In numerous examples of mythology, an initial and primordial female power is supplanted or somehow altered by a male figure. In Hesiod's Theogony, the original supremacy of Gaea is ultimately usurped by Zeus, while in Aeschylus' Eumenides, the primordial power of the Furies is supplanted by the rationality of male law and order. Although this subordination of women reflects the inherently patriarchal nature of ancient Greek and Roman society, it is interesting to note that the primordial female nature can never be completely destroyed by the male, but is instead always incorporated into the new world order. In both the Theogony and the Eumenides, an original and ancient female power constitutes the foundation of male reason and institutions. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original EssayAccording to Hesiod's creation account, Gaea was the first being to emerge from Chaos. Mother of all things, Gaea initially occupied the center of Greek mythology as she populated the universe with her asexual and sexually produced offspring. However, as Gaea's male children and grandchildren began to vie for power, male-dominated succession myths rather than female creation stories became increasingly central. Cronus overthrows his father Uranus, and in turn, Zeus defeats Cronus to become king of the gods. Female goddesses are relegated to the fringes as their actions become increasingly defined in terms of which male they support. As a result, goddesses and their generative powers begin to take a backseat to stories of male rivalry and warfare. Interestingly, as the importance of female goddesses is supplanted by that of male gods, there is a parallel reduction in the primacy of female reproductive power. place. As the Theogony progresses from one generation of gods to the next, reproduction shifts from female-controlled to male-controlled. At first Gaea reproduces asexually to produce Uranus and Pontus, and reproduction is entirely in her power. Then, she has a relationship with her son Uranus, who continuously hugs her and does not allow his children to emerge (Powell 80). Gaea is helpless and can only be saved from her domineering son by Cronus, who castrates his father and frees his mother. Then, Cronus marries his sister Rhea and follows in his father's footsteps by stifling his wife's reproductive power. Swallowing his children as soon as they are born, Kronos can only be defeated when his son Zeus, saved by his mother, forces his father to vomit up all his siblings. Zeus, however, is no better than his father or grandfather; in fact, instead of simply suffocating his wife's generative power, he completely usurps control over female reproduction. When Zeus fears that his wife Metis ("Intelligence")'s future son will overthrow him, he swallows her to prevent her from giving birth to a potential threat. Then, he himself asexually gives birth to Athena from his forehead, just as Gaea asexually reproduced at the beginning of the Theogony. Zeus' "birth" of Athena gives him control of reproduction and completely eliminates the role of the female. At the same time, Zeus' struggle to defend his position as king of the gods brings him into conflict with Mother Earth herself. Although the king of the gods initially enlists the help of his grandmother Gaea, who advises him to ally himself with the Hecatonchires against the rebellious Titans (Powell 87), Zeus ultimately alienates her by killing too many of her descendants. Grandmother and granddaughter become bitter enemies and Gaea sends the dragon Typhoeus to defeat Zeus. However, when he kills Typhoeus, Zeushe also symbolically defeats Gaea and eliminates her as a potential threat. By thus asserting his supremacy over supreme female power, Zeus of Earth demonstrates that the rise of male dominance can only be achieved by stifling the threat of female authority. From then on, Mother Earth figures only in the background of mythology. Telling the story of Zeus' rise to power over Gaea, Hesiod's Theogony highlights the progression from an initial period of female rule to a more patriarchally acceptable institution of male rule. . Although Gaea is initially the creator of all things, the world she creates is eventually divided into three kingdoms possessed and ruled by three male deities: Zeus, Poseidon, and Hades. Likewise, although the Theogony begins with an emphasis on Gaea's generative powers, the focus eventually shifts from this inherently feminine power to the conflict between male generations and the corresponding female loss of reproductive control. In general, as the Theogony progresses, the role of women is gradually relegated to the background. Indeed, before Zeus can firmly establish himself as supreme ruler of the universe, he must first suppress female power, and in particular female generative power: he defeats Typheus, son of Gaea, and swallows Metis to prevent her from giving birth to future competition. eradicating female reproductive power reveals the ancient Greek male's ambivalence, and perhaps even fear, towards this intrinsically and exclusively female capacity. Although women must give birth to populate the world with men, their offspring can also be a source of danger. Therefore, due to the potentially threatening nature of female reproduction, it must be controlled and harnessed by men. That said, it is interesting to note that although powerful females must be subordinated before the “correct” male order can be established, the female can never be completely eradicated. Although Gaea is defeated by Zeus, she is still Mother Earth, on whom all life depends. Likewise, although Metis is consumed, Zeus incorporates her "intelligence" into his own self and in this way is symbolically integrated with the same male power that suffocated her. This theme of female suppression, and yet her eventual incorporation into the male world, continues in Aeschylus' Oresteia (and the Eumenides in particular). Fittingly, the opera begins with a song by the Pythia, the prophetess of the Delphic oracle, linking the story of Apollo's ascension to the position of seer. Although this is a position traditionally held by ancient female goddesses, it was taken over by Apollo, a god of the younger generation. The song of the Pythia prefigures the theme of the Eumenides, which is intrinsically a story of the triumph of male over female and of the new over the old. The story of the Furies, ancient beings who predated Zeus but were overthrown during his rise to power, is in line with this theme. Relegated to a miserable existence underground, the Furies represent all that is primal, violent, and frightening. In stark contrast to the Furies is Apollo, a young god who represents rationality and civilized order. The Furies come into conflict with Apollo for the just punishment of the matricidal Orestes. While the ancient goddesses argue for the precedence of blood ties and therefore call for severe punishment, Apollo insists on the superiority of the marriage bond and thus defends Orestes' right to avenge his father's murder. Here, primal and natural kinship ties stand in direct opposition to the new, civilized institution of marriage, just as the brutal female Furies contrast with the rational male Apollo. Here too the gender dichotomy comes into play.