Awesome ladies of Mythology: Hera

[Vanguard-01]

Okay, people. It's Wednesday. And on the web site of Hero's Journey, the new mythology-based RPG that I frequent, Wednesday is "Awesome Ladies of Mythology Day" on the site's official blog. The blog is primarily run by Anne Ruthven, a crazy-talented researcher and mythology nut. Her mythology wisdom puts mine to shame.

So for today's Awesome Ladies of Mythology Day, Anne has chosen to talk about Hera. Since Hera is such a big deal in Wonder Woman right now, it seemed appropriate to share this awesomeness with all of you. If you like the blog, there are many other great things on the site you can check out too, including more awesome mythology ladies.

I was just going to copy/paste the article onto this post but A) I'm not sure if that's allowed here, and B) the blog does contain a couple swear words, and I'm not sure it would be considered appropriate given the stricter language rules on this forum.

So, here's the link. Have fun reading about what a scary badass Hera really is. You'll also be happy to know that Anne provides some context that makes it a little easier to understand Hera's more "evil" actions in mythology. Specifically her actions against Zeus' "other women" and the children that result from them.

http://herosjourneyrpg.blogspot.com/

[Danvidar]

Thanks for the link. While I already knew most of it, parts like the second confrontation with Artemis I did not. Glad to find out something new about my favourite goddess.

[Vanguard-01]

Thanks for the link. While I already knew most of it, parts like the second confrontation with Artemis I did not. Glad to find out something new about my favourite goddess.

Yeah, I'd never heard of that myth myself.

It reads almost like fanfic, so if it came from anyone other than Anne, I might've dismissed it as basically mythology fanfic. But Anne's a great researcher. If she says it, I believe it.

You're welcome, by the way!

[Agent Z]

I think the reason why many might find it difficult to sympathize with Hera isn't simply that Zeus never gets any comeuppance for his extramarital activities, but because the women who are the targets of Hera's wrath are also rape victims. Hell, Alcmene (Heracles' mother) only slept with Zeus because he disguised himself as her husband, so in most cases its not an issue of the victims (I can't call them lovers) not being faithful. Yeah, it sucks being married to a man who cheats on you, but its even worse being punished for sleeping with someone you didn't even know was married. That's why it is so easy to paint her as a villain.

[Vanguard-01]

I think the reason why many might find it difficult to sympathize with Hera isn't simply that Zeus never gets any comeuppance for his extramarital activities, but because the women who are the targets of Hera's wrath are also rape victims. Hell, Alcmene (Heracles' mother) only slept with Zeus because he disguised himself as her husband, so in most cases its not an issue of the victims (I can't call them lovers) not being faithful. Yeah, it sucks being married to a man who cheats on you, but its even worse being punished for sleeping with someone you didn't even know was married. That's why it is so easy to paint her as a villain.

Oh, of course. From our modern perspective, Hera's grievances are NO justification at all for what she does. When one looks at it from the perspective of the times, however? Not to mention when one looks at the way gods and their natures tend to work? It's still not "justifiable" but it's at least a little more "understandable."

I love how well Anne is able to explain that in this blog.

The blog also does a great job of illustrating exactly what Azz has been doing with Hera in his run. Hera has been basically a slave to an outdated and unfair system. It's been literally a part of her nature which she couldn't change. Now Diana, in her awesomeness, has introduced fresh ideas and a new perspective into Hera's world, and suddenly Hera is ready to throw off the chains of the old world and become a more complete individual and an empowered woman in her own right.

[Redwing]

Oh, of course. From our modern perspective, Hera's grievances are NO justification at all for what she does. When one looks at it from the perspective of the times, however? Not to mention when one looks at the way gods and their natures tend to work? It's still not "justifiable" but it's at least a little more "understandable."

I love how well Anne is able to explain that in this blog.

The blog also does a great job of illustrating exactly what Azz has been doing with Hera in his run. Hera has been basically a slave to an outdated and unfair system. It's been literally a part of her nature which she couldn't change. Now Diana, in her awesomeness, has introduced fresh ideas and a new perspective into Hera's world, and suddenly Hera is ready to throw off the chains of the old world and become a more complete individual and an empowered woman in her own right.

Glad to see some fans see the subtle feminist work in what Azz has been doing for most of his run.

[Vanguard-01]

Glad to see some fans see the subtle feminist work in what Azz has been doing for most of his run.

Yeah. I was a little slow on the uptake myself. But I went back and started to look for the feminist messages other people were talking about......and sure enough, they were there. They're just more subtle, like you said. Which is actually good, because most comic fans are still male, and we dudes REALLY hate being beaten over the head when it comes to feminist issues.

[Agent Z]

Yeah. I was a little slow on the uptake myself. But I went back and started to look for the feminist messages other people were talking about......and sure enough, they were there. They're just more subtle, like you said. Which is actually good, because most comic fans are still male, and we dudes REALLY hate being beaten over the head when it comes to feminist issues.

I understand that, but as some people say "Some Anvils Need To Be Dropped". Don't get me wrong subtlety is good, but sometimes 'preachy' isn't the same as being honest.

[Vanguard-01]

I understand that, but as some people say "Some Anvils Need To Be Dropped". Don't get me wrong subtlety is good, but sometimes 'preachy' isn't the same as being honest.

Yeah, anvil-dropping on a really important issue is a good thing as well. Just some previous Wonder Woman runs were REALLY heavy-handed with the message almost at all times.

Now, don't get me wrong, subtlety is not always a good thing either. If a message is TOO subtle, a lot of readers can walk right past it without even noticing it. As I said, that was me when this run began. I didn't start out loving this run. I was turned off by a lot of things in the beginning. The sex raids actually got me to drop the book for two months. But then I went back and actually looked for the messages and found them.

So, yeah, there is such a thing as "too subtle" and Azz may fall into that trap occasionally. There is also such a thing as "too heavy-handed" and other writers have made that mistake. Like most things, striking a balance is the best approach.