09/07/2017

“All began on the day of violence”. In The Iliad death is aesahetised, romanticised.

From one side the women who call for peace, they are the reasonable and represent what we later called the enlightenment. On the other side, the men who could be considered romantics (and as such whose existence is dramatic through the constant struggle for freedom). That freedom could be considered as freeing themselves from their mortality, daily constraints placed upon them,etc. Through disappearing on the battlefield and thus claiming glory, they can become immortal. This is most certainly the case with Achilles, who consciously decides so. Nevertheless, the ancient heroes don’t want to die, they postpone the battle through the never ending discussions, calling one another and calling forth the names of their fathers and forefathers. Eventually, they perish. This is the myth building function of the Iliad. It is how it is connected to the Tears of Iblis, “whatever is lost returns to god”. Nothing is lost when it becomes part of the myth, the history.

In such way the crystal beach is connected to the mythical crystal cities of the medieval literature, Troy was one of these cities ( Le Roman de Troy, Benoit de St Maure ), so was Jerusalem. In the former the Alabaster Chamber is made of crystal too, and holds many secrets and riches. A crystal beach is a kind of place from a fairy tale too.