Love Medicine

Love Medicine
Detail of beadwork from an Ojibwe medicine pouch

Tuesday, September 11, 2007

Oedipus

I was just wondering why in Greek mythology if someone was cursed their anscesters had to pay the price? It seems kind of unusual for the desendants do the time when their predesesors did the crime/

14 comments:

Thomas Meric said...

i think its just because the gods believed so highly in paying for what you have done that when one person did not obey them they really made him pay for it. I t might also be very embarrasing to have to pay for your ancestor's sins that you wouldnt commit sin without paying the price

Anonymous said...

i think the gods believed that wrongdoing could not be payed for in only one life so the gods look toward's the person who did wrong, ancestors to finish the payback for the crime

Thomas Meric said...

but didnt the gods forgive you once you had suffered/paid penitence therefore releaving their ancestors of bearing his crime.

seelige said...

i agree with thomas and think that the ancestors wanted people to be honest and not commit sin, but if you disobeyed the rules, then your ancestors would see this and you would be punished for your actions

ethan mcraney said...

Oh ok but what about how some people who committed a sin but did not pay for it, instead leaving it for their descendants?

BHidalgo07 said...

Ethan, I think that when someone goes unpunished then they are the selfish person in their family but their descendants learn a really hard lesson to not repeat such selfish acts later on. Like, once the story is told no one else will want to put such a horrible fate on the people who will follow them because they do not want to be remembered like that.

Trevinator said...

Fate in Greek mythology is determined by gods. I don't think ancestors have anything to do what happens to someone. The gods do what they please to whoever they feel like doing stuff to. They have emotions and their mood affects their actions.

ethan mcraney said...

Thanks for the feedback guys and nice name trevor

Thomas Meric said...

in response to brittany's comment: i think that while ancestors really dont want to put such a burden on their future descendants they do anyway when their ego and or self preservation becomes at stake

Clare said...

i think its just like when a dead person dies with a alot of debt, their family has to pay it off. it has to get paid off no matter who pays it.

Jessica Deckard said...

Great comments guys, I especially like what Clare and Brittany said - really insightful.

Trevor, remember that the gods determine fate, but that they make rules and usually abide by those rules in terms of punishment. Yes, your fate is your own, but the misdeeds of an ancestor can be visited on you in terms of your bad fate. Maybe some people just would have had bad fate, but others might have had good fate, but their ancestor messed it up for them.

bkorrapati25 said...

another thing is that the fear of your decendants being punish for your acts is a detterent, and no one wants to be remembered for their mistakes..so it may have prevented alot of crime as well

bweaver said...

i think that is just part of the greek culture and mythology and in that the gods show no empathy to humans and for someone whos ancestors have commited crimes against the gods will surely not get any favors from the gods

Kevin Quizzle said...

its just like in p.e with Coach McGeehan..One kid screws around and the whole group has to run like 10-12 laps. Nice comments B>H and TMer. BH are u saying..I AGRee i was just asking...but are u saying that the person who commits a crime that goes unpunished until he dies..his descendents should be punished to instill the vaalues to never do such a thing again and to teach future generations that the act committed along time ago should never happen again????

This stuff is confusing:.... but that they make rules and usually abide by those rules in terms of punishment. Yes, your fate is your own, but the misdeeds of an ancestor can be visited on you in terms of your bad fate. Maybe some people just would have had bad fate, but others might have had good fate, but their ancestor messe.....