Medusa`s head

TheMyths
Medusa'sHead
and
Perseusand the Gorgon'sHead
Make the Connection
Talk lt Over
The ideaof fate is imoortantin this Greek
myth.Faterefersto a powerthat is
believedto decidethe future no matter
what we do.Youlearnrightawayin this
storythat a king hasreceivedbad news
from an oracle(6r'a.kal)-a priestor
priestess
who canforetellthe future.He
haslearnedthat onedayhe will be killed
by hisown grandson.
Thinkaboutthissituationfor a few
minutes.Then,with severalclassmates,
discuss
what it would be liketo know
what will happenin the future.
Literary Focus
MtrthicHeroes
bn t sldls
ldentifyforms
of Jiction:myths.
Bc.dl.E
Sldlk
Dialoguewith
the text.
350
What characters
canf ly,becomeinvisible,
andcallon othermagicalpowersin the
fight againstevil?You'llprobablythink
of moderncomic-book
characters,
such
a5Batmanor Superman.
In "Medusa's
Head"you'llmeetan ancientmythic
hero,Perseus,
who cando allthese
things-and more.
In the world of myth, heroesdo
thingswe wishwe coulddo and things
we'regladwe don't haveto do. Heroes
in mythsrepresent
the hopesand fears
of the peoplewho createdthem.
Heroesin mythsareoften helped
by gods.Sometimes
they aregods
themselves.
Thesesuperheroes
usually
havemagicalpowers,and they always
facegreatdifficultiesand challenges
Collection4 / Formsof Fiction
(likeslayinga monster).Oftena
hero savesa whole societyfrom ruin,
Reading Skills.#,
Dialogue with the Text
Asyou readthisstorylot downyour
responses
to it. Askquestions
about
unfamiliar
words,andtry to predict
whatwill happennext.
Vocabulary Development
Theseare the wordsyou'll learnas
read "Medusa'sHead":
descended(d6.send'id) y.:movedto
lower place;came down. Out of pitl,
Zeus,king of the Greekgods,
the imprisonedgirl,
perplexity(par.plek'sa
't€) n.:
bewilderment;
confusion.
ft his
Perseus
turnedtoAthene.
perpetual(par.pedr'6.a1)ad1:
permanent; constant.Medusa's
in a placeofperpetualwilight,
is neitherdaynornight.
(rC'ses'az)
recesses
n.: innerplaces.
The sisters
scrambledto the receses
caveafter Perseusstole their sight.
hovered(huv'ard)u: remained
in the air. Wearingthe winged
Perseus
hoveredhigh abovethe rods
------a
Ch.,
(a.crC'sC'6s')
[ingAcrisios
of Argos (iir'giis'):
Argos
wasan ancientcity and kingdom in
southern
Greece.AlsospelledAcrisius.
Pmitos(p16.e'tos):
brother of King Acrisios.
rmythic
ruin.
Danae(dan'a'C'):
daughterof King Acrisios.
ShebearsZeus'sson Perseus.
Apllo:Greekgod of light, medicine,poetry,
andprophecy.
The oracleof Apollo was a
priest
or priestess
through whom the god
your
bout
:d ict
wasbelievedto speak.
hus(zds):king of the Greekgods.
DiOs(dic'tis):
f isherman,brother of Polydectes.
He and Polydecteslive on the
island
of 5eriphos.
Also spelled5eriphus.
(pii
hlydedes l'€.dek'tcz):king of 5eriphos.
(pur'sd.as):
hrseus
son of Danaeand Zeus.
)nt
n asyou
redto a
,f pity,
cendedto
Medusa,the youngestGorgon,has
snakesfor hair and a face so terriblethat
it turns to stone anyonewho looksat it.
Athene (a.the'n€):Greekgoddessof crafts,
war, and wisdom.Her name is also
spelledAthena.
Phorcides({6r'sa'd6z):three sisterswho live
in a caveand haveonly one eye and one
tooth betweenthem.
Hermes(hur'mCz'):messenger
of the gods.
CepheusGE'fe.as):king of Ethiopia.
(kas'C.6.pe'a):
Cassiopeia
queen of Ethiopia.
Andromeda(an.d16m'a.da):daughterof
King Cepheusand QueenCassiopeia.
She
hasbeen chainedto a rock near the sea
6orgons:
threefearsomesisterswith brass
gold wings,and serpentlikescales.
hands,
to calmthe anger of the god Poseidon.
Nereus(nir'e.as):a minor seagod.
Poseidon(p6.si'dan):god of the sea.
sperplexity,
t sisters
live
wherethere
ace5.
sses
of the
'.t.
suspended
tndab,
'ocks.
