Since the day he was born Ezus had always been neglected and overlooked by those around him. There wasn’t anything peculiar about him or his appearance. He was never the boy girls swooned over and he was constantly belittled by everyone in town. Tired of being shamed for his looks his whole life, Ezus decided that he would go to any means necessary to look different.
Ezus worked hard to catch the attention of Tiphrodea, the goddess of love and beauty. He called to her day and night, mumbling her name in his sleep. He spoke of her in songs and poems. He offered her the most vibrant flowers the gardens could offer and handpicked for her, the ripest apples a tree could bear. For months and months, Ezus awaited his encounter with Tiphrodea, yet that day was to never near.
One night, Tiphrodea, moved by Ezus’s continual offerings and affection, had appeared in his dreams. He was instructed to venture out to sea. Directed solely by the currents, he would encounter Tisme, who would possess the solution to his problems. Ezus set sail the following morning. He sailed for days and days, encompassed by the sea, with no stretch of land in sight. One day, at the break of dawn, he set eyes on a small, secluded island. He felt an unfamiliar energy drawing him towards it and within moments, he had docked his ship and began making his way down to the only cabin on the island.
He peeked inside. No sign of life other than a mysterious lady and the sounds of glass bottles softly colliding into one another. He had assumed it was Tisme. Her hands moved graciously. Her eyes locked with Ezus, not once looking away to watch her hands work. She carried the concoction and walked towards Ezus. Before he could speak a word, Tisme handed Ezus the bottle. He looked down at the bottle that was now in his hands, through the glass he could see the explosion of colours disappearing and becoming transparent. When he looked back up, Tisme was gone. Nowhere to be seen. A rather strange individual but Ezus took his chances and left the island with the bottle in hand.
Ezus had not wanted to head back home just yet. He had to see if the potion works and so he made a stop at the next island he saw. He walked into the small village. As usual, the whispers arose around him. He received disgusted glares and heard the insulting comments about his appearance. He walked further into the island and found himself by a riverbank. He peered into the water, hoping it would be the last time he saw this reflection staring back at him. Closing his eyes, he took a sip of the water-like concoction. He felt no different and so, positive that the mysterious potion had not worked, he peered back over the edge of the bank and looked into the water. To his surprise, an unfamiliar face stared back at him.
His skin duplicated the hues of the soil surrounding him. The freckles adorned by the flowers now resting upon his cheeks. His strands of hair weaving in and out of one another mimicking tree roots intertwined with the floor of the earth. His eyes, amber in colour, impersonating the glistening drops of honey peeking from within the honeycombs rested among the highest of branches. It worked. He had done it.
He walked back into the village; head held high. The women who looked at him in disgust now had lust in their eyes. He was the center of attention, not to be ridiculed but to be admired. This was the attention that he craved for, this was all that he ever desired.
Ezus continued his travels for many years. Not staying in any given place longer than a few days; Ezus and his seemingly never-ending potion of magic created new versions of himself, moulded by the earth and water surrounding him. He travelled the world and attracted maiden after maiden. He left behind beautiful babies, all different from one another, one of a kind. From skin tone to hair colour, from the outline of their noses to the rounds of their eyes. All different yet each beautiful in their own ways.
Analysis
My aetiological myth accounts for the creation of different races. The characters of focus in my myth are Ezus, Tiphrodea and Tisme. In many modern renderings of myth-inspired stories, the names of characters are either duplicated from myths and left as is, or they are given completely different ‘modern’ names. For the characters in my myth, I wanted to give them a connection to the Greek figures they were inspired by, while simultaneously giving them their own identities as well. The best method to do so seemed to be by creating new names through an anagram, which was exactly what I did. The names of my characters in my myth are all composed of anagrams to the Greek figures they correlate to. Ezus for Zeus, Tiphrodea for Aphrodite and Tisme for Metis.
