{"id":2129,"date":"2025-08-08T21:00:00","date_gmt":"2025-08-08T21:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sbedwards.co\/staging\/9372\/?p=2129"},"modified":"2025-12-04T22:29:00","modified_gmt":"2025-12-04T22:29:00","slug":"transgender-wisdom-the-myths-of-teiresias","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sbedwards.co\/staging\/9372\/transgender-wisdom-the-myths-of-teiresias\/","title":{"rendered":"Transgender Wisdom: The Myths of Teiresias"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<figure class=\"wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"The Wisdom of the Transgender Prophet Teiresias\" width=\"1290\" height=\"726\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/_nNRlrFYKOI?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-73f14af5ceb1b5c3215fb171fd2eadab wp-block-paragraph\">What is wisdom?&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-b0816265636b9a988d26fd82ed78b2ee wp-block-paragraph\">Not intelligence, but wisdom? I\u2019m sure many of you have made enough D&amp;D characters to understand the difference theoretically, but what does this look like in practice?&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-ce411a366bd9f081fd9876d6161be038 wp-block-paragraph\">I made a post on the channel asking about it recently, and everyone\u2019s response was a little different of course. But I think if we boil it down, the core of just about everyone\u2019s reply was that it\u2019s some combination of practical knowledge and life experience.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-dde61ec3d2c68895fb141f9ff92c8de9 wp-block-paragraph\">Each of my parents told me something similar, which is interesting considering they\u2019ve been separated for nearly 20 years and don\u2019t really want anything to do with each other.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-5537ad44cdbd93283a08398a66b53e77 wp-block-paragraph\">And when I asked my brother, he said, quote, \u201cget back to work, lazy bum\u201d.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-07ca804e8cccc2dcb56d4b176683e000 wp-block-paragraph\">Thought provoking stuff, thanks little bro.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-16ce33b45683fb472b178d9e0dde1aa8 wp-block-paragraph\">Knowledge and experience is a great place to start, but I think there\u2019s more to it than that. It\u2019s why wisdom can be such a difficult topic to pin down.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-734daf931121ae30b9bc27c82da23068 wp-block-paragraph\">If you were to boil down the traits of wisdom, what might they be?&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-d1c102adf7669e2561291ef497dac927 wp-block-paragraph\">Someone who\u2019s capable?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-f1b0b45568d1873d52dc8fa207613922 wp-block-paragraph\">Loyal?&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-36d1974277a07e259538b79d371d7dc9 wp-block-paragraph\">Dedicated?&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-a57f606a549f6a23cb4f9190301b05f1 wp-block-paragraph\">Caring?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-9109f48afc9bfd96c0a7839655f5766e wp-block-paragraph\">Confident?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-a42a454ec3ca44cba47afc0195237d45 wp-block-paragraph\">Maybe it\u2019s someone who has a strong sense of empathy borne from a wide variety of lives lived.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-72750bc47789d4f1210aa86f792e8972 wp-block-paragraph\">Someone who will fight when necessary, but who prefers a peaceful resolution.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-700b8291798ffcfb1f2e8806d982ebff wp-block-paragraph\">Someone who doesn\u2019t always have the answers, but who can help you find them yourself.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-1b44fce09b141e8ecec94ace1d8c5c1f wp-block-paragraph\">Who can you think of that fits these traits?&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-a887aacf872c847eca94ff3de195905b wp-block-paragraph\">Unfortunately, I\u2019m having difficulty thinking of a living person everyone will know about. So instead, we\u2019ll turn to fiction.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-30395488f58889d9fa21bbff5688fa9b wp-block-paragraph\">For me, there are two figures that come to mind when I think of true wisdom \u2013 Captain Jean-Luc Picard, and Uncle Iroh.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-3c8044f813fc00ab5e3cf2c5772c30e1 wp-block-paragraph\">Both of these men have knowledge and experience, of course, but that experience was sometimes borne from major mistakes. Picard nearly died as a young man after being stabbed through the heart by a surly Nausicaan over a game of dom-jot, and Uncle Iroh lost his only son at the siege of Ba Sing Se. Each of these moments completely changed the trajectory of their lives.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-97e65448849adc3ef3fefe657d897716 wp-block-paragraph\">But they had a wealth of other experiences as well, that sculpted their character.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-b73661b6df3cf9df29d3c80099e6525b wp-block-paragraph\">For Picard, he rescued an ambassador on Milika III, assumed command of the USS Stargazer after her captain was killed, fought in the Cardassian wars, made the difficult decision to abandon the Stargazer after a battle with the Ferengi, invented the Picard Maneuver \u2013 both of them &#8211; and so much more. These difficult moments, combined with his Starfleet Academy training, sculpted him into the confident, capable, wise individual we meet during TNG\u2019s run.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-32ce1253968b5994fde6ddc1d0d573f7 wp-block-paragraph\">For Iroh, he was the assumed heir to his father, Fire Lord Azulon, and as such would have been crowned as ruler of the Fire Nation. He was pressured into military service, where he served as a general of the Fire Nation army for many years. He embraced this role, but it clearly took a toll on him &#8211; he aged more quickly than his brother Ozai. It was the death of his son that finally made him realize the heavy cost of war, and of all his military expeditions. The unbelievable heartache he felt was something he&#8217;d inflicted upon countless others throughout his life. His journey through the spirit world after the death of his father and Ozai&#8217;s accession to the throne instead of Iroh helped him change his outlook on life. Rather than pursuing a blind quest for power and might, it was more important for one to appreciate their life, and the people in it.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-136283ca0a6ce7287bf2e0d8b7215863 wp-block-paragraph\">Both of them serve as mentors as well \u2013 Iroh to Prince Zuko, and Picard to Data. These mentees provide an opportunity to impart their knowledge, rather than just demonstrate it.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-a6aa2bf888f99d87e971ac972f06e38c wp-block-paragraph\">So broadly speaking, their wisdom still comes from knowledge and experience, but there\u2019s something we miss in simplifying the definition so much.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-8655dc14c109904023e714fc5a431238 wp-block-paragraph\">In the ancient Mediterranean, we can find similar ideas.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-0d4062c7ff229fe6e29d2ba34cceff3b wp-block-paragraph\">There are a number of different figures in classical mythology considered to be wise. Athena, Apollo, and Chiron the centaur come to mind. But nobody, I think, demonstrates wisdom as well as Teiresias.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-a605ff286a449694fd750087d845d292 wp-block-paragraph\">Having lived a liminal life, Teiresias was considered to have a wide range of knowledge and experience. They straddled the worlds of the living and the dead, the present and the future, the blind and the seeing, mortals and immortals, and of course, women and men.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-daea77aa04a4fa6aa761b0b0df8472e5 wp-block-paragraph\">Today, we\u2019re going to look at the myths of Teiresias. We\u2019ve talked about them before, twice, and at this point I figured it would be disrespectful to kick their myths down the curb yet again. So yeah, it\u2019s Teiresias time.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-9a3e6ef82ecb5bb9830b65958a0ddf7f wp-block-paragraph\">Born one gender, Teiresias was transformed into the other by the gods, and then back again.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-5ab5fa93591229f676231631eb0055f3 wp-block-paragraph\">How? Why? And what does the story mean? That\u2019s what we\u2019re going to explore today.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-471fa81da8c7557e95c56c6ff46eacf6 wp-block-paragraph\">But before we get further into it, I want to take a moment to thank the sponsor of this video&#8230; me. I\u2019m a voice feminization coach. You might have noticed the voice that reads primary sources on this channel is very different from the one you\u2019re hearing right now. That\u2019s actually my old voice. Or at least, it\u2019s something close to it. My mom says that\u2019s not how I sounded, but either way yeah, that\u2019s me. Every voice you\u2019ve heard on this channel, up until this video at least, has been my own. Who knows what\u2019s going to happen in the future.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-ec60a5a949dffca2ff0d7a5f65edfc30 wp-block-paragraph\">I worked to feminize my own voice, and then had a mentor who taught me how to help others train their voices too. So, if you\u2019re a trans woman and you\u2019re not happy with your voice, I\u2019m here to help. You\u2019ll find my email on the channel\u2019s description. Drop me a line and let\u2019s book a session.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-e87f1c1429f6ec6216eff2879c73b534 wp-block-paragraph\">The first session is free, and after that I offer a pretty broad sliding scale.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-305b3d1520e9a923f9b6f6abad0702d0 wp-block-paragraph\">Also, like, comment, subscribe, Patreon, buy my book, etc. I hate this junk, I really do. I didn\u2019t start this channel to be a marketer, but it\u2019s hard to exist in this world, eh? Gotta get those nickels.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-buttons is-content-justification-center is-layout-flex wp-container-core-buttons-is-layout-fe0a7de2 wp-block-buttons-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-button\"><a class=\"wp-block-button__link wp-element-button\" href=\"\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Support The Channel On Patreon<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-508a9fba255978c50f210cdcbc6c03c3 wp-block-paragraph\">Teiresias\u2019 mythology means a lot to trans people, of course, and it might be interesting to explore this subject from a Euhemerist perspective, like we did with Hermaphroditus \u2013 in another video, some day.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-199570c19e880a3399ec0973e8abb5a7 wp-block-paragraph\">Instead, we\u2019re going to explore the story of Teiresias from a mythological perspective. We\u2019ll take a look at what it means in the narrative, how we can piece together the various different Teiresias mythographers into a coherent figure, and from there explore what it can mean to modern trans people.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-5e375b918f903956a9689e5bd8382573 wp-block-paragraph\">Of course, Teiresias isn\u2019t strictly transgender in the traditional sense. Their transformation is a magical one.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-4b2e6208da22a3add8da2d824f009755 wp-block-paragraph\">But trans people love magical gender transformations, and I\u2019m not just talking about that one anime you saw when you were a kid that made you feel a whole bunch of gender feelings that you\u2019d spend the next decade trying to suppress.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-0e35ee298cd0363a6e49a0a8256152bd wp-block-paragraph\">One of the main plots in Jurassic Park revolves around the dinosaurs being able to switch genders in order to reproduce.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-a13516003d035617e45c0423eaa4db73 wp-block-paragraph\">*BUT THAT\u2019S NOT MAGICAL GENDER TRANSFORMATION THAT\u2019S SCIENCE AND SCIENCE FICTION IS DIFFERENT FROM MAGIC NYEH NYEH NYEH*<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-d05266b24e7aca131f197fab2c922527 wp-block-paragraph\">If you really think \u201cwe spliced dinosaur DNA with frog DNA to fill in the gaps and now our dinosaurs can swap genders\u201d is science, I don\u2019t know what to tell you. It\u2019s no different than \u201cif we reverse the polarity of the deflector dish, we can induce the tachyon field to create an inverse warp bubble\u201d.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-03e7231954c5b5b026c00c818667ff3e wp-block-paragraph\">This stuff isn\u2019t science, people.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-55b7df6c1446ae189d6607046f8a5b53 wp-block-paragraph\">The point is, magical gender transformations are a popular trope in fiction. If you\u2019re perverse enough to browse the TV Tropes page on it, you\u2019ll find hundreds of examples.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-312b35aa361466e4c7be24ea260758db wp-block-paragraph\">And that\u2019s not just true for the modern world either.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-832e0e5ce8ee84465c2d70711a7561a4 wp-block-paragraph\">We\u2019ve talked about some examples of this in the ancient world.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-bef38ca9858387fda6f672f2c7084f81 wp-block-paragraph\">There\u2019s Siproites, who was transformed into a woman, somehow, in some way.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-2e6cf667caf4cfcf7b93830d87112ca5 wp-block-paragraph\">Hermaphroditus has a magical transformation too, if you read Ovid\u2019s version.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-b435097e3aec02e001072bc4fe2a43aa wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>RELATED: <a href=\"https:\/\/sbedwards.co\/staging\/9372\/myths-of-hermaphroditus-transgender\/\">The Myths of Hermaphroditus<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-a83dc4d2a3b78fb19520cc21b718ef9f wp-block-paragraph\">Now, we\u2019re exploring Teiresias.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-b8a27c10909ce70fe5eda12bb2622bf2 wp-block-paragraph\">Without further ado&#8230;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<nav class=\"wp-block-stackable-table-of-contents stk-block-table-of-contents stk-block stk-a27f272 stk-block-background\" data-block-id=\"a27f272\"><style>.stk-a27f272 {background-color:var(--theme-palette-color-5, #384b56) !important;}.stk-a27f272:before{background-color:var(--theme-palette-color-5, #384b56) !important;}<\/style><p class=\"stk-table-of-contents__title\">Table of Contents<\/p><ul class=\"stk-table-of-contents__table\"><li><a href=\"#chapter-i-but-i-thought-this-was-a-transgender-history-channel-why-are-you-talking-about-mythology-so-much-on-a-history-channel-hypocrisy-much-trans-history-debunked\">Chapter I: But I Thought This Was a Transgender History Channel! Why Are You Talking About Mythology So Much on a History Channel??? HYPOCRISY MUCH??? TRANS HISTORY DEBUNKED<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"#chapter-ii-the-lives-of-teiresias\">Chapter II: The Lives of Teiresias<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"#chapter-iii-the-first-version-of-the-teiresias-myth\">Chapter III: The First Version of the Teiresias Myth<\/a><ul><li><a href=\"#number-i-phlegons-mirabilia-book-iv\">Number I: Phlegon\u2019s Mirabilia, Book IV<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"#number-ii-hyginus-fabulae\">Number II: Hyginus\u2019 Fabulae<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"#number-iii-lactantius-placidus-in-statii-thebaida\">Number III: Lactantius Placidus\u2019 In Statii Thebaida<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"#number-iv-the-vatican-mythographers-scriptores-rerum-mythicarum-latini-book-ii\">Number IV: The Vatican Mythographers\u2019 Scriptores Rerum Mythicarum Latini, Book II<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"#number-v-pseudo-apollodorus-bibliotheca-book-iii\">Number V: Pseudo-Apollodorus\u2019 Bibliotheca, Book III<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"#number-vi-ovids-metamorphoses-book-iii\">Number VI: Ovid\u2019s Metamorphoses, Book III<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"#number-vii-hesiods-melampodia\">Number VII: Hesiod\u2019s Melampodia<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"#number-viii-fabius-planciades-fulgentius\">Number VIII: Fabius Planciades Fulgentius<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"#number-ix-antoninus-liberalis\">Number IX: Antoninus Liberalis<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"#okay-sophie-enough-already-lets-get-to-the-stories-come-on-what-the\">OKAY SOPHIE ENOUGH ALREADY LET\u2019S GET TO THE STORIES COME ON WHAT THE-<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li><li><a href=\"#chapter-iv-2-teiresias-2-furious\">Chapter IV: 2 Teiresias 2 Furious<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"#chapter-v-the-third-origin-story-of-teiresias\">Chapter V: The Third Origin Story of Teiresias<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"#chapter-vi-teiresias-in-epic-poetry-cycles\">Chapter VI: Teiresias in Epic Poetry Cycles<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"#chapter-vii-other-tales-of-teiresias\">Chapter VII: Other Tales of Teiresias<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"#chapter-viii-what-does-all-this-mean\">Chapter VIII: What Does All This Mean?<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"#ancient-sources-cited\">Ancient Sources Cited:<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"#modern-sources-cited\">Modern Sources Cited:<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/nav>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-align-center\" id=\"chapter-i-but-i-thought-this-was-a-transgender-history-channel-why-are-you-talking-about-mythology-so-much-on-a-history-channel-hypocrisy-much-trans-history-debunked\"><strong>Chapter I: But I Thought This Was a Transgender History Channel! Why Are You Talking About Mythology So Much on a History Channel??? HYPOCRISY MUCH??? TRANS HISTORY DEBUNKED<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-aa6c532f60f0d3b0baadf17dc8609584 wp-block-paragraph\">Before I answer this question, I have a confession to make.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-5d7f98af374928cd783cf40ab4a3bfc1 wp-block-paragraph\">I\u2019m not actually a historian.