Storytelling Week 3: Arachne Weaves a Web

Minerva began to weave, depicting Troy upon a hill with the battles raging beneath. Brave Achilles runs through the battle, arrows ever searching for his heel. Noble Hector runs out to challenge him but will find only death in this decision. Further down she shows Odysseus, lost for so long at sea. His boat approaches an island covered in hulking cyclops. At the corners are the Gods, with royal Jupiter looking down over the struggles of common men.

Across the room, Arachne's work is coming together, though it doesn't appear as a typical tapestry. There are depictions of heroes or great battles; instead, the tapestry seems oddly translucent, as though the thread she used were thin enough to rip right through. As she progressed further and further in her weaving, Minerva noticed and began to grow confident. Though the material itself was incredible, it was undeniable that the scenes up on Minerva's work were far superior to those Arachne.

Finally time in the hour glass had run out, and it was time to compare the two works of art. Minerva began, showcasing the vibrant colors and incredible landscapes she had created. All in attendance agreed that it was certainly the most impressive weaving they had ever seen. Upon hearing this Minerva grew even more confident, knowing that she truly was superior to Arachne.

Then it was Arachne's turn. She pulled her weaving out, and the crowd looked on, confused. "Why, there's nothing on there!" said Minerva in glee. "You have to get closer," replied Arachne, "the silk is so very fine that you can't see it all from a distance.

And so Minerva moved closer, until her face was nearly touching the tapestry, and yet still she could not make out the designs. "You are nothing but a fake," declared Pallas Minerva, just as the tapestry suddenly rushed towards her, then over her, and finally around her. Suddenly Minerva found herself wrapped within the weaving, unable to escape. Though the material looked thin to the eyes, it was very strong and very sticky. The more she struggled the more entangled she became. "What is this travesty?!" she screamed. "I have had enough of your meddling in my life," replied Arachne, "maybe this time you will learn your lesson about messing with humans whenever you feel like it." And with that Arachne departed, and Minerva was left to scream and struggle, caught by the web of Arachne.

Author's Note: In the original story they offer quite a bit more detail for the actual weaving of the tapestries but I didn't have the Greek mythological background for that. The original version of this story is a classic example of Gods putting mortals in their place for perceived slights. Minerva challenges Arachne to a competition and loses. She is unwilling to accept this, and ultimately destroys Arachne's tapestry and attacks. Arachne can't stand this and decides to hang herself. Before going back to Olympus, Minerva changes her into a spider. This plotline occurs all throughout Greek mythology, as mortals are constantly doing one thing or another to anger Gods. I decided to put a twist on this. I don't like the idea omnipotent beings just fiddling around in mortal lives, so I put the twist on it to change that and make Arachne the one to defeat Minerva. The image is obviously just a picture of Arachne, though it's supposed to be her as part-spider. I chose this spider because Minerva is one of my favorite Greek gods and I had never actually heard the story of Arachne. I hope readers take from this story the idea that an individual with one special talent can do quite a bit, even against a person that seems incredibly powerful.

Minerva Weaves a Web

Ovid's Metamorphoses, translated by Tony Kline (2000) 

Arachne working on her web.

Week 1 Storytelling: The Old Lion and the Fox

       Once there was a very Old Lion who was too old to hunt food, as he had in his younger days. It was winter, and he found himself becoming sick. Knowing he would surely die without food to help him combat his illness, the Old Lion invited all his neighbors to come to his cave and talk to him. One by one they went, and one by one they disappeared.

      

The Fox was very wary of the Old Lion, and he refused to get to close to his cave when he went to visit. “Come closer,” said the Old Lion, “I can’t hear you from there.” But the Fox refused, not wanting to disappear like all of the other animals. He returned back to his home, and tried to wait out the winter. Colder and colder it grew, until finally the Fox was stuck in the freezing cold all the time. He grew sicker and sicker.

One day, knowing he would soon die, the Fox went back to visit the Old Lion. To his shock, the Old Lion was no longer sick. In fact, he looked healthier than ever. “How have you recovered?!” exclaimed the Fox, “you are so old and I am young!” “Who is that out there?” the Fox heard from behind the Old Lion, inside the cave. Suddenly, the pink face of his neighbor Pig popped out of the cave, followed by the dusky face of Raccoon, whom he used to share food with.

“There you are Fox!” shouted Raccoon, “we were afraid you had died, why didn’t you come into the warmth with us?” “You mean the Old Lion didn’t eat you?” replied Fox. Pig looked confused, “Of course not! He offered all our neighbors the chance to share the warmth of his cave in exchange for bringing him food. We’ve all been doing great.” Then, finally, the shock of seeing his friends alive and the depth of sickness was too much, and with one final sigh, Fox died.

Strife can bring together strange friends.

The Fox and the Old Lion

Author's Note: In the original version of this fable, the Old Lion actually is eating all of the neighbors, and the lesson is to take warning from the bad things that occur to other people. The Fox sees footprints going into the cave but not coming out, and comes to the conclusion that misfortune has occurred for his neighbors. He's right, because the Old Lion has been eating all of the neighbors. I wanted to mix things up by actually making him appear paranoid instead of showing common sense. Instead of having the Old Lion eat the neighbors, he had been letting them into his home all along in exchange for collecting food. This story is part of series of stories involving the Old Lion, who previously had actually been a younger Lion going through other experiences. I think it's interesting because the Lion is sort of gaining in cunning throughout the stories, so this is the culmination of all that. I chose the image above because I thought it was kind of amusing. It makes me think of the Fox outsmarting the Old Lion and sort of sticking out his tongue at him. It doesn't fit my story quite right but I think it fits the original one very well. 

Bibliography: Aesop for Children, by (anonymous), illustrated by Milo Winter (1919)

Image Information: http://mythfolklore.net/aesopica/milowinter/55.htm