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Orfeas Peridis is one of my favorite Greek artists. His lyrics are poetic, storytelling on some of the heroes we've read in this class. Traveling the seas, what it feels like to leave one's land behind, to uproot, and what happens to the heart... The "heart" appears in almost every single one of his songs...

He awakens my capacity for imagination, empathy...

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Can never get too close with close-reading

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Can never get too close with close-reading

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How does it feel to practice close-reading?

I junior high, the Iliad and Odyssey were my favorite classes. Not solely because of their engaging nature compared to other subjects, but because of how engaging the professor was. She was one of the most impressive women I have learned from; giving a creative spin to the story, making every character equally captivating and being brutally honest, and sometimes vulgar/aggressive, about her opinion. Professor Ramona reminded me of her...

Close-reading became my favorite thing to do, firstly because I loved using different color pens, but also because there were so many hidden elements behind the stories. I felt like an investigator. And there was no way any interpretation could be wrong, there were just more appropriate and justified ones! I was only competing with myself, while collaborating with others, which placed me in an unexplainable flow! My favorite device was anthropomorphism, which we saw repeatedly in the Odyssey.

Philoctetes reintroduced Odysseus to my life with a completely different tone. Not so heroic and courageous anymore. Nevertheless, I enjoy discovering new sides of people and this was definitely a pleasant surprise.

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What happened in the episode:

Donna takes on Portia in a three-night run of The Merchant of Venice, and she's scared to death considering theater has always been her dream but feels incapable of performing on stage anymore. Louis lends a hand with her lines, drawing on his extensive knowledge of Shakespeare. Their connection deepens as they share their past dreams and fears - Donna feels like an imposter and Luis has terrible stage fright. After Donna's triumphant first night, she persuades Louis to step in as Shylock, lying about a desperate need for the role's replacement, which leads to a nerve-wracking but successful performance. Despite his success, Louis decides to opt out of the final night. Donna reveals to him that the lead wasn't truly injured, but that she orchestrated the whole thing to give Louis a chance to shine. They bond over mutual admiration and support...

Neoptolemus, in a similar light, feels gratitude for Philoctets, who changed him for the better, making him recognize his flaw and choose friendship and loyalty over deceit. He seeks to return the benefits of that act by trying to change Philoctetes and offer him a solution for his pain. The sequence of events are quite different from the episode, as Neoptolemus' lie doesn't come from a pure place, like Donna's does. But were he not to have been deceived by Odysseus, his way of persuasion could have been quite similar. Both Philoctetes and Louis Litt in Suits have an unshakable fear that stems in pain, which might require a courageous act from a friend, sometimes omitting the entire truth...

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The intertwined nature of stories...Mythology has taught me so much about the existence of Time as an underlying and omnipresent property of life. The past illustrates worlds built on worlds, patterns reinforced and reexperienced. The present always looks back as much as it looks forward. Whatever "future" lays ahead is tainted by all the pasts that preceded it, only now the characters look slightly different, call themselves different names, and sound different...

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Before we dive into the striking parallels between the mythic tales of Hercules and Philoctetes, let's examine the sequence of tragic events that shaped their lives.
How do things end for Hercules?
The tale of Heracles' demise unfolds in a series of tragic events. It begins with Nessus, a centaur ferryman who attempts to abduct Heracles' wife, Deianira, but meets his end from Heracles' poisoned arrows. In his dying moments, Nessus deceives Deianira into believing his blood-soaked cloak is a love charm for Heracles. Years later, Deianira, fearing Heracles' affections for another woman, recalls Nessus' words and sends Heracles the tainted garment as a supposed gift. Unaware of its poison, Heracles wears it, suffering excruciating pain as the Hydra's poison seeps into his body. Agonized and realizing his impending death, Heracles, in his final act, builds his own funeral pyre. No onedares to light it until Poeas, an old comrade, does so. As Heracles succumbs to his fate, he rewards Poeas by passing on his bow and arrows, eventually inherited by Poeas' son, Philoctetes.
What happened to Philoctetes?
Philoctetes, a Greek warrior known for possessing Heracles' bow and arrows, is marooned on the island of Lemnos due to a festering wound inflicted by a snakebite. His painful, foul-smelling wound causes distress to those around him, leading the Greeks to abandon him during the Trojan War on Odysseus' orders. Years later, when the Greeks learn that Troy can only be conquered with the help of Philoctetes' weapons, they send Odysseus and a young hero, Neoptolemus, to retrieve him. Initially, Neoptolemus is reluctant to deceive Philoctetes but eventually agrees under Odysseus' persuasion. Neoptolemus befriends Philoctetes, gaining his trust, and convinces him to rejoin the Greeks. However, when Philoctetes discovers the Greeks' true intentions, he feels betrayed and angered by Neoptolemus's deceit. Despite his anger, he ultimately agrees to return, realizing that helping the Greeks aligns with his desire for revenge against those who abandoned him.
It's time to point out a few observations about how these two worlds collide, and are possibly interconnected. I suggest considering Philoctetes' story as an extension of Hercules' life, acknowledging the significance of life's cycles and their inherent ties.
Philoctetes: A man who gets wounded and abandoned by his comrades for a defect that he didn't choose. Why is he the one to suffer the bite of the snake in the cave of Chryse? Why did he take one for the team? I cannot help but wonder why certain characters are chosen; I cannot be convinced that anything is random in the world of mythology, a web of mortal and immortal characters who participate in tragic stories to allude to life lessons. So what do we do? We're going backwards in time, and find a connection between two Greek comrades...