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-80b3d3a4453ffedd4077cb00b6751492 wp-block-paragraph\">I know, I\u2019ve been out here for the past few years making videos on transgender history, but history isn\u2019t actually my background.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-198f19df5a5486fd63fed19b605ff671 wp-block-paragraph\">I\u2019m a classicist.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-645d7e84b710d6377ccecbbe8f18171c wp-block-paragraph\">When I did my undergrad, I did minor in history. But my main area of focus was in classical studies.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-6c2bcac8e8af36e30f79166e2d097200 wp-block-paragraph\">And no, that has nothing to do with music. It\u2019s the study of classical antiquity \u2013 roughly the 8<sup>th<\/sup> century BCE to the 5<sup>th<\/sup> century CE. Sometimes, classicists will delve into areas prior to the 8<sup>th<\/sup> century BCE, like the bronze age, or pre-Hellenistic Egypt, but that\u2019s not the primary focus.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-c2621f74bb471802de1c7d23843f0cb2 wp-block-paragraph\">BUT THAT\u2019S HISTORY YOU\u2019RE STUDYING HISTORY<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-d773cdf9c443d994a22ef667f0f2e8f1 wp-block-paragraph\">History is a big part of it, of course. But that\u2019s not all there is to it.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-c1cf3bde4ae695a9364736a92f91987f wp-block-paragraph\">For example, remember when we explored the Enaree grave from Bactria? That was an archaeology video.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-bc8d2866360da3381f87402f975da151 wp-block-paragraph\">Or when we looked at Lucian\u2019s Dialogues of the Courtesans? That was language and literary analysis.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-458ce190cfaa0aad79a368e0d39debc8 wp-block-paragraph\">I\u2019ve also drawn extensively on my admittedly limited knowledge of Latin while researching these videos.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-02c9a47a9faa03ac3c4ccf4795582849 wp-block-paragraph\">None of this is history, strictly speaking. You thought you\u2019ve been learning about history this whole time, hah! It was all a ruse. Just like when you were a little baby and your parents tricked you into eating broccoli by putting it in something else. Haha, you\u2019ve been getting a more well-rounded transsexual education. Eat your anthropology, damn it, it\u2019s good for you.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-57b36bf3e65dc92c99f667c43a1e257e wp-block-paragraph\">So, the field of classical studies is about so much more than just history. It\u2019s language, literature, archaeology, mythography, art history, philosophy, anthropology, sociology, political science, geography, and so much more. This isn\u2019t just me being weird about it either \u2013 it\u2019s why classicists are called classicists and not just historians.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-27517fffc5eddf45e63e6829544e8960 wp-block-paragraph\">But maybe history is your primary area of interest, and you think it\u2019s boring to explore mythology. That\u2019s fair. But have you seen the video on Hermaphroditus? We viewed it through the lens of euhemerism \u2013 an approach that assumes myths have a grain of truth to them, and become more outlandish the more they get passed around. We looked at how the myth of Hermaphroditus could possibly have reflected reality, and we actually did find some evidence of the existence of intersex people in classical antiquity.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-1acca7bb6be9ca303ea8a5f4b1beb58a wp-block-paragraph\">Because of course, mythological stories don\u2019t exist in a vacuum. They\u2019re products of the societies in which they were created. So when we explore these stories, we end up gaining a better understanding of the people who wrote them. Their values, their biases, their ideas. This can help us better understand how they might have seen things like gender, gender roles, and how it might have looked to transgress them.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-855e1d706fd8ebae088d932ac5696e91 wp-block-paragraph\">But there\u2019s more to it than that.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-64ddec3cbb583cf512b258ac7d385de0 wp-block-paragraph\">Today, we consider mythology and history to be two different fields. But the ancients didn\u2019t necessarily see it that way.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-c4ce58289b9f58fbd15a94fe786697e1 wp-block-paragraph\">The Roman historian Titus Livius, or just Livy, wrote during the age of Augustus. His work, called <em>Ab Urbe Condita<\/em>, from the founding of the city, chronicles the rise of the Roman state, from a meaningless Podunk town to an empire spanning the Mediterranean. He wrote 142 volumes of it, and today only 35 of them survive \u2013 books 1 to 10, and 21 to 45, as well as some fragments of others.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-24a8f2b0487e628e7eb668e475f6f6cc wp-block-paragraph\">Livy begins book 1 by talking about how overwhelmed he feels by the enormous task before him. Then, he drops this banger, quote:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-3-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-bc38636c45e019e2f67f8c3bd9fcf8a9 wp-block-paragraph\">Events before Rome was born or thought of have come to us in old tales with more of the charm of poetry than of a sound historical record, and such traditions I propose neither to affirm nor refute. There is no reason, I feel, to object when antiquity draws no hard line between the human and the supernatural: it adds dignity to the past, and, if any nation deserves the privilege of claiming a divine ancestry, that nation is our own; and so great is the glory won by the Roman people in their wars that, when they declare that Mars himself was their first parent and father of the man who founded their city, all the nations of the world might well allow the claim as readily as they accept Rome\u2019s imperial dominion.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-3b70a8710de10836fbe3f025e5badb6c wp-block-paragraph\">&#8211; <em>Titus Livius, Ab Urbe Condita I.I<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-2fb7c8f9995118ce85dca22d2636c87e wp-block-paragraph\">The man who founded their city, mythologically speaking, is Romulus. But before he talks about that, Livy gets into the wanderings of the Trojan hero Aeneas, the son of Venus, after the destruction of Troy.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-7604c9d308b92f8fb064663445db4e52 wp-block-paragraph\">Vergil\u2019s Aeneid provides a much more detailed account of it, but the tl;dr is that the Greeks destroyed Troy during the Trojan War, but the hero Aeneas escaped with a bunch of survivors, built a fleet of ships, sailed around the Mediterranean looking for a place to call home, and ended up in Latium. There, they fought some battles, united with the local Latins, and established the city of Lavinium. Aeneas\u2019 son Ascanius left, and founded Alba Longa.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-a0901d85f4fc98cd33f05a058796c11f wp-block-paragraph\">I want to stress that NONE of this is historical fact. It\u2019s pure mythology. But it is written in a history book \u2013 the very first line of this text says, quote:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-3-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-c6a2035004d11f5210e351d6139a11a0 wp-block-paragraph\">The task of writing a history of our nation from Rome\u2019s earliest days fills me, I confess, with some misgiving<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-7cd3e489242217971fc617a127b54499 wp-block-paragraph\">&#8211; <em>Titus Livius, Ab Urbe Condita, I.I<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-743683622b4e20ccdeb640e2a22b60df wp-block-paragraph\">The very first sentence of this text refers to itself as a history of Rome.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-866f4a26a4359097a2854638440f0d0a wp-block-paragraph\">Anyway, he continues, telling us about a long line of begetting, very biblical, very mindful, before getting to Rhea Silvia. She\u2019s the daughter of Numitor, who is one of the descendants of Aeneas and the rightful king of Alba Longa, who was overthrown. All of Rhea Silvia\u2019s brothers were killed, and she was forced to become a Vestal Virgin, sort of like a nun, so she\u2019d never have any children herself to challenge the usurper (Livy 1.3-5).&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-26fe01590786c718ca122fe8668dbdf0 wp-block-paragraph\">But Mars showed up and impregnated her with twin boys, which is obviously not something that should happen to sworn virgins, so when the babies were born the usurper king threw them into the Tiber River and imprisoned Rhea Silvia.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-eb16f3ecabf57603798ccb827ac2b6b2 wp-block-paragraph\">The boys floated along the river, and found a she-wolf who provided them with milk and cared for them until a farmer found them, and raised them as his own.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-b3d609a853187a39b99c5fdf174a34d1 wp-block-paragraph\">I\u2019d like to take this opportunity once more to draw your attention to the fact that this is written in a history book. I offer now as the opportunity for you to tell me mythology isn\u2019t history.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-9b3f76733df8a3c74fc929416d242435 wp-block-paragraph\">From there, they did a bunch of stuff, and eventually founded the city of Rome.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-57bfc1e9f7c53cb4ed8a545c203a2b4e wp-block-paragraph\">While Romulus was building the city\u2019s walls, Remus pointed out that they were too short. Anybody could just jump over them. So in response, Romulus pulls out his sword and murders his brother, and says that\u2019s what will happen to anybody who tries it. Kind of an overreaction, but hey, who among us hasn\u2019t wanted to murder a family member over something petty?&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-65775a7b5fb892531c18ef23b42071c6 wp-block-paragraph\">Haven\u2019t you ever wanted to grab your steak knife and run your racist uncle through at Christmas dinner?&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-e3fc9b01aef60694f61e7b5a2cdaa4cb wp-block-paragraph\">Anyway, that\u2019s why it\u2019s called Rome, and not Reme. Credit for that joke goes to Dr. Martin Beckmann, who taught Roman numismatics during my undergrad. Funny guy.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-62538218a95fdfaeee1ee6f765c6da2d wp-block-paragraph\">Anyway, it all seems absurd, doesn\u2019t it? But this is something that happens in the modern world as well.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-99ef66cbfdd2f01ee08b016f5e2cdb1c wp-block-paragraph\">Think of the founding myths around your own country. Maybe they\u2019re not as extravagant as the ones the Romans had, but then again the legend of King Arthur has some pretty wild stuff in it too.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-9b829b3208b9ec5839cdd09e5d5bdf4f wp-block-paragraph\">National mythologies are a big part of nationalism, and social conflict emerges when the contradictions between reality and that national mythology become more obvious. Sometimes those national myths are much more fantastical, like the one with Rome\u2019s founders. But sometimes they\u2019re more subtle.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-c3643da7867dfdcd6f93605930e1bac0 wp-block-paragraph\">Here in Canada, one of our national myths is that we\u2019re nice, polite, progressive people. America\u2019s cooler brother, who\u2019ll let you smoke pot with him in the back of his van while you listen to Rush and The Guess Who. We\u2019re the kinder, gentler ones.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-849c2a1ff50a18f6f9ac3a72b4f9ec6e wp-block-paragraph\">And like a lot of national mythologies, there is <em>some<\/em> truth to it. But if you ask the First Nations peoples of this land, they might disagree.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-cd037970dbbec86be6571fc7db27cd06 wp-block-paragraph\">See, we had a system called the Indian Residential Schools. If you\u2019re familiar with this topic, you probably know where I\u2019m going with this. But if you\u2019re not, warning that we\u2019re about to discuss some nasty stuff.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-67f60633ea8b52613950fbd33984f3be wp-block-paragraph\">The Indian Residential Schools were a program of systematic abuse and cultural genocide perpetrated against the First Nations peoples of Canada. First Nations children were taken from their families and forced to attend these schools, where they were systematically abused, stripped of their culture, and forced to assimilate into the dominant settler colonial culture. They were forbidden from speaking their languages \u2013 they had to speak either English or French \u2013 had to convert to Christianity, had their heads shaved, had no contact with their families of origin, were segregated based on sex, had to endure racist insults and forced labour in the cold, and a whole lot more that&#8217;s far more terrible than what we already talked about (Restoule, 4). Many children didn\u2019t survive. This abuse was well known, and so were the deaths, but a lot of these children just never came home, so their families never knew what happened. Just awful.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-399f7222d1a84484f7f3be82bc2d2515 wp-block-paragraph\">It&#8217;s estimated that around 150,000 Indigenous children were kidnapped and sent to these facilities \u2013 I don\u2019t even really want to call them schools, that makes them sound a lot less terrible than they were. The first one opened in 1831 &#8211; Canada wasn&#8217;t even a country then. And lest you think this is ancient history, so to speak, the last residential school closed in 1996 (Restoule, 2-4, University of Manitoba).&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-50bc6b417e91968d78824a79aa84d9c8 wp-block-paragraph\">Like, Tom Holland was born that year. The Nintendo 64 came out that year. Scream came out that year. Prodigy released Firestarter that year. There are people younger than I am who would have been taken there. It wasn\u2019t that long ago.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-ac53452989c050f054686cb915fad09d wp-block-paragraph\">If you&#8217;re not Canadian you might not recognize how much of A Thing this is. It&#8217;s shaped a significant part of our national conversation throughout the 21st century, and probably earlier too though I&#8217;m not old enough to remember that.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-28f590a6fe9c966fd50b852abf948791 wp-block-paragraph\">So, again if you\u2019re Canadian you\u2019ll already get this, but if you\u2019re not, I want to paint a picture for you. It was early 2021, the height of COVID, so lockdowns were still in effect, and the vaccines for it hadn\u2019t yet been released. I\u2019m sure wherever you\u2019re from, you felt the same fear, uncertainty, and anxiety we did here.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-b8ffb5f2733d0a6b6dc59a91299cfb19 wp-block-paragraph\">Lots of us worked from home, but those of us who couldn\u2019t, and who weren\u2019t essential workers, were paid by the government to do so, through a program called CERB \u2013 the Canadian Emergency Response Benefit. A deeply imperfect solution, to be sure, but I have no doubt it saved many lives. We looked south of the border, and all collectively breathed a sigh of relief that we\u2019re at least better than the Americans. That\u2019s one of the biggest elements of Canadian nationalism, and it\u2019s really the only thing we can all agree on \u2013 we\u2019re not Americans, and we\u2019re better off for it.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-4bd9c031b7ff5d91a52d76ba99e35a5e wp-block-paragraph\">In the wake of the murder of George Floyd by the police and the massive outpouring of opposition, many of us showed support, but we remained in that smug \u201cat least we\u2019re better than that\u201d attitude. We\u2019re the good guys, and our international reputation proves it.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-c8c82106c832db93fdf1116027bc3401 wp-block-paragraph\">But almost exactly a year later &#8211; May of 2021 \u2013 an archaeological team led by the Tk&#8217;eml\u00faps te Secw\u00e9pemc First Nation used ground-penetrating radar and discovered the remains of 215 children buried in unmarked graves, at a Residential School near Kamloops, British Columbia (Dickson &amp; Watson). And again, if you&#8217;re not Canadian you might not realize what a deeply troubling moment this was.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-080de79fde45bd5ea7ecddfcde7ec2ef wp-block-paragraph\">This shattered our national narrative. We\u2019re not the True North Strong and Free, like our national myth tells us. We\u2019re a settler colonial project, and we need to reckon with the atrocities we\u2019ve committed, and continue to commit, against the indigenous peoples of this land.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-bc6517c55d023c0cac2332081c1fd9db wp-block-paragraph\">I look at Canada\u2019s national mythology not as a thing we are, but as a thing we should aspire to be. Kind, polite, and caring people who work to take care of each other and make the world a better place. Sort of like the idea of being an ally \u2013 to whatever marginalized group you\u2019re thinking of, the specifics don\u2019t matter. It\u2019s not really something you can proclaim yourself to be. It\u2019s something you can commit to being, sure, but you prove yourself to be an ally through your actions.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-c6036124c991b97f28cea8aa71496bbf wp-block-paragraph\">I also don\u2019t think you can really understand Canada unless you understand our national mythology, how it\u2019s shaped the evolution of our culture, and how we\u2019ve failed to live up to it.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-f17276501ae732ecb7fb39db09a6ca7d wp-block-paragraph\">In a sane world guided by wisdom, Canada would have taken the discovery of the residential school mass graves as a realization we hadn\u2019t always lived up to our ideals, and that many of the original peoples who lived on this land before the rest of us got here suffered, and continue to suffer today, because of that legacy. We\u2019d use it as an opportunity to reflect on who we are, who we want to be, and how we can bridge the gap between those two going forward.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-72add5024a562259c117cb168b419e1f wp-block-paragraph\">And to be fair, some of us did. Or at least, we\u2019re trying to.