PunkTheFunk 124,362 Posted June 4, 2017 Share Posted June 4, 2017 Do you wanna see the girl who lives behind the Aura? I'll set the scene: it's a Sunday afternoon, I'm gay, and I have no life. I'm reading up on references to Greek mythology in the album of the decade ARTPOP (Venus, Himeros, Apollo and Daphne on the cover, etc.) and am SHOOK to find out that Aura was a figure in Greek mythology as well (I'm guessing I'm the last one to find this out? ) She's depicted in The Birth of Venus: "At the [top] left the wind god Zephyr blows at [Venus], with the wind shown by lines radiating from his mouth. He is in the air, and carries a young female, who is also blowing, but less forcefully. Both have wings. [Giorgio Vasari - Renaissance painter and writer] was probably correct in identifying her as "Aura", personification of a lighter breeze." Her story is told in Dionysiaca, an ancient Greek epic poem by Nonnus of Panopolis: Aura was a "mountain maiden" who hunted on the foothills of rocky Mount Dindymon. She was "unacquainted with love" (i.e. a virgin). "Often in hunting she ran down the wild bear, and sent her swift lance shooting against the lioness, but she slew no prickets and shot no hares". She was known as the "Windmaid" because she could run "swiftly, keeping pace with the highland winds." One afternoon after hunting, Aura rests on some grass and falls asleep, and she has a prophetic dream of "wild Eros" (the mischievous god of Love; twin brother of Himeros, god of sexual desire; and son of Aphrodite) hunting wild beasts. As Eros hunts, Aphrodite wanders around and laughs, and Aura is standing there, carrying Eros's quiver (the bag that holds arrows) on her shoulder like some personal assistant "Eros went on killing the beasts"; he then catches a lioness alive with a cestus* and drags the beast away to show his mother Aphrodite. Eros bends his knee before Aphrodite, and cries loudly, "Garlanded mother of the Erotes! I lead to you Aura, the maiden too fond of maidenhood, and she bows her neck. Now you dancers of lovestricken Orkhomenos, crown this cestus, the strap that waists on marriage, because it has conquered the stubborn will of this invincible lioness!’ [According to "A Dictionary of Greek and Roman Antiquities", a cestus is the name of a marriage-girdle (a belt) given by a newly married wife to her husband. Unlawful marriages were therefore known as incestae ] Aura wakes up from this dream pissed af And understandably so, since the very douchey Eros draws parallels between the lioness he caught and Aura (an independent woman with a stubborn will, who is proud of her virginity and the fact that she doesn't need a man), saying "Look mom, I just dominated/conquered her! She's all mine now!" The rest of Aura's story is not very pleasant: she starts some beef with Artemis (goddess of the Moon and the hunt), who seeks revenge on her with the help of Nemesis (goddess of revenge) and Eros. Eros makes the wine god Dionysos fall madly in love with Aura, and in turn Dionysos rapes her (this is perhaps what Aura's dream was prophecizing). The rape "drives Aura to madness" and she becomes a violent and cruel killer of men. Dionysus impregnates her with twin sons; when they're born Aura swallows one whole and then throws herself into the sea. I can't help but notice themes from Aura's story throughout ARTPOP, particularly in the first three songs: 'Aura' - the myth's namesake + "I'm not a wandering slave, I am a woman of choice" + the veil as a symbol of chastity The obvious reference to Aphrodite in 'Venus'; and G.U.Y, with references to Himeros (brother of Eros, "Son of Aphrodite") + themes of domination/submission - "I don't need to be on top to know I'm worth it 'Cause I'm strong enough to know the truth...I'm in charge like a G.U.Y." If you take another look at the G.U.Y video, you could argue that Gaga is directly portraying Aura: The winged goddess with long, flowing hair, similar to her depiction in The Birth of Venus... ...the 'lioness', shot down and conquered by men ...the bow and arrow/"huntress" imagery ...and the revenge - Aura taking on her final form as "a violent and cruel killer of men" Now, do I think Gaga read the myth of Aura and decided "hey, I'm going to secretly structure this whole album around her?" No The stories she tells in ARTPOP don't fit neatly into Aura's narrative. But I do think she came across this story at least once, drew some parallels between Aura's situation and hers, and took some inspiration from it. It's just too perfect to be a coincidence. What do you think? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hi Its Nicole 5,428 Posted June 4, 2017 Share Posted June 4, 2017 Omg this gif Hello Gaga Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