.r'?a
Medusa'sHead/ Perseus
and the Goroon'sHead
351
ingAcrisiosof Argoswasa
hard,selfishman. He hated
hisbrother,Proitos,who later
drovehim from his kingdom,
hecarednothingfor his daughter,
Hiswholeheartwasseton havine
whoshouldsucceed
him, but since
years
wentby and still he had only the
daughter,
he senla message
to the oracle
to askwhetherhe shouldhave
children
of his own. The answerof the
wasterrible.Acrisiosshouldhaveno
buthisdaughter,
Danae,would bear
agrandchild
who shouldgrow up to
him.At thesewordsAcrisioswasbeside
withfearand rage.Swearingthat
shouldneverhavea child to murder
hehada roombuilt undersround
lined
allthroughwith brass.
Thitherhe
Danae
andshutherup,bidding
Wnd therestof her life alone.
It ispossible
to thwart the plans of mortal
butneverthoseof the eods.Zeushim-
withpityon theunfortunate
girl,
it issaidhe descendedto her throuqh
tinyholethat gavelight and air to her
pouringhimselfdown into her lap
formof a showerof gold.
wordcameto the kins from those
brought
foodand drink to his daughter
girlwaswith child,Acrisioswas
andafraid.He would haveliked best
bothDanaeand her infant son,
buthedid not darefor fearof the
anger
atsohideousa crime.He made,
a greatchestof wood with bandsof
aboutit. Shuttingup the girl and her
inside,
hecastthem into the sea.thinktheywould eitherdrown or starve.
thegodscameto the help of Danae,
caused
the planksof the chestto sivell
until they fitted tightly and let no waterin.
The chestfloated for somedaysand was
castup at last on an island.There Dictys, a
fisherman,found it and took Danaeto his
brother, Polydectes,who wasking of the
island.Danaewasmadea servantin the
palace,yet beforemany yearshad passed,
both Dictys and Polydecteshad fallen in love
with the silent,golden-hairedgirl. Shein her
heart preferredDictys,yet sincehis brother
wasking, shedid not dare to make her
choice.Thereforeshehung alwaysover
Perseus,pretendingthat mother love left her
no room for any other, and yearafter year a
silent frown would crossPolydectes'faceas
he sawher caressthe child.
At last,Perseus
becamea youngman,
handsomeand strongbeyondthe common
and a leaderamongthe youthsof the island,
though he wasbut the son of a poor servant.
Then it seemedto Polydectesthat if he
could once get rid of Perseus,he could force
Danaeto becomehis wife,whethershe
would or not. Meanwhile,in order to lull
the youngman'ssuspicions,
he pretended
that he intendedto marry a certainnoble
maidenand would collecta weddinggift
for her. Now the custom wasthat this gift
of the bridegroomto the bride wasin part
his own and in part put togetherfrom the
marriagepresentsof his friendsand relatives.All the youngmen,therefore,brought
Polydectes
a present,exceptingPerseus,
who
washis servant's
son and possessed
nothing
to bring.Then Polydectes
saidto the others,
"This youngman owesme more than any
of you,sinceI took him in and brought him
Vocabulary
descended(dC.send'id)y.;moved to a lower place;
came down.
Medusa'sHead
in a visionandpromisedhim her aid.
"First,you mustgo,"shesaid,"to the
tersPhorcides,who will tell you the way
the nymphswho guardthe hat of
the winged sandals,and the knapsackwhi
can hold the Gorgon'shead.Then I will
Medusaby MichelangeloCaravaggio(1573-1610).
Uffi2i, Floren(e, ltaly. O ftala/Art Resour(e,NY
up in my own house,and yet he givesme
nothing."
Perseusansweredin angerat the injustice
of the charge,"I havenothing of my own,
Polydectes,yet ask me what you will, and I
will fetch it, for I owe you my life."
At this Polydectessmiled, for it waswhat
"Fetch
he had intended,and he answered,
me, if this is your boast,the Gorgon'shead."
Now the Gorgons,who lived far off on the
shoresof the ocean,werethree fearful sisters
with handsof brass,wingsof gold,and
scaleslike a serpent.Two of them had scaly
headsand tuskslike the wild boar,but the
third, Medusa,had the faceof a beautiful
woman with hair of writhing serpents,
and
so terriblewasher expression
that all who
looked on it were immediatelyturned to
stone.This much Perseus
knew of the Gorgons,but of how to find or kill them,he had
no idea.Nevertheless,
he had given his
promise,and thoughhe sawnow the satisfaction of King Polydectes,he wasbound to
keephis word. In his perplexity,he prayedto
the wisegoddessAthene,who cameto him
Collection4 / Formsof Fiction
you a shield,and my brotherHermeswill
giveyou a sword,whichshallbemadeof
adamant,the hardestrock.For nothing
cankill the Gorgon,sincesovenomous
is herbloodthat a mortalsword,when
plungedin it, is eatenaway.But whenyou
cometo theGorgons,invisiblein yourhat
of darkness,
turn your eyesawayfrom
andlook only on their reflectionin your
gleamingshield.Thusyou maykill the
monsterwithout yourselfbeingturnedto
stone.Passher sistersby,for theyare
immortal. but smite off the headof
with the hair of writhing snakes.