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-e1d30ef5428ffe6dae81daa9d9fd25a1 wp-block-paragraph\">But rather than accept the truth, some of us reject it altogether. They just can\u2019t accept that we\u2019ve been, and in many ways continue to be, the baddies, no matter how much evidence shows up. They just can\u2019t let go of our cultural mythology.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-6129c3389bbf298b82a095e5ed0ee072 wp-block-paragraph\">Like this jackass here. This is from the Canadian right wing think tank The Fraser Institute. For my American viewers, to put it in perspective, they\u2019re roughly comparable to The Cato Institute.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/lh7-rt.googleusercontent.com\/docsz\/AD_4nXfEX-9XXkm5eq5OX-CjvjZlEBV3YApL3mNi29DXCXftR4iYkOYAE_l9bCkQh6rUanDpY1OberlnbaQT1aFZJe65_Avmme3v0-uZpxLCMxpCN22ISIR94QXCnCt-yhz_laf_1dYDluh4IFxLpFr-1q4?key=SObneA2WpPuPxNv2Se-DbQ\" alt=\"\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-4f49a31c197f6d214e8e9b1ed93c08db wp-block-paragraph\">Look at that smug prick. I bet he\u2019s got all sorts of terrible ideas in his head. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-85d199eb6b850963d4bf574158b12918 wp-block-paragraph\">Anyway, my point is in many ways, history and mythology have always been interconnected. That was true in the ancient world, and it\u2019s true today. The mythology of ancient Greece and Rome is more obviously mythology than what we have today, but it\u2019s mythology nonetheless.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-f8100c97ef6f3f4e3b7c762d12616977 wp-block-paragraph\">And if we\u2019re going to get a nuanced understanding of civilization in the classical Mediterranean, we really can\u2019t throw mythology away.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-3f96944ec44b55346a01a6dd56101776 wp-block-paragraph\">So, mythology is a part of the subject matter of this channel, and that\u2019s not gonna change any time soon.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-align-center\" id=\"chapter-ii-the-lives-of-teiresias\"><strong>Chapter II: The Lives of Teiresias<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-6fd94a5a6ad55711bd0096a946bf6e89 wp-block-paragraph\">From a mythology perspective, so far we\u2019ve looked at Hermaphroditus, who has only a couple of surviving sources, and Siproites, who has only a single line reference in an obscure poem. That made it pretty straightforward, from a research perspective. But Teiresias might be the most prolific figure in all of classical mythology.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-010a7ef432a700376b1d10b823af66bf wp-block-paragraph\">They show up in A LOT of different texts. Mythology, poetry, tragedy, comedy, satire, and even history \u2013 you\u2019ll find Teiresias in all of them.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-e94c96ae521592586f59443d38447ef1 wp-block-paragraph\">Name an ancient writer you know about \u2013 Homer, Ovid, Herodotus, Lucian, Sophocles, Euripides, Pindar, Pausanias, Plato, Aristotle \u2013 even if you\u2019re not a classicist like me, I\u2019m sure you recognize at least a couple of those names. They\u2019re mentioned in each of these, and plenty more too.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-9715d5eb667f9567334a845926b87a33 wp-block-paragraph\">That makes analysis of this myth a lot more complex. But fortunately, I\u2019m not the first person to write about Tiresias.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-eb4cd731a86a90ba7b60ad1da45a673f wp-block-paragraph\">Scholar Luc Brisson, in his 1976 work Le Mythe de Tiresias, mentions eighteen significant examples of mythological origin stories written around Tiresias \u2013 just origin stories. He groups them into three broad, overarching categories.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-05a08715e69f56a70079ce230aae2245 wp-block-paragraph\">However, Brisson argues that these three themes don\u2019t stand on their own, but are a harmonized, overarching tale of a complex, liminal character (1).&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-5214d7dfd52ce44099bbd14a565c760f wp-block-paragraph\">We\u2019ll be leaning on Brisson\u2019s work quite a bit for the initial myths of Teiresias, partially because it\u2019s one of the most complete sources I\u2019ve found on the topic, and partially because I\u2019m not <em>that<\/em> good at reading French so it\u2019s taking me a lot of work to get through it, and I don\u2019t want to spend several months on this topic.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-9ab04d7db16391407b4117f0194bd1cc wp-block-paragraph\">Anyway, we\u2019ll explore these three overarching mythological themes, and what they tell us about Tiresias\u2019 origins. From there, we\u2019ll explore some of the later stories of Teiresias, and then we\u2019ll take a look at what Tiresias can help us understand as modern trans people looking back.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-8720250e8d3d3158cda753f7b151ede4 wp-block-paragraph\">AND AWAAAAAYYYYY WE GO!&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-align-center\" id=\"chapter-iii-the-first-version-of-the-teiresias-myth\"><strong>Chapter III: The First Version of the Teiresias Myth<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-f39e86c3a0546627b03b685094e19030 wp-block-paragraph\">This first story has the most sources for it, so we\u2019ll start here. But first, let\u2019s take a look at some of the sources we have on the first origin story of Teiresias.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-b3342a15064ae1204b8f7964fd3d5f6c wp-block-paragraph\">I\u2019ll DO MY BEST TO BE BRIEF BUT YOU KNOW HOW I AM<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-align-center\" id=\"number-i-phlegons-mirabilia-book-iv\"><strong>Number I: Phlegon\u2019s Mirabilia, Book IV<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-fd9b569951d0abbff48bbeff00963fc0 wp-block-paragraph\">We don&#8217;t know a whole lot about this writer. You&#8217;re going to get tired of hearing me say that pretty soon, and I&#8217;m going to get tired of saying it, so that&#8217;s why I recorded it on my yak bak.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-70a4e60a3a6a8a908601d5eb7a4afbcc wp-block-paragraph\">He was originally from the city of Tralles, in Anatolia, and was a libertus \u2013 a freed slave &#8211; who worked for the emperor Hadrian. Hadrian ruled from 117-138 CE, so Phlegon lived around then.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-18f0cd56a296d10c24ce6a9b4aa1150b wp-block-paragraph\">He wrote a bunch of different works, but most of it has only survived in fragments. His Mirabilia is the most complete work we have, but it&#8217;s also incomplete. It\u2019s sort of a compilation of oddities, both human and otherwise, that he found throughout ancient literature (Doroszewska, 15-17).&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-5b1bb962968572df6232e8d8cd221e81 wp-block-paragraph\">What sorts of oddities, you ask?&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-98a4017e7985a7a207273b2b4b4f09b1 wp-block-paragraph\">Centaurs, giants, the walking dead, g-g-g-ghooosts, and of course, a bunch of stories of mythological transformations, including Teiresias.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-align-center\" id=\"number-ii-hyginus-fabulae\"><strong>Number II: Hyginus\u2019 Fabulae<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-858d7cab125ab20a67c9df9b6088e969 wp-block-paragraph\">Gaius Julius Hyginus lived in the 1st century CE in Roman ruled Spain. There are two texts attributed to him &#8211; the Astronomica and the Fabulae. It&#8217;s the latter we care about today.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-870f4c9feb70b4f0d240976a420d9cc3 wp-block-paragraph\">Hyginus seems to have been a fairly well regarded scholar, but the works attributed to him are of pretty poor quality. They&#8217;re full of errors and the writing style is blunt and lifeless.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-d89e7532841e371e5643bc101799ece4 wp-block-paragraph\">For example, take a look at this text, on the story of Themisto.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-3-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-27b6e72a717a5af5dd460e86bfdcddce wp-block-paragraph\">THEMISTO: Athamas, son of Aeolus, had by his wife Nebula a son Phrixus and a daughter Helle, and by Themisto, daughter of Hypseus, two sons, Sphincius and Orchomenus, and by Ino, daughter of Cadmus, two sons, Learchus and Melicertes. Themisto, robbed of her marriage by Ino, wished to kill Ino&#8217;s children. She hid, therefore, in the palace, and when an opportunity presented itself, thinking she was killing the sons of her rival, unwittingly killed her own, deceived by the nurse who had put the wrong garments on them. When Themisto discovered this, she killed herself.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-daa6c99fd0b60766ccffff66a03361cd wp-block-paragraph\">&#8211; Gaius Julius Hyginus, Fabulae I<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-2282c8c54e3085ea050d0eb175ce7964 wp-block-paragraph\">Yeesh, that\u2019s even more lifeless than Antoninus Liberalis. We get a list of people who were begotten, then an angry mother who killed her own kid, then herself. There\u2019s gotta be more to this story, right?&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-876f0a80154b193004ca14c02ea95388 wp-block-paragraph\">Yes, Euripides wrote a play called Ino, which seems to have told this story, and would have done so a lot better than Hyginus did here, I\u2019m sure. But unfortunately, we\u2019ve only got a few fragments of it.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-0e4aef38fb733f1a04696cbdab9e35b5 wp-block-paragraph\">Stuff like this, as bland as it is, is an important source for the preservation of some lesser known myths. Of course, Teiresias is not a lesser known myth, but y\u2019know.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-align-center\" id=\"number-iii-lactantius-placidus-in-statii-thebaida\"><strong>Number III: Lactantius Placidus\u2019 In Statii Thebaida<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-ef3d69db0beeea19aecc9aa5050c2751 wp-block-paragraph\">*sigh*<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-1a223b8ab6f492b0d0f3eb7e785b3725 wp-block-paragraph\">(press yak bak button)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-2ac7a54fdf4f813cc0262fc2b5889e78 wp-block-paragraph\">Lactantius Placidus is the name given to the writer of a critical analysis of Statius\u2019 Thebaid.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-816ffdd0046b56a64e83be69cc3a72cb wp-block-paragraph\">It probably comes from around the fifth century CE (Miller, 1).&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-14b9fd6cad131e1c744d0d2c47e4952d wp-block-paragraph\">Oh yeah, and he talks about Teiresias.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-d833d5ffe5b245845ce8bf9871368b48 wp-block-paragraph\">Yup, that\u2019s about it for this one.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-align-center\" id=\"number-iv-the-vatican-mythographers-scriptores-rerum-mythicarum-latini-book-ii\"><strong>Number IV: The Vatican Mythographers\u2019 Scriptores Rerum Mythicarum Latini, Book II<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-d80e9bd4a9550973397cb233a6619bc6 wp-block-paragraph\">Okay first off, this one isn\u2019t even a classical text, it\u2019s medieval.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-a7cceb57bfc874dac1f060de10f27743 wp-block-paragraph\">What we collectively call The Vatican Mythographers is the work of three different unnamed people. The names of two of them are unknown, and the third is thought to be Alberic of London, who lived in London and whose name was Alberic. Other than that&#8230;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-c1e1afcbcd49e414971b25e1861592b7 wp-block-paragraph\">*press yak bak button*<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-d1d0a24e74f5cbca570d0d5a922e03df wp-block-paragraph\">Like Hyginus, this one\u2019s kind of a summary of various myths. I don&#8217;t want to just write these guys off like that, though. In the medieval era, there were two major obstacles to the preservation of classical mythology &#8211; widespread illiteracy, and the church&#8217;s hostility to anything pagan. So, yes, they kind of Christianized these stories, but by doing so they were able to help keep them alive in the popular culture of the time (Pepin, 1-4).&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-43ba5af522ff3adec2ec110c3f622d79 wp-block-paragraph\">That includes, of course, Teiresias.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-c949e2269247a10d70c16c1967d4f5d0 wp-block-paragraph\">There are three different fragments of the Vatican Mythographers we\u2019ll be using.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-align-center\" id=\"number-v-pseudo-apollodorus-bibliotheca-book-iii\"><strong>Number V: Pseudo-Apollodorus\u2019 Bibliotheca, Book III<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-03de57cfbc01bd4b0bf8f0bd7c74a61d wp-block-paragraph\">This used to be attributed to Apollorodus, a 2<sup>nd<\/sup> century BCE Alexandrian writer, but that\u2019s probably not true. We now think it was written some time in the 2<sup>nd<\/sup> century CE.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-09bcecf151a0fc6903cafbe8fedab5d8 wp-block-paragraph\">It, too, is a compilation of mythology. It\u2019s sort of a \u201cgreatest hits\u201d of Athenian tragedy, which of course includes Teiresias.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-align-center\" id=\"number-vi-ovids-metamorphoses-book-iii\"><strong>Number VI: Ovid\u2019s Metamorphoses, Book III<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-28c864ed4bc02b2c943c269ba860eabc wp-block-paragraph\">Ovid writing transgender mythology, biggest surprise in the world, I know.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-7dff9b3a6c499f755cc006d456468cae wp-block-paragraph\">Was Ovid a chaser?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-d1b27b1321465a4fe7d84c46e06bb066 wp-block-paragraph\">If you\u2019re new to the channel, we talk about Ovid all the time. Lived in Rome during the age of Augustus, wrote sad boy love poetry and the Metamorphoses, which is full of mythological transformation stories. There\u2019s a pretty full biography of him in the main video on the Enarees if you\u2019d like to know more.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>RELATED:<\/strong>  <a href=\"https:\/\/sbedwards.co\/staging\/9372\/the-enarei-scythian-transgender-priestesses-remastered\/\">The Enarees: Scythian Transgender Priestesses<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>RELATED: <\/strong><a href=\"https:\/\/sbedwards.co\/staging\/9372\/exploring-the-remains-of-an-enaree-priestess\/\">Exploring the Remains of an Enaree Priestess<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-align-center\" id=\"number-vii-hesiods-melampodia\"><strong>Number VII: Hesiod\u2019s Melampodia<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-38e0d92cc3d71f23ea80c3bd07c26ce6 wp-block-paragraph\">Hesiod is old.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-a2360a69836e1103a923b0c204d9a5d2 wp-block-paragraph\">Like, really old.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-f723e3f3784fe778d311e089bfd11ac9 wp-block-paragraph\">*How old was he, Sophie?*<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-1988a435cdd2546cc7a194277ccd1b89 wp-block-paragraph\">Hesiod\u2019s SO old, he lives in a museum! Badum bum<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-6099609226100e07edf58dcf91d1a4b4 wp-block-paragraph\">Hesiod is SO old, when he was born, they hadn\u2019t even invented history yet! OooOOOOOOHHHHHHHH<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-304bb3be59caeedd5c8c11a2f6768e15 wp-block-paragraph\">Hesiod is SO old, he\u2019s running for United States congress! DAAAAAAAAAAAAAAMN<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-bdb5092ee83d37405b6d35824c5a5c74 wp-block-paragraph\">When it comes to the most influential mythological writers in the ancient Mediterranean, it\u2019s a tossup between Homer and Hesiod. Both of them wrote around the same time, and are the oldest sources for a lot of the most popular myths.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-0417cec83145bc1849168de451318dd1 wp-block-paragraph\">The Melampodia might not have been written by Hesiod, but was attributed to him, so we call it a Hesiodic poem. If you\u2019re familiar with the Homeric hymns, it\u2019s a similar idea.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-cf3601571e2c22286130e2400e615c41 wp-block-paragraph\">It survives only in fragments, including a tiny bit about Teiresias.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-8bea50904140b310947939bc3b842aa3 wp-block-paragraph\">There are a couple other Hesiodic fragments we\u2019ll be using as well.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-align-center\" id=\"number-viii-fabius-planciades-fulgentius\"><strong>Number VIII: Fabius Planciades Fulgentius<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-eb5941acf968e19d45db6d3c6dd63bec wp-block-paragraph\">Has there ever been a name in history begging to be read in the Plinkett voice more than that one?&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-e662ecf3e499e1a9b5ab15d0505ec7f9 wp-block-paragraph\">Fabius Planciades Fulgentius, or just Fulgentius, lived in North Africa in the late 5th or early 6th century CE. Recall that the Roman Empire in the West fell in the late 5th century &#8211; either 476 or 480 CE, depending on who you ask. So, Fulgentius lived around the same time. He was a mythographer of minor importance, but he was popular during the early Renaissance, which is mostly why we know about him (Whitbread).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-align-center\" id=\"number-ix-antoninus-liberalis\"><strong>Number IX: Antoninus Liberalis<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-fce71c9a0962036bfe470e3d1e588d48 wp-block-paragraph\">If you watched the video on Siproites, you might recognize this name. It\u2019s the only source we have on Siproites \u2013 only a single line.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-4e7c4db1b1da68569f6bf7320326c09e wp-block-paragraph\">But if you didn\u2019t, here\u2019s a crash course.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-dd3d82bfd1c1b6ae64eb5e8290e859ee wp-block-paragraph\">We don&#8217;t know much about Antoninus Liberalis. He wrote in Greek, but he had a Latin name, he probably lived after the reign of Antoninus Pius &#8211; the 2nd century CE, and he was clearly literate. Based on his name, we assume he was a former slave who earned his freedom, but that&#8217;s about all we know (Celoria, 2-4).