Oenone: Wonder Women of Greek Mythology

An exploration of Oenone, the wife of Paris and mother of Corythus. She plays a pivitol role in Paris's life and the final days of the Trojan War.

Episode Transcript

(00:17):
Welcome back, murmered Ons to anotherepisode of the Wonder Women of Greek Mythology.
Many of you have expressed your loveand compassion for Anoni, the water
nymph, who was the first wifeof Paris of Troy and the mother of
his only son Corethus, she playsa pivotal role in Paris's life, especially

(00:42):
at the end, and like somany Greek myths, her story is rather
a tragic one. If you're enjoyingthis podcast, then please download and subscribe
to Greek Mythology be Told on yourfavorite podcast platform. It does help others
find me and us as we enjoyexploring the characters behind the Trojan War.

(01:08):
If this is your first time joiningus, Welcome to our world where we
love Greek myths and all Trojan Warrelated stories. I am Janelle Rhiannon,
the writer and host of this podcastand author of The Homeric Chronicles, an
adult Trojan War era retelling series.Let's get started with the Noni. She

(01:33):
might not be the first character thatcomes to mind for most people when they
think of the Trojan War, buther story brings us greater understanding about Paris
and how when prophecies were ignored inthe ancient Greek mythological world, tragedy always
ensued. That's really a concept thatwe can understand even today, isn't it.

(01:57):
We might not use the word prophecyor fate, but we say things
like look for the red flags inrelationships or situations, or listen to that
inner voice, and then human naturekicks in and we promptly ignore the red
flag warnings, thinking we won't fallinto that trap or become that person,

(02:20):
only to glance in the rearview mirrorweeks or months, or heaven forbid,
even years later and think, yes, I should have paid attention to the
red flag waving in my face orlistening to that inner voice of wisdom.
I do see myths as a wayof examining human nature. So perhaps that's
why we see so many Greek charactersin myth completely ignoring flat out warnings of

(02:49):
prophecies, so we can learn tolisten to our internal warning system better known
as our intuition. So back toAnne's care. She not only helps to
find Paris as a figure in theTrojan war landscape, but also serves as
a window into the plight of awoman, albeit a supernatural one, in

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times of ancient warfare. We knowthat Anonie is a nymph, but who
or what were the nymphs exactly?Bear with me because there's a lot of
information about the origin and types ofnymphs. I promise I'm weaving all of
this back to annie Hesio's Theogeny.Fragment one seventy six tells us the Meliai

(03:40):
or Meliades, the first nymphs,sprang from Gaia after the blood of Uranus,
who had been castrated by cronos Will, spilled onto her. From the
heavens. Along with the Meliai orMeliades, Gaya produced the furies and the

(04:00):
gleaming armored giants. Rather a beautifulexpression really of mythological beings, as the
literal embodiment of heaven and earth entwined. The Meliades married the silver race of
men, who lived on the earth'ssurface rather than the air like the golden

(04:21):
race of men, because at thisphase of Greek myth world building there were
no women. The union between theMeliades and the Silver race gave rise to
the bronze race of man, calledthe third generation of mankind. The Meliades

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were fiercely and lovingly maternal beings describedas nursing their sons on the honeysap of
the ash tree and arming them withspears carved from the ash trees. Now
this is like the Pelian ashpeir carriedby Achilles, which was a gift from
his father Pelias. The Bronze racelived only to about a hundred years old,

(05:08):
and they were defiant as a whole, and they refused to worship the
immortals to Zeus's liking. This eventuallyled to their demise in the Great Deluge.
And when you think about it,it's kind of sad. It means
that the nymphs, who were immortalbeings could reproduce with mortals, but they

(05:30):
were producing children that could only liveto be one hundred. So that means
that all of these immortal mothers weredoomed to seeing their children die. They
would be perpetually in mourning. Thisis very much Thetis's story with Achilles,
and you can listen to her episodeafter this one if you like. I

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go into great detail about that Hesiod'stheogny two forty catalogs several classifications of nymphs
emerging from the Melii. There werenymphs who presided over bodies of salt water
like the Mediterranean, who were calledthe Neridis. They were the daughters of