Thenput
your
return,
in
knapsackand
and I will be
with you."
The vision ended,and with the aid of
Athene,Perseus
setout on the long
Theselive in a dim
to seekthe Phorcides.
cavernin the far north,wherenightsand
daysareoneandwherethewholeearthis
with perpetualtwilight.There
overspread
satthe threeold womenmumblingto one
another,crouchedin a dim heaptogether,
for theyhadbut oneeyeand onetooth
betweenthem,whichtheypassed
from
quietly
came
behind
to hand.Perseus
andastheyfumbledfor the eye,heputhis
strong,brown hand next to one of the
vocabulary
perplexity(par.plek'sa.t€)
n.: bewilderment
confusion.
perpetual(par.pedr'6.a1) adl..'permanent
constant.
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likewomen,vet scaledfrom headto
asserpents
are.Insteadof handsthey
gleaming
clawslike eagles,and their feet
By now,Perseus
wasoverthe Libyan
desert,andasthebloodfrom thehorrible
headtouchedthe sand,it changed
to
dragons'feet.
Skinnymetallicwingslike serpents,
from whichthe snakes
of Africa
wings
hungfrom their shoulders.
Their
aredescended.
wereneithersnakenor woman,but
Thestormsof the Libyandesertblew
likefacesin a nishtmare.These
againstPerseus
in cloudsof eddyingsand,
armin arm and neverstirred.Onlv
until not eventhe divinesandalscouldhold
snakes
stillhissedandwrithed
him on his course.Farout to seahewas
thepale,setfaceof Medusa,asthough
blown,andthennorth. Finally,whirled
insleep
sheweretroubledbv anevil
aroundthe heavens
like a cloudof mist.he
Shelayby herself,armsoutstretched, alightedin the distantwest,wherethe giant
morebeautifulandterrible
Atlasheldup on his shouldersthe heavens
man may bear.All the crimesand
from the earth.Therethe wearygiant,
ofthe world rushedinto Perseus' crushedunderthe loadof centuries,
begged
ashegazed
at herimagein theshield.
Perseus
to showhim Medusa's
head.Perseus
stiffened
his arm ashe hoveredover
uncovered
for him the dreadfulthing,and
hissworduplifted.Thenheshuthis
Atlaswaschangedto the mightymountain
thevisionandin thedarkness
struck. whoserocksrearup to reachthe skynear
wasa greatcry anda hissing.Perseus the gateway
to theAtlantic.Perseus
himself,
fortheheadand seizedit by the limp
returningeastlvards
andstill battlingwith
hair.Somehowhe Dut it in his
thewind, wasdrivensouthto the land of
andwasup and off, for at the
Ethiopia,whereKing Cepheusreignedwith
scream
the sisterGorgonshad awak- hiswife,Cassiopeia.
Nowtheywereafterhim, theirsharp
As Perseus
camewheelingin like a gull
ingagainst
hissilvershield.
Perseus from theocean,he sawa strangesight.Far
pathwav
forwardon the
of the wind
out to seathewaterwastroubled,seething
andbehind him the two sisters
andboilingasthoughstirredby a greatforce
out the prey they could not
movingin its depths.Huge,sullenwaves
dartedfrom theirgirdles,"
foam
werestartingfar out andwashinginland
theirtusk, andthegreatwings
oversunkentreesandfloodedhouses.
Many
air.Yetthewineedsandalswereeven
milesof landwereunderwater,and ashe
$an they,and Perseusfled like the
spedoverthem,hesawthe muddysealapdeerwith the speedof desperation.
pingaroundthefootof a black,upstanding
thehorriblenoisesrewfaintbehind rock,Hereon a ledgeabovethewater'sedge
hisineof snakes
andthesoundof
stooda younggirl chainedby the arms,lips
diedaway.At lastthe Gorgons
parted,eyesopenandstaring,facewhite
him no lonser and returned
asher linengarment.Shemight havebeen
a statue,sostill shestood,whilethe light
breezeflutteredher dressand stirredher
; blts or sashes.
loosened
hair.As Perseus
lookedat her and
MedusatHead
,,M
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hce,Perseus
sprangoncemoreinto the
unveiling
thedreadfulheadof dead
to themonster,
whichrearedits
jawsyardshigh into the air.The
tail stiffenedall of a sudden.the
ofthe waterceased,and only the
wavesof the recedingoceanlapped
along,grayridgeof stone.Then
freedAndromedaandrestored
herfatherand beautifulmother.
with their consent,he married
scenes
of tremendousrejoicing,
widrhisbridesetsailat lastfor the
of Polydectes.
had lost no time on the
of Perseus.
