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Demonic creatures who feed on the flesh of sailors, protagonists of chivalric romances, and the star of a classic Disney film: mermaids, like the unicorn, have undergone quite the transformation over the past few centuries.
In this episode, we explore the mermaid’s roots in Mesopotamian myths, the Greek sirens of the Odyssey, and how sirens and mermaids were eventually conflated. We also discuss the evolution of the medieval mermaid, who at the start of the Middle Ages is depicted as a vain, unholy temptress—and by the late medieval period, emerges victorious as the protagonist of several chivalric romances.
Our theme song is “Arabesque No. 1” by Claude Debussy (public domain).
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