&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-29a07589d7ce5029bc4cd7e9285b4ae3 wp-block-paragraph\">His work is called the Metamorphoses, which is not the same as Ovid\u2019s Metamorphoses, or Apuleius\u2019 Metamorphoses, or Kafka\u2019s Metamorphosis, or Applegate\u2019s Animorphs, or Saban\u2019s Mighty Morphin Power Rangers. It\u2019s mostly a summary of another lost work, which is also called Metamorphoses, it\u2019s a whole thing.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-8b44210d527d6409dbcc78521bad0007 wp-block-paragraph\">Look at the name \u2013 Metamorphoses \u2013 it\u2019s clearly a collection of transformation stories, just like Ovid\u2019s work.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-c4786d6fdf62a7ad2e8aec5f966dae36 wp-block-paragraph\">So naturally, we find Teiresias in there too. In fact, the little bit we have about Teiresias from Antoninus Liberalis is in the very same paragraph as the bit about Siproites, just two sentences later. Go figure.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-align-center\" id=\"okay-sophie-enough-already-lets-get-to-the-stories-come-on-what-the\"><strong>OKAY SOPHIE ENOUGH ALREADY LET\u2019S GET TO THE STORIES COME ON WHAT THE-<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-0b5c735cdad2ef1e580a0ea104eb2ead wp-block-paragraph\">The above sources all cover the first story, but each of them has different details involved.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-f737dfaba01f6f11f15f820057a5a385 wp-block-paragraph\">I\u2019ll do my best to more or less summarize what we have, and to coalesce them into a single story, but we\u2019ll have to point out the differences as they come up. It\u2019s not ideal, but the other option is to tell the same story over and over with each variant, which seems a lot more boring.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-4a56ca5549593909c9ca760885729d18 wp-block-paragraph\">To make sense of this, I actually did something really embarrassing. I\u2019m a little nervous to admit this, it\u2019s pretty awful. I hope you don\u2019t think less of me after this.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-20f1bcae856163db3ece93474e2dab4a wp-block-paragraph\">I guess I should just admit it&#8230;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-12f17d95a2c51c1c6240cfddfc974747 wp-block-paragraph\">*big sigh*&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-fc4b957e5056eacf121b568755430805 wp-block-paragraph\">I made a spreadsheet.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-e37326019d1275ed0f32ba0d8471e383 wp-block-paragraph\">*boo*<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-e447886176ea19761941bcc35833dd82 wp-block-paragraph\">I know, I know. I felt like an accountant. It wasn\u2019t a good time. I\u2019ve got a headache.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-e6875973327d57610476720e11a973c6 wp-block-paragraph\">Anyway, look at this thing. Ah, it sucked to put this together.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-f1dee95846ad1cee6abab28cb4b4bba7 wp-block-paragraph\">But as we can see here, there are a lot of inconsistencies in this story. Some of them even leave parts of it out. Hesiod doesn&#8217;t mention the bit with the snakes at all, and Antoninus Liberalis doesn&#8217;t mention the argument between Zeus and Hera, which is why those ones are grayed out.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-7790dd3d35795365f57f397ad9745349 wp-block-paragraph\">But here\u2019s the story, as best as we can pull from this.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-83e030425ce0b228c377462e4dd6f13b wp-block-paragraph\">Teiresias was the son of Everes, or Periere, or maybe some other guy. He was from Thebes, or maybe some other place.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-2cedb72f1842dec0fe01df61e9626221 wp-block-paragraph\">One day, he was out for a walk, or grazing his sheep, or maybe doing something else, on Mount Cyllene, or Mount Cithaeron, or in a forest, or maybe somewhere else.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-c9c0fc2254ac4f6c6a1ad1328c11f875 wp-block-paragraph\">As he did, he found some snakes doing it. He hit one or both of them with a stick, or stomped on one or both of them, or killed one or both of them, or otherwise injured one or both of them, and as a result he turned into a lady.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-7dbf93dee4f37ea806801766d38a6af9 wp-block-paragraph\">From there, she went on to live her life, having sex with a man at least once, for seven years, or eight years, or maybe some other length of time.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-aaf2cbbf477f80c0f343972c9dcd6409 wp-block-paragraph\">Later, she found the same snakes in the same place, or the same snakes in an unspecified place, or different snakes in the same place, or different snakes in an unspecified place, or she didn&#8217;t find any snakes at all, because Apollo or an Oracle told her where to go, or because she had a hunch, or maybe for some other reason.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-ac251db0ac277a3f5aed064ff479bb87 wp-block-paragraph\">She hit the snakes in the same way, or she hit or killed the snake she didn&#8217;t hit before, or she left them alone, or there were no snakes at all and this part didn&#8217;t happen, but regardless she turned back into a man.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-461081e5e96717cf306ba4f2f5a90484 wp-block-paragraph\">Later, Zeus and Hera were having an argument that was playful, or heated &#8211; seems like those boomer WIFE BAD jokes have also always existed &#8211; this time they were arguing about who enjoys sex more. Zeus was convinced that women enjoy it more, and Hera believed the opposite. So they figured, why not ask someone who&#8217;s done both?&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-6fd82457bf3b5397d81b5a93c1950e70 wp-block-paragraph\">Teiresias told them if there are 10 parts of pleasure, women get 9, and men get 1. Or he said if there are twelve parts of pleasure, women get 9, and men get 3. Or he said if there are 19 parts of pleasure, women get 10 and men get 9. Or he said women enjoy it three times as much as men. Or he said women enjoy it more, but he didn&#8217;t specify how much.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-1a5c87951cfa26fa0bce26541f7a8a78 wp-block-paragraph\">Whatever it is he said, Hera wasn&#8217;t happy about it. She blinded him and cut off his hands, or maybe just blinded him, or otherwise injured him. Zeus felt bad about it, but he couldn&#8217;t reverse what Hera did, so he gave Teiresias the gift of divination, and maybe also gave him a life spanning 7 generations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-3beabadd6c889defb592585d1c41e464 wp-block-paragraph\">Yeesh.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-972a09c6e61eb4dd9aa9cd4d910b2355 wp-block-paragraph\">What are the through lines there?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-6b7336171fef917ade8957d050e7b944 wp-block-paragraph\">Teiresias was a man, who was turned into a woman, then turned back to a man.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-14b8aca9b60aa79a451cd71e2cb5b24d wp-block-paragraph\">Zeus and Hera argued over who likes sex more. Teiresias confirms women like it more, so Hera blinds him, and Zeus gives him the gift of divination.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-c5d284282922923eb06a5c78b5b17662 wp-block-paragraph\">The snakes don\u2019t always show up, the location is often different, and it\u2019s only mentioned once explicitly that he got busy with a man after transforming. But the fact that he was consulted in Zeus and Hera\u2019s argument makes it obvious he did.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-f54a4166dd20e81e6b1f11248a652425 wp-block-paragraph\">I kind of love this story, because it really shows you just how terrible the pagan gods were.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-6ee54f769bcf461c40d56b3264f5c443 wp-block-paragraph\">Like, take a moment to imagine what that must have been like for Teiresias. Imagine God himself comes to you \u2013 whatever god you\u2019re picturing, that\u2019s fine, the specifics don\u2019t matter too much here. It\u2019s inarguably God, and you know it. God asks you a question \u2013 he\u2019s having a disagreement with another god, and wants your opinion. So you answer as honestly as you can, and the other god gets so mad at your answer she gouges out your eyes.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-4ff7b15d5dc89cd3717a5750b6d21d69 wp-block-paragraph\">Talk about shooting the messenger. By the way, has anyone heard from Hermes lately? Hope he\u2019s okay.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-269576fff771ee4d5c6333fd75d8d4ea wp-block-paragraph\">The world has always been a dangerous and uncertain place, but it was much moreso in the ancient past than today. Regardless of how much you prayed, how many sacrifices you made, how faithful you were to your gods, you might still suffer.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-4c1e634b8458895edf5a6cc13a467dd4 wp-block-paragraph\">Of course that\u2019s true of Abrahamic religions as well, but if you\u2019re a follower of one of those religions, you can reassure yourself by saying it\u2019s all part of God\u2019s plan.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-064959c6887a786e2410d5188c424010 wp-block-paragraph\">For the Romans, and especially for the Greeks, sometimes you suffer because the gods are petty, juvenile, and vindictive. It doesn\u2019t matter how good a person you are; the gods are just awful.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-e4c0f5824be02c8a7bc68ffb96f7d47e wp-block-paragraph\">I guess I get the rage though \u2013 Zeus can also be pretty petty, so I can imagine him jumping up and down pointing at his wife yelling I TOLD YOU I TOLD YOU.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-b63708ef0e4e13ee4cea3368d0d39e54 wp-block-paragraph\">Here\u2019s another fun bit. We know Zeus can transform into whatever he wants. He&#8217;s appeared as a swan, an eagle, a satyr, a &#8220;golden shower&#8221; &#8211; that&#8217;s what the Greek says, get your mind out of the gutter that&#8217;s not what it means &#8211; and even as Artemis, which Ovid tells us in Book II of the Metamorphoses (l. 401-465). So, why not just down to business in disguise and see for yourself? But as we already saw, mythological stories contradict themselves all the time.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-51db846f4f7258afb758e740d55bd652 wp-block-paragraph\">But one of the big takeaways I think about with this story is Teiresias\u2019 wisdom was so widely recognized that even the gods came to them for advice. Their wisdom went so far beyond the mortal realm that even the most powerful beings in the Universe deferred to it.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-31a8db2e5d1040bc30fe232c5a5eb4e7 wp-block-paragraph\">Wild to consider, hm? That living on both sides of the gender divide offers unique and valuable insight into the world that most people will never understand, hm?&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-f306c6232007c48bf9f26e234095faec wp-block-paragraph\">Now, we know Teiresias was given the gift of divination. But what sort of divination did he practice? How did that work for him?&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-8a955ee8a3de98df246a190ba44501e0 wp-block-paragraph\">For that, we\u2019ll have to wait for the sequel.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-align-center\" id=\"chapter-iv-2-teiresias-2-furious\"><strong>Chapter IV: 2 Teiresias 2 Furious<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-369a7550479a48e9664ec853632217c3 wp-block-paragraph\">Here we go, the beginning of the Greek mythology cinematic universe. I can\u2019t wait for the crossover event with Thor and Loki \u2013 and look, you can\u2019t sue me Disney because these are public domain characters. If you wanted to keep it locked down, you should have made up your own characters, like Steamboat Willie. Oh, what\u2019s that? Despite your incessant lobbying of the US government to extend copyright law, Steamboat Willie is in the public domain? And we\u2019re watching it right now and there\u2019s nothing you can do about it?&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-cb0a8d4bacc2b59342b17a83dd001253 wp-block-paragraph\">Anyway, the second origin story of Teiresias \u2013 let\u2019s take a look. We\u2019re not going to go through the details of all the authors this time, it took too long before. Instead, I\u2019ll just name them.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-54bcda14ea33a307c84dd1eb41ce6a19 wp-block-paragraph\">This time, we\u2019ve got:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-d69e4dff8ac9be5c08a69cfb8f9ffe52\">Callimachus\u2019 Hymns \u2013 a Greek writer from Alexandria in the 3<sup>rd<\/sup> century BCE<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-37f019ec1f2668c12d26101a167267bf\">Apollodorus\u2019 Bibliotheca again \u2013 we talked about him before<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-11c8d9d66754170fb264c9d525f354a2\">Propertius\u2019 Elegies \u2013 a Latin poet from the Augustan era, the late 1<sup>st<\/sup> century BCE<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-e3117fd6acca7db67cafa90d997bf73c\">Nonnus\u2019 Dionysiaca \u2013 a 5<sup>th<\/sup> century CE Greek epic poet from Roman-ruled Egypt \u2013 not the same as the Nonnus we talked about in the video on Pelagius, different guy<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-450a8778f8773b9b0fab95e9edf4b422 wp-block-paragraph\">Just four writers this time. What do they tell us about Teiresias?&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-c3ffe173bc9e25ee63f2780cdb1f7b3c wp-block-paragraph\">Interestingly, they don\u2019t really contradict each other. I did do another spreadsheet, cringe I know. But whatever, gen z, at least I know how to make one.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-cea96fd23eb0762843fbdb1eacd484c5 wp-block-paragraph\">Are spreadsheets cheugy?&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-1d177d56c7f45c500e415ddd514844b1 wp-block-paragraph\">Wait&#8230;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-d18f6c089b845a230f43eef1fbbb69f7 wp-block-paragraph\">Is the word cheugy, cheugy?&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/lh7-rt.googleusercontent.com\/docsz\/AD_4nXdu-xXRrbWy77kZEiydTDusyE2ErD9YkuqXUxEx20-WLkQHbw2_ZynLmKCiL8UEctG62r9_PD_KN5j0ix9W48a3W-UCevGLvbCI9b3xTzJdAXPXgzEpoTPpeho6OWeF0SyAly50DAEibr52BGVXRAQ?key=SObneA2WpPuPxNv2Se-DbQ\" alt=\"\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-d52029dc70d4c245bddce12f12a99cf0 wp-block-paragraph\">Damn&#8230;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-8aae25c67a27f9b366c188f9f02bfc0e wp-block-paragraph\">Anyway, some of the sources are pretty short for this story \u2013 the bit from Propertius is just a single sentence, so a lot is implied, but not blatantly mentioned. The no\u2019s here aren\u2019t really contradictions as much as they are omissions, so this story isn\u2019t as much of a mess. I can tell a fairly clean version of it, as a result.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-eac2d4a45663a7fa589e8fe402574a9a wp-block-paragraph\">Broadly speaking, here\u2019s the story.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-1c0939d671c1e1fab6be4263032bf557 wp-block-paragraph\">Teiresias was the son of Everes and a nymph, Chariclo. He was out for a walk one day with his dogs, and was thirsty so he stopped at the Fountain of the Horse on Mount Helicon, near Thebes. But he didn\u2019t realize Athena was there, bathing, and ended up seeing her naked. If you know your mythology, you know where this is going&#8230;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-35d255ee4ed921bc808662d6bab925df wp-block-paragraph\">Now, Zeus had created a rule. No mortal was allowed to see any god unless the god wanted them to. If they did, they\u2019d have to pay a heavy price. Athena didn\u2019t have a choice here \u2013 she had to do something about it. But Athena was besties with Teiresias\u2019 mother Chariclo, so she went as easy on him as she could, and blinded him.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-f7303f8cceea64e2874b2584a225893f wp-block-paragraph\">Chariclo shows up, hugs her son, and yells at Athena over it, demanding she undo what she\u2019d done. Athena explains she didn&#8217;t want to do it, but reminds her of Zeus&#8217; rule. She can&#8217;t undo it, no matter how much she may want to.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-9de6f864a95a1769df098884e82b77b5 wp-block-paragraph\">But then she tells the story of Actaeon, who was transformed into a stag and devoured by his dogs after seeing Artemis bathing. <em>His<\/em> mother would look at Teiresias and pray for her son to have a similar fate. Relatively speaking, he got off easy.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-d22f853373606a2d7f0f6a65137fe1f9 wp-block-paragraph\">But she&#8217;ll give him the gift of prophecy, a magical staff to help him walk, and an unusually long life.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-f062092742524f10b6e4e32ad4eb88f2 wp-block-paragraph\">What kind of prophecy?&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-290c39c57c0d1dcfcd21cdc1c072e443 wp-block-paragraph\">Specifically, it\u2019s ornithomancy. Teiresias can interpret the messages of the gods sent through the actions of birds (Brisson, 29-30). The Romans called this skill augury, and the practice was known as taking auspices, which is where we get the English words \u201cinauguration\u201d and \u201causpicious\u201d, but it\u2019s a pretty similar practice to what the Greeks did.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-20780def35999517bee8cb7cae40c289 wp-block-paragraph\">Neato.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-f5025617d1cd70afbb1be41949b6a198 wp-block-paragraph\">Did you notice a glaring omission there? That\u2019s right, Teiresias isn\u2019t turned into a lady in this version.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-6dc9994527ff5fa6deb3d402af5f02ec wp-block-paragraph\">Why not?&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-054e1bce17fa4e12ea98cac8b25f48a0 wp-block-paragraph\">It <em>is<\/em> something the gods were capable of doing. We saw that, sort of, with the first Teiresias myth, but it\u2019s much more clearly stated with the myth of Siproites, if you watched that video.