This is a sideblog dedicated to Perpollo - A CrackShip that has literally become my hyper fixation on the fandom since the first fic I have read purely out of curiosity.
Aside of Perpollo, I may reblog or share content of some other characters and couples that I enjoy (I am a multishiper after all) of the Riodanverse - I already warn you, even tho, I indeed like them, not all my opinions will be positive. I have criticism over how Rick even wrote Percy, and Percy is my favorite character in his work.
And a big warning for everyone, so I expect to not be attacked later on: I am NOT a fan of Percabeth, nor Annabeth to that matter. So if you are an Annabeth Stan/Glazer or whatever, just block me already. Even tho I don't actually intend to make this blog a "hate blog", I may rant from times to times about things I don't like in Percabeth dynamic. With that said, you have been warned.
To end the presentation: I will share a few curiosities of real greek Mythology out of the blanks from times to times.
and if i said nolan's odyssey starring no greek actors and with no recognizable aspects of greek culture or involvement by greeks, is the direct legacy of white supremacist colonialism that treated ancient greece as not just the pinnacle of ancient culture, but of an artificially created "european" culture, which white western europeans and their settler descendants, as the new pinnacle of culture, were the sole spiritual inheritors of.
^^^ PEOPLE ARE STILL THERE. There's a metro station across the street from the colosseum where i found a hair in my pizza slice. We drove by ruins of an amphitheater next to a motorway in greece once. It's literally just real places where real people live and have lived. It's not mythical perfect lands that once existed. I went to Itacha in 2023 and there was not enough parking space.
this tickles me so much obviously percy just thinks frank's abilities would be useful to get them out of there but if you go back and reread some of percy's most Dire moments in the series you'll find that it's very rare for percy to hope to be rescued by a friend when he's in danger (and I think this speaks to how frank is one of percy's closest friends out of this entire cast #longlivesontrio). I am also tickled by the thought of percy telling frank after the fact that he was thinking of him in tartarus
I am hoping that this is some sort of exaggeration or oversimplification because this is just blatant erasure of a major element of Greek culture and replaced by a more Christian version and I want to bang my head into a wall. That’s not what xenia is, and you just erased a major part of the Odyssey.
@watchanddream Sure! This got a bit lengthier than I intended, but I wanted to try and be thorough.
Put far too simply, xenia is the practice of hospitality, but it's also a ritual and in a sense a contract between guest and host. When a stranger arrives at your doorstep, you're expected to feed them and give them a gift as the host. Typically, you're not even supposed to ask them their name until they've finished their meal. Once you've done this as the host, the guest is now expected to share stories and information about themselves, and not burden you or your household. Typically, people focus on how hosts violate xenia, but guests can also violate xenia.
This is called a guest-friendship, and once it's established, you are expected to offer the same to your host should they ever visit. It's a ritual of hospitality, yes, but it's also used to establish alliances and can be passed down through generations. For example, in the Iliad, when Glaucus and Diomedes discover that their grandparents were guest-friends, they decide not to fight, but rather exchange armor.
Theoxeny is a common story you see in myth where a god (typically Zeus) disguises themselves as a mortal and requests to be hosted by someone. Should the host follow the rules of xenia, they'll be rewarded, but if they fail, they'll be punished or killed.
This is important to the Odyssey, as it comes up multiple times, but in particular, the cyclops, and the suitors. In both these instances, Odysseus arrives disguised and gives a false name, the practices of xenia are failed, and Odysseus reveals himself and punishes the one that failed to follow xenia. The suitors in particular fail xenia, as they both fail as hosts, AND as guests, for burdening Odysseus's household.
Xenia being treated as the golden rule comes across to me like a Christian reinterpretation, as while many Greek philosophers did have something similar to the golden rule, those were philosophers, and the idea that it's a religious command from a god seems much more in line with a Christian idea of where the rule comes from. (Note, I'm aware that other religions had something similar, even as a command from a god, but I highly doubt Nolan is drawing inspiration from those instances)
I am hoping that this is some sort of exaggeration or oversimplification because this is just blatant erasure of a major element of Greek culture and replaced by a more Christian version and I want to bang my head into a wall. That’s not what xenia is, and you just erased a major part of the Odyssey.