Hercules kills Nessus with his deadly arrows to protect his wife Deianira. His tragic flaw is not revealed until he commits one: infidelity. He pays with a painful full-body burn from the blood his wife orders they shower his cloak with. She was deceived by the centaur that abducted her, who promised her that the blood would cast a love spell on Hercules and distance him from the temptation of other women. Unable to bear the shame of her detrimental action, she takes her own life.
What parallels do we notice so far?
In the story of Philoctetes, we could draw a parallel between Deianira and Neoptolemus, who inflicts pain and agony upon the wounded man, under Odysseus' carefully woven peril of deceit, which places his character in parallel with the centaur Nessus. Neoptolemus, just like Deianira, recognizes the pain he caused and feels "metanoia" (repentance). But instead of ending his life, like she did, he reverses the wrong. Although both of them act out of self interest, Neoptolemus initially questions the deed, recognizing its antithetical nature to his moral character. There is a pre-recognition or attempt to "proairesis" (the cognitive process behind making deliberate choices), and when the time of reversal comes, he knows all he has to do is return to his truth. He ultimately contradicts himself. But as Socrates demonstrated with the "Elenchus", a method of dialectical questioning, understanding and acting upon lived and conceptual contradictions can lead one to deeper understanding and wisdom. Lamentably, Deianira accepts the token of deceit without questioning how using it could go against her nature. She isn't contradicting herself when she decides to use it, but is rather seizing a timely opportunity to make use of magic.

One might argue that she justified her actions by using a resource to salvage her relationship, whereas Neoptolemus showed no concern for Philoctetes' gain from the exchange. Her actions stem from jealousy, possibly entwined with love and vulnerability, while his stance lacks any sign of friendship - though it's worth noting that the two men were previously unacquainted. However, once Neoptolemus reverts to his moral character, he returns the bow and arrows to Philoctetes and extends an invitation to join forces, win the war, and heal his wounds. Tragically, Deianira lacks a similar recourse to heal Hercules' burns, leading to her decision to end her life due to the immense pain she caused her beloved.
"I suggest considering Philoctetes' story as an extension of Hercules' life, acknowledging the significance of life's cycles and their inherent ties."
Nessus's death sets the stage for the demise of his murderer. It's not merely about ending Hercules' life but also holding his beloved accountable for it. The destinies of these heroes revolve around deceit and death. In the tale of Philoctetes, Odysseus, the cunning deceiver, manages to escape the repercussions of his unethical deeds and survives. He shamelessly orchestrates the retrieval of the bow from Philoctetes, using Neoptolemus as his tool for deception. Although the young soldier follows his commander's orders and makes a mistake, Odysseus remains alive and might eventually face the consequences. Hercules, now an immortal deity, observes the injustice against Philoctetes and proposes a triumphant resolution to his suffering. The wounded soldier, on the brink of death, finds redemption by displaying heroic courage against deceit. His narrative isn't one of demise, unlike Hercules', allowing him to express gratitude for the gift of life and the chances it offers for redemption. This new cycle of life after Hercules preserves elements of the past but triumphs over deceit, offering redemption to the heroes.
Do you see the connection between the tales?
Maybe you don't. Regardless, I find the possibilities for redemption particularly striking and inspiring. Hercules becomes a god in the kingdom of gods! Just like a guardian angel, he protects others from falling prey to deceit, the very force that led to his tragic downfall. Nothing is random. The deities and angels we lean on when things are difficult are likely ones who have undergone comparable trials and give us the strength and courage to act morally and envision the "light at the end of the tunnel." Might be relatives who have passed, or heroes whose narratives deeply move and motivate us. Who's your guardian angel?

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The symbolic parallels between the mythic tales of Hercules and Philoctetes

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Before we dive into the striking parallels between the mythic tales of Hercules and Philoctetes, let's examine the sequence of tragic events that shaped their lives. The tale of Heracles' demise...

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It's always better when we think together...

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It's always better when we think together...

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You can find the original journal post here: https://www.jstor.org/stable/4352287

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META-ANALYSIS AND PERSONAL COMMENTS ON_  Ethical Tragedy and Sophocles’ “Philoctetes”

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What young Aristotle tells his elder wise Sophocles in their private meeting, on a rock in the Acropolis...

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A hypothetical encounter between Sophocles and Aristotle

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A hypothetical encounter between Sophocles and Aristotle

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Sophocles,

"Philoctetes" is a testament to tragedy's power. Your portrayal of human suffering and moral conflict is deeply moving. Your characters are not just players; they're vessels of human emotion and ethical complexity. Your work resonates, reflecting the profound intricacies of our existence.

With admiration,

Aristotle:)

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The fantastic text that gives birth to ideas of friendship, fate, suffering, moral character, trickery, the divine, and Choice.