Through my myth, the creation of new races comes to be through the main character Ezus. He was constantly belittled for his appearance all his life, and as he wishes to be admired and loved he seeks to find a way to alter his appearance. When he is finally awarded this potion, it is seen that the nature around him and the environment in which Ezus finds himself in while ingesting the potion, depicts the characteristics of his new appearances. The difference in the location, time of day and the objects found around him in the moments before he takes a sip of the potion is what allows his appearances to be different each time he takes a sip. As the differences in his surroundings become intertwined into his new appearances, and as he gets romantically involved with many individuals around the world, Ezus brings life to children who also inherit characteristics of his ‘altered’ appearances. As he repeatedly uses the potion and as he travels from one place to another, he gives rise to many offspring. New races are created through his children, as his offspring are all differ from one another in appearance. As Ezus’s children grow old to have kids of their own, the physical characteristics inherited from Ezus are passed on, allowing these races to progress and grow.
In the myth, it is seen that Ezus calls out to Tiphrodea (Aphrodite) for help. Aphrodite is the goddess of love, beauty and fertility. She is known for her charms and her willingness to provide gifts to mortals (Hesiod, To Aphrodite). In the myth, Ezus is seen to make ritual offerings and sacrifices to the goddess. It was quite common for mortals to carry out such practices in hopes of requesting favours from the gods. Such offerings would have been made with animals, plants, flowers, food and other items of significant value. In my myth, one of the items Ezus is seen to offer to the goddess were apples. Aphrodite is well acquainted with apples through the Judgement of Paris (Pseudo-Apollodorus, The Library E3.2). Paris had given Aphrodite the golden apple in recognition of her beauty in exchange for a chance at love, and a relationship with Helen. Ezus is seen to offer her the same fruit, to yet again signify her beauty in hopes of receiving guidance towards love, just as Paris had done. As Aphrodite is also the goddess of fertility, she plays a significant role in Ezus’s ability to easily procreate and pass down his newly attained characteristics. Aphrodite is not only the goddess who guided him and towards finding the special potion, but her blessings also allow Ezus to continually give rise to beautiful healthy children.
In the myth, Aphrodite is seen to appear in Ezus’s dream to help him find a solution to his problem. It was quite common for Greek gods to aid those in need. They would help either through direct intervention or would send messages to help and guide situations towards an ideal outcome. The concept of Aphrodite appearing in Ezus’s dream was inspired by the dream sent by Zeus to Agamemnon (Homer, Iliad 2.1). However, Zeus had sent him a dream in an attempt to misguide him, while Aphrodite is seen to send Ezus a message to lead him towards a desirable goal.
My myth takes inspiration from multiple myths involving Zeus as he has the ability to shapeshift and take the form of others, both animal and human. (Asteas, ca 430 B.C). As Zeus grew older, he worked to retrieve his devoured siblings and he did so with the help of Metis. In the myths, Metis provided Zeus with a concoction that would aid him and allow his father, Cronos, to regurgitate his siblings. (Pseudo-Apollodorus, The Library 1.2.1) In my myth, Tisme’s character is also seen similarly aiding Ezus. Tisme’s atypical energy draws him towards her. Similar to the myth, Tisme makes Ezus the potion that would provide him with what he desired at that time. The change in colour of the potion in Ezus’s hand, seen through the glass bottle, is also inspired by Metis’s action of masking the appearance of the concoction given to Cronos.
In many myths, Zeus is known to be a ladies’ man. He has had many affairs, encounters and relationships with other women and had children with several of them as well. This aspect of his character is tied into the second half of my myth. Among Zeus's many love interests, his sister, Hera, was one of them. It is said that Zeus had shapeshifted and took the appearance of a cuckoo bird in an effort to seduce his sister (Pausanias, Description of Greece 2. 17.4). This concept was adapted into my myth as seen through Ezus’s return back into the village following his first experience with the potion. The women who had looked at him in disgust just a while before, now showed interest in him as he presented himself as a whole new individual. His new appearance struck the attention of those in the village, just as Zeus’s new appearance had intrigued Hera in the myth.
