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	the__ivorytower 2011-03-28 04:49 pm UTC (link)
	I adore mythology. I just wish people would give credit where credit is due. I'm looking at you, Rick Riordan. (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	kosaginolegion 2011-03-28 10:30 pm UTC (link)
	Strictly speaking, mythology is this tangled mass of bits and pieces that come from all over the place. So it doesn't have much in the way of a single Truth to it. That said, Riordan is giving me a headache because my son loves his stuff and keeps trying to yammer it into my ears. sigh (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

the__ivorytower
2011-03-28 10:37 pm UTC (link)

Oh yeah, it comes from all over. The problem I have with Riordan specifically is this idea that Greek mythology exists in a bubble and the fact he relies on mythological stereotypes instead of going back to the source material for new ideas.

(Seriously, Demeter and Aphrodite don't have strong powers? Look, I realize that the phrase 'I will destroy the seasons' hasn't invoked any kind of real terror since The Legend of Zelda: the Oracle of Seasons, but in a real-world setting, destroying the seasons is *devastating*. You don't need to have the children of Demeter sitting around growing sunflowers, and there's more to Aphrodite than simply vanity. There was a perfect, marvelous occasion to prove that love can be an amazing, strong force, a statement which was made in the book itself, and not only was it totally ignored, the statement itself was completely fucking useless to the main character!)

Sorry, I'm getting awfully wanky about children's books, but mythology in the modern times is a favourite trope, and these books were so utterly disappointing.

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kosaginolegion
2011-03-28 10:46 pm UTC (link)

I'm rather glad the boy is reading the books because it means I get an idea of what's in them and whether or not I'd like them ahead of time. And when he does come up with some of his Riordan based stuff, I can counter with some of the original classical work.

And I LOVE myths. Grew up on 'em, still read them and just finished the Fontenrose books on Delphi for the sake of my NaNoWriMo. That was the one that really pointed up the sheer tangled nature of myth and why they aren't exactly like stories. (Though our stories may well be future myth and for the same reason.)

Oh, yes, and Demeter's power is definitely NOT something to screw with. Hades was really pushing his luck with Persephone. Four months of dry sere weather was getting off easy. (Or winter, if you're in a more northern climate.)

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emily_goddess
2011-03-29 04:49 am UTC (link)

There was a perfect, marvelous occasion to prove that love can be an amazing, strong force, a statement which was made in the book itself, and not only was it totally ignored, the statement itself was completely fucking useless to the main character!

Wait, which "the book" are we talking about? I thought he did a decent job in The Lost Hero of giving Aphrodite's children some real powers.

I agree with what you said about Demeter, though. I'm hoping her poor treatment is just because there hasn't been a major character from that cabin yet.

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	the__ivorytower 2011-03-29 06:03 am UTC (link)
	I'm thinking of the last one. Aphrodite makes this huge deal about love being so valuable and important, and then when one of her daughters loses someone she loves a lot... well, I kind of expected it not to kill him to begin with, and when neither his own natural ability nor love saved him, I was sorely disappointed. (Reply to this)(Parent)

napalmnacey
2011-03-30 12:24 pm UTC (link)

I'm sorry, anyone that says Demeter and Aphrodite don't have strong powers are obviously too fucking comfortable in their modern settings. Two of the most important things to human survival: Food and new generations to replace the old. Wow, guess who's in charge of those two things back then? Why yes, the ladies in charge of the weather and our sexual urges.

(I'm very fond of Aphrodite, and all the goddesses of the Greek Pantheon, so when people throw erroneous shit like that around I get fairly wanky, sorry about that *blush*).

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	sorchar 2011-03-29 12:09 am UTC (link)
	Don't worry, he may grow out of it. Mine did. He was all excited at the announcement of the movie, and by the time it came out, he was all, "Eh, not interested." (Reply to this)(Parent)

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