ANVEEROY 61,065 Posted June 4, 2017 Share Posted June 4, 2017 Stream Kylie-Janet Discographies! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brie Candy 18,642 Posted June 4, 2017 Share Posted June 4, 2017 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
SlayGagaloo 16,152 Posted June 4, 2017 Share Posted June 4, 2017 SHOOKETH We need a funny thread though Over. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Antoni 5,332 Posted June 4, 2017 Share Posted June 4, 2017 15 minutes ago, PunkTheFunk said: 'Aura' - the myth's namesake + "I'm not a wandering slave, I am a woman of choice" + the veil as a symbol of chastity The obvious reference to Aphrodite in 'Venus'; and G.U.Y, with references to Himeros (brother of Eros, "Son of Aphrodite") + themes of domination/submission - "I don't need to be on top to know I'm worth it 'Cause I'm strong enough to know the truth...I'm in charge like a G.U.Y." If you take another look at the G.U.Y video, you could argue that Gaga is directly portraying Aura: The connection is insane. This is gold. You are brilliant. Adding to the Aura narrative, the HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA ss in the song came to mind when I read that the goddess Aura went mad. Those laughs sound like someone who has lost their mind. My name isn't Timmers Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
heygirl 842 Posted June 4, 2017 Share Posted June 4, 2017 shook won't begin to describe my feelings rn. i just saw aura as an opener to the album. do you wanna see the girl behind the aura? and then she proceeds to unravel herself a layer at a time throughout ARTPOP, covering sex, fashion, and drugs. which are all parts of that lyric. i thought it made so much sense to have it as an opener, but good researching!! love to see how involved gaga is with her artistry. be kind guys Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Duella Dvil 10,419 Posted June 4, 2017 Share Posted June 4, 2017 ARTPOP DESERVES BETTER!!! SO MUCH THOUGHT ACTUALLY WENT INTO THIS ALBUM AND IT GOT SO LITTLE IN RETURN www.instagram.com/theduella666 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
LadyLuca 2,541 Posted June 4, 2017 Share Posted June 4, 2017 Her ARTPOP could mean anything Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pictures 363 Posted June 4, 2017 Share Posted June 4, 2017 I love greek mythology and all this makes sense Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tomiel25 2,111 Posted June 4, 2017 Share Posted June 4, 2017 You are the original little detective i can't speak english but i can if you like Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gagaplayer315 13,929 Posted June 4, 2017 Share Posted June 4, 2017 Another brilliant thread Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dayman 6,148 Posted June 4, 2017 Share Posted June 4, 2017 I think that the connection is a tad forced and maybe not the true intent of the song. But I do think it is amazing that these connections were made at all and it adds to the overall appeal of the song and theme of the album. So good job! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
PunkTheFunk 124,362 Posted June 4, 2017 Author Share Posted June 4, 2017 2 minutes ago, Dayman said: I think that the connection is a tad forced and maybe not the true intent of the song. But I do think it is amazing that these connections were made at all and it adds to the overall appeal of the song and theme of the album. So good job! Completely agree with you - I don't think Gaga wrote the song 'Aura' with only the myth in mind. The song is clearly about her own experiences. But I do think that she was inspired by the myth on some level. Like I said, it just feels too close to be a coincidence. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lion Heart 15,041 Posted June 4, 2017 Share Posted June 4, 2017 If only she didn't BUTCHER the album version of Aura... ▀▄▀▄▀▄▀▄▀▄▀▄▀▄▀▄▀▄▀▄▀▄▀▄▀ Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Featured Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.