First he had begged
to becomehis wife. and then he had
her.Undoubtedlv,
hewould
gothiswayby forceif Danaehad
in terrorto Dictys.Thetwo took
atthealtarof a temple whence
did not daredrag them away.
stoodwhen Perseusreturned.
wasenragedto seehim, for he
at leastthat Danae'smost
protectorwould neverreturn.
seeinehim famousand with
daughterto wife, he could not
himself.Openly he laughedat the
sayingthat the hero had
blledtheGorgon,only pretended
to,
nowhe wasclaiming an honor he
deserve.
At this,Perseus,
enragedby
andby reportsof hismother'spersaidto him,"Youaskedme for the
head.Beholdit!" And with that he
it high,andPolydectes
becamestone.
Perseus
left Dictysto beking of that
buthehimselfwentbackto the Gre-
First,however,
hegavebackto the godsthe
giftstheyhadgivenhim. Hermestook back
thegoldensandalsandthehat of darkness,
for both arehis.ButAthenetook Medusat
head,andshehungit on a fleecearoundher
neckaspart of herbattleequipment,where
it maybeseenin statuesandportraitsof
thewarlikegoddess.
Perseus
took shipfor Greece,
but his fame
hadgonebeforehim, and KingAcrisiosfled
secretlyfrom Argosin terror,sincehe
remembered
the prophecyandfearedthat
Perseus
hadcometo avengethewrongsof
Danae.Thetremblingold Acrisiostook
refugein Larissa,
whereit happenedthe king
washoldinga greatathleticcontestin honor
of hisdeadfather.
Heroesfrom all overGreece,
among
whom wasPerseus,
cameto the games.
As
Perseus
wascompetingat the discusthrowing,hethrewhigh into the air and far
beyondthe rest.A strongwind caughtthe
discusasit spun,sothatit leftthecourse
markedout for it andwascarriedinto the
stands.Peoplescrambledawayto right and
left.Only Acrisioswasnot nimbleenough.
Thehearyweightfell full on his foot and
crushedhis toes,andat that,the feeble
old man,alreadyweakened
by his terrors,
diedfrom the shock.Thustheprophecy
of Apollowasfulfilledat last;Acrisioswas
killedby his grandson.ThenPerseus
came
into his kingdom,wherehe reignedwith
Andromedalong andhappily.
ToreadaboutOliviaCoolidge,
seeMeetthe
Writeron page252,
to seekout his grandfather,
whowasonce againking ofArgos.
MedusalHcad
359
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Response
ondAnolysis
First Thoughts
1. Whatdo youthink oJ Perseus?
Do we haveheroeslikehimtoday?
ReJer
to yourreadingnotesfor your
responses
to the story. .4.
Thinking Critically
2. Why is Perseus
a good exampleof a
(Think
mythichero?
about how he
handles
challenges
and how the
godshelphim.)
the idea
3. Howdoesthismythillustrate
fate?Whatdo
that no onecanescape
youthink of the ancientGreekbelief
that eveqnhing
that happensis
decidedin advance
byfate?
Extending Interpretations
gdlft
lJl.t|.t
Analyzea myth.
Rcdhg
sklllt
Dialoguewith
the text.
utrldttg Sklllt
Write a short
story.
4, Modernstoriesof actionheroesoften
resemble
ancientmyths.What movies
or TVshowsremindyou of the story
of Perseus?
Thinkaboutthese
elementsin the myth:
a. the herothreatenedat birth
b. the beautifulwomanin danoer
c. the awfulmonster
d. the role playedby magic
e. the perilsfacedby the hero
f. the peoplewho helpthe hero
g. the triumphof goodoverevil
WRIT!NG
Writing a story
Makeup a storyabouta character
who
canbecomeinvisible.
Jotdownsomeideasaboutthe waythe
character
becomes
invisible,
the thingshe or shecando that visible
personwould
characters
can'tdo,andthe dangers
that an invisible
face.lf youwish,tellyourstoryin the form oJa cartoon.
Collection4 / Formsol fiction