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-b855c9bf70668137b40dd40d809e08ad wp-block-paragraph\">If not, Siproites\u2019 mythology survives in just a single line of poetry, quote:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-3-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-00164002d8f651a136e5588732e30a63 wp-block-paragraph\">The Cretan Siproites had also been turned into a woman for having seen Artemis bathing when out hunting.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-ef06877723e2b1a2e8352afb804061e3 wp-block-paragraph\">&#8211; Antoninus Liberalis, Metamorphoses, Book XVII<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>RELATED:<\/strong> <a href=\"https:\/\/sbedwards.co\/staging\/9372\/the-myth-of-siproites\/\">The Transgender Myth of Siproites<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-3465f614ec461db61b94343b0ae76194 wp-block-paragraph\">Clearly, Siproites was in a similar situation, and was punished as a result.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-4767abba1b613dc47e290e79c9fa9447 wp-block-paragraph\">We also have a few stories of women being transformed into men by the gods. Caenis, a woman, was transformed into Caeneus, a man, by Poseidon (Ov. Met. XII.189-209). Iphis was a girl raised as a boy, who was turned into a man by the Egyptian god Isis (Ov. Met. IX.670-797). Ovid\u2019s Metamorphoses tells us both of those stories. Leucippus\u2019 story is almost identical to Iphis, except it\u2019s Leto that does the deed. We learn about this one in the same story from Antoninus Liberalis that gave us the Siproites bit (Ant. Lib. Met. XVII).&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-f5c57a9071fcec5c2395e2a4df76b4c9 wp-block-paragraph\">The difference is that this was considered a good thing (Frontisi-Ducroux). With Leucippus and Iphis, they marry a girl they\u2019re in love with and live happily ever after, and Caeneus becomes a tough as nails hero. They also all asked for their transformations, and received them as a gift, a blessing from the gods.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-8bcbdaf51dbecb18dfcb82cf31835d4d wp-block-paragraph\">Women turning into men is a good thing, but men turning into women?&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-0bb2f055801d4701644fc3fd686257dc wp-block-paragraph\">You\u2019ve met with a terrible fate, haven\u2019t you?&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-173a732ea9a4db1877392722e3516bbd wp-block-paragraph\">But Teiresias was being punished, so why didn\u2019t Athena turn him into a woman in this story?&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-ac3753ebd17363cc5b91dbe791eb12e8 wp-block-paragraph\">It could have something to do with Athena going easy on Teiresias, relatively speaking. In such a deeply misogynistic society, it might have genuinely been preferable to go blind than be a woman.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-a9e8ea5c8d50bd00ad89381676d23a57 wp-block-paragraph\">In terms of punishment-based transformations, we do have other examples to draw upon.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-a185bb4f8971b0f7982e5ee062cc4972 wp-block-paragraph\">There\u2019s the aforementioned Actaeon story \u2013 he discovered Artemis bathing, and was turned into a stag and devoured by his own hunting dogs.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-98293ecf98b62f4656010d58f19a3591 wp-block-paragraph\">There\u2019s also Calydon \u2013 this one comes from Pseudo-Plutarch\u2019s <em>De Fluviis<\/em>, where he tells us Calydon accidentally saw Artemis bathing in a river, so she turned him into a rock (De Fluviis, XXII).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-f7efecd0dab7b6e66b7a985828ca1f42 wp-block-paragraph\">I know whose fate would be the least worst for me, but to the ancients, Teiresias got off easy. I guess that\u2019s one of the results of mythology being written exclusively by misogynistic men&#8230;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-685095a93744f0358375be59786ec023 wp-block-paragraph\">From a wisdom perspective, we don\u2019t get as much here. It\u2019s an origin story for Teiresias\u2019 prophetic insights, but they aren\u2019t drawn upon. It does still provide more context for Teiresias\u2019 liminality, though. He straddles the world of the present and the future, the gods and mortals, and the blind and the seeing \u2013 just not the world of genders.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-align-center\" id=\"chapter-v-the-third-origin-story-of-teiresias\"><strong>Chapter V: The Third Origin Story of Teiresias<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-afa187db3364822cea03a428d66996fc wp-block-paragraph\">This one only has a single source, so it\u2019s even more straightforward than the last.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-da09f994b4cbd53ba0032a1521940ab0 wp-block-paragraph\">It comes from Eustathius of Thessalonica, a Byzantine writer from the 12th century CE. He wrote quite a bit, but his Commentaries on Homer are what he&#8217;s best known for. I\u2019m using Brisson\u2019s French translation here.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-114e1e6e518d20feb37f05491e410562 wp-block-paragraph\">Eustathius tells us this story according to a writer named Sostratus, and apparently it\u2019s controversial which Sostratus he\u2019s referring to but I really don\u2019t care to get into that. Regardless, it\u2019s a lost poem. Anyway, in this story, Teiresias was still the child of Chariclo, but she was born a girl. One day when she was seven years old, she was out for a walk in the mountains, and Apollo had the hots for her, which.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-433c656012912fcd7386f5af9591917d wp-block-paragraph\">Are you serious with this? That\u2019s disgusting. I know there\u2019s a lot of weird junk in mythology and I do my best to brush it off, but Apollo was after a seven year old girl? Ew dude.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-9b370dca274a0ec55d88a98511c938c9 wp-block-paragraph\">I wonder if Apollo is in the Epstein files.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-af6ee3d52b36a3ffb45e6ef1d14b9ccc wp-block-paragraph\">So uhh, Apollo\u2019s whole thing is that women aren\u2019t into him. Maybe he should try going after someone who\u2019s not a f***ing child then? F***ing weirdo. *sigh*<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-44716244ccc130f3a4c63b000201163e wp-block-paragraph\">Anyway, Apollo bargains with Teiresias, saying he\u2019ll teach her how to make beautiful music in exchange for, yeah. She accepts the gift, but then refused to sleep with Apollo, which, honestly that\u2019s the right move. Young girl Teiresias is clever.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-f085b57993166d4a91f3f60e2ca08597 wp-block-paragraph\">Apollo isn\u2019t happy about this, of course, so he turns her into a man. He\u2019s then tested by Eros, but the nature of that test isn\u2019t really clear. But regardless, he goes on to judge the quarrel between Zeus and Hera that we talked about in the first story.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-7295098acc31aa0af6fa46b7db79b178 wp-block-paragraph\">Then he turned back into a woman, somehow. It doesn\u2019t say how, just that it happened. Such a beautifully crafted mythos! How clever.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-a04f5da27c057a8c0c1736cde8cc6451 wp-block-paragraph\">As a woman, she fell in love with a man from Argos named Kallon, and had a son with him, named Strabo. He had that thing where your eyes point in two different directions, which I just learned is called squint, because Hera was still bigmad at her.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-43f2b8f6f244c5a71c7eed8584b57597 wp-block-paragraph\">At some point she saw a statue of Hera and mocked it, so Hera turned her into an ugly man, whom people called \u03c0\u03af\u03b8\u03c9\u03bd (Pithon), which means little ape, brutal. Zeus felt bad for him, so he turned him back into a woman, but an older one this time, where she went to Troezen, a town east of Argos.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-a8b3ef465ef522352279729a421dac1b wp-block-paragraph\">Some guy named Glyphios had the hots for her, and attacked her while she was bathing. But he was a wuss, it turns out, since he got his ass kicked by an older woman &#8211; she suffocated him. Poseidon wasn\u2019t happy about this because he loved Glyphios, so he asked the Fates to judge her. They turned her into Teiresias \u2013 and this is a weird way to phrase it, because he\/she was Teiresias this entire time, I thought. I don\u2019t know. But the context isn\u2019t great here, the pronouns are inconsistent, and I\u2019m reading it in French, which I\u2019m not great at \u2013 I can\u2019t find an English translation, and my Greek is practically nonexistent. I\u2019m doing my best here!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-746c06a5524b05fb10b100b3774c97e9 wp-block-paragraph\">Anyway, I\u2019m going to assume this means the fates turned her into a man again. While they did it, they took away his gift of divination, which I guess he had the whole time even though it hasn\u2019t been mentioned yet. He re-learned it, though, from Chiron, who was the only centaur that wasn&#8217;t a wild, untamed murdermaniac, and is also considered a wise figure in Greek mythology \u2013 we mentioned him before.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-0114f839ef199f8c1cb9dfc85ac25266 wp-block-paragraph\">After, he went to the wedding of Peleus and Thetis, where there was a beauty contest between Aphrodite and the three Charities \u2013 Pasithea, Kale, and Euphrosyne. They have different names in other sources but whatever, that\u2019s what they\u2019re named here. Teiresias was chosen to judge this contest \u2013 hasn\u2019t he had enough trouble with the gods already? He chose Kale, who married Hephaestus.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-6dbd51ca4570845e080ba7cc7412fa74 wp-block-paragraph\">Aphrodite was upset by this, so she changed Teiresias back into a woman \u2013 oh no, what a punishment \u2013 but this time an elderly one.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-3cef56de7758370ed39f0a1cd78dc758 wp-block-paragraph\">Kale gave her beautiful hair and took her to Crete, where Spiderman fell in love with her. Well, his name is Arachnos, but y\u2019know. They did their business, and Arachnos started bragging that he\u2019d slept with Aphrodite, which he obviously did not. This upset Aphrodite, so she turned him into a weasel \u2013 fair, man sounds like he was a bit of one. Also, she turned Teiresias into a mouse \u2013 why? What did she do to deserve that? Brutal.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-442f4912bb7277c0b43062662fd2736a wp-block-paragraph\">So, this is why mice are considered to be divining animals, I guess?&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-624f9be116aa655d6931aecba5d47cab wp-block-paragraph\">This story is weird.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-9c8843c428e6113007916826e3cdf2fb wp-block-paragraph\">There are no snakes, there\u2019s no blinding, there\u2019s no Athena, and Apollo serves a very different role.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-888648c8d3c46cdd9a7929cde8d3343a wp-block-paragraph\">But in terms of major differences, there are two I\u2019d like to look at here (Brisson, 81-3).&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-d96f799f0a94b69d4074f89fc86930f9 wp-block-paragraph\">First off, Teiresias starts off as a woman. From there, she goes through seven different metamorphoses. Six of them are changes in gender, and the final one is where she\u2019s turned into a mouse. But interestingly, there\u2019s still a parallel here. Because in the first story, Teiresias\u2019 life is extended \u2013 he lives for seven generations. And in this story, she\u2019s transformed seven times, into each of the major age groups \u2013 child (girl), adolescent boy, young woman, man, middle aged woman, older man, old woman, and mouse. Ah yes, the seven genders.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-72ae962702c3593f926cd207189a516a wp-block-paragraph\">Teiresias does have their gift of prophecy as well, but it\u2019s just kind of vaguely brushed over. Sostratus may have gone into that in greater detail, but Eustathius\u2019 artless recap of the story doesn\u2019t give us much to go on.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-2ac3bc414bc51cf56dd7f0ce22c19f7c wp-block-paragraph\">But still, it\u2019s hard to argue Teiresias didn\u2019t have a wide variety of knowledge and experience after such a life, and their prophetic skills, such as they are, are still present. Teiresias still serves as a wise figure.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-f8a8015e01cc5c63f2b1ef8ad1add1eb wp-block-paragraph\">It\u2019s also interesting to note that Teiresias is always in a marginalized position. Adult citizen men were really the only people who had any real rights in Greece, and when he was an adult man he was so ugly that people thought of him as an ape. Rough.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-e61c5dc0f5fb33aeda91652603371c43 wp-block-paragraph\">So this story, clearly, is REALLY different from our other two Teiresias stories. But that\u2019s one of the things that makes it so interesting.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-buttons is-content-justification-center is-layout-flex wp-container-core-buttons-is-layout-fe0a7de2 wp-block-buttons-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-button\"><a class=\"wp-block-button__link wp-element-button\" href=\"\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Support The Channel On Patreon<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-align-center\" id=\"chapter-vi-teiresias-in-epic-poetry-cycles\"><strong>Chapter VI: Teiresias in Epic Poetry Cycles<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-48bdac8a19b9c072c516419a5b292761 wp-block-paragraph\">When it comes to mythology, there are a few \u201ccycles\u201d we talk about. These are tales generally told through epic poetry, relaying what might have been historical events but heavily mythologized.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-64caab34ce1affb377ae6c9dac42a01e wp-block-paragraph\">The most famous of these is the Trojan Cycle, sometimes called the Epic Cycle \u2013 the story of the prelude to the Trojan War, the war itself, and its aftermath. We\u2019ve talked about this on the channel before. It\u2019s mostly fantasy, but we do know there was a city of Troy, it was destroyed, and there were Greeks present during its destruction.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-1683a1fb75a0dde84feff17557e88f74 wp-block-paragraph\">There were eight poems in the Trojan Cycle, and we have two of them \u2013 the Iliad, and the Odyssey. But fortunately, we have enough sources talking about the rest of it that we can piece together a contiguous story.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-32f23ce04b229985483200544c532d0d wp-block-paragraph\">Probably the second most famous of these epic poetry cycles is the Theban Cycle. This was made up of four epics: the Oedipodea, the Thebaid, the Epigoni, and the Alcmeonis. Every epic poem we know of was related to one of these two cycles, or were about Herakles or Theseus in some way (West, 3).&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-1e28fd4745dd21eeac14ad3441aa21f8 wp-block-paragraph\">We don\u2019t have any of the poems of the Theban Cycle, unfortunately. Just some fragments.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-36f8afd017d4e84474947c78fd588fa4 wp-block-paragraph\">It&#8217;s the Oedipodea we&#8217;re most interested in today. From what we can tell, it was around 6,600 lines of poetry, and told the story of Oedipus. For comparison, the Iliad is 15,693 lines of poetry, and it&#8217;s this long (show the book), at least in translation.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-07a3c7b95cffb68e37a07f67d1848eb8 wp-block-paragraph\">Only a few fragments of the Oedipodea survive, and from that we can pull out a couple of details that show us it\u2019s a different story than the better known play Oedipus Rex by the Athenian poet Sophocles. But it\u2019s the best we\u2019ve got, so we\u2019re going to explore that one now.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-d04e19b59498eebd3eae8a44dd8a804e wp-block-paragraph\">The play opens with Oedipus, the king of Thebes, speaking to a priest, with a group of children with him. The priest describes a great blight that has stricken their city \u2013 people are ill, the crops aren\u2019t growing, their animals are sick, and nobody can bear children. Creon, Oedipus\u2019 brother in law, enters \u2013 he\u2019d just come from the Oracle, who told him the curse is because the previous king, Laius, was murdered, and his murderer is somewhere in the city. They didn\u2019t have a chance to look into it at the time, because a sphinx was terrorizing the city. But now, they need to find Laius\u2019 murderer and deal with him, if the city is to prosper once more.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-0f36e603a20e8cfe51b0ac2f802bc353 wp-block-paragraph\">Oedipus is onboard \u2013 he loves his city and his people. Besides, he\u2019s the king now, and whoever murdered the last king might want to come after him as well.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-192fb729a0a5f8d01201b7a76afc4023 wp-block-paragraph\">There\u2019s always a chorus in Greek tragedy; it\u2019s a collective group of people that represented different things depending on the play. Here, they\u2019re a group of elder men of Thebes. Oedipus orders them to tell him everything they know about the murder, and they can\u2019t help because they don\u2019t know much, but the chorus leader suggests that Oedipus speak with wise old Teiresias. After all, Apollo clearly knows who the killer is \u2013 Oracles always speak through Apollo \u2013 and Teiresias can use his gift of prophecy to see what Apollo sees.