JohnEngelman
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The Legend of Perseus: A study of Tradition in Story Custom and Belief, by Edwin Sidney Hartland, tells the story of the oldest and most popular fairly tale. The oldest Greek writings that come down to us were written by Homer and Hesiod in roughly the ninth century BC. Each writer alludes to the Legend of Perseus as a story that was old and well known at the time they wrote.
Later on Ovid and Apollodorus tell the entire story, Ovid in Latin, and Apollodorus in Greek.
Perseus’ first heroic achievement was to kill the Medusa witch, and cut off her head. This was difficult because anyone who looked at Medusa was turned to stone. Perseus overcame this difficulty by looking at Medusa through a mirror as he cut her head off. Then he put it into a container.
Perseus’ next heroic achievement was to turn the giant Atlas into the Rock of Gibraltar. He achieved that by getting Atlas to look at Medusa’s head.
Perseus’ third achievement was to rescue Andromeda from a dragon. After killing the dragon Perseus’ proposed marriage to Andromedia, and asked for her parent’s permission to marry her. Of course they all agreed that Perseus was to be Andromeda’s husband.
At the wedding ceremony Andromeda’s former betrothed shows up, and says that Andromeda was promised to him. The former betrothed threatens to fight for Andromeda, but Perseus pulls Medusa’ head from its container, and turns his rival into stone.
There are many more details, but that is the basic plot.
After the writings of Ovid and Apollodorus the story passes from the written tradition, and is preserved orally. In the nineteenth century the Legend of Perseus appears as “The Two Brothers, in “Grimm’s Fairy Tales.” In “Italian Folktales, selected and retold by Italo Calvino,” it appears as “The Dragon With Seven Heads,” and “The Sorceress’s Head.”
In the nineteenth century Thomas Bulfinch wrote about the Legend of Perseus in his Bulfinch’s Mythology. In the twentieth century Edith Hamilton wrote about the Legend in her book Mythology.
I wrote a short story based on the Legend that you can find here:
https://www.literotica.com/s/richard-and-the-seven-brigands
Later on Ovid and Apollodorus tell the entire story, Ovid in Latin, and Apollodorus in Greek.
Perseus’ first heroic achievement was to kill the Medusa witch, and cut off her head. This was difficult because anyone who looked at Medusa was turned to stone. Perseus overcame this difficulty by looking at Medusa through a mirror as he cut her head off. Then he put it into a container.
Perseus’ next heroic achievement was to turn the giant Atlas into the Rock of Gibraltar. He achieved that by getting Atlas to look at Medusa’s head.
Perseus’ third achievement was to rescue Andromeda from a dragon. After killing the dragon Perseus’ proposed marriage to Andromedia, and asked for her parent’s permission to marry her. Of course they all agreed that Perseus was to be Andromeda’s husband.
At the wedding ceremony Andromeda’s former betrothed shows up, and says that Andromeda was promised to him. The former betrothed threatens to fight for Andromeda, but Perseus pulls Medusa’ head from its container, and turns his rival into stone.
There are many more details, but that is the basic plot.
After the writings of Ovid and Apollodorus the story passes from the written tradition, and is preserved orally. In the nineteenth century the Legend of Perseus appears as “The Two Brothers, in “Grimm’s Fairy Tales.” In “Italian Folktales, selected and retold by Italo Calvino,” it appears as “The Dragon With Seven Heads,” and “The Sorceress’s Head.”
In the nineteenth century Thomas Bulfinch wrote about the Legend of Perseus in his Bulfinch’s Mythology. In the twentieth century Edith Hamilton wrote about the Legend in her book Mythology.
I wrote a short story based on the Legend that you can find here:
https://www.literotica.com/s/richard-and-the-seven-brigands
