3/12/08

Apolonia (Apollonia) is a feminized derivative of the name Apollo. There is no mythical character named Apolonia that I can find. It is, however, popular in current usage.

Apollo is the architypical kouros or beautiful young beardless man. He is the patron of the palaestra, a place where young men gathered to train and compete athletically (naked of course).

Most of Apollo's lovers rejected him in favor of some one else, and suffered because of it. Some were killed accidentally, some were killed in retalitaion against Apollo, some were killed by or for Apollo. All of Apollo's relationships were selfish and exploitive. So he became an example (but not a model to be emulated) of the typical powerful or older man taking advantage of younger men and women. Mythology  is used to explain the way things are, and Greek gods are flawed, thus explaining a flawed world.

LMK

Probably edited for spelling, grammer, punctuation, or typos.