@watchanddream Sure! This got a bit lengthier than I intended, but I wanted to try and be thorough.
Put far too simply, xenia is the practice of hospitality, but it's also a ritual and in a sense a contract between guest and host. When a stranger arrives at your doorstep, you're expected to feed them and give them a gift as the host. Typically, you're not even supposed to ask them their name until they've finished their meal. Once you've done this as the host, the guest is now expected to share stories and information about themselves, and not burden you or your household. Typically, people focus on how hosts violate xenia, but guests can also violate xenia.
This is called a guest-friendship, and once it's established, you are expected to offer the same to your host should they ever visit. It's a ritual of hospitality, yes, but it's also used to establish alliances and can be passed down through generations. For example, in the Iliad, when Glaucus and Diomedes discover that their grandparents were guest-friends, they decide not to fight, but rather exchange armor.
Theoxeny is a common story you see in myth where a god (typically Zeus) disguises themselves as a mortal and requests to be hosted by someone. Should the host follow the rules of xenia, they'll be rewarded, but if they fail, they'll be punished or killed.
This is important to the Odyssey, as it comes up multiple times, but in particular, the cyclops, and the suitors. In both these instances, Odysseus arrives disguised and gives a false name, the practices of xenia are failed, and Odysseus reveals himself and punishes the one that failed to follow xenia. The suitors in particular fail xenia, as they both fail as hosts, AND as guests, for burdening Odysseus's household.
Xenia being treated as the golden rule comes across to me like a Christian reinterpretation, as while many Greek philosophers did have something similar to the golden rule, those were philosophers, and the idea that it's a religious command from a god seems much more in line with a Christian idea of where the rule comes from. (Note, I'm aware that other religions had something similar, even as a command from a god, but I highly doubt Nolan is drawing inspiration from those instances)
Idk how to feel about it. In a way, I find it stupid, in another you literally have a myth of Zeus and Hermes reinforcing the importance of Xenia and his epithet Zeus Xenios.
Interest in greek mythology rises anew with the new number of retellings and adaptions...and misconceptions all around...
Claims like "that never happened" or "that's the roman version" are around a lot...but even if you wanted to learn more, where would you even start looking? Where do you begin your research for your next fic, or next discussion? Well...That's for you!
Here's a list of source names, links to access them, maps, family trees & more
Where to access the texts:
ToposText
Database, interlinks all names and places, has almost all sources translated, can find all name mentions of place or character in the sources, has a map with the places
Perseus Collection Greek and Roman Materials (and Scaife Viewer)
Digital Library, nearly all main greek and roman sources, including OG language text and dictionary for those languages (is instable at times, try coming back a few hours/days later and it should be up again)
Theoi Greek Mythology
Database, has summary posts for individual heroes, creatures, gods and events, as well as many translations, has a search function
Most of these places have older translations for the epics, poems and hymns (with older language), places like Poetry In Translation and https://www.gutenberg.org often have newer translations available for free, though…with a bit of digging most translations even recent ones can be found online :)
Comparing several translations is also good if you want to make any arguments about what a text says without being able to read the text in the original language, does the text really say that or is it just this translation?
It also doesn't hurt to research a little about the author of a work as well to get context for which time and sociopolitical and personal situation they were writing in (it helps to do a quick search into the history of ancient greece too, i.e. epic writers writing during the 7th century BC had different agendas than playwrights of the 5th century during the persian wars, athenians during the conflicts with sparta, or later hellenistic writers after Alexander the Great)
Wikipedia: CAN be used, it's a good starting point, but check the sources cited as much as you can, rather than believing what the page itself says
Links to Maps
Ancient Greece Maps – Ancient Greece: Φώς & Λέξη
User:MaryroseB54 - Wikimedia Commons
Cyowari - Professional, Digital Artist | DeviantArt
Some of the Realms of Greece in the Heroic Age by Yaulendur on DeviantArt
Late Bronze Age Mediterranean Trade, c. 1400-1200 BCE: Empires, Merchants, and Maritime Routes of the Ancient World - World History Encyclopedia
Translators:
Translate to Ancient Greek Online
https://logeion.uchicago.edu
Wiktionary
Ancient Art
Resources
Harvard Art Museums
Family Tree:
(Compiled by a friend, not exhaustive) - Note that there are often various different versions of lineage for many characters, so this only represents ONE of many possibilities)
Family Echo
Books
Oxford classical dictionary.pdf
Brief History Of Ancient Greece.pdf
168679208-Ancient-Greece.pdf
Complete Greek Drama
The Ancient Epic Cycle and it's ancient reception A companion.pdf
Final Note
These things should not be gatekept, its time to share them freely
I wish I could offer even more sources via academic books and papers but I fear this would exceed my abilities considering the vastness of the topic of Greek Mythology! But this is a starting point :D Have fun!
