Recently, I've been thinking a lot about themes common across all stories of the dark, and a few stand out more than most. In particular I've been looking at some of my favourite stories & inspirations through a different lens. This has lead to me viewing the classic tale of Carrie as being very similar to famed greek tragedies. In particular the story of Persephone and her trip to Hades, and how Carrie herself might be viewed as a modern day interpretation of a Persephone. Hell, her entire life is just going from Scylla to Charybdis.
 |
| The moment when I fell in love with Carrie. |
Let's look at some of the similarities, shall we?
First are the themes common to all great tragedy and that can be found in both Carrie and the story of Persephone. Those themes of love, loss and fraught relationships and also the ties of fate.
Starting with love, there is the obsessive love of Demeter trying her damnedest to keep her daughter pure and away from men. This is reflected in perhaps a bit more sinister way in how Carrie's mother uses religion as a means to control Carrie, although part of this is due to Margaret's own weak grip on reality. Loss, well there is plenty of loss in both stories. The loss of Persephone to the underworld is analogous in a sense to how Margaret loses Carrie to womanhood, to life, to the sins Margaret sees in this world. Lastly a quick mention on fate, in the case of Persephone the will of Zeus determines how she is to spend her life, in the case of Carrie, she ultimately accepts her fate and in some versions it is even implied that the curse/powers Carrie had are generational.
First are the themes common to all great tragedy and that can be found in both Carrie and the story of Persephone. Those themes of love, loss and fraught relationships and also the ties of fate.
Starting with love, there is the obsessive love of Demeter trying her damnedest to keep her daughter pure and away from men. This is reflected in perhaps a bit more sinister way in how Carrie's mother uses religion as a means to control Carrie, although part of this is due to Margaret's own weak grip on reality. Loss, well there is plenty of loss in both stories. The loss of Persephone to the underworld is analogous in a sense to how Margaret loses Carrie to womanhood, to life, to the sins Margaret sees in this world. Lastly a quick mention on fate, in the case of Persephone the will of Zeus determines how she is to spend her life, in the case of Carrie, she ultimately accepts her fate and in some versions it is even implied that the curse/powers Carrie had are generational.
Looking at some of the other characters in the tale of Persephone, we find the Lampades and Hekate. The Lampades were said to help Hekate with her nightly haunting. Hekate's work is never explicitly stated to be wholly evil, but she was chief in the fields of witchcraft and communing with spirits of the dead so one can only infer her Lampades too had dealings of a darker nature. Though there is the oft overlooked fact that Hekate actually helped Demeter to find Persephone, by guiding Demeter through the underworld by the light of the Lampades.
 |
| My interpretation of a Lampade. |
So by fire and the words of the dead did the Lampades help Hekate. Something similar is seen in Carrie, by fire and death did Carrie help her friend Sue. This also mirrors the Demeter and Persephone relationship, however in a far darker in a sense.
See, in the novel the opening scene is of Carrie freaking out over her first menstrual cycle ever, the novel ends with Carrie doing *something* that causes Sue to start menstruating as she's comforting the dying Carrie. That mother/daughter relationship between Demeter and Persephone is reflected here as earlier in the book it is heavily implied that Sue is pregnant, thus the lack of her period. In a sense, Carrie did *something* to have the child journey down to Hades. Hades too, for all intent and purposes, is where Carrie needs to go. It is after all the fate of Demeter to we Hades.
These then are a few ways in which the tale of Perspephone and Carrie are alike. It brings up my favourite idea, "Every story that can ever be told has already been told." Reflected in modern times are stories from centuries past. It is a thought that makes me equally happy and sad...
Well, there you have it. Some more of the weird thoughts that inspire me.
-Vengi
These then are a few ways in which the tale of Perspephone and Carrie are alike. It brings up my favourite idea, "Every story that can ever be told has already been told." Reflected in modern times are stories from centuries past. It is a thought that makes me equally happy and sad...
Well, there you have it. Some more of the weird thoughts that inspire me.
-Vengi
No comments:
Post a Comment