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Nereus, the most famous among thembeing thetus Achilles mother. The nymphs of
freshwater bodies were known as the nads, which is the same kind of nymph
that aenone was. We get thisfrom many sources, from Homer, Apollonius
of Rhodes, and the Ecritus ideals. Many naiadas were believed to have the

(06:35):
gift of prophecy, and mortals whodrank from the springs and rivers they presided
over believed that they were given propheticand oracular gifts as well. This certainly
holds true because we read that anonewas well known for her gift of prophecy
and her skill in the healing arts. From numerous sources, we read that

(06:58):
it was the Oreades who marched overthe mountains and the foothills. What I
find intriguing is that the Oreotes wereconnected with the care of mana ash trees.
The mana or the melli the sapof the ash and the honey meli
from bees were both thought to beambrosial foods gifted by the gods. Mana

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ash trees are found in a verylimited geographical area, encompassing the southwestern coasts
of Europe through Italy, the MediterraneanIslands all the way up the Balkan Peninsula
to western Turkey, which would includethe ancient Trojaz region. The medicinal property

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of the ash trees comes from thesap, or the honey, which is
harvested in its hardened state. Thesap is then supposed to cure various ailments,
including constipation. Pseudo Apollodorus in hisBiblioteca three one fifty four and Lycophron
from Alexandria in the sixty first fragmentconfirm that Enone was known as a healer

(08:07):
and skilled with herbs and natural remediesfor illness and poisons, as well as
being a seer. Although she wasa water type nymph, she may have
learned such healing skills from the Oreotenymphs residing in the region of Mount Ida.
There is the tradition that Rhea gracedAnone with the gift of foresight and

(08:28):
Apollo graced her with the healing arts. But I think it's credible to make
a connection between Enone and other nymphswho may have taught her about herbs and
healing, or at least added towhatever gifts Apollo had granted. The one
thing that all nymphs have in common, regardless of their classification, is that

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they are generally depicted as beautiful youngwomen. And Paris, who we know
first as a judge of beauty andlater as a seducer of Ellan, would
certainly be drawn to a lovely immortalnymph. Pseudo Apollodorus, among other ancient
sources, confirms the paternal parentage ofAnonia's the River Cabron. The Cabron River

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is a tributary of the Commander Rivernear the ancient city of Troy. Anonia
is said to have been born atthe river's headwaters, where it dashed against
the rocks. I envision a gracefuland elegant nymph slipping from the tumultuous,
watery womb of Cabron to climb theslick shore, bare of garments, wide

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eyed and ethereal. This immortal seerand healer would someday meet and marry the
doom bringer of Troy, against herfather's wishes, even after he warned her
that she would suffer a tragic fate. According to the Book of Poets of

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Nicandro's, a Greek poet of thesecond century b C. And the Trojan
history of Kephalon of Gurgatha, whowas actually HESIANIX of Alexandria from the second
or third century b C. Aenonemet Paris when he was tending to his
fox on Ida, which is whyI think there is a connection between Anoni

(10:22):
and the Oreades. I wrote aboutAnone meeting Paris as a young bullherder in
the Song of Sacrifice in chapter eightentitled Cattle Thieves and the Nymph, which
is set in the foothills of MountIda in twelve seventy seven b C.
E. Hello, is someone therebeyond the trees? A bull snorted,

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reminding Paris he must be cautious ifhe wanted to eat supper at the end
of the day. If he gothimself killed, there would be no one
to tell the tale of how hesaved the herd. He shrugged the laughter
off as imagination. Who are you? A melodious voice questioned, as if

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swirling all around him. Paris turnedquickly, catching sight of a woman,
a kind of woman he'd never seenbefore. She was a creature of unparalleled
grace and enchanting beauty, far surpassingany woman he'd seen, more enchanting than
his mother Lexius, who looked likea mother, rounded, sturdy, and

(11:33):
heavy bosomed. This woman, ifshe was indeed a woman, exuited an
otherworldly allure that captivated him. Herhair, long and flowing like cascading water,
shimmered in an ever changing palette ofdark and shadowy hues. Her eyes,

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large and almond shaped, mesmerized theyoung bullherder with their blue green,
reminding him of the tranquil depths ofsecluded forest ponds. They beckoned him to
study her more closely. Her skinwas as pale as the morning light,
a soft and radiant covering that glowedwith an inner luminescence. Who are you?

