The Logos of Agamemnon

Submitted by detroitmechworks on Sat, 08/11/2018 - 8:09am

As the great ships were heaved into the sea,
Majestically I stood at the prow of the lead,
and proclaimed that I was the forger of the pact
which would reclaim honor against the betrayers.

For I had crushed the nest of murderers,
and taken my rightful place as king,
I paid no heed the miniature vipers
that fled from my heel. Let them find places

Within some other fool's court, I proclaimed,
fearing not that any had slipped my gaze.
So I sailed for glory, for the aid of my brothers
who stood against the talons of Troy.

For none would direct the battle properly, save I.
All thought only for their own desires, and their own glory,
And we fought as the seasons turned, and the tides changed,
My hand directing each and every feint, my strategy flawless.

Achilles was my right hand, Odysseus my left,
and with them I did bring Troy to heel.
I cast out the great wolf who claimed domain,
no longer to vex the men with howls and stolen meat.

I took the fallen seer for my own, for she has value
She has warned me of idle woman's fancies again and again,
but that is no matter, for the proof of their falseness
is within my ship as it lies low in the bay, heavily laden.

Let us instead of her grotesque proclamations look forward,
to the rising sun that will greet us all when we set our feet,
once more on the shores of our beloved homes.
All will be peace, and we shall feast with honors grand.

Let no man besmirch this great victory with rotting talk,
that dwells upon corpses long dead and ransacked.
That day is long past. Let us build a better future
where all kings will freely take pleasures

Let the Age of Gold come again for the kings,
Let us sup of the greatest nectars without shame,
Let us feast on the flesh of righteous sacrifices,
Just payment for our noble and glorious service.

Let the low crawling things despair, for glory has returned.
It is right that they cower and pay homage to me.
Let them do the work of preparing my heroes feast and bath,
Let the blame go the hand who is guilty, not I.

[video:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gPtPxqTdkig]

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Submitted by detroitmechworks on Sat, 08/11/2018 - 8:22am

Ok, Mythological Notes are needed to really get this one.

Agamemnon according to mythology, murdered the old king of Argos, taking his place and reigning until the Trojan War. Upon his return home, he was murdered by his wife and her lover.

Thanks to Agamemnon for this. Again, it's not a speech I agree with, but it reflects something that I see everywhere. Thanks to the muses for relaying it, thanks to Robert Graves for a few ideas. (Although I must admit I disagree with him on certain ideas. While I agree that Matriarchal religion was quite obviously suppressed, and you can still see snippets of it in the Iliad, I am more of the opinion that the Patriarchal imposition was not a settled matter, especially considering that nearly every "suppressed" or Lost piece by Antisthenes that is described by medieval and Roman scholars seems to have an Egalitarian viewpoint towards the status of the sexes.)

Of course that ties in with my personal theory that the original Cynics were despised specifically because they paid homage to the more "Primitive" female deities as well as the Sky gods.

—

I do not pretend I know what I do not know.

Submitted by HenryAWallace on Sat, 08/11/2018 - 9:57am

When I was in college, a classmate sang a hysterical

@detroitmechworks

"Won't You Come Home, Agamemnon?" to the tune of "Won't You Come Home, Bill Bailey?" (Gotta love English majors!) Unfortunately, I remember only the title and the laughter.

Will we see the logos of Medea?

Submitted by detroitmechworks on Sat, 08/11/2018 - 10:05am

Well if I do a Second Play, Absolutely.

@HenryAWallace The first 42 pieces are specifically about Troy, and Medea, though an extremely important character in Greek Myth, is tied to the story of the Argonauts. (It might be fun to do once this play is done, since I only have about 5 more pieces left on this one.)

However, I freely admit I'll have to do a LOT more research on that one because my view of Jason was heavily influenced by this movie and I never got around to reading the original myth.

[video:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C-ZQGRM7GW0]

Now I want to hear that song, of course.

—

I do not pretend I know what I do not know.

Submitted by HenryAWallace on Sat, 08/11/2018 - 3:30pm

"Now I want to hear that song, of course."

@detroitmechworks

As do I!

Would that I could accommodate you, but memory totally fails me. (You might give your own version a try.)

I've seen modern day versions of Hamlet and other Shakespearean plays. I don't see the point. Seems more like ungilding the lily than an homage.

