A little more in depth on the Desert Stills, Presentation, and Clothes
So! I realized that not everyone knows what I do about clothes or scene examination, and decided to explain why Crowley is definitely dressed like a woman and Aziraphale like a man in these two stills.
First, environmentally: all the men in these scenes are wearing turban style headwraps; all the women are wearing looser scarves. Aziraphale is clearly aligned with the men via framing; in both shits only men are standing behind him, and vice versa for Crowley. None of the men have long hair; Crowley does. None of the men are wearing belts or have their waists emphasizing via draping and cinching, but Crowley does. Environmentally, this aligns Crowley with women and tells us he is dressed like a woman.
Second, historically:
As we can see from these two helpful pages on Biblical clothing, Crowley is still dressed like a woman and Aziraphale is still dressed like a man; they are clearly apart of the same group so they are not dressed differently due to cultural influences.
Someone mentioned Thobes, Muslim clothing, and Beoduins, and I’d just like to say: don’t. They’re blending into the same group here, and Thobes and “Muslim clothing” didn’t exist at the time as it’s very likely around 33AD or earlier. Saying otherwise is not supported by given evidence, and is likely ahistorical, as is using any purely modern terminology in this context.
Excellent, and in addition, please allow me to get iconographic here:
the women at the crucifixion, liturgically and in Christian art, are associated with empathy for Christ’s suffering. Like. That’s what women do, in that scene: they weep. In medieval drama and meditative texts, audiences get to enter into the pain of the scene through the women: the grief the women feel, and the pain Christ feels through the women’s grief at his pain. It’s traditionally through the voices of women, too, that anger and confusion at god’s choices are voiced.
Here’s Hans Memeling’s Crucifixion tryptich:
That’s Mary Mother of Christ in the black - conventions vary as to whether she’s in black or royal blue, but you can tell it’s her because she’s swooning into John the Baptist’s arms. Kneeling is Mary Magdalene (you can tell because her hair is uncovered, and it’s red - MM’s hair is often red or red-gold)
Now, this is late medieval. Further into the renaissance the veils the women are wearing in these scenes get less structured. Here’s Sofinisba Anguissola’s Pieta:
Mary’s wearing a wimple under her veil here, but the overall flowing effect is not dissimilar to what Crowley has going on.
But the Virgin is hardly the main iconographic reference that’s coming to my mind here. Red-haired Crowley, with a blue-black veil loosely slung?
I’m sure I’ve seen similar Madalenes with brighter red hair, but I can’t find one right now. Nevertheless. If this resemblance wasn’t deliberate I will eat my hat.
Conclusions:
1. Crowley as a woman at the Crucifixion is extremely resonant and liturgically apt, because what Crowley is doing is a. experiencing empathy for pain and b. questioning and evoking doubt, both of which are roles largely assigned to women in post-patristic Christian tradition (yes, Peter and Thomas doubt. Jesus himself has that ‘take this cup’ moment. But medieval and renaissance Christianity loved to explore the contradictions of anger, empathy and faithful acceptance through both the archetypal holy woman, the Virgin Mary, and the archetypal redeemed sinner, Mary Magdalen). Gaiman has compared Crowley’s questions to the strong Jewish tradition of questioning and arguing with God - although Christian tradition has generally allowed less space for that, if there is going to be space for a Jewish-like Questioner of God in this scene, it’s always in the mouths of the women.
2. Crowley’s specific colouration, the long red curls, the fact the veil is slipping off? Mary Magdalen all the way. Is that meant to position him as redeemable, or as inherently a temptress? Both? Neither?
3. In the tradition of depictions of the Crucifixion, Christian and vaugely-Christian-aware audiences since… uh… at least the twelfth century have been primed to identify with the women (you still see it in contemporary evangelical worship and the like). Positioning Crowley as a woman in that image is apt to the text: that scene is meant to align you with Crowley, with Crowley’s empathy and questioning.
Thank you, thank you, I got three degrees and this is what I do with them, I’ll be here all week, etc.
My boss doesn’t take me seriously because I’m the youngest in the office by a decade and spend most of my time making his life hell (unrelated problems).
Yesterday he asked me to help him with a problem with a program we use but wasn’t actually listening to me when I tried to help, so it wasn’t working. He asked who the expert on this program was in our office and I told him it was me. He asked who the expert was within the organisation and I told him it was me. He sent me out of his office saying he would call IT to fix it. So I very patiently went back to my desk, where my phone rang a minute later, with IT asking me to help someone who had a problem with the program.
The sheer unadulterated joy I felt making direct eye contact with my manager through the glass wall of his office whilst I answered his phone call will fuel me for WEEKS.
How is Athena the Goddess of Childbirth AND Virginity?
For Greeks virginity meant marriage. It just meant she was the goddess of unmarried women. Wait are you sure you’re not confusing her with Artemis?
being on this website since 2011 feels like being that dog in that one movie where he reincarnates. like i feel like i’ve lived five hundred separate and distinct lives and also died four times and also like i’ve watched history unfold from the beginning of man
I am Silver Tongue, I am an artist. I have many characters and you can check out my art in the art tag. I occasionally practice witchcraft though I don't do anything too complicated. I am girl 2 and don't know what else to put here.
