Bon Appétit

It is safe to say Erysichthon is an egotistic, selfish, arrogant, supercilious, annoying, all-mighty grade-A jerk. Not only the way he speaks, but what he says makes you dislike this guy instantly. One would probably praie him for being his own man and not fearing the gods and everything, but this man is completely off his rocker.

Since he has no cares in the world (and probably nothing to do on a daily basis considering his attitude) he one day decides to cut off the tree sacred to Ceres. He needs the wood, so that perfectly justifies his cutting down an innocent tree. This reminds me of modern society and how we are killing our planet by personally blowing everything into dust and cutting and breaking down bleeding forests while we bask in the sweet glory of modern technology and the obliteration of our only home.

I am not bitter.

Anyhow, he cuts the tree against the narrator’s advice, and then gets visited by the Spirit of the Tree that has ‘revenge’ stuck on his forehead. “You will never get away with this,” it (or is the spirit a ‘he’?) says. Erysichthon just laughs. How annoying, I hope he dies.

Unfortunately that hasn’t happened.

Yet.

Ceres then decides to get Hunger, which is indeed a person, to go “visit” Erysichthon and accompany him until he dies. I would have never even imagined making casual emotions and feelings into people that could somehow trespass their being into someone else. I think it is the most creative occurrence I have ever seen. Ever.

So Hunger agrees and goes to Erysichthon to curl up against him “in an embrace as strong as love, but quite the opposite of love. She breathes her spirit into his spirit.” And then the hunger begins.

He wakes, starving, dreaming of any type of food to fulfill his undying hunger. He is so hungry, in fact, that he decides to sell his own mother, like modern gamblers that resort to betting their jobs and kids when they are in too deep. I guess when you are in need of something, or too addicted to its only being, you will do most likely anything to fulfill your lust and longing. But his own mother?

Fortunately, the mother had a long-lost relationship with Poseidon, and begs for his help. In return, Poseidon turns her into the young girl she was when she worshipped his waves, and all’s well with the mother’s future. This is one of the times where I wish I had a god as a best friend, you could always be protected. And if the god is cute, well it comes with a bonus, no?

It all ends with Ceres placing a plate in front of him, and having him place his foot on it. The narrator says, “He will destroy himself.” Is this what I think it means? Is he seriously going to cut into his own flesh and blood and use his body’s meat as a food source?

Well, as Ceres so put it, “Bon appétit.”