Evoking a love memory from the Iliad while listening to Lana Del Rey

Lana Del Rey often makes reference that she studied philosophy and considered becoming a poet, which is something that reflects on her lyrics from the very first albums. Her song “Off to the races” quotes a cute line from Vladimir Nabokov’s novel Lolita, “Light of my life, fire of my loins”. Another song “Body Electric” is an obvious allusion to the Walt Whitman’s poem.

However, for me the most special poetic moment is how Lana evokes a bit of Homer in her song “Videogames”. I say evoke instead of quote, since I do not think there is any intention of quoting the Greek bard. Rather, I would say it is my interpretation and emotional feeling of those lines that reminds me of a similar theme in the Iliad. Obviously, Lana has already stated that Videogames is a happy song about living with a boyfriend that was focused on games.

In my favorite line Lana sings “They say that the world was built for two, Only worth living if somebody is loving you”. This line evokes in me a scene when Achilles watches Patroclus leave for battle. Achilles reminds his friend not to put himself in danger for he values him above all else: “Once you push the Trojans from the ships, come back. (…) Make sure you come back here again, once your saving light has reached our ships. Let others keep on fighting”. Achilles then prays that rather everyone else would die if only he and Patroclus would live: “Oh, Father Zeus, Athena, and Apollo— if only no single Trojan or Achaean could escape death, and just we two alone were not destroyed, so that by ourselves we could take Troy's sacred battlements.”

While the words used to express this feeling are way different from Lana’s, I would say both reflect a relationship that is felt so strongly that it overcomes everything else! In “Videogames” the line is just a metaphor for the desire to be special and loved in a way that the world feels warmer just for you. In the Iliad – which curiously refers to War Games – Achilles expresses to Patroclus that their bond is stronger than their ties to other men and without him he cares little for this world. That is why later on the death of Patroclus seals Achilles fate, for he knows that joining the war again will lead him to an early death. The death of Patroclus is Achilles’ death sentence because it deprived him of the joy of life. Later when Achilles is weeping over his friend’s dead body, he confesses his friend was dearer to him than his own father and he rather hoped for his own death than his friend’s loss: “But now thou liest here mangled, and my heart will have naught of meat and drink, though they be here at hand, through yearning for thee. Naught more grievous than this could I suffer, not though I should hear of the death of mine own father (…) For until now the heart in my breast had hope that I alone should perish far from horse-pasturing Argos, here in the land of Troy, but that thou shouldest return to Phthia, that so thou mightest take my child in thy swift, black ship from Scyrus, and show him all things”.

Recently, a friend quoted on Facebook the famous line by Star Trek’s character Spock “The Needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few”. I immediately replied “Not so. Sometimes one can love one thing or one person so strongly that the whole world matters less. In the Iliad Achilles says that he would rather wish all the Greeks died if only Patroclus would live. That is how much he loved him!” And now I ask you my friends/readers, who do you resemble the most – Spock or Achilles? Lana Del Rey sounds like an Achilles type of person.

The photo above shows Achilles mourning the dead Patroclus”, a scene from the front panel of a Roman sarcophagus that is currently at the museum of Berlin.

The first ecological writings appear in the Iliad

Recently I was saddened by the news of a horse who dropped dead from exhaustion in Chile. Yet those news of a horse reaching the end of his strength reminded me of a beautiful story in the Iliad of a pair of noble horses who at the limit of their effort cried abundant tears. Although I am not an ancient scholar, I would say this is the oldest text I know of in defense of animal feelings.

In Iliad’s book 17 Homer sings how the two immortal horses of Achilles cried for the death of Patroclus, his corpse covered in dust and blood. The horses detained their race and looked down upon their fallen master, so young and beautiful. Just a few moments before he was full of life and the two animals remembered his fond caresses and love tenderly. Automedon, companion of Patroclus and the rider of the horse carriage, tries to push the exhausted animals, mixing pleas and lashes. Yet the horses do not move, unable to raise their eyes from the sad body of their beautiful young master lain on the ground, immobile just as equine statues over a tomb. They cry ardent tears from their black eyes, disconsolately shaking their long manes. Zeus from his heavenly throne looks upon the suffering animals “Unhappy pair, why did we give you, ageless and immortal, to that mortal king, Peleus? Did we mean you to sorrow with these wretched men? For what is there more miserable than man, among all the things that move and breathe on earth?” The 20^th century poet Cavafy in his short poem “The horses of Achilles” follows Homer’s poem almost line by line and yet he adds a surprising twist! For those horses were far more sensitive and human than the great Zeus imagined – they cried not just for the gentle Patroclus, but also for all the endless deaths of war:

http://www.cavafy.com/poems/content.asp?id=134&cat=1

At that instant Homer relates the two animals recovered strength, shook the dust from their dark fur and took Automedon far from the murderous battle, so that at least one of their masters survived the horror. To me this is one of the most moving scenes of European literature and one that shows that Homer, even without a sophisticated literary technique, was able to depict beautiful images in its war epic. I do not feel it was a mere coincidence that the epic poet dedicated some of his most beautiful phrases to two horses, for he wanted to show how heartfelt and noble the feelings in animals were. Some of the great kings and royal kin in the Iliad fail to show such depth of emotion.

However, Homer did not just write about the nobility of animals and went on to do something even more original by scripting the first environmental defense! On book 21 of the Iliad, the warrior Achilles wishes to avenge his friend Patroclus and kills all the enemies he can, throwing their corpses to the river Xanthus. The river Xanthus stinks with the pestilence of rotten bodies and its waters run full of blood and flesh. The great river god asks Achilles to stop contaminating its waters, formerly clean and crystalline. Achilles replies that he will throw whatever he wants wherever he so chooses! The great river god then raises himself, pounding with turbulent waters and tides upon Achilles who begins to drown. Achilles is only saved thanks to the help of the god Vulcan who burns the river with fire.

These are two beautiful and entirely original scenes in Homer, ones of which we do not find of a similar kind in all of Greek mythology. This leads me to believe that doubtless Homer was an animal rights and environmental activist, the first one in history! The images show the horses of Achilles mourning for Patroclus, Automedon attempting to control the horses, and Achilles drowning in the river Xanthus. A friend of mine also reminded me that the great philosopher Nietzche suffered an emotional collapse after witnessing a horse being flogged, the first event of a prolonged sickness that led to his death.

A Monk, a Fox, a Bitter Man and the Three Goddesses of Destiny

Sometimes I enjoy revisiting the same books. A good language experiment is learned from reading a book in a new translation and then thinking of the subtle differences in expression relative to the original language. Recently I re-read “The Sandman: Dream Hunters” by Neil Gaiman, with illustrations by Yoshitaka Amano. I was fascinated by this book for the first time some 16 years ago in its original English edition and now I bought it in a Spanish translation.

My second reading of Neil Gaiman’s tale made me think about the power relationship between men and women. In the story a monk and a fox with the spirit of a woman fall in love, but their idyll is disturbed by a powerful wizard who wants to rob the monk’s happiness. The wizard commands three witches to aid him, one is an old woman, the second a beautiful and naked youth, and the third is a woman neither young nor old. He asks the witches why he suffers with fear and cannot feel tranquility. The young woman, who possessed an eerie beauty for one could not say whether she was alive or dead, answered that the magician was afraid because he was alive. The old woman replied that men only achieve peace in the grave or for a brief moment while contemplating the sunset. The woman who was neither young nor old offered a solution to the magician, pointing out that a young monk who had no wealth or power nevertheless enjoyed all the tranquility of this world. The wizard must therefore kill the young monk to rob him of the tranquility and love in his heart!

It is a beautiful tale, full of meaning, and it captured my imagination all these years. I am particularly fascinated by the intense relationship of the male characters (the monk and the wizard) with the women (the fox and the witches). In my personal interpretation Gaiman’s story is a dreamy and emotional retelling of the difficult choices men face when dealing with beauty and loneliness. In ancient cultures men use their power and strength to get what they want and desire, but it is not the same to possess something out of force or fear than receiving love freely. Men, especially the most powerful, dominate their women, first their mothers (the old woman), then their wives (the woman neither young nor old), and finally their daughters or second brides (the young woman) whose youth shows a vigor that instills awe and jealousy in the older men who fear death. But what does the Wizard get out of his power? The Beauty in his captive witches (for they are his servants) is enthralling and yet it feels as something terrible for it is devoid of any real affection. Instead of love the master wizard only receives spite, resentment and hatred. The wizard understands this, but it is different knowing the truth and relinquishing control to free one’s destiny. Power is too seductive and no person in its possession gives it up freely. Kings, but also parents, spouses and each one of us experiences such temptations.

The old woman’s reply that Man only lives tranquil briefly while enjoying the dying sunlight at day's end is also an implication on how Beauty relates to us. The sunset is beautiful and yet it is a beauty outside the influence of men. It shines for everyone equally, poor or rich. Yet the monk owns things even more prized than the radiant sun. One, the buddhist peaceful enlightenment. Two, he is loved by the fox spirit who never wishes to abandon him. Unlike the sun which shines independently of our merits these loving gifts are only received from others’ free choice and that makes them even more precious. Generosity and love are more prized than sunlight!

Neil Gaiman wrote an epilogue that erroneously claims the story to be based on a Japanese folk tale, which was a joke intended to deceive those who dislike giving the due worth to modern authors. However, the love story between the fox spirit and the monk does resemble some Japanese and Chinese folk tales, which remain popular even nowadays and have been adapted to the cinema. Other elements of Gaiman's book do differ a lot from these eastern stories, so one cannot state the book is a simple adaptation of an old tale or that its inspiration is based on a single source. What matters is that The Dream Hunters is my favorite book by Neil Gaiman and it is definitely an original work and one deeply imbued with lessons, passion and dreams.