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-e738649496b3f74e75d49159d83f491d wp-block-paragraph\">Teiresias arrives, and things proceed, quote:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-media-text is-stacked-on-mobile\"><figure class=\"wp-block-media-text__media\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"931\" height=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/sbedwards.co\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Oedipus2-931x1024.jpg?resize=931%2C1024&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"Painting of Oedipus | Teiresias and Transgender Wisdom\" class=\"wp-image-2134 size-full\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/sbedwards.co\/staging\/9372\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Oedipus2.jpg?resize=931%2C1024&amp;ssl=1 931w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/sbedwards.co\/staging\/9372\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Oedipus2.jpg?resize=273%2C300&amp;ssl=1 273w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/sbedwards.co\/staging\/9372\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Oedipus2.jpg?resize=768%2C845&amp;ssl=1 768w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/sbedwards.co\/staging\/9372\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Oedipus2.jpg?w=982&amp;ssl=1 982w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 931px) 100vw, 931px\" \/><\/figure><div class=\"wp-block-media-text__content\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-c2eaccf0de679091147ac0585cf02967 wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Oedipus:&nbsp;<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-aa6c48e76ea7c9ef20187cac2a2d12b6 wp-block-paragraph\">Teiresias, you are well versed in everything,&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-62ccbd8410480947d26ebd722d7bef28 wp-block-paragraph\">things teachable and things not to be spoken,&nbsp;<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-bf1aa066cf9f98871553ba0031c778b8 wp-block-paragraph\">things of the heaven and earth-creeping things. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-aebebfd1730e4e1172a0fb461d24ce6a wp-block-paragraph\">You have no eyes but in your mind you know&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-dacefd3c8e8176d72836b5e6e36343ee wp-block-paragraph\">with what a plague our city is afflicted.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-c25479768c4801ccf84fbfd9ea45999d wp-block-paragraph\">My lord, in you alone we find a champion,&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-982ad55298526f494612ab6f4d805d1f wp-block-paragraph\">in you alone one that can rescue us.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-db2417284e52f52951641af78eea1e08 wp-block-paragraph\">Perhaps you have not heard the messengers,&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-11a51cad8069053a958a4fe1a6114c5c wp-block-paragraph\">but Phoebus sent in answer to our sending<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-c93dd679e11deac7523060c8e2df8451 wp-block-paragraph\">an oracle declaring that our freedom<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-3fb72ff110acc79942bd1215b25137e1 wp-block-paragraph\">from this disease would only come when we<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-67aa9681712fa99bfdd30e39b7c0bbf9 wp-block-paragraph\">should learn the names of those who killed King Laius,<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-0ca5597e3e10b518ed4bb95be485d8a4 wp-block-paragraph\">and kill them or expel from our country.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-d454aeac71c7ca01ceea4d169078e8a8 wp-block-paragraph\">Do not begrudge us messages from birds,&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-371048bc286d1ad4a545398ce00cb371 wp-block-paragraph\">or any other way of prophecy&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-748d235bbd552ff5d65c800b1c5d83ac wp-block-paragraph\">within your skill; save yourself and the city,<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-cb24caecd13d2f91cf0f8a45078f17b4 wp-block-paragraph\">save me; save all of us from this pollution<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-0c4faad4eabec977123cd16c517aceab wp-block-paragraph\">that lies on us because of that dead man.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-dcbec18759b9c9eba9ca7088cf6b8e2c wp-block-paragraph\">We are in your hands; it\u2019s a man\u2019s most noble labor<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-9187f08873dfa432a49f223bb9570648 wp-block-paragraph\">to help another when he has the means and power.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-media-text has-media-on-the-right is-stacked-on-mobile\"><div class=\"wp-block-media-text__content\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-311261a5f39fb6826f96cd3c9e7ab754 wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Teiresias:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-c8dbf743fb3ed4ed355f602bc2c1b393 wp-block-paragraph\">Alas, how terrible is wisdom when<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-aff1a8ef7666eac0f1e088370b9d893b wp-block-paragraph\">it brings no profit to the man that\u2019s wise!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-960f64dad9ae41193991211b6ab6b07f wp-block-paragraph\">This I knew well, but had forgotten it,<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-791661ebc764497adb336a3db7247691 wp-block-paragraph\">else I would not have come here.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div><figure class=\"wp-block-media-text__media\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"946\" height=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/sbedwards.co\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/teiresias-9093-946x1024.jpg?resize=946%2C1024&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2135 size-full\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/sbedwards.co\/staging\/9372\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/teiresias-9093.jpg?resize=946%2C1024&amp;ssl=1 946w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/sbedwards.co\/staging\/9372\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/teiresias-9093.jpg?resize=277%2C300&amp;ssl=1 277w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/sbedwards.co\/staging\/9372\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/teiresias-9093.jpg?resize=768%2C831&amp;ssl=1 768w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/sbedwards.co\/staging\/9372\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/teiresias-9093.jpg?w=998&amp;ssl=1 998w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 946px) 100vw, 946px\" \/><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-media-text is-stacked-on-mobile\"><figure class=\"wp-block-media-text__media\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"931\" height=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/sbedwards.co\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Oedipus2-931x1024.jpg?resize=931%2C1024&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"Painting of Oedipus | Teiresias and Transgender Wisdom\" class=\"wp-image-2134 size-full\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/sbedwards.co\/staging\/9372\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Oedipus2.jpg?resize=931%2C1024&amp;ssl=1 931w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/sbedwards.co\/staging\/9372\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Oedipus2.jpg?resize=273%2C300&amp;ssl=1 273w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/sbedwards.co\/staging\/9372\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Oedipus2.jpg?resize=768%2C845&amp;ssl=1 768w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/sbedwards.co\/staging\/9372\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Oedipus2.jpg?w=982&amp;ssl=1 982w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 931px) 100vw, 931px\" \/><\/figure><div class=\"wp-block-media-text__content\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-0fd5182b6acb64385d686796fc2839ac wp-block-paragraph\">What is this?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-af382ee638881f6ac3c922fe80d476b6 wp-block-paragraph\">How gloomy you are now you\u2019ve come!<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-media-text has-media-on-the-right is-stacked-on-mobile\"><div class=\"wp-block-media-text__content\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-e7c3ee93435ce37306566ef624c3b1da wp-block-paragraph\">Let me<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-e74c6dd4d368adf04119cfbf6c57176c wp-block-paragraph\">Go home. It will be easier for us both<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-b601196a1c66cfa395fc75b3afb00cd0 wp-block-paragraph\">to bear our several destinies to the end<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-450264f7253aba905e4d6f65be0e1f1b wp-block-paragraph\">if you will follow my advice.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div><figure class=\"wp-block-media-text__media\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/sbedwards.co\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/teiresias-9093.jpg?w=1290&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2139 size-full\"\/><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-media-text is-stacked-on-mobile\"><figure class=\"wp-block-media-text__media\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/sbedwards.co\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Oedipus2.jpg?w=1290&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2138 size-full\"\/><\/figure><div class=\"wp-block-media-text__content\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-b6b8ae255a76c0798a7d9a8fe719f3be wp-block-paragraph\">You\u2019d rob us<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-ac2065a5c1e71b6b4cbccd47287b6dd2 wp-block-paragraph\">of this gift of prophecy? You talk<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-c621d20edb43927022a1374d38452764 wp-block-paragraph\">as one who had no care for law nor love&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-cc7a6ea1f79a38c42dc31a773cec4d2e wp-block-paragraph\">for Thebes who reared you.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-media-text has-media-on-the-right is-stacked-on-mobile\"><div class=\"wp-block-media-text__content\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-b7c44c5b7f135647d97ed2e747760bd8 wp-block-paragraph\">Yes, but I see that even your own words&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-6e415befc4bbba9230e54700e4cc70c1 wp-block-paragraph\">miss the mark; therefore I must fear for mine.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div><figure class=\"wp-block-media-text__media\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/sbedwards.co\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/teiresias-9093.jpg?w=1290&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2137 size-full\"\/><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-media-text is-stacked-on-mobile\"><figure class=\"wp-block-media-text__media\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"982\" height=\"1080\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/sbedwards.co\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Oedipus2.jpg?fit=931%2C1024&amp;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2134 size-full\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/sbedwards.co\/staging\/9372\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Oedipus2.jpg?w=982&amp;ssl=1 982w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/sbedwards.co\/staging\/9372\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Oedipus2.jpg?resize=273%2C300&amp;ssl=1 273w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/sbedwards.co\/staging\/9372\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Oedipus2.jpg?resize=931%2C1024&amp;ssl=1 931w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/sbedwards.co\/staging\/9372\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Oedipus2.jpg?resize=768%2C845&amp;ssl=1 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 982px) 100vw, 982px\" \/><\/figure><div class=\"wp-block-media-text__content\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-9681ef3c1d96965844607d6169f598ca wp-block-paragraph\">For god\u2019s sake, if you know of anything,<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-8d49635f3326e4a87126a42f867e234d wp-block-paragraph\">do not turn from us; all of us kneel to you,<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-8880e7d6973f486b14dc55b62276c0c5 wp-block-paragraph\">all of us here, your suppliants.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-b80e6fbfc2fc0ea1434f762305648f5f wp-block-paragraph\">The conversation continues. Teiresias the seer knows the truth \u2013 it was Oedipus himself who murdered Laius, his own father, though he didn\u2019t realize it. Then, he arrived at Thebes, outsmarted the Sphinx, and as a result became king of Thebes, where he married the widowed queen of the city, Jocasta&#8230; his own mother.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-59801061782d7981a71370c8320fed7f wp-block-paragraph\">But how can he tell Oedipus the truth?&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-e9f130bd194c281374d957128dab22eb wp-block-paragraph\">Oedipus continues to push him, eventually even claiming Teiresias himself must have done it. Otherwise, why would he keep this a secret? That\u2019s when Teiresias drops a doozy, quote:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-311261a5f39fb6826f96cd3c9e7ab754 wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Teiresias:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-5a15756a996c07495d7e11d44c4a4aeb wp-block-paragraph\">Yes? Then I warn you faithfully to keep<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-53bfec4097efc070a2a824b16e3cd0e9 wp-block-paragraph\">the letter of your proclamation and&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-f4f915aaa27677ca00b96b9f15610720 wp-block-paragraph\">from this day forth to speak no word of greeting<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-c40377b681f5ef70d8a18dfdfa99ca98 wp-block-paragraph\">to these nor me; you are the land\u2019s pollution.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-216fc49544cbc2a9a74168529e8df5ce wp-block-paragraph\">Oedipus is furious, of course, but Teiresias reveals more of the truth to him, even as he presses Teiresias, as much as he\u2019s able. He tells Oedipus it was him who killed Laius, and that he lives \u201cin the foulest shame unconsciously\u201d. It\u2019s Oedipus\u2019 fault that all these awful things are happening.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-37e9e167806859aae5c3b7ce8bb0c180 wp-block-paragraph\">Oedipus can\u2019t accept this of course, and sends Teiresias away. Teiresias reminds Oedipus that he was invited, and that it\u2019s not his fault the gods have such an awful fate in store for Oedipus.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-9fa11695b51b409054e0228d8208f9d0 wp-block-paragraph\">Of course, everything Teiresias sees eventually comes true. Oedipus discovers he murdered Laius, his father, and then married Jocasta, his mother. Jocasta kills herself over it, and Oedipus gouges out his eyes. It\u2019s a bad ending.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-4dafaf662f0ae247435c78ac4e7c1aec wp-block-paragraph\">But Oedipus was the one who summoned Teiresias in the first place, and he did so because Teiresias was known to be a great seer. Oedipus tossed him out and rejected his insight, sure, but not because he was wrong. He just didn\u2019t like the answer he got. Talk about shooting the messenger.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-d527a62925e25f66e9e289a40ec9d302 wp-block-paragraph\">I wonder if Hermes wore a bulletproof vest.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-06d5aa87507cd4b421350d8b55dde7f0 wp-block-paragraph\">Anyway, this is the first example we\u2019ve seen of Teiresias\u2019 gift of prophecy actually being used. And what does Oedipus say to Teiresias when he first arrives? &#8220;You are well versed in everything, things teachable and things not to be spoken, things of the heaven and earth-creeping things.&#8221;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-99ced655c040d45629b1a697f7d66c6e wp-block-paragraph\">He lives between the world of the gods and of mortals, and that\u2019s why he was summoned. He has insight into both.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-72b69f7f3d2511dd5b14b403be8cb24e wp-block-paragraph\">He\u2019s a liminal figure, yes, but this is one of the things that makes him so wise. His counsel is sought for this reason.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-b772236cff5220693227ad5fc3850e3e wp-block-paragraph\">The tiny fragments we have of the Oedipodea do reveal a couple of key differences between it and Oedipus Rex. It\u2019s enough to tell us that these are two different interpretations of a story (West, 5-6). Sophocles must have drawn on more than just the Oedipodea while writing his play, or he just took some considerable creative license. Either way, we can\u2019t be certain that Teiresias was even in the Oedipodea.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-31269e1e04dcea3bff6a9bbe2c5022c6 wp-block-paragraph\">We do have another source on the Theban Cycle as well that involves Teiresias &#8211; Statius&#8217; Thebaid.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-4f78031f5cd01b5ce8ddd800a83ac7f0 wp-block-paragraph\">Publius Papinius Statius was a Roman writer of epic poetry, who was born in 50 CE in Neapolis, modern day Naples. His father was a poet who won some awards for his work, and son carried on in father&#8217;s footsteps. He lived in Rome for a time where he was a resident poet in the court of the emperor Domitian, married a woman named Claudia, but had no children himself, and died around 96 CE (Shackleton, 1-5).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-d7be677044a98a8e99630ad1e8bddbf6 wp-block-paragraph\">We talked about Statius in the video on Lucian and Megillus, which I know was awhile ago and not a lot of people watched, but you should! It was an interesting video, I think. Anyway, he started writing an epic called the Achilleid, about, you guessed it, Achilles, but by the time he died he&#8217;d only finished the first chapter and a half. Shame, really, since it could have been a great source on Achilles.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>RELATED: <\/strong><a href=\"https:\/\/sbedwards.co\/staging\/9372\/uncovering-ancient-transgender-stories-in-lucians-dialogues-of-the-courtesans\/\">Transgender Narratives in Lucian of Samosata&#8217;s Dialogues of the Courtesans<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-5b0c6294e703f78860839d89361f5e97 wp-block-paragraph\">But his greatest work was the Thebaid, a twelve book poem that covers the events of the much earlier Thebaid. It&#8217;s a story about the sons of Oedipus, Eteocles and Polynices. After the events of Oedipus Rex, Oedipus stepped down as king of Thebes, and his sons agree to take turns as king &#8211; each would rule for a year, while the other was exiled. Eteocles gets the first term, since he&#8217;s the older brother. When it&#8217;s his turn to abdicate, he refuses, and Polydices prepares for war.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-30bca57c06bbfbea96607864b536236e wp-block-paragraph\">Eteocles gets word that his brother is building an army, and seeks advice on how to deal with it. And since he&#8217;s in Thebes, who else would he ask but Teiresias.