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purple motes

Artifacts to help you imagine more.

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Highlights

  • Abelard castrated
  • Byzantine wife saves husband
  • Amphitryon & Geta duped
  • Chastelaine de Vergi tragedy
  • Aristotle’s advice to Alexander
  • Empress Theodora: woman leader
  • Tristan & Isuet
  • Xanthippe & Socrates
  • New Modern Sexism Scale

Digenis Akritis

Digenis Akritis (alternately transliterated variously, including Digenes Akrites) is a medieval poem written in Greek in Byzantium. The first part, the “Lay of the Emir,” is a biography of Digenis’s father. The second part is a biography of Digenis, named in total Basil Digenis Akritis the Frontiersman. The poem is set about the tenth century on Cappadocian borders separating Byzantines from Arabs and includes elements of Arabic culture. Surviving manuscripts of the poem vary significantly. One of the earliest manuscript versions, known as the Grottaferrata version, was probably written in the mid-twelfth century in Constantinople. The various versions of the poem are written in blank (political) verse in the common Greek of Byzantium.

Grottaferrata Digenis Akritis: self-consciousness under gynocentrism

Digenis Akritis, particularly the Grottogerrata version, can be adequately appreciated only with sympathetic understanding of men under gynocentrism. … Read the post Grottaferrata Digenis Akritis: self-consciousness under gynocentrism

Amazon Maximou ultimately failed in gambit for women’s privilege

Along with killing many men, Digenis Akritis killed the Amazon warrior Maximou after her gambit for women’s privilege and sex. … Read the post Amazon Maximou ultimately failed in gambit for women’s privilege

Digenis regretted being bigger jerk in response to woman loving jerk

In the 12th-century Byzantine epic Digenis Akritis, Digenis vacillated between acting like the bigger jerk and living separately from gynocentric society. … Read the post Digenis regretted being bigger jerk in response to woman loving jerk

Digenis Akritis shows Byzantine matriarchy devaluing men’s lives

The Grottaferrata version of the Byzantine epic Digenis Akritis can help women and men to recognize damaging patterns in the mother-son relationship. … Read the post Digenis Akritis shows Byzantine matriarchy devaluing men’s lives

damsel instructed hero on how to slay dragon

Unlike the Byzantine epic hero Digenis Akritis, Kallimachos needed instruction from Chrysorroi in slaying a dragon in a Byzantine romance parody. … Read the post damsel instructed hero on how to slay dragon