και συ, τεκνον; Аргументьі и Фактьі.
"But the liberal deviseth liberal things; and by liberal things shall he stand."
—Isaiah 32:8

Saturday, May 28, 2005

Her name is Silvia


Silvia Posted by Hello

Janna first suggested it, but I like it too much to pass it by. Of course, Silvia is Latin for "born in the woods," which I assume she was. Also, Rhea Silvia was a figure in Roman mythic history whose father, Numitor was deposed by her uncle, Amulius. She was saved the fate of her brothers (death) by virtue of her femininity, which secured her a lifetime appointment as a Vestal Virgin. Of couse, once again, the rota fortunae turned against her and she found herself pregnant by the god, Mars. He did help her escape, she did manage to leave her children in a basket (à la Moishe) by the Tiber river from whence they were taken and reared by a lupa, Latin for a she-wolf or a prostitute, as Pliny points out.
Well, from that point in the story we don't really know whether she was buried alive, the punishment for pregnant Vestal Virgins, or if she somehow escaped to live a better life. It seems to me there is some symbolism here, but I know I definitely want to spell her name with an "i" instead of a "y".

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