Hermaphroditus
Nadia Matveeva
The media of a culture reflects the views of the dominant group. The dominant group holds the most power economically, socially, and politically, and regardless of the diversity or presence of fringe groups: this group will inform societal views. Hermaphroditus and Atlantiades are thus a product of their culture and its perspective on intersex, transgender, and nonbinary people (hereupon labeled gender variant).
In classical Greek myth, Hermaphroditus is a bisexual divinity, usually the child of Hermes and Aphrodite. When Salmacis jumped on the young boy as he was bathing, she prayed that they would never separate, causing their bodies to fuse and Hermaphroditus to become what is now known as intersex (Morford et al. 294). Hermaphroditus is portrayed as shy and demure, rejecting the advances of his suitors, demonstrating he is not interested in sex or romance (Morford et al., 294).
Atlantiades is a contrasting modern portrayal of Hermaphroditus. They appear in the Wonder Woman comics as a god of love, unions, and lust (Wilson, 18). In this version, Atlantiades stands for the power of desire; their story is a moral about controlling wants for the sake of needs (Wilson). Unlike Hermaphroditus, they choose the things that happen to them. They chose to leave Olympus, help Wonder Woman, and stop the chaos of their town.
Views on gender variant people vary between Greek and Roman cultures. In Greek culture, they were looked upon with eroticism and participated in rituals. The Cybelian cults, eunuchs (castrated men), Agdistis, and the Bacchanalian rites all display an attitude of conditional acceptance or pervasive interest in intersex people (Ortega, 2). Roman culture was not as lenient. In Ovid’s description of the myth of Hermaphroditus, he describes Hermaphroditus’s emasculation in a negative light (Morford, 295). Furthermore, in Rome, to “renounce masculinity was to renounce politics,” and any display of femininity qualified (Ortega, 7-8). Regardless of gender leniency in Greece, in both cultures gender was binary, and life depended on the union between a man and a woman. This cis-heteronormativity is especially clear in the myth of Pandora and the punishment of Hippolytus, Narcissus, and Hermaphroditus (Morford et al). Generally, intersex people were chiefly portrayed in rites and rituals and seldom seen in the same contexts as those who identified with their assigned gender.
In the current U.S., there remains a strong aversion towards gender variant people. Every day, politicians write new laws to discourage the survival of transgender and intersex teens and adults (Legislative Tracker: Anti-Transgender Legislation). Still, fringe LGBTQ+ groups have become more common, along with acceptance of LGBTQ+ people in other contexts. With the rise of the internet came the gradual acceptance of multiple perspectives on sex and gender. Indeed, the internet is the most ubiquitous safe haven for LGBTQ+ individuals today (Austin, 3). Even though the dominant group inordinately believes that gender variant people are unacceptable, more perspectives on sex and gender are becoming permitted in other parts of society.
Media reflects culture, and vice versa. In the story of Hermaphroditus and other myths about gender nonconformity, it’s demonstrated that Ancient Greek Culture had a binary attitude toward sex and gender. Intersex individuals did exist, but narratives often placed them into a third category which was not allowed the same freedom as the categories of “Male” and “Female”. Antiquity had an inherent close-mindedness accompanying its occasional depiction of gender variance. Presently, the rise of the internet and the increasing receptiveness of the public have allowed representations of gender variant people to diversify. Atlantiades is strong, powerful, and a key player in the story, rather than someone who exists as a ritual or a rite. Even so, Greek myth and current media center the same gender roles. Both Atlantiades and Hermaphroditus belong to a gender trinary instead of a natural fluidity, and both stories relied on cis-heteronormative couples to forward their stories. Even professional writing calls intersex characters, "erotic, sensual, and unusual" (Morford et al. 298). Gender variant people are natural (see readings on CAH and AIS), and exist everywhere, whether the dominant group choses to acknowledge them or not. The shift made between Hermaphroditus’ and Atlantiades’ times prove it is possible to change public opinion for the better.
Works Cited
Ashley Austin, Shelley L. Craig, Nicole Navega & Lauren B. McInroy (2020) It’s my safe space: The life-saving role of the internet in the lives of transgender and gender diverse youth, International Journal of Transgender Health, 21:1, 33-44, DOI: 10.1080/15532739.2019.1700202
“Legislative Tracker: Anti-Transgender Legislation Filed for the 2022 Legislative Session.” Freedom for All Americans, 2022, https://freedomforallamericans.org/legislative-tracker/anti-transgender-legislation/.
Morford, Mark, et al. Classical Mythology. 11th ed., Oxford UP, 2019.
Ortega, Christopher E. Transgender and Intersex in Antiquity: Differences in Ancient Greek and Roman Gender Norms through Religion, Rites, and Non-heteronormativity, California State University, Fullerton, Ann Arbor, 2019. ProQuest, https://www.proquest.com/dissertations-theses/transgender-intersex-antiquity-differences/docview/2175734741/se-2.
Wilson, Willow G, writer. Wonder Woman: Love is a Battlefield, Part 1. Vol. 5, no 69. DC, June 2019.
Wilson, Willow G, writer. Wonder Woman: Love is a Battlefield, Part 2. Vol. 5, no 70. DC, June 2019.