On an eerie night, all the way in the ancient world of Greece, an impossible task was asked of Perseus, the son of Zeus. Perseus was asked to behead the dreadful monster of Medusa. He was asked to do this impossible task because everyone knew how dangerous and terrifying Medusa was. Therefore, Polydectes asked Perseus to carry out this mission because he wanted Perseus gone.1
There was no doubt about how dangerous the gorgon Medusa was, and all of Greece believed that whoever got close to her would turn to stone. Perseus’ mission was expected to be a failure due to these dangerous conditions. Medusa had a deadly power of turning those who looked into her eyes to stone. When Perseus was asked to behead her, Polydectes and the other gods didn’t believe Perseus could make it out with Medusa’s head and not be turned to stone. However, Perseus succeeded in his mission and beheaded the dreadful gorgon Medusa. The Greeks were ecstatic that this nightmare of a woman was dead and that the wonderful demi-god Perseus had Medusa’s fatal power in his hands. After this, Perseus used Medusa’s head to turn many into stone and it kept the people of Greece in fear of Medusa even after she was dead.2 However, Medusa was not always the feared monster that everyone knew her to be.
Before Medusa was known as a terrifying monster, she was a beautiful maiden who was very kind and pious. Medusa was the daughter of Phorcys and Ceto. Phorcys was a sea god and Ceto was the goddess of sea monsters. Ceto gave birth to all three of the gorgons; Sthenno, Euryale, and Medusa. Medusa was the only one of the gorgons who was mortal, while the other two were immortal. Medusa was a beautiful young woman who was a priestess for the goddess of wisdom and war, Athena. Medusa was a very good priestess, as she made a vow to the goddess that she would swear her life to celibacy and servitude. However, while Medusa was praising and serving Athena, she caught eye of the god Poseidon. What caught his attention most were the gorgeous, golden locks of hair Medusa had. Because Poseidon took such a liking to Medusa, he charmed her and swayed her off her feet. The two were caught having a love affair in Athena’s temple. Once Athena found out about this affair, her jealousy raged and she became furious! She then decided to put a nasty curse on Medusa for breaking her promise of celibacy. This curse turned Medusa’s beautiful locks into venomous snakes and made it so that whenever someone looked at Medusa, they would turn to stone.3
This curse completely turned Medusa’s life around. Once given this curse, Medusa fled her home, never to return. On her journeys, she was shunned, feared, and loathed by all she encountered. These awful experiences turned Medusa’s kind, pious personality into one that matched her new appearance. It’s a shame the goddess Athena had the power to turn Medusa’s entire life around; however, Medusa was not just a feared monster to the ancient Greeks. Medusa’s severed head eventually became a symbol that scared away evil. Many warriors used the symbol of Medusa’s head on shields and breastplates during battle to aid them in winning. Other than aiding in battle, the symbol of Medusa is also seen on ancient coins from Greece that are now ancient artifacts.4 Although Medusa came to be hated by all, she was still an important part of the culture and became a key symbol in ancient Greece.
- Stephen R. Wilk, Medusa: Solving the Mystery of the Gorgon (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2008): 20. ↵
- Carolyn Springer, “Medusa The Reader,” Women’s Art Journal 28, no. 1 (2007): 63-64. ↵
- Encyclopedia of Sex and Gender, 2007, s.v. “Medusa,” by Paolo Fasoli. ↵
- G. K. Jenkins, “Some ancient coins of Libya,” Libyan Studies 5, no. 1 (March 2015): 29-35. ↵
103 comments
Alexander Manibusan
I find it really sad that Medusa was turned into something that horrific. Although I believe she deserved punishment, I also believe that her punishment should not have been that severe and that Poseidon should be put to blame as well. I wonder if there are any myths in the world that are similar to the myth of Medusa. That would be interesting to know.
Antoinette Johnson
I feel sorry for Medusa. All she did was fall in love with Poseidon and a have an affair with him. Athena let her jealousy get the best of her and she turned Medusa into a monster. I can understand now why in all the Greek stories, Medusa is seemingly so mean and hateful. It is because one person ruined her life out of spite. Athena asked a lot of Medusa. Medusa was working faithfully for her and she made on mistake and Athena cursed her. Athena is supposed to be the God of wisdom, but her decision to cure Medusa out of jealousy was not wise. Medusa at least now you can rest.
Samantha
Medusa didn’t make a mistake and she didn’t have a love affair either she was raped and Athena could only punish Medusa cause she was mortal and not a god.
Damian Jennings
I have for a long while been itching to find out about the folklore of the Greek creature Medusa. It is very stunning how the Greeks utilized the story and image of Medusa, they would evenu use her image to aid themselves in fights. One part of Greek folklore that is found in this article is the humanness of the divine beings. They are superhumans that have mythological inspired attributes, each one becomes more interesting than the last.
Luke Lopez
I have always heard of Medusa, but I did not know her backstory. Medusa did not always have snakes on her head, and was a priestess for Athena. Medusa had an affair with Poseidon, which resulted in Athena cursing her with venomous snakes on her head for breaking her vow of celibacy. The symbol of Medusa’s severed head was used to scare away evil, and aided soldiers in battle.
Clarissa Gonzalez
I never knew much about Greek mythology, so the background in the first paragraph was very helpful. I only knew small things about Medusa, the hair made of snakes, turning people to stone, and basically hating men. There is so much more to her than just those things. Her story is sad and has more to it, and this article depicted so much of it.
Emily Jensen
Greek mythology has always been able to catch, and keep, my interest ever since I learned to read. I always had some mythological book in my hand, either a Percy Jackson or even just a classic history textbook. I really like how this article goes into the background of Medusa before she was cursed, not too many people know about that. Definitely a very informative article!
Matthew Bustamante
I have always wanted to learn about the mythology of the Greek monster Medusa. It is quite amazing how the Greeks used the story and symbol of Medusa’s head to aid themselves in battle. Its myths like these that project the soul man. One aspect of Greek mythology that is seen in this article is the humanness of the gods. They have emotions, physical attraction, human attributes, etc. To me this was man searching for meaning. Great article, very informative!
Esperanza Rojas
The first thing I noticed was that in the first paragraph, Polydectes wants Perseus dead, which is always surprising to read about, because all the Gods from the Greek mythology always tend to betray one another. The backstory of Medusa is very sad, to read that her love for a God was the reason her life was forever changed. I thought Medusa was a woman that born half human and half monster, and liked to play men into a trap, so this story was a shock to read.
Jocelyn Moreno
This is such an interesting article. I loved how you spoke of what she later resembled in the greek culture because I feel as if she only has a bad connotation when people heard her name. It’s so sad to know she was the kindest of souls but was stripped of everything when Athena put the curse on her. Medusa was a victim of Athena’s wrongdoing. It’s crazy to think if it weren’t for Poseidon charming her, she would have still been a priestess to Athena. It’s nice to know that although all the bad they used Medusa for a symbol of good at times.
Caroline Bush
Interesting article! I really enjoyed reading about the life Medusa whom most would consider a monster from birth. I never knew that Medusa was once a beautiful priestess that only became a monster because of Poseidon and Athena. In a way its tragic because Medusa committed herself to celibacy but only broke that vow because of Poseidon. Had it not been for that Athena might not have gotten jealous and Medusa might have still been a beautiful women. Overall this was a very interesting article that I really enjoyed reading.