnxbye.

[codenamecamilla]

Thoughts on Anna Dressed in Blood Part 1

In Kendare Blake’s Anna Dressed in Blood there is a moment where a witch lady calls on “Hiisi, Father, demon-god,” and I immediately went into Should I Be Offended Research Mode. Annnnnnnd.... I have thoughts. And opinions. These are based on some quick research as well as pulling from the Finnish/Suomi religious/folklore tradition research I did a few years back.

- Hiisi were, back in the pre-Christian days, tree/hill land spirits. As far as I can tell they were similar to the Icelandic/Norwegian landvaettir. Or, may have been similar to the Roman lares (before they were associated with the Greek agathos daimon and attached to homes).

- Hiisi were later associated as trickster-like beings and show up in the Kalevala as, according to my reading of the text, powers of nature. It reminds me of how brigid became a widely used term for various minor goddesses in the Irish/Gaelic traditions.

- Hiisi were also later associated with the folklore traditions of goblins and giants.

- Hiisi were demonized by Christianity.

- Hiisi are STILL being demonized, down through the ages, to Kendare Blake’s Anna Dressed in Blood.

I know horror has a long tradition of being all mixed up with religion for Reasons (I read a book about it) BUT I am tired of seeing the appropriation of traditional non-monotheistic religions used as the Scary Evil Bad Guys. It’s a continuation of Western/Christian Colonialism bound up in heteronormative patriarchal bullshit and I’m So Tired Of It. I’d really like to NOT have to face polytheist-hate (however unintentional or subdued) when I’m reading for fun.

[codenamecamilla]

Hektor and Aeneas

Reading Euripides’ Rhesus:

Hektor: ermigerd i has a wonderful plan!

Aeneas: What is your plan?

Hektor: *explains plan*

Aeneas: I really wish you planned as well as you fight.

translation

Aeneas: Hektor, I love you, but you are TERRIBLE at making plans. Stick to your strengths and let someone else make the plans, hm?

[sagimooon]

was anyone going to tell me that emilia from the two noble kinsmen admitted ON PAGE to both having a female lover and being a lesbian or was i supposed to discover it myself????

[codenamecamilla]

I also feel betrayed about this.

[codenamecamilla]

Emilia in The Two Noble Kinsmen

Emilia: I loved a girl when I was younger and she died. It was horrible. I will never marry a man.

Hippolyta: Hahaha, you’re so silly.

Emilia: No. Like. I loved her as much as Pirithous loves your husband Theseus.

Hippolyta: *laughs weakly* Ha...ha...ha... Nooooo. That can’t be true at all.

Emilia: ohmygod straight people.

[codenamecamilla]

Update

I mean... Not that anyone is reading this lololol

BUT. I need a space to posts things without my extended family members being around because UGH sometimes.

Be prepared for rants and such.

[codenamecamilla]

Pagan Amongst Protestants #8

when you’re with your sister and her progeny in the mall and you want to buy the next issue of a pagan magazine but you have to find a way to do it with out her seeing so that she doesn’t freak out and you feel ridiculous, guilty, and annoyed because none of this sneaking should be happening but you’re overly concerned about what your family thinks and how your actions affect others *sigh*

[codenamecamilla]

Polytheist and the Catholics #8

when you accidentally say, “Oh gods” in front of a student and hope they didn’t notice 0_0

[codenamecamilla]

Ace in an Allo World #8

when you’re watching a show and some attractive kissing is happening and you’re think, “I’d like that to happen to me one day” and then suddenly clothes are coming off and you sigh and say, “nevermind.”

[codenamecamilla]

Pagan Amongst Protestants #7

when your mother brings you back a little tiny souvenir Buddha statue even though it is a weird thing for you to ask for and you are so grateful because it is so cute, and tiny, and adorable.