In many cases of mythology, an initial, primordial female power is supplanted or altered in some way by a male figure. In Hesiod's Theogony, Gaea's original supremacy 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 feminine nature can never be completely destroyed by man, but rather is always incorporated in the new world order. In the Theogony as in the Eumenides, an ancient and original feminine power constitutes the foundation of reason and masculine institutions. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why violent video games should not be banned”?Get the original essayAccording to Hesiod's creation story, Gaea was the first being to be born from Chaos. The mother of all things, Gaia initially occupied the center of Greek mythology as she populated the universe with her asexually and sexually produced offspring. As Gaea's male children and grandchildren began to vie for power, male-dominated myths of succession instead of 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 margins as their actions are increasingly defined by the man they support. As a result, goddesses and their generative powers begin to take a back seat to stories of male rivalry and war. Interestingly, as the importance of female goddesses is supplanted by that of male gods, a parallel reduction in the primacy of female reproductive power takes place. place. As the Theogony progresses from one generation of gods to the next, reproduction shifts from the control of women to the control of men. At first, Gaea reproduces asexually to produce Uranus and Pontus, and reproduction is entirely in her power. Then she has sex with her son Uranus, who continually kisses her and does not allow his children to emerge (Powell 80). Gaea is helpless and can only be saved from her overbearing son by Kronos, 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, Cronus can only be defeated when his son Zeus, saved by his mother, forces his father to vomit up all his brothers and sisters. However, Zeus is no better than his father or grandfather; in fact, instead of simply stifling his wife's generative power, he completely usurps control of female reproduction. When Zeus senses that his wife's future child Metis ("Intelligence") is going to overthrow him, he swallows it to prevent it from giving birth to a potential threat. Then, he himself gives birth to Athena asexually through his forehead, just as Gaia reproduced asexually at the beginning of the Theogony. Zeus's "birth" of Athena gives her control over reproduction and completely eliminates the role of women. At the same time, Zeus's struggle to defend his position as king of the gods brings him into conflict with Mother Earth herself. Although the king of the gods first calls on the help of his grandmother Gaea, who advises him to ally with the Hecatonchires against the rebellious Titans (Powell 87), Zeus eventually alienates himby killing too many of his descendants. The grandmother and grandson become bitter enemies and Gaea sends the dragon Typheus to defeat Zeus. When he kills Typheus instead, Zeus symbolically defeats Gaea and eliminates her as a potential threat. By thus asserting his supremacy over ultimate female power, earthly Zeus demonstrates that the rise of male dominance can only be achieved by stifling threatening female authority. From this point on, Mother Earth only figures in the background of mythology. By telling the story of Zeus's rise to power over Gaea, Hesiod's Theogony highlights the progression from an initial era of female domination to a more patriarchally acceptable institution of male domination. . Although Gaea is initially the creator of all things, the world she creates is ultimately divided into three kingdoms owned and ruled by three male gods: Zeus, Poseidon, and Hades. Likewise, although Theogony begins with an emphasis on Gaea's generative powers, the focus ultimately shifts from this inherently feminine power to conflicts between male generations and the corresponding loss of female reproductive control. Generally speaking, as the Theogony progresses, the role of women is gradually relegated to the background. Indeed, before Zeus can firmly establish himself as supreme sovereign of the universe, he must first suppress feminine power, and more particularly feminine generative power: he defeats Typheus, the offspring of Gaia, and swallows Metis to prevent it from giving rise to future competitions. The eradication of female reproductive power reveals the ambivalence, and perhaps even fear, of ancient Greek man toward this intrinsically and exclusively feminine capacity. Although women must give birth to populate the world with men, their offspring can also be a source of danger. Thus, due to the potentially threatening nature of female reproduction, it must be controlled and exploited by men. That said, it is interesting to note that although powerful women must be subordinated before the "correct" male order can be established, womanhood can never be completely eradicated. Although Gaea is defeated by Zeus, she remains Mother Earth, on whom all life depends. Likewise, although Metis is consumed, Zeus incorporates her "intelligence" into his own self and in this way she symbolically integrates herself with the same masculine power that stifled her. This theme of female suppression, and yet its eventual incorporation into the male world, continues in Aeschylus' Oresteia (and the Eumenides in particular). Fittingly, the play begins with a song from the Pythia, the prophetess of the Oracle of Delphi, who tells 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 foreshadows the theme of the Eumenides, which is intrinsically a story of the triumph of the male over the female and the new over the old. The story of the Furies, ancient beings predating Zeus but overthrown during his accession to power, fits into 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 over the legitimate punishment of the matricidal Orestes. While the ancient goddesses advocate the precedence of blood ties and thus call for severe punishments, Apollo insists on the superiority of the marital bond and thus defends the right of Orestes to avenge the murder of.