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Paris pulled his bow from his shoulder, uncertain if the gods were playing
a trick on him for killing thethieves, perhaps intending to draw him to
some heinous punishment. The creature heldup her hand, I am not here
to harm you. The tranquility ofher voice made Paris lower his bow.

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Her delicate hand moved with a fluiditythat mirrored the gentle ripples of a serene
lake. She stepped closer with thegracefulness of a swan gliding on water.
Stop, come no closer. Youhave not yet answered my question. I
am called Enone, she said.Her voice was melodious, sweet and haunting,

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like a song that lulls a fussybabe to blissful sleep. There was
a strange cadence to her speech,like a bubbling brook, quick and smooth.
Hm Aoni, Paris repeated, Whatis your name? Enoni, asked

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Paris, and why do you soundlike like that? Like what? Enone's
quiet laughter was contagious. Paris foundhimself smiling at her. He let his
guard down and lowered his bow completely, sheathing his arrow. What are you?

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Why are you smiling at me?No need to bother with your beau,
Paris. I saw you kill thecattle thieves, but your beau is
no match for me. Paris relaxedhis dance, but kept his eyes on
her. You surprised me. Youmake no noise when you walk. I

(14:13):
should hope not. Nymphs require absolutestealth to keep watch on their trees and
streams. These are my father's lands. Paris looked up and down. You're
a nymph, a wood nymph orwater nymph? Water? Well, where
do you come from? Where theriver Cabron washes over the foothills of the
sacred Mountain? I sprang to life, where the cascading falls make love to

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the rocks. You're a mortal,then, too such questions? Do you
not have cattle to tend? Pariseyed her undeterred. Are you or aren't
you? Yes, I'm immortal andnoney smiled, revealing pearly white teeth.
We nymphs, no man things.But why are you named Paris after a

(15:05):
backpack? Because I was carried fromthese mountains by my father in a backpack.
Paris is as good a name asany other. Anone said, when
you say my name, it soundspleasant, not like my older brothers,
who make it sound like a curse. Well, that's unfortunate, aenone said,
a single tear on his behalf,catching it on the tip of her

(15:28):
delicate finger, it crystallized into asparkling gem. Take this, young Paris
to remember me. Paris suspiciously tookthe unusual token while he contemplated what his
brothers might say or do to himif he showed them the gift. Are
you going to take it or not? Paris. He took the offering and

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put it in his satchel. Yes, this will prove that I met a
nimph. No one believes me whenI tell them my stories, and one
kissed the top of his head.Off with you, then cattle to mind
and stories to tell, I suppose, Paris asked, will I see you

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again? I have no doubt,young Paris, Hero of the fields,
defender of man and beast. PseudoApollodorus, among other mythographers of his time,
agree that Paris eventually took anone towife and away from her father.

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They made a home in the foothillsof Mount Ida, which is where he
tended his herds. Any relationship betweenan immortal and a mortal is going to
be complicated, to say the least. He takes anone away from her routine
and the comforts of how she hadbeen living up until this time, and

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as with all Greek myths, loveand happiness don't last too long. Prior
to all this cozy bliss, thethree goddesses Athena, Aphrodite, and Hera
forced Paris to judge who among themwas the most fair. When Aphrodite won,
she promised Paris the most beautiful womanin the world. If you follow

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my earlier podcasts on the timeline ofthese events, you'll see that Helen wasn't
quite yet born. Check out episodesone through three for a deep dive into
the development of this children war timeline. Okay, back to Annone. Here's
where things get interesting. From theBook of Poets of Nicandros and the Trojan

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War history of Kephalon, we readthat Paris professed his love for Annone quite
frequently, always swearing he would neverabandon her. Sounds like love bombing or
an over compensation for underlying guilt.I see this as evidence that perhaps he
already knows the most beautiful woman inthe world has come in his way at

