This text incorporates spoilers for collection one in all Kaos.
The Greek myths have been retold and reconfigured many occasions – the Netflix collection Kaos is simply the most recent on this millennia-long custom.
Its creator, Charlie Covell, locations the Greek gods and a collection of human mythological figures in a gift day model of Crete. On this world, the divine and mortal beings work together intently with one another – most frequently with the people coming off worse – simply as they did within the historical Greek accounts.
Covell identifies as non-binary and has acknowledged that one of many causes they’re enthusiastic about Greek myths is as a result of the myths themselves are queer.
Queer folks – those that aren’t what we’d now name heterosexual or cisgender – had been definitely a well-liked subject of dialogue for the ancients. In Metamorphoses, for instance, the traditional writer Ovid discusses a number of such characters.
It’s refreshing, in 2024, to see queer characters as main protagonists in a tv collection like Kaos. Probably the most notable is Caeneus, brilliantly performed by trans actor Misia Butler.
In Kaos, Caeneus is a trans man who has died and is struggling within the gloomy underworld of Hades. He’s robust, however mild – and destined to turn out to be a hero.
Probably the most detailed historical account of the story of Caeneus may be present in Ebook 12 of Ovid’s Metamorphoses. Ovid was a Roman writer who (similar to Covell) retold a centuries-old Greek delusion for his modern viewers.
Probably the most putting distinction between Ovid’s Caeneus and Covell’s character are their origin tales. Ovid tells us that Caenis (or Kainos, which implies “new” or contemporary in Greek) was an exquisite girl. Whereas strolling alongside a abandoned seashore she was raped by Neptune (Poseidon for the traditional Greeks).
Ovid recounts that after the trauma of the rape, Poseidon granted Caenis’ want to turn out to be male. Ovid then vividly tells us of the second of transformation: “She spoke her final phrases in a deeper tone … a person’s voice.” As soon as this occurs, Caenis turns into Caeneus and Ovid makes use of masculine pronouns within the textual content when referring to them from there on out.
Ovid tells us that Caeneus grew to become a well-known warrior, in epic model, and died in a battle with centaurs. Centaurs are used as a metaphor for barbarous behaviour and dysfunction in historical Greek tradition and it’s important that Caeneus is taunted by the centaurs about his feminine origins.
After a fierce defence, Caeneus is ultimately overcome by a gaggle of centaurs and brutally killed. I feel the taunting of Caeneus about his origins may be interpreted as an historical instance of intolerance and that Ovid is signifying that the goading and “deadnaming” (a contemporary phrase for utilizing the identify an individual had pre-transition) of Caeneus by the centaurs is merciless, unsuitable and uncivilised.
Against this, Covell’s Caeneus is born an Amazon (a matriarchal tribe of female-only warriors) and is murdered by them after he transitions. That is an edgy re-imagining for a trans male character. The traditional Amazons are iconic mythological figures and regarded inspirational by many ladies.
The Amazons had been very a lot outsiders within the Greek world. Warrior girls who didn’t conform, they had been thought-about a risk to patriarchy that wanted to be subjugated to keep up order. Greek literature and materials tradition is filled with Amazons being brutally killed by Greek male heroes, reminiscent of Achilles and Herakles.
It’s insightful to have a look at different main reimaginings of Amazons, such because the comic-book character Surprise Girl. Her creator, the psychologist William Moulton Marston, stated in 1943 that Surprise Girl is psychological propaganda for the brand new sort of girl who must be working the world. The feminist Gloria Steinem put Surprise Girl on the quilt of the primary version of her journal Ms in 1972 with the slogan: “Surprise Girl for President.”
Justin Downing/Netflix
Covell’s depiction of the Amazons in Kaos could also be difficult to some feminists. Nevertheless, I don’t assume it must be interpreted as an assault on the inspirational nature of the Amazons for ladies, however moderately as an indication that any homogenous and intransigent society (patriarchal or matriarchal) that doesn’t settle for and respect all people, no matter their gender identification, variety or race, is an unjust society.
Ovid’s queer characters
Ovid’s Caeneus wished to turn out to be a male after being raped. That they had no company to do that and relied on the need of their divine rapist (Poseidon) to realize the transformation. Nevertheless, Misia Butler’s character in Kaos identifies as male and has the company to remodel their very own physique. That is an empowering retelling of the parable for a Twenty first-century viewers.
All through Metamorphoses, Ovid means that gender is one thing that may be modified. In addition to Caeneus, Ovid’s writing options a number of different characters whose genders are divinely remodeled.
In Ebook 9 readers are launched to a different character who might be learn as trans – Iphis. Iphis, we’re informed, was born feminine, however reared as a boy by their mom.
She wished to forestall their father from euthanising a feminine youngster as a result of he couldn’t afford a dowry. Iphis identifies as a person and is betrothed to be married to the lady Ianthe, nevertheless it’s clear that (as Caeneus‘ mom tells him in Kaos) “the shape doesn’t match the content material”.
Iphis realises that he won’t be able to consummate his marriage inside Roman hetero-normative social buildings in the best way that Ianthe is anticipating. In desperation, he and his supportive mom pray to the Egyptian goddess Isis who bodily transforms his physique to male.
These tales replicate Ovid’s personal society and recommend that gender and intercourse have some real-life mutability. What is for certain is that Ovid, similar to Covell, had no points discussing and recounting these mythological life biographies of queer folks, and that LGBT+ folks have been current in all societies, all through time.
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