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Dragon's teeth (mythology)
Encyclopedia
In Greek myth
, dragon's teeth feature prominently in the legends of the Phoenicia
n prince Cadmus
and Jason
's quest for the Golden Fleece
. In each case, the dragon
's teeth, once planted, would grow into fully armed warriors.
Cadmus was the bringer of literacy and civilization, killed the sacred dragon
that guarded the spring of Ares
. The goddess Athena
told him to sow the teeth, from which sprang a group of ferocious warriors called the spartoi. He threw a precious jewel
into the midst of the warriors, who turned on each other in an attempt to seize the stone for themselves. The five survivors joined with Cadmus to found the city of Thebes
.
Jason obtained the remaining dragon's teeth with the aid of Aeëtes
of Colchis
. He offered the Golden Fleece to Jason if Jason would sow them into the ground. Jason did this and successfully overcame the warriors with the aid of Medea
, who gave him the means to resist fire and steel.
The classical legends of Cadmus and Jason have given rise to the phrase "to sow dragon's teeth." This is used as a metaphor
to refer to doing something that has the effect of fomenting disputes, rather akin to the law of unintended consequences
.
were used in World War II to refer to fortifications intended to slow the advance of mechanized armies.
Dragon's Teeth are also mentioned in Nathaniel Hawthorne
's novel The Scarlet Letter
The reference is stated in Chapter 6. It states that Pearl, Hester Prynne's daughter never created imaginary friends, but she "seemed always to be sowing broadcast the dragon's teeth, whence sprung a harvest of armed enemies, against whom she rushed to battle."
In John Milton
's Aeropagitica, his defence of the liberty of unlicensed printing, Milton argues that books "are as lively and as vigorously productive as those fabulous dragon's teeth; and being sown up and down, may chance to spring up armed men."
Stephen Baxter
's novel Evolution includes a segment where 21st century soldiers are placed into suspended animation
in hidden bunker
s, ready to wake up and fight behind enemy lines if their territory is occupied. In the novel this is referred to as "sowing dragons' teeth".
Dragon's Teeth
was also the title of a novel by Upton Sinclair
about the rise of the German Nazi Party.
In the film Jason and the Argonauts, the Dragon's Teeth became the Teeth of the Hydra
.
An abridged version of the myth was quoted by Chakotay in an episode of Star Trek: Voyager
. The episode's title is also "Dragon's Teeth
".
In the video game Mass Effect
, the Geth enemies impale dead and dying humanoid characters on mechanical spikes, which transform them into zombie-like enemies called "Husks." In-game reference material states that these spikes are colloquially referred to as "Dragon's Teeth."
In The Titan's Curse
, Atlas tells one of the mortal henchmen to plant the teeth of the dragon into the soil of the Smithsonian, which sprouted into skeletal warriors, emphasizing the myth.
In the song Pieces of What by MGMT
, reference is made to dragon's teeth in the line: "lay my dragon's teeth and shallow water steel, at the Belgian Gates I waited for my meal."
Greek mythology
Greek mythology is the body of myths and legends belonging to the ancient Greeks, concerning their gods and heroes, the nature of the world, and the origins and significance of their own cult and ritual practices. They were a part of religion in ancient Greece...
, dragon's teeth feature prominently in the legends of the Phoenicia
Phoenicia
Phoenicia , was an ancient civilization in Canaan which covered most of the western, coastal part of the Fertile Crescent. Several major Phoenician cities were built on the coastline of the Mediterranean. It was an enterprising maritime trading culture that spread across the Mediterranean from 1550...
n prince Cadmus
Cadmus
Cadmus or Kadmos , in Greek mythology was a Phoenician prince, the son of king Agenor and queen Telephassa of Tyre and the brother of Phoenix, Cilix and Europa. He was originally sent by his royal parents to seek out and escort his sister Europa back to Tyre after she was abducted from the shores...
and Jason
Jason
Jason was a late ancient Greek mythological hero from the late 10th Century BC, famous as the leader of the Argonauts and their quest for the Golden Fleece. He was the son of Aeson, the rightful king of Iolcus...
's quest for the Golden Fleece
Golden Fleece
In Greek mythology, the Golden Fleece is the fleece of the gold-haired winged ram, which can be procured in Colchis. It figures in the tale of Jason and his band of Argonauts, who set out on a quest by order of King Pelias for the fleece in order to place Jason rightfully on the throne of Iolcus...