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-320d980b9f2f62e629ddadfbaea41e4a wp-block-paragraph\">This time, Teiresias does something we&#8217;ve never seen him do before &#8211; he performs necromancy. It&#8217;s a pretty elaborate ritual, but he&#8217;s able to summon the spirits of a bunch of different figures, including poor Actaeon who we talked about earlier. Most importantly though, he summons Laius, the former king of Thebes who Oedipus murdered. That would make him&#8230; ah, this is a weird one. I guess he\u2019s like their&#8230; step-grandfather? As well as their step-father? Yeesh.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-5160ffd4e692c1d292e100c857cc5e48 wp-block-paragraph\">This shows us another way that Teiresias serves as a liminal figure \u2013 between the living and the dead. That\u2019s similar to how he serves in this other epic poem, not sure if you\u2019ve heard of it, it\u2019s called THE ODYSSEY.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-f82dd63468aa952cca8a6a2ec82aa96c wp-block-paragraph\">In Book XI of The Odyssey, Odysseus has been on his wanderings for some time. Originally he led a fleet of 12 ships, but all but one of them had been destroyed at this point. He\u2019d encountered the Lotus-Eaters, Polyphemus the cyclops, the Laestrygonian cannibals, and Circe the witch, who turned some of his men into swine.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-ddec0e76a40b8e07823cd9c6c86f9e08 wp-block-paragraph\">After leaving Circe\u2019s island, they visit the underworld, hoping to find some guidance on how to get home. When they do, they find none other than Teiresias, whose skills as a prophet are just as powerful in death as they were in life.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-85afbee01b4827a5bce29aee2c50b668 wp-block-paragraph\">He tells Odysseus that Poseidon has it out for him, which is one of the main reasons why he\u2019s had so much trouble getting home. From there, he essentially spoils the rest of the story for us. If Odysseus and his crew can avoid harming Helios\u2019 cattle when they find them, they\u2019ll get home safe. But if they do harm the cattle, their ship will be destroyed and everyone will be killed, except Odysseus, who might still make it home but in bad shape, aboard someone else\u2019s ship.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-bdfdd95f28e0f51bf6af61e59c18b277 wp-block-paragraph\">From there, he tells Odysseus how to appease Poseidon, and how he can commune with the other spirits as well.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-d82775f6e90f330c021158aa6749a0e3 wp-block-paragraph\">So once again, we find Teiresias as a liminal figure, as a bridge between the living and the dead. Even in death, his wisdom is still valuable.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-align-center\" id=\"chapter-vii-other-tales-of-teiresias\"><strong>Chapter VII: Other Tales of Teiresias<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-7050ea7bcfcd7c424acbf2c373e64f8f wp-block-paragraph\">So at this point, we\u2019ve talked about the main stories, but there are some other places he shows up. Let\u2019s take the time to trace these tertiary Teiresias tales.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-d2007c60f2d206ee5e6d2f29336deb82 wp-block-paragraph\">In general, he shows up to answer someone\u2019s question, or to deliver a warning.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-00e39f3ac1ef4bb90d92d20c15052d25 wp-block-paragraph\">There\u2019s another scene in another Sophocles play, Antigone, that plays out largely the same as the one in Oedipus Rex.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-872af20e9a4af9fd95222d91805973b8 wp-block-paragraph\">Antigone takes place after both Oedipus Rex and the Thebaid. In it, Antigone, the daughter of Oedipus, wants to bury her brother Polynices, but he\u2019s been shamed by Creon, the new king of Thebes and Antigone\u2019s uncle. Antigone insists, and Creon reacts to this like any reasonable person would do \u2013 he buries her alive in a cave.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-196af3e0887a87a5fa0346bcee255ec8 wp-block-paragraph\">Teiresias arrives, and says he has wisdom to share with Creon. Creon tells him he trusts his wisdom and his counsel, so Teiresias delivers the news. He warns that if Creon leaves Antigone underground and leaves Polynices unburied, one of Creon\u2019s own sons will die and Thebes will be shunned by the gods.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-2e37c937c74b0449c84061cac76af403 wp-block-paragraph\">Of course, he gets mad about it, but eventually agrees to follow Teiresias\u2019 advice, though it\u2019s too late \u2013 Antigone is dead, and so is his son.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-b249456ff0964ffe460952d239839bc7 wp-block-paragraph\">He shows up in Ovid\u2019s Metamorphoses another time as well, right after the transformation bit. The nymph Liriope asked him if her son would live to old age, and he said \u201cyes, if he never knows himself\u201d. Her son, by the way, was Narcissus, and we all know how that one turns out.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-a376853a192f50a2ce05fbfc959f6774 wp-block-paragraph\">Teiresias does get to chill, at least once, for a little bit, in Euripides&#8217; Bacchae. He and his old friend Cadmus, the founder of Thebes and retired king, are on their way to the mountains to join in exaltation of the god Dionysus. It&#8217;s pretty adorable to imagine, two old men dressed in zany costumes, walking to a festival.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-47581f28a604ee068da1e17ac1b8cfc3 wp-block-paragraph\">But then Pentheus shows up, the big stinky jerk, the current king of Thebes. He&#8217;s banned worship of Dionysus, and orders anyone who engages in it to be put to death. Talk about a buzzkill.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-65c9ed11e1c6ca5e611b4201e963ce8f wp-block-paragraph\">Teiresias and Cadmus continue on their way anyway though. No young whippersnapper is gonna harsh their vibe!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-b0c018c03fe9c1c2dc614423ff3f404f wp-block-paragraph\">In another case they actually invented the practice of astrology \u2013 Lucian tells us Teiresias was the first one to figure out the gender of the planets and their influence on human activity (Luc. Astr. 11). Who knew astrology was invented by a transsexual prophet?&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-30b53b94446edbdcdf4c4d6bc093a1ea wp-block-paragraph\">Of course, Lucian is best known for being a satirist, so take this one with a grain of salt.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-8f91e8c2aaf1b3c46115190ca40e8765 wp-block-paragraph\">But in terms of his specific skillset, it seems like they\u2019re just kind of an all purpose magical character, with whatever skills are needed for the moment. And because they\u2019ve had so many different experiences, it never feels out of place. Instead, it just adds to Teiresias\u2019 place as a liminal figure.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-align-center\" id=\"chapter-viii-what-does-all-this-mean\"><strong>Chapter VIII: What Does All This Mean?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-d8191d9d1f588b87d08b9d7ec09d067b wp-block-paragraph\">This isn\u2019t an exhaustive list of Teiresias\u2019 appearances, but for our purposes today, it doesn\u2019t need to be. It still demonstrates what Teiresias was, as a mythological figure.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-f893063a6b1a05ce1b0a926a3dc0baff wp-block-paragraph\">As a prophet, Teiresias lived between the realm of the divine and of mortals.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-4afc6eebeb51a571ceb7a9ce0df5b34f wp-block-paragraph\">This also allowed them to live between the present and the future, for all the good it did for the people around them.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-91386d272912da24dc7b2969fef83d8c wp-block-paragraph\">As a necromancer, they lived between the realm of the living and the dead. This was true for them in life as well as in death \u2013 in The Odyssey, normally shades had to drink the blood of the living in order to recognize them. Even the shade of Odysseus\u2019 own mother couldn\u2019t recognize her son without doing so, but this wasn\u2019t a problem for Teiresias.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-1e7d7b42f1410d963ab1cb43b5e77e4a wp-block-paragraph\">They lived between genders, of course \u2013 having been both a man and a woman.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-95e3bf7ea57110fe7c80fc438897eda7 wp-block-paragraph\">And because their gifts came along with blindness, they stood as a liminal figure between the blind and the seeing, or to use more modern language, between disabled and non-disabled people.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-73dfe15ceda4ca86fd395c352773b3c1 wp-block-paragraph\">They walk back and forth across many supposedly immutable barriers, and in doing so transgress the way things are supposed to be.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-3dba378e07aefd504b9e98e7526d12a6 wp-block-paragraph\">These experiences provide them with so much wisdom that warriors, kings, generals, and even the gods consult them.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-a27176eed2c81d6523a3b6a4992f221d wp-block-paragraph\">Sometimes, they\u2019re reluctant to provide such counsel \u2013 we saw that in Oedipus Rex. Nobody likes to be the bearer of bad news. But they do so when asked, nonetheless.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-0e7f1f5614e7fd57951d23e165c281c3 wp-block-paragraph\">So, what is wisdom?&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-0aa2caa33a87a176031cb5bb4505be21 wp-block-paragraph\">The field of philosophy has spent millennia grappling with ideas like this, so much so that the very word philosophy itself means &#8220;love of wisdom&#8221;, and that\u2019s not why I chose the name Sophie, I chose it back in high school before I even knew what philosophy really was, but hey, I\u2019m not complaining.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-419605913284285cf855dd1b1a9ed0cf wp-block-paragraph\">Well, it&#8217;s hard to define, so much so that the lack of a consistent, all-encompassing definition of wisdom is practically a meme among psychologists and philosophers (Trowbridge, 150).&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-02f6acd52de68b1e2743926c89e0e667 wp-block-paragraph\">If we ask Plato, he&#8217;d tell us one aspect of wisdom is a recognition of one&#8217;s own ignorance, of how little one really does know about the world in which they live, and the nature of reality. In the Apology, Socrates compares his wisdom with someone else&#8217;s by saying, quote:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-3-color has-text-color has-link-color has-medium-font-size wp-elements-7c07f21eba441067bca976e5a670d460 wp-block-paragraph\">Well, although I do not suppose that either of us knows anything really beautiful and good, I am better off than he is &#8211; for he knows nothing, and thinks that he knows. I neither know nor think that I know. In this latter particular, then, I seem to have slightly the advantage of him. Then I went to another, who had still higher philosophical pretensions, and my conclusion was exactly the same.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-917987ee983ecc8e0d910c75605b8fcc wp-block-paragraph\">&#8211; Plato, Apology<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-7bf2c519a009fc833a0619583bf4b669 wp-block-paragraph\">His pupil Aristotle, on the other hand, differentiated between two different types of wisdom. First, there&#8217;s sophia &#8211; theoretical wisdom, which refers to deeper, more universal truths. Then, there&#8217;s phronesis, which is a more practical type of wisdom that helps guide your actions (Dennison).&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-475c9ab336e360a0ca084766c722a96d wp-block-paragraph\">I asked you all this question in a post on the channel recently, and many of you seem to agree with Aristotle &#8211; it\u2019s some combination of theoretical knowledge and life experience.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-216b99abe1e9ae2edce3a1c01f797049 wp-block-paragraph\">In the words of Terry Pratchett: \u201cWisdom comes from experience. Experience is often a result of lack of wisdom.\u201d&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-77e6b24c7fdd0fd8aed9de70ace782dd wp-block-paragraph\">More recently, Carolyn Aldwin proposed a more universal definition of wisdom, quote:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-0b63c73c622e8c7c1f7876a45dab3f79 wp-block-paragraph\">Wisdom is a practice that reflects the developmental process by which individuals increase in self-knowledge, self-integration, nonattachment, self-transcendence, and compassion, as well as a deeper understanding of life. This practice involves better self-regulation and ethical choices, resulting in greater good for oneself and others.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-ea444c740ba58fed859adcc74dac2032 wp-block-paragraph\">&#8211; Carolyn Aldwin, Gender and Wisdom: A Brief Overview<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-a83c4bc1f1f9d560eba9d0bf217cbafe wp-block-paragraph\">Knowledge of self, integration of self, nonattachment, transcending oneself, and compassion.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-83d73c58ba6894ce936e842366cb22fa wp-block-paragraph\">I don\u2019t know about you, but I feel like I can map my transition onto those steps.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-7b820dcd23f3e496d93b0d70a0afaf77 wp-block-paragraph\">Knowledge of self \u2013 after a lifetime of feeling like things are <em>not quite right<\/em>, we go inward, ask ourselves some difficult questions, and come to realize the truth about ourselves.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-2038bbd9fb2330eabfb89b8002e2cf42 wp-block-paragraph\">Integration of self \u2013 perhaps after a period of denial, we begin to accept the knowledge we\u2019ve gained about ourselves, and from there begin to adopt it into our personality.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-93f7d60537473e2f81d0393fb689708a wp-block-paragraph\">Nonattachment \u2013 part of the integration process involves letting go \u2013 of who we used to be, of how we navigated the world, of some of the privilege we may have held, of our intense need to control the outcome of our transitions (Whitehead). This takes longer for some than others to realize, but one\u2019s transition will play out the way it plays out, and like a dog on a leash, we do have some control over where we go, but much of it is out of our hands. The path to inner contentment as trans people is through changing what can be changed, and learning to be at peace with what we cannot. The serenity prayer \u2013 \u201cGod grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, courage to change the things I can, and wisdom to know the difference\u201d.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-907b2f9179734bf55ef4effbc2d58598 wp-block-paragraph\">Transcending oneself \u2013 by leaving our previous self behind, we sculpt our personas, our societal roles, and often our very bodies, into what better suits us. For some, that means straddling multiple genders. For others it\u2019s a hop from one side of the fence to the other. For still others, it\u2019s transcending the very idea of gender in the first place. Regardless, this is what it looks like to truly self actualize \u2013 to reach the pinnacle of Maslow\u2019s classic Hierarchy of Needs.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-f0255159b289ad7315f04b1d3b1c2cad wp-block-paragraph\">If Aldwin\u2019s definition is correct, and wisdom leads to better ethical choices and a greater good for society, is it any wonder so many trans people are so vehemently antifascist? Even if the power brokers of the world weren\u2019t currently using us as a scapegoat for the problems they\u2019re causing, I think that would still be the case.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-9355c68fb137187afccf77ffc7274d44 wp-block-paragraph\">Another paper, this one by Nic Weststrate and Judith Gl\u00fcck, spoke to different adults of a wide range of ages, and determined wisdom comes from processing difficult life experiences (Weststrate and Gl\u00fcck). They also mentioned \u2013 and this jives with what everyone other than Plato told me \u2013 that wisdom comes from life experience.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-d948a773c8bab2eca3f2a08f66318b69 wp-block-paragraph\">That\u2019s certainly been true for me.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-9de4df19d2ad6da36ff8ec2e70228da8 wp-block-paragraph\">I\u2019ve worked manual labour for minimum wage, and I\u2019ve known billionaires on a first name basis. I\u2019ve built and sold businesses from nothing, and I\u2019ve lost enough money to buy my house in cash. I\u2019ve owned a six figure a year business, and I\u2019ve been a few bad days away from being homeless. I\u2019ve been a ghost writer for a New York Times bestselling author in my 20\u2019s, and I\u2019ve found myself living in my mother\u2019s basement in my 30\u2019s. I\u2019ve been through, and continue to go through, experiences both awful and beautiful.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-574952f06a08ffa2856c4cb9c6c429c1 wp-block-paragraph\">Life is a rollercoaster.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-f69be89fd881f43b268e748df03084be wp-block-paragraph\">But I believe this breadth of experience gives me a unique insight into the world not everyone has.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-3705e2e4fa735db1b9cb93d2eaa52d55 wp-block-paragraph\">Consider the breadth of experiences you\u2019ve had throughout your life. What sort of wisdom can you draw from them?&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-1d80af56ea8639797a9f71f1f76ae170 wp-block-paragraph\">Now, combine that with your experience of having navigated the world as more than one gender. I know everyone experiences this sort of thing differently. Of course, my experience of being a man is different than that of a cis man\u2019s \u2013 most of my experience with masculinity involved wanting to distance myself from it. If you\u2019re a trans woman, you know what I mean.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-5530ea13425d9bec5ab558bc6a610abe wp-block-paragraph\">But that experience still gave me a front row seat to the heights of toxic masculinity, in a way most women never do. I\u2019ve been privy to male locker room talk. I\u2019ve witnessed \u201cboys will be boys\u201d type behaviour. I\u2019ve been bullied as a boy, by other boys. I\u2019ve heard the things men sometimes say to other men, when they think women aren\u2019t listening.