Google Scholar has a lot of secondary sources (scholia commentary & theories), books about history, society, politics, flora & fauna, religion, culture, etc. of the time both of history and mythical history…if you have a friend in academia with university access (if you don’t have it yourself) you can ask them to check if they have access to the papers/books otherwise hidden behind insane paywalls, because a LOT of them are available as pdfs!
I also wish I had more visual/audio sources but this is smth I cant change :") I'm sure there's some good videos on youtube out there...somewhere x)
Feel free to contact me if you have more sources you want to add or any links don't work
Here is the Post as DOCs to share outside of tumblr
The way Percy describes Apollo and Aphrodite is actually really sweet when you stop and think about it for a second.
Like, in Greek mythology, Aphrodite and Apollo are essentially the divine standards for feminine and youthful masculine beauty. And while Percy definitely notices that they're physically attractive (quite often, might i add, my bi king), the details he remembers most aren't really about perfect faces, but about aspects that have more to do with their personality.
With Aphrodite, he obviously describes her as stunningly beautiful, but then immediately afterwards he also says this:
She really was beautiful. And not just because she had a pretty face or anything. She believed in love so much, it was impossible not to feel giddy when she talked about it. (Titan’s Curse, Chapter 13)
Like, I love the fact that one of the things Percy considers most beautiful about the literal goddess of beauty isn't her appearance, but her genuine love for love itself.
And with Apollo, while Percy also repeatedly describes him as very handsome, the detail he keeps coming back to is specifically the way he smiles:
The driver got out, smiling. He looked about seventeen or eighteen, and for a second, I had the uneasy feeling it was Luke, my old enemy. This guy had the same sandy hair and outdoorsy good looks. But it wasn't Luke. This guy was taller, with no scar on his face like Luke's. His smile was brighter and more playful. (Titan’s Curse, Chapter 4)
Despite the battle scars, the Titan’s face was handsome and strangely familiar. Percy was pretty sure he’d never seen this guy before, but his eyes and his smile reminded Percy of someone (…) He remembered the name Leto: the mother of Apollo and Artemis. This guy koios looked vaguely familiar because he had Artemis’ cold eyes and Apollo’s smile. (House of Hades, Chapter 61, Percy)
I just think that's really endearing.
When Percy describes the two gods who literally embody ideal beauty, the qualities that leave the biggest impression on him aren't things like symmetrical features or perfect physique, but the things that reveal personality...
This goes for assholes, too, guys. I know a couple who went tubing once, and they had to re-air their tubes, but the guy thought it would be funny to stick the tip of the air compressor up to her bikini trunks, the air ruptured something inside her and she died within thirty minutes.
Reblogging with a link because I thought this was a legit joke. Never heard it before. Like I knew you could kill a person by inserting air into a vein but still.
As a general rule of thumb, do not push air into any bodily orifice, regardless of gender. It never ends well. Air compressors and the human body do NOT mix.
✰ USAGE RULES .ᐟ Please credit @angeliicide in the post you use my work! You may also credit me in your pinned or somewhere else visible on your blog. Please do not reupload or alter my dividers.
╰› ꒰ bonus tentacle dividers cuz they were too pretty for me to leave out <3 ꒱
A/N: Loosely based on greek mythology (i.e. Athena, Aphrodite, Dionysis, Zeus, Poseidon, etc.) but interpret as you see fit! If you use these, please kindly tag me, thank you! <3
a doodle i'm very sad i lost in my endless folders...! he'd fight a god of war at 12 and i'd fight the world for his smile. thank you for being one of the first books in english i ever read <3
Percy jackson fanart from a couple years ago that I had to do for a uni project !! I never posted it here! There's a lot of things I would do differently now but its still fun to look back on
