Fabulous essay Ramya! 👏 Rich and deep and expertly referenced. Will restack.
Your reference to the "there and back again" structure of Homer's and Tolkien's masterpieces of course conjures up Joseph Campbell's analysis of the "hero's journey" motif in so many dramatic works:
"The hero’s journey always begins with the call. One way or another, a guide must come to say, ‘Look, you’re in Sleepy Land. Wake. Come on a trip. There is a whole aspect of your consciousness, your being, that’s not been touched. So you’re at home here? Well, there’s not enough of you there.’ And so it starts."
Thank you so much, Baird, I really appreciate you always taking the time to comment! That quote from Campbell is such a good addition—the point of the journey is to awaken consciousness and is as much a spiritual/inner journey as it is a physical one!
“Most stories are about “there and back again,”- I agree and invariably it is the people whom we care for, love, admire, most of all we miss that draws one to come back to. Very nice poetic writing.
I have been following your writing for quite some time and always admire how versatile your writings and topics are. It connects human experiences with society, weaves it in the context of history , mythology and provoked the reader to think. Great work Ramya! Looking forward to your next week.
Thank you so much, Boo, I always appreciate your sweet comments! It always means so much that you take the time to share your thoughts and engage deeply with my work!! <3
Fabulous essay Ramya! 👏 Rich and deep and expertly referenced. Will restack.
Your reference to the "there and back again" structure of Homer's and Tolkien's masterpieces of course conjures up Joseph Campbell's analysis of the "hero's journey" motif in so many dramatic works:
"The hero’s journey always begins with the call. One way or another, a guide must come to say, ‘Look, you’re in Sleepy Land. Wake. Come on a trip. There is a whole aspect of your consciousness, your being, that’s not been touched. So you’re at home here? Well, there’s not enough of you there.’ And so it starts."
Thank you so much, Baird, I really appreciate you always taking the time to comment! That quote from Campbell is such a good addition—the point of the journey is to awaken consciousness and is as much a spiritual/inner journey as it is a physical one!
“Most stories are about “there and back again,”- I agree and invariably it is the people whom we care for, love, admire, most of all we miss that draws one to come back to. Very nice poetic writing.
I have been following your writing for quite some time and always admire how versatile your writings and topics are. It connects human experiences with society, weaves it in the context of history , mythology and provoked the reader to think. Great work Ramya! Looking forward to your next week.
Thank you so much, Boo, I always appreciate your sweet comments! It always means so much that you take the time to share your thoughts and engage deeply with my work!! <3
The hill I'm willing to die on is Odysseus did have an affair with Nausicaa
I wouldn't put it past that crafty man
(and, given what happens in the Nausicaa episode of Ulysses, I think James Joyce would agree with you)