The Theban Cycle | The Curse That Began Before Oedipus

The curse did not begin with Oedipus. It began with a chariot lesson. This is the detail that most retellings of the most famous cursed family in Greek mythology leave…

26 Min Read
- Advertisement -

Latest from Mythic Essays

The Moirai | Three Sisters Who Outranked Every God

Consider what it means that Zeus feared three old women with a spindle. Not feared…

27 Min Read

Arachne | The Weaver Whose Tapestry Was Too True to Survive

The goddess could find no flaw. This is the detail in the Arachne myth carrying…

16 Min Read

Atlas | The Punishment at the Edge of the World and the Astronomy It Encoded

Zeus punished Atlas by placing him at the edge of the world. The standard description…

20 Min Read

Democritus and Protagoras | The Two Philosophers Abdera Produced and the Argument They Started

Abdera produced two of the most consequential thinkers of the fifth century BCE, and the…

25 Min Read

The Bacchae | The Play That Asked the Question in the God’s Own Theater

Euripides died before the Bacchae was performed. He had written it in Macedonia, at Pella…

25 Min Read

The Styx | The River That Bound the Gods and the Spring That May Have Killed Alexander

The gods swore by the Styx when they meant it. Not for politeness, not for…

20 Min Read