. In each case, the dragon
Dragon
A dragon is a legendary creature, typically with serpentine or reptilian traits, that feature in the myths of many cultures. There are two distinct cultural traditions of dragons: the European dragon, derived from European folk traditions and ultimately related to Greek and Middle Eastern...
's teeth, once planted, would grow into fully armed warriors.
Dragon
A dragon is a legendary creature, typically with serpentine or reptilian traits, that feature in the myths of many cultures. There are two distinct cultural traditions of dragons: the European dragon, derived from European folk traditions and ultimately related to Greek and Middle Eastern...
that guarded the spring of Ares
Ares
Ares is the Greek god of war. He is one of the Twelve Olympians, and the son of Zeus and Hera. In Greek literature, he often represents the physical or violent aspect of war, in contrast to the armored Athena, whose functions as a goddess of intelligence include military strategy and...
. The goddess Athena
Athena
In Greek mythology, Athena, Athenê, or Athene , also referred to as Pallas Athena/Athene , is the goddess of wisdom, courage, inspiration, civilization, warfare, strength, strategy, the arts, crafts, justice, and skill. Minerva, Athena's Roman incarnation, embodies similar attributes. Athena is...
told him to sow the teeth, from which sprang a group of ferocious warriors called the spartoi. He threw a precious jewel
Gemstone
A gemstone or gem is a piece of mineral, which, in cut and polished form, is used to make jewelry or other adornments...
into the midst of the warriors, who turned on each other in an attempt to seize the stone for themselves. The five survivors joined with Cadmus to found the city of Thebes
Thebes, Greece
Thebes is a city in Greece, situated to the north of the Cithaeron range, which divides Boeotia from Attica, and on the southern edge of the Boeotian plain. It played an important role in Greek myth, as the site of the stories of Cadmus, Oedipus, Dionysus and others...
.
Jason obtained the remaining dragon's teeth with the aid of Aeëtes
Aeëtes
In Greek mythology, Aeëtes , , , was a King of Colchis , son of the sun-god Helios and the Oceanid Perseis , brother of Circe and Pasiphae, and father of Medea, Chalciope and Apsyrtus...
of Colchis
Colchis
In ancient geography, Colchis or Kolkhis was an ancient Georgian state kingdom and region in Western Georgia, which played an important role in the ethnic and cultural formation of the Georgian nation.The Kingdom of Colchis contributed significantly to the development of medieval Georgian...
. He offered the Golden Fleece to Jason if Jason would sow them into the ground. Jason did this and successfully overcame the warriors with the aid of Medea
Medea
Medea is a woman in Greek mythology. She was the daughter of King Aeëtes of Colchis, niece of Circe, granddaughter of the sun god Helios, and later wife to the hero Jason, with whom she had two children, Mermeros and Pheres. In Euripides's play Medea, Jason leaves Medea when Creon, king of...
, who gave him the means to resist fire and steel.
The classical legends of Cadmus and Jason have given rise to the phrase "to sow dragon's teeth." This is used as a metaphor
Metaphor
A metaphor is a literary figure of speech that uses an image, story or tangible thing to represent a less tangible thing or some intangible quality or idea; e.g., "Her eyes were glistening jewels." Metaphor may also be used for any rhetorical figures of speech that achieve their effects via...
to refer to doing something that has the effect of fomenting disputes, rather akin to the law of unintended consequences
Unintended Consequences
Unintended Consequences is a novel by John Ross, first published in 1996 by Accurate Press. The story chronicles the history of the gun culture, gun rights and gun control in the United States from the early 1900s through the late 1990s...
.
Cultural references
Dragon's teethDragon's teeth (fortification)
Dragon's teeth are square-pyramidal fortifications of reinforced concrete first used during the Second World War to impede the movement of tanks and mechanised infantry...
were used in World War II to refer to fortifications intended to slow the advance of mechanized armies.
Dragon's Teeth are also mentioned in Nathaniel Hawthorne
Nathaniel Hawthorne
Nathaniel Hawthorne was an American novelist and short story writer.Nathaniel Hawthorne was born in 1804 in the city of Salem, Massachusetts to Nathaniel Hathorne and the former Elizabeth Clarke Manning. His ancestors include John Hathorne, a judge during the Salem Witch Trials...
's novel The Scarlet Letter
The Scarlet Letter
The Scarlet Letter is an 1850 romantic work of fiction in a historical setting, written by Nathaniel Hawthorne. It is considered to be his magnum opus. Set in 17th-century Puritan Boston during the years 1642 to 1649, it tells the story of Hester Prynne, who conceives a daughter through an...
