~ Genesis 4:11
Early stories of brotherly betrayal have been ingrained upon our society's psyche. Like the biblical story of Cain and Abel, when brother betrays brother, the act is especially heinous.
Stories of brotherly betrayal survive in popular culture. In the recent movie Thor by Paramount, based on the comic book series by Marvel, the god Thor is betrayed by his adopted brother Loki.
However, the legends of Norse Mythology do tell of betrayal between these two gods. As the myth goes, Thor is poisoned by a snake, whom he fights partially due to the deception of Loki.
Loki is tied up by the gods and forced to drink the poison of a snake as punishment. When the poison falls on him, his body trembles, causing earthquakes, according to the Norse myth.
Another ancient story of brother betraying brother comes from Egyptian mythology. Osiris was tricked by this brother-in-law Set into a coffin, and was drowned in the Nile.
Osiris was later resurrected by his wife, Isis, after she found the jeweled coffin and put together the dismantled pieces of his body.
Jesus warned of brotherly betrayal when he spoke to his disciples before his crucification:
"Brother will betray brother to death, and a father his child. Children will rebel against their parents and have them put to death."
~ Mark 13:12
Another biblical reference to brotherly betrayal comes from
Jeremiah 12:6
"For even your brothers, and the house of your father, even they have dealt treacherously with you; even they have cried aloud after you: don't believe them, though they speak beautiful words to you."
From Greek mythology, the ultimate tragic betrayal perpetuates the sad tale of Oedipus. Eteocles and Polyneices, the sons of the cursed Oedipus, vow to share their kingdom after Oedipus falls into grief.
The tale climaxes when Eteocles and Polyneices battle for Thebes, and kill each other in the process.
Tweets about being "betrayed by a brother"
Over the last month, I have collected tweets from Twitter.com that came up on the search of the keywords "brother" and "betrayed".
MaricelaGlez (: @maricelaa_G Why does my dog refuse to sleep with me? She betrayed me with my brother.
Lucifer @BunkBuddy come to that because that pesky brother of his would find a way to "fix him" and he did. By finding the other angel that betrayed him. =
Aj Velez @ThatKid_INKd Can't believe my own brother betrayed me the way he did ...
MaricelaGlez (: @maricelaa_G Why does my dog refuse to sleep with me? She betrayed me with my brother.
AMAdA ;) @Ehts_AMAdA My mom left to wallieworld with my brother i feel betrayed:/
Mary♥TW☺☮ @MaryThompsonxo_ Brother betrayed me and watched the final harry potter *le cry*
Ezra Capucion @jadeaezra Grabe. I feel like a betrayed Ate. My brother blocked me off facebook. I hate his girlfriend forever!! If I see her in this house I swear..
Rachael Wallace @RWallace20 Finally got to sunriver... It's so weird not being on Vacation with my brother #Betrayed
aileen @aileenSAID Scar is a GDI ... He betrayed his brother in the worst of times
Shamiya Neely @lovelylooksz Lion King, scar betrayed mufasa. Legend of the Guardians, that one brother betrayed the other. These movies teach u can't trust family. Lol
Tifa Wirarini @tifa_wirarini Whoever advises his brother concerning a matter, knowing that correct guidance lies in another direction, has betrayed him.
Luther Carson Jr. @Luthaaa93 I feel so betrayed by one of my closest friends who I consider a brother smh
Lauren @LauTha_BOSS ive never felt so betrayed by my brother until now
❥cαяσʟ @Carol_xox Ryan Giggs is worse tho!! Prick!! Betrayed his brother. #LateLate
Sarah Alaimo @chickennugget8D And when my brother betrayed me I knew I was worthless.
Ricky Aviles @Rickyaviles3 My baby brother betrayed me!! http://pic.twitter.com/WXZHqyTy
Shanaka Perera @Shanaka_Shana Dear India, You badly betrayed your own little brother. Shame on you.............
Jenerator @_REFINNEJ_ My own brother betrayed me
$treet Runner$™ @ItsMeCoxx Brother Betrayed Me; Trust No One!!
chase hensley @chase_____1 betrayed by brother..
amanduhlanaee @miss_amanduhh I have a brother,but at this moment I don't feel like I do...#betrayed.
Lauren @LauTha_BOSS ive never felt so betrayed by my brother until now
On a Personal Note
Some of my favorite brotherly stories come from movies I watched as a kid. The relationship between the brothers in Legends of the Fall is fascinating to me.
Not to mention there's just something about Brad Pitt as a vengeful farmer-boy.
And in The Lion King, my heart hurt when Mufasa pleaded with Scar to save his life.
I enjoyed the movie Four Brothers, a movie based on The Sons of Katie Elder, and is the story of four brothers who seek to avenge the murder of their adopted mother in Detroit.
Not to mention that I'm in love with the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.
Enjoy books and movies about #brothers and #betrayal?
Check out Brother Betrayed on Amazon!
This is a physically beautiful blog post--and what a great tracing of the theme.
ReplyDeletethanks Jenny - I had fun putting it together
ReplyDeleteWow - brothers really do betray each other through history and legend. My own brother has given up my secrets to my mother a few times and "betrayed" me but that's because he doesn't want to be the only one in trouble for things. Oh well. Great post!
ReplyDeleteI didn't post them all, but there's actually legends from Eastern Europe, Middle East, Asia, the Mayans, and several north American Indian tribes about brothers against brothers
ReplyDeleteI have learnt a lot from reading this beautiful post. Great job.
ReplyDeleteI learned a lot too - thanks for the visit Lisa!
ReplyDeleteThis is such a terrific post! I just had to leave a comment. I loved the way you put it all together.
ReplyDeletethanks for the visit Lili - I really enjoy Reconnaissance paintings - can you tell?
ReplyDeleteInteresting post, Danielle. I love your collection of Twitter posts about brothers and betrayal. Very neat idea :-)
ReplyDeleteTeresa, I found them when searching the title of my book. They are interesting to read.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the visit!