(18:00):
some point. He just doesn't knowwhen, and is perhaps hoping Aphrodite will
forget or change your mind for thepresent and immediate future. He does love
and knowning, he just has noidea when or how the goddess might compel
him to leave the nymph he genuinelyloves. This is a common theme in

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Greek mythology, a character thinking thatthey can outsmart or flat out deny the
will of the gods. We knowthat eventually he's going to have to face
the fact that he will do whateverAphrodite wants him to do. Annone's gift
of prophecy was both a gift anda curse, which makes me think that

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maybe we only like the idea ofknowing the future when it's a benefit,
like you're going to win a milliondollars or you're going to get the house
you've always wanted. Mostly when weget predictions of bad news, there's the
knee jerk reaction to get upset anddeny it. Anyway, Andoni saw the

(19:06):
bleak future for her and Paris,so she met his enthusiasm with skepticism and
a healthy dose of realism. Sheactually told him point blank that he would
leave her some day for a foreignwoman from the west, and by doing
so, he would bring the doomof his family and city. Of course,

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Paris definitely didn't want that, sohe denies even more vehemently. Andoni
also told Paris that when a futurewar, which of course is the Trojan
War, happened, that he wouldbe wounded and he should seek out her
healing care because only she would havethe power to save him. If Paris

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had already encountered the goddesses and hadthis long hang time until he had to
deal with whatever came. He couldafford a bit of denial, okay,
a lot of denial. That's humannature, isn't it. Deny a painful
truth until you're pushed to the brinkand forced to accept it. Of course,
Paris ignored her warning and was saidto even be offended. Just really

(20:15):
sounds like guilt, doesn't it.In time, of course, Anone would
be proven right, because we allknow that Helen of Sparta would make her
grand entrance on to the Trojan stage. But until that time, Paris and
Aenone lived rather peacefully and happily.They even had a son named Corithus.

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With the birth of a child,both their lives were now entwined in a
forever kind of knought a marriage.Because Anone was an immortal, she would
face the same fate as Thetis,knowing that some day her mortal children would
die and she would mourn them forever. I can only imagine if Thedus's example

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bears any similarity. That Anone spentas much time with Corithis as possible,
perhaps even dreamed of making him immortalShe likely taught him about the natural world
they lived in, and at leastin the beginning, Paris would have been
present. It wouldn't be until yearslater that Anone would send Corithus to Troy

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to live with Paris. Somewhere inthis marital bliss, Paris discovered his actual
identity as the forgotten Prince of Troy, and after this revelation, he began
the process of getting to know hisreal parents, Queen Hecuba and King Priam
of Troy. With his new family, came exposure to a world he had

(21:47):
only ever seen at a distance.He was thrust into the world of Trojan
royalty, fine clothes, gold gems, expensive horses, a luxurious palace.
We can't be sure how exactly hetransitions to living full time in Troy,
but we know he's been there longenough for Priam to entrust him with a

(22:11):
personal quest to speak to Hesione.We can assume that Paris split his time
between his first wife and son andhis new found family, at least for
a while. We don't read anywherethat Aenone was welcomed into Troy. Once
Paris is despatched by Priam as anenvoy to speak with Hesione, Aenone knew

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that what she had foreseen was comingto pass. In the Love Romances of
Parthenius, we read that after Parisreturned with Helen, Aenonian, presumably Corithus
went back to live with her fatherCabron, the river that bore his name,
and the surrounding area. After thedeaths of Hector and Achilles, the

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Greek and Trojans were still fighting,with the skirmishes swinging wildly in favor of
one side and then the other asthe gods intervened. Since this episode isn't
about Paris but Anone, I'll cutto the chase. Paris gets wounded by
the poisoned arrow of Philocleides and rememberswhat Aoni had spoken of years ago.

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Pseudo Apollodorus says that Paris sought outAnone on Mount Ida, but she was
still heartbroken by his abandonment and disgustedby what he'd done to Corithus because of
Helen that she refused to heal him. What happened between Corithus and Helen and
Paris is a whole other episode.Parthenius says that Paris sent a messenger and

(23:48):
Aenone sent back a bitter reply thatperhaps Helen could heal him instead. Either
way, Aenone initially refuses to useher skills to save Paris's life. After
her initial refusal, however, shedoes have a change of heart and goes
to Troy to save Paris, butshe arrives too late he has already died.