Then again, I usually prefer the original version of almost everything, songs, films, TV series, etc. (Don't even get me started on the remakes of King Kong, Miracle on 34th Street, etc.) However, Medea's story might survive modernization somewhat better.

Submitted by detroitmechworks on Sat, 08/11/2018 - 3:54pm

Well, it's pretty tragic...

@HenryAWallace And I like to try to be hopeful with my work. Even in Troy I managed to find something good at the end there, and I am going to have to scour the hell out of that story to find a good spin on it.

Yeah, most modern incarnations and retelling suck big time. About the only ones I like are the ones that acknowledge and pay homage to the originals in spirit. (Tempest, a retelling of "The Tempest" was REALLY good, if a bit depressing. Raul Julia made that film...)

—

I do not pretend I know what I do not know.

Submitted by HenryAWallace on Sat, 08/11/2018 - 5:23pm

I missed Raul Julia's version.

@detroitmechworks

No one can beat his Gomez Addams or his portrayal in Kiss of the Spider Woman, though. Talk about range! Another one gone far too soon. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ra%C3%BAl_Juli%C3%A1

BTW, IMO, sometimes the positive spin in a story is what we learn from it, or even just how much it pains us. And Medea is not at all far-fetched. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shutter_Island_(film); https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andrea_Yates (sadly, real life)

And now, I must make dinner: wild-caught cod, smothered in fresh lemon juice and pan-roasted almond slices; chips (store bought), corn on the cob, store bought "rainbow" slaw (shredded red and green cabbage, carrots and broccoli) with home made dressing and watermelon for dessert. (LOVE summer eating!)

Submitted by detroitmechworks on Sat, 08/11/2018 - 7:26pm

Sounds like great food.

@HenryAWallace Here's the trailer for that version... it was SO good... but had horrible advertising. Julia plays Caliban... Or rather Kalibanos... It's very well done and manages to really capture the disconnect between materialism and really living.

[video:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cr-7eunHFY8]

—

I do not pretend I know what I do not know.

Submitted by HenryAWallace on Mon, 08/13/2018 - 9:45pm

when I was very young, my mother would send me out to play

@detroitmechworks

after dinner with either an ear of corn or a slice of watermelon in my hand. I thought corn was a dessert!

I leave off the salt and butter with which she lavished corn and cook one ear at a time in the microwave for under two minutes. I don't want to cook it as much as warm it. It tastes much fresher than the pot of boiled corn my mom would make. That and her gravy for pasta may have been her only "food faults." Everything else she made was phenomenal. My high school BFF's mom was also incredible in the kitchen. My mother in law, too. I've been really lucky.

Thank you for the trailer. I wonder if Caliban was the inspiration for Queequeg (Moby Dick)? They seem similar to me.

Submitted by enhydra lutris on Sat, 08/11/2018 - 9:16am

Thanks, detroit.

—

That, in its essence, is fascism--ownership of government by an individual, by a group, or by any other controlling private power. -- Franklin D. Roosevelt --

Submitted by detroitmechworks on Sat, 08/11/2018 - 9:24am

Thanks for reading.

@enhydra lutris I don't blame people for tuning out a bit recently, because I admit the second act is the one where tragedy and horrible things happen.

—

I do not pretend I know what I do not know.

Submitted by HenryAWallace on Sat, 08/11/2018 - 10:05am

In plays in general, especially dramas,

@detroitmechworks

the first act sets the stage (no pun intended) and, if good, draws us in emotionally and intellectually, while everything goes to hell/Hades in the second act. (Again, no pun intended). The third act determines whether we should have bothered watching the first, second and third acts.

No pressure.(-;

Submitted by detroitmechworks on Sat, 08/11/2018 - 10:14am

None taken. :)

@HenryAWallace I must admit I am surprised how well these pieces fall into the classic three act structure, but then this is as close to a classical piece as I can create.

Whether or not I succeeded is up to the individual reader/viewer.

Thanks for sticking with it through the downbeat. I am glad I wrote the third act first because I know I wouldn't want to read this for the first time without knowing the ending. (Hestia's Logos lifts my spirits every time I read it.)

—

I do not pretend I know what I do not know.

Submitted by HenryAWallace on Sat, 08/11/2018 - 3:20pm