#Marlon Brando-Hephaistion | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

jeannereames · 8 months

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Hello, Dr. Reames!

I was thinking and meditating a lot about Hephaistion these last days, and I also thought about the Hephaistion you wrote in your duology (which I love very much); I came to the conclusion of something and it is something Hephaistion would say/sing if he had heard this, quote:

"Yeah, my boyfriend's pretty cool But he's not as cool as me"

it is a verse from the song 'Brooklyn baby' by Lana del Rey, it fits perfectly with Alexander and Hephaistion! Yes, it's true that Alejandro is someone extraordinary and cool, but Hefestión is more so.

[Spoiler of the novel ⚠️: the fact that Hephaistion is so beautiful, so pretty in the novel makes many people look at him; but we know that Hephaistion is not only a pretty face. The point of it all is that he ranked among the best warriors or has a rather prudent and mature personality, it gives him an appealing air: Hephaistion is not only beauty, but also brains].

What are your thoughts on this? And thanks <3

I had to go and listen to the song. It’s got a very Beat Poet vibe, which, given the lyrics, makes sense. Ha. (Even before I read the lyrics, I got that feel, so she succeeded in her aim.)

The “air of cool” is something Hephaistion is trying to project—(to use modern examples) a little Fonzie, a little (more dangerous) Marlon Brando (below: Marlon Brando from "A Streetcar Named Desire").

Ironically, he doesn’t see himself that way. He’s playing a part. He wants to be cool like Agathon.

Further irony: that wasn’t Agathon’s sort of cool; he was the extroverted jokester who’d never met a stranger, his devil-may-care of a happy, friendly sort. Hephaistion can’t begin to approach Agathon’s personality, so he tries to project whatever he can manage. The devil-may-care turns into “I don’t give a fuck what you think of me.” He turns his quietness/insecurity into arrogance.*

In his own mind, Hephaistion is an outsider who feels acutely different—not cool at all. His way of trying to mitigate being the outsider is to voluntarily situate himself as a loner. “I know you won’t like me, so I’ll reject you first.” Alexandros, of course, picks up on that pretty quickly, although he doesn’t yet know the piece about Agathon.

The real Hephaistion is (predictably) different from his projections, and not only because he’s trying to be Agathon (and doing it badly). The “I don’t care about any of you” routine is immediately punctured by sympathy/empathy for Alexandros. That’s the real Hephaistion. If Alexandros has an instant crush on Hephaistion, Hephaistion doesn’t have one on him (he’s a kid still). He just sees a little brother in need of a big brother.

So, I don’t think Hephaistion would consider himself cooler than Alexandros, as Alexandros is much closer to Agathon, personality-wise, who Hephaistion idolized. And that is, initially, some of the reason for Hephaistion’s affection. He wants to protect the kid who’s like the brother who loved and protected him. Hephaistion is both a little in awe of Alexandros (as he was of Agathon), but also feels sorry for how he had to grow up and wants to shelter him.

As Hephaistion ages, more of his real self does (and will) emerge. He feels more centered, in part thanks to Alexandros. He’ll always have that broody, angsty edge—that is part of him, because he’s inclined to overanalyze and fail to get out of his own head—but he’s less devil-may-care and “too cool for school.”

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* To be fair, Hephaistion does have an arrogant (and sarcastic) bone. He’s incredibly intelligent, and has a hard time taking seriously, much less submitting to anybody he can outthink—which is most people. Alexandros recognizes that, too.

#Hephaistion #Hephaestion #Alexander the Great #Dancing with the Lion #DwtL #Marlon Brando-Hephaistion #historical fiction #ancient Macedonia #ancient Greece #Classics #Agathon #asks #Lana del Rey

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