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There's a bit of divergence about whathappened to Anone after this. Pseudo
Apollodorus tells us that she hanged herselfafter she found out that Paris had died.
Parthenius says only that she ended herown life Lycophron records that she threw
herself off the ramparts, presumably toher death. Quintus Merneus, in his

(24:40):
Fall of Troy, gives yet anotherversion of Annone's suicide, that she threw
herself into the pyre flames and diedclasping Paris in her arms. All we
can say, then, is thatthe myths, no matter how they diverge,
come back to some version of Annone'ssuicide. It's such an unsatisfying end

(25:03):
to a character who seemed quite purein motive and intention, even naive compared
to Paris. But perhaps that's exactlywhat Anone's story is supposed to represent.
She is the long suffering, patientwife, the same light that Penelope and
Andromaica are bathed in. These threewere juxtaposed with the morally tainted Helen and

(25:27):
Clytemnestra. It's through conversation and timethat we can find the gray area in
between. For me, I seethat the myths are heavily invested in the
God's will being the reason behind everythinggood and bad? Did Paris really have
a choice? Did Anone have togo with Paris from the beginning when she

(25:49):
knew that he would eventually leave her? Why did Paris think that Anone would
care about him after everything he didor allowed to happen. Maybe a love
affairs are not so different from modernones. We all have that one person
we think about when we know weshouldn't. We all have at least one
friend who, despite our warnings,takes the X back and regrets it.

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Love is, after all, complicated. It can be beautiful and uplifting,
but it can also be messy,bittersweet, and tragic. Annoni's life in
the background of the Trojan War landscapehas captivated artists for thousands of years.
Ovid, who was a Latin poetflourishing in Rome and the late first century

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BC and early first century AD duringthe reign of the Emperor Augustus, wrote
about Enone. His works included theHerodes, a collection of poems in the
form of letters from heroines to theirlovers. He wrote a fictional letter from
Aenone to Paris. I did includethis little historical gem and my Greek myth

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series' third book, Rage of Queens, and also in this episode. The
Getty Museum houses a set of woodenpanels painted in fourteen sixty by Francesco di
Giorgio Martini, which ironically adorned anItalian wedding chests, which were often painted

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with mythological themes and characters. Ifound the piece that the Getty Museum houses
to be ironic because of the lovestory of Anoni in Paris, and that
it's tragic and sad. The panelsillustrate Paris gifting the Golden Apple to Aphrodite,
a transaction known as the Judgment ofParis. Another panel shows Anoni carrying

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a beaux, alluding to Paris's futurefatal wound, and on another panel we
see Enone begging Paris not to leaveher as he rides off, ironically on
a white horse. Perhaps the choiceof content was meant to remind the medieval
bride to be patient with whatever longsuffering she might have to endure for the

(28:10):
sake of her marriage. Another artworkthat I came across is by Harriet Hosmer,
who is an American sculptress, andshe made a carving a life sized
carving of Anonie between eighteen fifty fourand eighteen fifty five. It is housed
in the Mildred Lane Kemper Art Museumat Washington University. I suggest that you

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look this piece up online. Itsomehow captures the broken spirit of Annie in
a pure white marble. It reallydoes capture the sorrowfulness of an one's story,
and it's really quite lovely. Thereis a bittersweet lining to Anne's story,
however tragic it ended. She hasbeen immortalized through time in stories,

(29:00):
poems, and artwork, along withother relatively silent heroines associated with the Trojan
War. That brings this episode toits end. If you enjoyed this podcast,
please like and subscribe. I've enjoyedsharing what I've researched about ANNONI with
you. My readers tell me she'sone of their favorite characters in the Homeric

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Chronicles series, which is a Trojanwar retelling of four adults. You can
pick that up at Amazon an ebookor paperback if you're feeling like a nice,
spicy read. Well, that's aboutall for now. Until next time,
drink your wine and be merry.Mrmadan's