What happens to Medusa in the original myth?
Medusa was one of the daughters of Keto and Phorkys, who were sea gods. However, Medusa was mortal, while her sisters Stheno and Euryale were immortal.
She had been blessed with a striking beauty, and incredibly long and glorious hair. Poseidon, God of the sea, soon became enamoured with the young Gorgon and forced himself on her in a temple of Athena.
Athena was outraged at Medusa and transformed her hair into a bed of serpents, changing her into the grotesque monster we know today.
The young Gorgon could not look at another human being without them being turned to stone, and lived a sad lonely existence, taking out her anger on any traveller who visited her.
Medusa’s death is perhaps the most famous part of her story. Greek hero Perseus was sent out by a king to bring back the head of the Gorgon as a gift. He killed her while she slept by using Athena’s shield as a mirror so he could behead her without looking in her eyes. However, her power was not dimmed in death, and her head had to be kept covered in a sack called a kybisis so no one else was turned to stone.
For many, the myth of Medusa is linked to the struggle and re-birth of a woman dealing with sexual assault and trauma. In the myth, Poseidon forces himself onto the young Medusa and she is punished for his actions. A re-examination of this Greek myth sees many people identifying with Medusa as a victim rather than a villain, and wearing the image as a symbol of survival. One possible meaning of the Medusa tattoo is as a representation of strength after trauma or sexual assault.
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