My Body, My OWN
In response to Indigo’s Art Twist #3, which features Gustav Klimt’s 1907 painting depicting the red-tressed Danaë – imprisoned by her father – being magically impregnated in her sleep by Zeus’ shower of sparkling gold.
Conspicuously absent from this story are Freedom and Consent.
Hers.
Food for thought…
Seldom in mythology from any country do women have the right to consent—or more importantly not to consent. It’s sad but true.
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You are correct. Whether non-consent in these stories is deliberately overlooked, lauded as duty, or romanticized as “passion,” the fact remains. But sometimes it only becomes obvious when baldly stated.
Hi Feve, you are absolutely correct of course. Sometimes it shocks me how my passion for culture can blind me to the obvious. Thanks for adding your voice and your exquisite image to this post. The link hasn’t worked. I can try to add it my end if you wish.
Indie xx
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I just now added the link to your page. 🙂
It’s painted in a romantic light when it isn’t romantic in anyway. Great edit on the photo wit the gold sparkles. Lovely
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EXACTLY. Much of mythology is bent thus, and these types of myths are the precursors to what we now know as fairytales. (Which are also altered and further romanticized. If you want to read some startling violence, the brothers Grimm are your boys.)
And thanks, re: photo. It took me a while to create the sparkles, but I think the overlay worked out well. 🙂
And then along came Disney and made it all even worse!
Love your image though, your boobs look fabulous and the warmth in this image feels like a big warm naked hug
Mollyx
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Walt was… Interesting.
The lighting in my bedroom is soft and warm; it worked well here, I think. 🙂
This is a gorgeous interpretation – the lighting and the scattering of stars is fab but really love the collage of body parts …
Thanks.
I know that image is full of awesome boobs but I love your lips – they mean business!
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That they do. 😉
That works for ms. Nice composition.
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🙂
NO amount of gold compensates for lack of consent.
My thoughts exactly. 🙂
I remember hearing about the impregnation of Danaë in the 1981 film Clash of the Titans as a kid, later reading about it as an adolescent or teenager, and having the same thought regarding consent. Later in life, I worried I had read too much into it or otherwise overanalyzed. I feel very validated to know I’m not the only one who saw it the way I had.
Zeus sat at the head of a pantheon created by (and reflective of) a culture that believed in “rights by power” (meaning: he who is powerful has the right to use that power to take whatever he wants) and who did not place value on women outside of being vessels or chattel. So no, you didn’t read too much into it; I’d say you read it for what it was. Too few people do.
Most couplings of gods with mortals or demigods was rape. Hades taking of Persephone is a more famous example. But this is an extension of the idea that immortals can do what humans cannot–live forever, marry their siblings, and take whomever they want sexually. But that’s the gods. Problem is when humans think fame or celebrity or fleeting earthly power entitles them to the same behavior.
Humans created the gods, so it’s arguable that the latter reflects the true nature of the former, rather than the emulation being vice versa.
Of chickens and eggs.
(Or apples and trees.)
I suppose it’s all a matter of perspective.
Ah yes, the missing element of too many stories.
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Sad but true.
A beautiful arrangement of body and light. I agree with everything that has been stated above regarding consent, power, control etc. However this is where my fantasies and desires clash with what my head tells me right and proper. I guess that is the slave girl in me. Something to write about for me, I think.
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Fantasy is a tricky thing. It can be a safe way to explore desires that, if made actuality, would not be/feel safe at all. When acted out, those typically boil down to negotiated CNC scenarios with trusted partners, which – at heart – still rely on consent. (And still have the potential to go horribly awry.) It’s complicated.
Definitely something to write about! 🙂