The reference is stated in Chapter 6. It states that Pearl, Hester Prynne's daughter never created imaginary friends, but she "seemed always to be sowing broadcast the dragon's teeth, whence sprung a harvest of armed enemies, against whom she rushed to battle."
In John Milton
John Milton
John Milton was an English poet, polemicist, a scholarly man of letters, and a civil servant for the Commonwealth of England under Oliver Cromwell...
's Aeropagitica, his defence of the liberty of unlicensed printing, Milton argues that books "are as lively and as vigorously productive as those fabulous dragon's teeth; and being sown up and down, may chance to spring up armed men."
Stephen Baxter
Stephen Baxter
Stephen Baxter is a prolific British hard science fiction author. He has degrees in mathematics and engineering.- Writing style :...
's novel Evolution includes a segment where 21st century soldiers are placed into suspended animation
Suspended animation
Suspended animation is the slowing of life processes by external means without termination. Breathing, heartbeat, and other involuntary functions may still occur, but they can only be detected by artificial means. Extreme cold can be used to precipitate the slowing of an individual's functions; use...
in hidden bunker
Bunker
A military bunker is a hardened shelter, often buried partly or fully underground, designed to protect the inhabitants from falling bombs or other attacks...
s, ready to wake up and fight behind enemy lines if their territory is occupied. In the novel this is referred to as "sowing dragons' teeth".
Dragon's Teeth
Dragon's Teeth (novel)
The novel Dragon's Teeth, written in 1942 by Upton Sinclair, won the Pulitzer Prize for the Novel in 1943. Set in the period 1929 to 1934, it covers the Nazi takeover of Germany during the 1930s....
was also the title of a novel by Upton Sinclair
Upton Sinclair
Upton Beall Sinclair Jr. , was an American author who wrote close to one hundred books in many genres. He achieved popularity in the first half of the twentieth century, acquiring particular fame for his classic muckraking novel, The Jungle . It exposed conditions in the U.S...
about the rise of the German Nazi Party.
In the film Jason and the Argonauts, the Dragon's Teeth became the Teeth of the Hydra
Lernaean Hydra
In Greek mythology, the Lernaean Hydra was an ancient nameless serpent-like chthonic water beast, with reptilian traits, that possessed many heads — the poets mention more heads than the vase-painters could paint, and for each head cut off it grew two more — and poisonous breath so virulent even...
.
An abridged version of the myth was quoted by Chakotay in an episode of Star Trek: Voyager
Star Trek: Voyager
Star Trek: Voyager is a science fiction television series set in the Star Trek universe. Set in the 24th century from the year 2371 through 2378, the series follows the adventures of the Starfleet vessel USS Voyager, which becomes stranded in the Delta Quadrant 70,000 light-years from Earth while...
. The episode's title is also "Dragon's Teeth
Dragon's Teeth (Voyager episode)
"Dragon's Teeth" is an episode of Star Trek: Voyager, the seventh episode of the sixth season. The episode has an average rating of 3.6/5 on the official Star Trek website ....
".
In the video game Mass Effect
Mass Effect
Mass Effect is an action role-playing game developed by BioWare for the Xbox 360 and Microsoft Windows by Demiurge Studios. The Xbox 360 version was released worldwide in November 2007 published by Microsoft Game Studios...
, the Geth enemies impale dead and dying humanoid characters on mechanical spikes, which transform them into zombie-like enemies called "Husks." In-game reference material states that these spikes are colloquially referred to as "Dragon's Teeth."
In The Titan's Curse
The Titan's Curse
The Titan's Curse is a 2007 fantasy-adventure novel based on Greek mythology written by Rick Riordan. It is the third novel in the Percy Jackson & the Olympians series and the sequel to The Sea of Monsters...
, Atlas tells one of the mortal henchmen to plant the teeth of the dragon into the soil of the Smithsonian, which sprouted into skeletal warriors, emphasizing the myth.
In the song Pieces of What by MGMT
MGMT
MGMT is an American alternative rock band founded by Benjamin Goldwasser and Andrew VanWyngarden. After the release of their first album, the members of their live band, Matthew Asti, James Richardson and Will Berman, joined the core band in the studio...
, reference is made to dragon's teeth in the line: "lay my dragon's teeth and shallow water steel, at the Belgian Gates I waited for my meal."