One last myth that inspired aspects of my myth is that of the creation of Pandora (Hesiod, Works and Days 55). The myth states that Zeus had ordered Hephaestus to mix earth and water to fashion a maiden that would encompass traits of a human. This being was named Pandora. In my myth, the creation of different races quite literally stems from the earth and water as his physical features are a direct reflection of his surrounding environments. This concept of being created by nature’s elements plays a significant role within my myth as it inspired the method in which Ezus would transform and change his physical appearance to create different races.
Two prominent themes of ancient Greek literature present within my myth are the idea of the unknown and metamorphoses. Within my myth, the concept of the unknown is tested through two means. Upon receiving a message in his dreams, Ezus sets sail immediately with no second thought. Although he is not given any direct instructions as to where he is to go, he successfully makes his way to the island inhabited by Tisme. Given that he had no guidance during his time at sea, Ezus could have encountered many unfortunate events as ocean currents can be quite dangerous. This blind faith in the currents and having just the water and the wind guide him contributes greatly to the idea of the unknown. Secondly, the potion presented to Ezus by Tisme also portrays this concept of the unknown as Ezus had only assumed that the strange lady he had encountered on the island was Tisme. However, it could have been someone else. With no reassurance as to who handed him the glass bottle or the exact contents of the bottle, Ezus potentially risks his life by taking that first sip of the potion.
The second prominent theme of metamorphosis is quite common in Greek mythology. Many significant Greek figures obtain the ability to transform and change their physical appearances. Some Greek gods had the ability to shapeshift into different animals while others were able to take shape of a mortal. This concept of metamorphoses is evident within my myth as Ezus’s potion contains the powers to elicit and trigger such changes.
A third indirect and less prominent theme present within my myth is nostos. The theme of nostos typically refers to great hero’s making a return back home by sea. Following a great life-changing experience these individuals are able to return with prizes and trophies to symbolize their victory. In Ezus’s case, his venture out to sea allowed him to obtain his most prized possession, the potion that gave him everything that he ever wanted. Although my myth does not directly entail a return back home, it encompasses the emotions of attention and affection that one receives following said return. Although the village Ezus had first visited was not his home, and although he had not left the village itself, he returned to the center of the village a new man – similar to those who had changed after having gone on a quest and facing many challenges. After having consumed the potion, Ezus was greeted with the same overwhelming love and affection that would have been experienced by such heroes returning home.
References:
Apollodorus. The Library of Greek Mythology. Translation by Aldrich, Keith.
Lawrence, Kansas: Coronado Press, 1975.
Apollodorus. The Library. Translated by Sir James George Frazer. Loeb Classical Library Volumes 121 & 122. Cambridge, MA, Harvard University Press; London, William Heinemann Ltd. 1921.
Apollodorus. The Library, with an English Translation by Sir James George Frazer, F.B.A., F.R.S. in 2 Volumes. Cambridge, MA, Harvard University Press; London, William Heinemann Ltd. 1921. Includes Frazer's notes.
Asteas. Ca 340 B.C. Europa and The Bull (paining). Malibu, The J. Paul Getty Museum.
Hesiod. The Homeric Hymns and Homerica with an English Translation by Hugh G. Evelyn-White. Theogony. Cambridge, MA. Harvard University Press; London, William Heinemann Ltd. 1914.
Hesiod, Homeric Hymns, Epic Cycle, Homerica. Translated by Evelyn-White, H G. Loeb Classical Library Volume 57. London; William Heinemann, 1914.
Homer. The Iliad with an English Translation by A.T. Murray, Ph.D. in two volumes. Cambridge, MA., Harvard University Press; London, William Heinemann, Ltd. 1924.
PAUSANIAS. Description of Greece. Translation by Jones, W. H. S.
Loeb Classical Library. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press. (5 volumes).
“To Aphrodite” Hesiod, Homeric Hymns, Epic Cycle, Homerica, Translated by Evelyn-White, H G. Loeb Classical Library Volume 57. Cambridge, MA, Harvard University Press; London, William Heinemann Ltd, 1914.
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