Oral medusa

Imagine yourself in a dark chamber, my face concealed behind a terrifying mask. I am Medusa, the Gorgon, the creature with serpents for hair. People fear me, shun me, and my name has been synonymous with terror for centuries. But who am I really? 

Originally, I was a beautiful long-haired woman, my beauty was so remarkable that the sea god Poseidon fell in love with me. He tried to seduce me, but I did not reciprocate, then, he attacked and raped me right inside a Temple dedicated to the goddess Athena. Finding out about this, Athena got furious and was awakened with anger by what had happened within her halls but since she could not punish Poseidon, she punished me instead.
As a result of Athena's punishment, my beautiful long hair turned into a serpent, a terrifying monster that petrified those who looked at it. My two older sisters went to protest against Athena. But sadly, they also got turned into monsters.
Fearing our looks and abilities, my sisters and I, who were supposed to be beautiful, we were named "Gorgons", which means "horrible things". I would turn to stone every man who gazed into my eyes. My reign of terror ended when Perseus tricked me by using a mirrored shield to avoid gazing at me, and he beheaded me. Perseus continued to use my severed head as a weapon before conceding it to the goddess Athena, who attached it to her own shield.

Here's an excerpt from the movie Clash of the Titans that shows the fight between Perseus and Medusa

So, this is one version of the story of Medusa. Indeed, there are various theories as to why she was turned into a monster, but rather than considering her as a victim, the Western imagination will make her a dangerous and repulsive figure especially during the Middle Ages, where Medusa embodies sin and temptation

According to those different versions, Medusa is considered as a monster because of her actions, she is a villain because she did something wrong and got punished for it.

• Firstly, Medusa made a vow to the virgin goddess Athena, that as long as she served her, she would remain a virgin. But, when Medusa willingly entered into an affair with Poseidon, she broke that vow to Athena and offended her. And their affair became much more offensive to the goddess when they decided to have sex in Athena's temple. As a result, Athena unleashed her fury and lashed out at Medusa's disrespect by turning her into a gorgon.
• Moreover, Medusa is portrayed as a seductress. She knew how beautiful she was and used her beauty to her advantage. When Athena found out about this encounter, she turned Medusa into a gorgon to punish her for her pride. In this version of the story, Medusa's actions are referred to as a sin. In this case, sinning is a conscious transgression against a deity. Once an individual has sinned, then the offended deity takes action against the sinner.
• Medusa also represents the notion of "inner monster". Her monstrous side was born because of her actions and arrogance. It reminds us that the monster can reside in each of us, that we are all capable of committing terrible acts if we give in to our worst instincts. It is a warning about the consequences of our choices and behavior. In this sense, her story can be considered as a metaphor of the monstrous aspects of human nature, such as violence, jealousy, anger, or power.

On the other hand, contrary to popular belief, Medusa is a victim rather than a demon.

• The main reason why Athena punished Medusa is that she performed a sexual act within her temple. As a virgin goddess, Athena would have perceived this as an act of desecration, which would explain why she was so angry with Medusa. However, Medusa did not engage in this sexual act willingly because Poseidon raped her. We can make the case that Medusa is here the victim because instead of being protected by her patron goddess, she was punished for being raped in her temple. To further build on Medusa's victimization, after Poseidon raped her, she sought Athena for guidance. If her encounter with Poseidon were consensual, she would not be asking Athena for her guidance.
• Another reason Athena may have punished Medusa is that she could not punish Poseidon. Athena, even if she’s a very influential goddess in Greek mythology, is outranked by Poseidon in terms of status. In these kinds of disputes, the gods tended to have the upper hand as opposed to mortals as well, which also probably contributed towards Athena's verdict.

However, even if we consider Medusa as a victim, she is in fact a Monster by “nature.”

A striking aspect of Medusa’s tale is the rich duality of her symbolism that spans themes of life and death, creation and destruction, aggression and benevolence and it is evidenced in several elements of her story.

A whole poem, written by Shelley was dedicated to medusa’s beauty mixed with terror. With these words Shelley finds something new in the story of Medusa: Not a stoney stare, but a mesmerizing gaze. Not a monster, but a terrifying beauty. Not vice incarnate, but the feminine sublime.

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