Tuesday, November 19, 2013

Jason and the Golden Fleece

Jason, a deposed king’s son, grows up and decides to reclaim the thrown from Pelias. However, first he has to retrieve the Golden Fleece from Colchis. Jason assembles a group of heroes to help him. They sail away on a ship named Argo and they call themselves the Argonauts. On the way to Colchis, the Argonauts overcome many obstacles; one of which is sailing through gigantic rocks that try to smash ships. After passing through this, they arrive at Colchis where even more trials await them. The king of Colchis, Aetes, demands that Jason complete two tasks which are designed to kill him. Aphrodite helps Jason and sends Cupid to make Medea (Aetes’ daughter) fall in love with Jason. The first challenge he faces is to yoke two bulls that breathe fire and have hooves of bronze. Medea gives Jason an ointment that makes him invincible. Jason’s second challenge is to plow a field with the fierce bulls and plant dragon’s teeth which causes armed men to spring out of the earth and attack him! For this, Medea helps Jason by telling him to throw a rock in the middle of the men. This will make the men attack each other and not him. Aetes decides to just kill Jason in the middle of the night, but Medea interjects again. Medea helps Jason to steal the Golden Fleece by putting the dragon that guards it to sleep. They and the Argonauts flee from Aetes. Medea and Jason make it back to Greece safely and have two children. Then Jason decides to leave Medea for another woman. In an act of revenge, Medea sends their two sons with a magic robe to Jason’s bride. When the girl puts on the robe, it bursts into flames killing both Jason and his bride. Then Medea kills her two sons.


A story of revenge: The unfolding of World War I because a Serbian nationalist assassinated Archduke Ferdinand. 




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