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-38c21352407ed2f7c4016658fc717f39 wp-block-paragraph\">Maybe this is one of the reasons why toxic masculinity feels so threatened by transness. We\u2019re turncoats \u2013 we have access to knowledge women are forbidden to hold, and can reveal that to other women.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-e0a2ae211223a54beed430f0c68bb0c3 wp-block-paragraph\">At the same time, I\u2019ve seen how lonely and isolating masculinity can be. I\u2019ve felt the yearning so many men have for real connection with each other, and the internalized homophobia that prevents them from doing so. I know first hand, in a way most women never will, how deeply patriarchy hurts men, even as so many of them actively perpetuate it.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-bee478dc529cde1fae468dcf8f50c04d wp-block-paragraph\">I\u2019ve also, of course, navigated the world as a woman, which I\u2019ve been doing for more than seven years, as of this filming. I know how vulnerable we can feel when a strange man follows us, and how heavily patriarchal beauty standards weigh on our shoulders. I never had the chance to be a young woman, but as I approach my fortieth trip around the sun, I\u2019m watching my youth begin to fade and struggling to embrace the latter half of my life, in a way that men don\u2019t have to. How many famous women do you know that can embrace gray hair and still be a sex symbol in a way George Clooney can, for example?&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-b10de2d7f235d0ae37d11131e96345b5 wp-block-paragraph\">I\u2019ve seen the best and the worst of both men and women.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-2a002d93356c896f4651285a4e899c68 wp-block-paragraph\">In other words, I\u2019ve seen some shit. If you\u2019re a binary trans person who\u2019s been at it for awhile, you\u2019ll know what I mean, I\u2019m sure. Nonbinary is a little different, since nonbinary people are such a mixed bag, but there\u2019s wisdom to be had in that experience as well.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-1bd76ea215acce58a372dd884e8537bd wp-block-paragraph\">If wisdom really is a combination of knowledge and experience, and if wisdom really does increase through processing difficult experiences, then trans people are by definition wise. Even if the world wasn\u2019t as hateful as it is, we\u2019d still have the experience of navigating the world as a gender with which we don\u2019t identify, and be left with the burden of processing a lifetime of memories incongruent with who we are, which is challenging to say the least.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-52ef09bba9fe47e09588b00ee3c68e56 wp-block-paragraph\">Cis people, of course, will never have this experience, by definition. In a sane world, transness would be looked to as a source of wisdom and unique insight, just like Teiresias was.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-2fdf3cee0072ef3ad765f8f15c6f040d wp-block-paragraph\">But of course, we don\u2019t live in a sane world, do we? We live in a world ruled by the basest of instincts, where the billionaire class pays their millionaire sycophants to spread hatred in the name of distracting from all the different ways they\u2019re screwing us, every single day.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-30446bc7db2500be161f69985453a10b wp-block-paragraph\">Instead, we can perhaps draw a certain amount of comfort from the idea that regardless of what nonsense the world spews, there are certain cultural constants. No matter who I spoke to on this matter, from all of you here on the channel to my conservative old dad, I heard some variant of the same answer.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-1b9425e74c83c7e8cd264d6131cb665c wp-block-paragraph\">Wisdom is, broadly speaking, a combination of knowledge and experience.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-74d12dc16bf5aad605223cc36c3efe1e wp-block-paragraph\">Teiresias had both, and so their wisdom was widely known.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-ee428bafe6b1221f60c9ad2b87ec14ba wp-block-paragraph\">You, too, my trans sibling, have a deep wisdom our cis friends could never understand. And though we might not be viewed that way today in the popular culture, an objective examination of the concept of wisdom would, I believe, have to include us.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-5927eda93b5b30e1021eaf9647a32f21 wp-block-paragraph\">Going inward, examining the parts of yourself you dislike, and deciding to be better \u2013 that\u2019s not something unique to trans people, of course.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-02459f4082036a88bd81fb1238a55a6c wp-block-paragraph\">Our personal transformations may be more visually striking than most, but I\u2019ve known cisgender people whose inner process of self discovery and self actualization has been just as profound.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color has-medium-font-size wp-elements-c4274b3fb9cb14bd9429ce5bcf1b3f7d wp-block-paragraph\">Even still, my trans siblings, we can stand as a visual monument to the breadth of human potential, and of personal freedom.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-67611f5ee447263e78ffecd344953ba1 wp-block-paragraph\">But even beyond that, you, and I, all of us, are the culmination of a glorious tradition of self actualization through gender transcendence. Whether through HRT or <a href=\"https:\/\/sbedwards.co\/staging\/9372\/kybele-and-the-gallae\/\">becoming a priestess of Kybele<\/a>, there have always been people like us, who understand when things aren\u2019t right, and who take charge of their own lives.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-9f0110eaa0d4dcaa81f6b6489eb1f1e6 wp-block-paragraph\">There\u2019s beauty in that. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-31eacdd8756df61e92637765997204ce wp-block-paragraph\">There\u2019s power in that.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-d03ec54aeeaa230c74de6efea153efc0 wp-block-paragraph\">Take heart, my friend. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-938c0596728df5a18a9a8422f7dcf495 wp-block-paragraph\">We have always existed. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-palette-color-8-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-cec62245d0833d7b1ab31a4d82164d5f wp-block-paragraph\">And so long as humanity continues to endure, so too shall we.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-buttons is-content-justification-center is-layout-flex wp-container-core-buttons-is-layout-fe0a7de2 wp-block-buttons-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-button\"><a class=\"wp-block-button__link wp-element-button\" href=\"\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Support The Channel On Patreon<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"ancient-sources-cited\"><strong>Ancient Sources Cited:<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u25ba<a href=\"https:\/\/www.theoi.com\/Text\/Apollodorus1.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Apollodorus. \u201cBibliotheca\u201d. Translated by Sir James George Frazer. Loeb Classical Library Volumes 121 &amp; 122. Cambridge, MA, Harvard University Press, 1921<\/a>.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u25ba<a href=\"https:\/\/topostext.org\/work\/216\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Antoninus Liberalis. \u201cMetamorphoses\u201d. Translated by Francis Celoria, Routledge, 1992<\/a>.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u25ba<a href=\"https:\/\/www.theoi.com\/Text\/CallimachusHymns1.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Callimachus. \u201cHymns and Epigrams. Lycophron. Aratus.\u201d Translated by Mair, A. W. &amp; G. R. Loeb Classical Library Volume 129. London: William Heinemann, 1921<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u25ba<a href=\"https:\/\/www.gutenberg.org\/ebooks\/35173\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Euripides. &#8220;Bacchae&#8221;. Translated by Gilbert Murray. Project Gutenberg, 2011<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u25ba<a href=\"https:\/\/archive.org\/details\/euripideanfragme00euriuoft\/page\/n5\/mode\/2up?view=theater\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Euripides. \u201cEuripidean Fragments\u201d. Emended by Richard Johnson Walker. London, Burns Oates &amp; Washbourne Ltd, 1920<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u25ba<a href=\"https:\/\/www.theoi.com\/Text\/FulgentiusMythologies2.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Fulgentius, Fabius Planciades. &#8220;Mythologies&#8221;. Translated by L. G. Whitbread. Ohio State University Press, 1971<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u25ba<a href=\"https:\/\/www.loebclassics.com\/view\/LCL497\/2003\/volume.xml\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">&#8220;Greek Epic Fragments&#8221;. Translated by Martin Litchfield West. Loeb Classical Library Vol. 497. Cambridge MA, Harvard University Press, 2003<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u25ba<a href=\"https:\/\/www.theoi.com\/Text\/HesiodMiscellany.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Hesiod. \u201cMelampodia Fragments\u201d. Translated by Hugh G. Evelyn-White. Loeb Classical Library Volume 57. London, Harvard University Press, 1914<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u25ba<a href=\"https:\/\/www.bible.com\/bible\/111\/GEN.1.NIV\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">\u201cThe Holy Bible: New Revised Standard Version, Updated Edition\u201d. Translated by the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America, 2021<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u25ba<a href=\"https:\/\/topostext.org\/work\/206\">Hyginus, Gaius Julius. \u201cFabulae\u201d. Translated by Mary Grant, Lawrence, University of Kansas Press, 1960<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u25ba<a href=\"https:\/\/www.loebclassics.com\/view\/LCL302\/1936\/volume.xml\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Lucian. <em>The Passing of Peregrinus. The Runaways. Toxaris or Friendship. The Dance. Lexiphanes. The Eunuch. Astrology. The Mistaken Critic. The Parliament of the Gods. The Tyrannicide. Disowned. <\/em>Translated by A. M. Harmon. Loeb Classical Library 302. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1936<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u25ba<a href=\"https:\/\/archive.org\/details\/ovidmetamorphose0000rolf\/page\/n5\/mode\/2up\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Ovid. &#8220;Metamorphoses&#8221;. Translated by Rolfe Humphries. Bloomington, Indiana University Press, 1964<\/a>.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u25ba<a href=\"https:\/\/topostext.org\/work\/540\">Phlegon. \u201cMirabilia\u201d. Translated by William F. Hansen. University of Exeter Press, 1996<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u25ba<a href=\"https:\/\/classics.mit.edu\/Plato\/apology.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Plato. &#8220;Apology&#8221;. Translated by Benjamin Jowett. MIT, The Internet Classics Archive, 2009<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u25ba<a href=\"https:\/\/www.theoi.com\/Text\/StatiusThebaid1.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Statius. &#8220;Thebaid, Books 1-7&#8221;. Translated by D. R. Shackleton Bailey. Loeb Classical Library. Cambridge, Harvard University Press, 2003<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"modern-sources-cited\"><strong>Modern Sources Cited:<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u25ba<a href=\"https:\/\/www.researchgate.net\/publication\/233086937_Gender_and_Wisdom_A_Brief_Overview\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Aldwin, C. M. &#8220;Gender and wisdom: A brief overview&#8221;. Research in Human Development Vol. 8, 2009, pp. 1\u20138. Accessed 5 June, 2025<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u25ba<a href=\"https:\/\/www.theoi.com\/Text\/HyginusFabulae1.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Atsma, Aaron J. \u201cHyginus, Fabulae 1-49\u201d. Theoi Project, 2017<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u25ba<a href=\"https:\/\/www.persee.fr\/doc\/hom_0439-4216_1978_num_18_3_367919\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Brisson, Luc. \u201cLe Mythe de Tiresias: Essai D\u2019analyse Structurale\u201d. Leiden, E.J. Brill, 1976<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u25ba<a href=\"https:\/\/ian.umces.edu\/blog\/its-all-greek-to-me-the-terms-praxis-and-phronesis-in-environmental-philosophy\/\">Dennison, Bill. &#8220;It\u2019s all Greek to me: The terms \u2018praxis\u2019 and \u2018phronesis\u2019 in environmental philosophy&#8221;. University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science Blog. 2013. Accessed 5 June, 2025<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u25ba<a href=\"https:\/\/www.cbc.ca\/news\/canada\/british-columbia\/tk-eml%C3%BAps-te-secw%C3%A9pemc-215-children-former-kamloops-indian-residential-school-1.6043778\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Dickson, Courtney, and Bridgette Watson. &#8220;Remains of 215 children found buried at former B.C. residential school, First Nation says&#8221;. CBC News, 28 May 2021<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u25ba<a href=\"https:\/\/www.academia.edu\/16915564\/The_Monstrous_World_Corporeal_Discourses_in_Phlegon_of_Tralles_Mirabilia\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Doroszewska, Julia. \u201cThe Monstrous World: Corporeal Discourses in Phlegon of Tralles\u2019 Mirabilia\u201d. New York, Peter Lang GmbH, 2016<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u25ba<a href=\"https:\/\/shs.cairn.info\/revue-rue-descartes-2009-2-page-8?lang=fr&amp;tab=texte-integral\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Frontisi-Ducroux, Francoise. &#8220;Linvention de la m\u00e9tamorphose&#8221;. Rue Descartes (2009): 8-22<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u25ba<a href=\"https:\/\/archive.org\/details\/placiduscommenta23lact\/page\/n45\/mode\/2up\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Miller, John M. \u201cThe Placidus Commentary on Statius\u201d. Cincinnati, Ohio University Press, 1901<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u25ba<a href=\"https:\/\/archive.org\/details\/the-cambridge-guide-to-homer-1107027195-9781107027190_compress\/page\/n3\/mode\/2up?view=theater\">Pache, Corinne Ondine, Casey Du\u00e9, Susan Lupack, and Robert Lamberton. &#8220;The Cambridge Guide to Homer&#8221;. New York, University Printing House, 2020<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u25ba<a href=\"https:\/\/www.google.ca\/books\/edition\/The_Vatican_Mythographers\/sE7WnkLLt2gC?hl=en&amp;gbpv=0\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Pepin,&nbsp;Ronald E.&nbsp;\u201cThe Vatican Mythographers\u201d.&nbsp;New York,&nbsp;Fordham University Press,&nbsp;2008<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u25ba<a href=\"https:\/\/www.anishinabek.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/07\/An-Overview-of-the-IRS-System-Booklet.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Restoule, Karen, &amp; The Union of Ontario Indians. &#8220;An Overview of the Indian Residential School System&#8221;. Creative Impressions, 2013<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u25ba<a href=\"https:\/\/www.tandfonline.com\/doi\/full\/10.1080\/15427609.2011.568872\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Trowbridge, Richard Hawley. \u201cWaiting for <em>Sophia<\/em>: 30 Years of Conceptualizing Wisdom in Empirical Psychology\u201d. <em>Research in Human Development<\/em> Vol. 8, no. 2, 2011, pp. 149\u201364. Accessed 5 June, 2025<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u25ba<a href=\"https:\/\/nctr.ca\/education\/teaching-resources\/residential-school-history\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">University of Manitoba. &#8220;Residential School History&#8221;. National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u25ba<a href=\"https:\/\/pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov\/articles\/PMC6383748\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Weststrate, Nic M, and Judith Gl\u00fcck. \u201cHard-earned wisdom: Exploratory processing of difficult life experience is positively associated with wisdom.\u201d <em>Developmental psychology<\/em> vol. 53,4 (2017): 800-814. Accessed 5 June, 2025<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u25ba<a href=\"https:\/\/www.psychologytoday.com\/ca\/blog\/the-nonattached-self\/201906\/what-is-nonattachment\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Whitehead, Richard. &#8220;What Is Nonattachment?&#8221; Psychology Today blog, 2019. Accessed 5 June, 2025<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>What is wisdom?&nbsp; Not intelligence, but wisdom? I\u2019m sure many of you have made enough D&amp;D characters to understand the difference theoretically, but what does this look like in practice?&nbsp; I made a post on the channel asking about it recently, and everyone\u2019s response was a little different of course. But I think if we [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2144,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[183,4],"tags":[162,144,121,161,195,196,169,168,170,172,193,194,192],"class_list":["post-2129","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-transgender-mythology","category-we-have-always-existed","tag-ancient-greece","tag-ancient-history","tag-ancient-rome","tag-classical-antiquity","tag-greek-mythology","tag-greek-mythology-stories","tag-history-of-transgender","tag-history-of-transgender-people","tag-history-of-transgenderism","tag-lgbt-history-documentary","tag-teiresias","tag-tiresias","tag-transgender-mythology"],"blocksy_meta":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.7 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Transgender Wisdom: The Myths of Teiresias - Sophie&#039;s Site (Staging)<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/sbedwards.co\/staging\/9372\/transgender-wisdom-the-myths-of-teiresias\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Transgender Wisdom: The Myths of Teiresias - Sophie&#039;s Site (Staging)\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"What is wisdom?&nbsp; Not intelligence, but wisdom? I\u2019m sure many of you have made enough D&amp;D characters to understand the difference theoretically, but what does this look like in practice?&nbsp; I made a post on the channel asking about it recently, and everyone\u2019s response was a little different of course. 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