Philomel means lover of song. In classic literature and prose, philomel was substituted with the nightingale. William Shakespeare, for example, employed the nightingale, or even philomel, at least 33 times in his plays and sonnets as symbols of song, grief, and trauma. Its’ origins trace back to Greek and Roman mythology; of how the gods created the nightingale.
It is a tragic story, and like many Greek and Roman mythologies, is racked with violence, sexual violence in particular. This story contains such tales. There are several versions of the myth, I learned, and over the ages this story has been reinterpreted in prose and art.
The story I still thing resonates today, Greek and Roman Gods were powerful beings, they not only abused their powers to indulge their thirst for vengeance and lusts but also silence their victims. They also had soft spots and intervened at the last second in supposed acts of generosity and kindness. Today we have powerful men who use their money and office to silence victims.
The story of Philomela is one such example. Philomela was the younger sister of Pronce who was married to Tereus, the king of the Thracians. Philomela’s voice was considered beautiful, like a birds song. Tereus developed an obsession for Philomela. He raped her, and to stop her from telling his wife much less anyone else, cut out her tongue. Philomela, however, used her master weaving skills to make a purple robe or shawl with hidden messages of the rape. Through the symbols woven into the shawl or robe, Pronce learned of the rape, and in a rage killed her (Pronce’s) and Tereus’ son, cooked him, and served him to Tereus.
When Tereus found out, he raged, grabbed an axe, and chased Philomela and Ponce out of his palace, intending to murder them. He caught up with them, but, at that point, before he killed them, the Gods turned all three into birds. Ponce became a swallow, Philomela a nightingale, and Tereus a hoopoe, a very orangey, colorful bird known for its feathered crown.
Over a week ago, news media reported that E. Jean Carroll, was being investigated by the Department of Justice for perjury. Carroll, famously sued Trump for defamation a few years ago, and won a $83.3 million settlement. The civil jury found that Donald Trump sexually assaulted her in a department store dressing room in New York City. The judge called it rape. Trump has appealed the civil courts verdict, asking that the settlement be set aside. It sits before the Supreme Court today.
You can smell the corruption all the way from Illinois and the White House. Trump, as President, presides over the Department of Justice. The acting Attorney General is a former attorney for Trump. The Trump appointed U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois, Andrew Bourtos, is overseeing the investigation. As a side note he is an alumnus of UVA law school.
As the fate of the civil case and judgment against Trump rests before the Supreme Court, Trump is using the Department of Justice to ‘cut out the tongue’ of E. Jean Carroll. She is today’s Philomela. It is outrageous. It is also meant, I think, to silence victims of Epstein and his many friends from coming forward.
Trump is a vile and heinous man and thinks nothing to use the full weight of his immense presidential powers, both legal and illegal, to go after and silence his accusers. He fancies himself a deity. Congress and the Supreme Court have allowed him to be a king and deity.
He needs to be turned into a hoopoe, orange feathered crown and all. A massive turn out this November will effectively turn him into a flightless Hoopoe of sorts. The Greek and Roman gods did have a sense of humor, however. Perhaps they would turn Trump into the Dodo bird or better yet a fluffy-backed tit-babbler or a blue-footed booby.
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