Ridley Scott’s HBO seriesRaised by Wolvesis one of the most gripping, talked-about science fiction shows on television right now. There are dozens of reasons for this, ranging from the overarching mysteries of the plot to the engaging characters that pose questions about the nature of humanity. Two of the show’s main characters are androids, tasked with raising human children on a foreign planet. They are known mainly as Mother and Father, but within the atheist collective, Mother sometimes goes by a different first name.
It is unclear when and how Mother became associated with the name “Lamia;” whether it was given to her by Campion Sturges, or whether she simply chose it herself when the Mithraic visitors asked her name in the first episode. Regardless, