Today the effort to stop Trump by Republican candidates and the Party and by Democrats might be like the effort to get rid of the Medusa in Greek mythology. Medusa, for those who don't recall their Greek myths from high school, is one of the evil Gorgon sisters, and she was so fearsome, that she could turn all who came into her presence into stone. Then, along came Perseus, who cut off her head, and from her blood came the birth of Pegasus, the winged horse, which Bellerophon rode on when he shot an arrow to killed the Chimera, another monster comparable to Trump. For Trump can be compared to many different monsters, because he changes himself and his positions, like a chameleon who changes to match its colors to the environment. I've also described two such comparisons in previous posts: Is Trump a Chimera and Trump and the Monster Myth Mash.
In any case, this is another myth about monsters that seems like a perfect fit with Trump. As the story of Medusa goes , Medusa, along with her sisters, lived in a faraway place towards the night, and Medusa was an especially formidable foe, since her hideous appearance turned any onlooker into stone. In some versions of the myth, she was born a monster like her sisters, and as such, she was encircled by serpents with vibrating tongues and huge wings, claws, and teeth. In later versions, mainly from Ovid, Medusa was the only Gorgon with snake locks, as a punishment from Athena because of Medusa's liaison with Poseidon, the god of the sea.
A comparison of Trump with Medusa certain fits. Among other things, his life in a faraway place at night might be comparable to his jet style, lavish life in New York and his travels all over the world in his private plane. Plus, he is a formidable candidate to take on, because he quickly cracks down on whoever opposes him, whether by words or lawsuits, such as in his attacks on Megyn Kelly for standing up to him in a debate, his suit Univision when they decided not to broadcast the Miss America and Miss Universe Pageants owned by Trump, and his suit against restauranteur Jose Andres when he cancelled plans to open a restaurant in Trump's new hotel, because Trump he accused Mexicans of being rapists. Plus Trump has decimates the other Republican candidates one by one with his personal attacks and by getting legions of voters to turn away from them and vote for him. Then, too, his blonde wig might be compared to Medusa's wild snakes' locks, and perhaps his earlier flings with numerous beautiful women and two earlier marriages might be compared to Medusa's liaison with Poseidon.
In any event, Perseus ended up confronting Medusa after Polydectes, the king, sent him on a quest to bring him her head, since Perseus didn't want the king to marry his mother, because he thought Polydectes was dishonorable. So Polydectes sought to trick Perseus by holding a large banquet to collect contributions for his marriage to Hippodamia, who tamed horses. He asked his guests to bring horses for a gift, but Perseus didn't have one and offered any gift the king wanted. That's when Polydectes asked Perseus to bring him the head of Medusa with a view to disgracing and getting rid of Perseus.
However, Perseus succeeded with the aid of divine gifts, including a reflective bronze shield from Athena and a helmet of darkness which gave him invisibility from Hades. Then, with the help of the gods, he found the Gorgons' cave and killed Medusa by beheading her while she slept. After that, he put her head in a bag so no one would be turned to stone by her still strong gaze, and brought it back to the king. But along the way he used Medusa's head to turn some others who angered or opposed him to stone, too, such as Atlas, and once at the palace, he turned the king and his whole court to stone, too, and eventually he gave the head to Athena, who put it on her shield and breastplate.
So who might be the modern day Perseus to slay the Trump Medusa or use the threat of his fearsome gaze or legion of followers to get others to join the battle against him? Well, one possibility is John Kasich, who beheaded Trump's effort to win the vote in Ohio, or Ted Cruz, who has headed off Trump's quest for votes in several other states. Or maybe Hillary might play the role of Perseus if the others can't defeat Trump. Or perhaps with some help from the Republican Party gods and their magical juggling of the votes of the delegates, that might help to slay the Trump Medusa while he sleeps, thinking all is still well.
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Gini Graham Scott, PhD, writes frequently about social trends and everyday life. She is the author of over 50 books with major publishers and has published 30 books through her company Changemakers Publishing and Writing. She writes books and proposals for clients and has written and produced over 50 short videos through Changemakers Productions and is a partner in a service that connects writers to publishers, agents, and the film industry. Her latest books are Scammed, Lies and Liars: How and Why Sociopaths Lie and How to Detect and Deal With Them, and The New Middle Ages: How the Growing Inequalities Between Rich and Poor Threaten Our Way of Life.