605. Greek Myths: Jason & The Quest for the Golden Fleece (Part 4)

Episode Summary

Executive Summary: The episode argues that Jason and the Argonauts is both a classic adventure film and a faithful, if selective, adaptation of Apollonius’ Argonautica. It uses the film and the myth to explore how Greek myth evolved in the Hellenistic age, especially under Alexander’s successors, when myth became more self-conscious, scholarly, and contested amid skepticism, astrology, and new forms of belief.

Main Topics: Jason and the Argonauts as film and myth (Priority: 5/5): The hosts discuss the 1963 film’s plot, special effects, cast, and reputation, contrasting its initial failure with its later cult status and its close relationship to the ancient source material. Apollonius’ Argonautica as a Hellenistic reworking of myth (Priority: 5/5): They explain how Apollonius adapted older mythic material into a fast-paced epic, borrowing from Homer, Pindar, Euripides, and others while reshaping the story for a new literary age. Medea, Jason, and the problem of inherited stories (Priority: 4/5): The conversation highlights Medea’s central role, contrasting Apollonius’ version with Euripides’ darker portrayal and showing how later writers had to work in the shadow of earlier canonical treatments. Callimachus vs. Apollonius: literary rivalry and aesthetics (Priority: 4/5): The episode frames the dispute as a clash between highbrow, refined poetry and expansive epic, with Callimachus criticizing Apollonius as derivative and vulgar, like a blockbuster franchise. Alexander the Great and the Hellenistic transformation of belief (Priority: 5/5): The hosts connect the rise of Alexandria, imperial power, and cosmopolitan culture to changing attitudes toward gods, myth, and authority in the post-Alexander world. From myth to mythology (Priority: 5/5): A major theme is the shift from living myth embedded in ritual to mythology as a self-conscious literary and scholarly tradition, which preserves Greek stories for later cultures. Skepticism, astrology, and new religious sensibilities (Priority: 4/5): The episode explores how intellectual skepticism, Euhemerism, Epicureanism, and astrology reshaped ideas of the divine, replacing older civic cults with more abstract or fatalistic systems.

Key Arguments: Jason and the Argonauts is not just a camp adventure film; it is a surprisingly faithful adaptation of Apollonius’ Argonautica, including Talos, the harpies, the clashing rocks, and the dragon’s teeth. Apollonius was not merely copying older myths; he was reworking them for a Hellenistic audience that lived after Homer and after the age of the independent city-state. The Argonautica functions like a prequel or franchise installment, drawing on a shared mythic universe much as modern Star Wars or Marvel stories do. Callimachus’ criticism of Apollonius reflects a real aesthetic divide: refined, allusive, compact poetry versus expansive, blockbuster-style epic. Medea is the key figure in the story, and Apollonius had to negotiate Euripides’ powerful, darker version of her character, which had already become canonical. The Hellenistic age changed the social role of myth: in Alexandria, myth became something studied, catalogued, and reassembled by scholars rather than simply inherited through civic ritual. Alexander’s conquests and the rise of successor kingdoms created a world of megacities, imperial cults, and cosmopolitan uncertainty that made older myths feel both distant and newly adaptable. Intellectual skepticism did not eliminate belief; it produced new forms of belief such as Euhemerism, Epicurean withdrawal, and astrology, each offering a different answer to divine power and fate.

Data Points: Year of film release: 1963 - Jason and the Argonauts was released in 1963. Approximate date of Argonautica: c. 250 BC - Apollonius of Rhodes wrote the Argonautica around 250 BC. Alexander’s death: 323 BC - The episode places the Hellenistic era after Alexander’s death in 323 BC. Philip of Macedon’s victory over Athens and Thebes: 338 BC - Used to mark the end of Athenian independence. Demetrius’ reception as a god in Athens: 295 BC - The hosts cite this as an example of ruler cult in the Hellenistic world. Alexander’s Indian campaign turning point: 326 BC - His troops forced him to turn back at the river Hyphasis. Ptolemaic and Seleucid successor states: 2 major empires - Named as the powerful Hellenistic successor kingdoms after Alexander. Hellenistic period reference: from Alexander to Actium - Cited via Peter Green’s history of the period.

Pivotal Quotes: "the greatest film ever made" — Tom Hanks (quoted by the hosts): Used to describe Jason and the Argonauts, likely with irony, in a tribute to Ray Harryhausen. "what is happening in Alexandria with people like Apollonius is that myth is becoming mythology" — Tom Holland: Summarizes the episode’s central thesis about the transformation of myth in the Hellenistic age. "you cannot properly understand the Greeks without trying to imagine yourself in a world where the gods are the primary actors" — Tom Holland: Explains why modern readers must recover the religious worldview behind Greek myth.

Implications: The episode suggests that Greek myth survives because it became literature, scholarship, and cultural memory. For listeners, it reframes myths as living responses to political change, intellectual doubt, and new forms of power—less dead stories than adaptable frameworks.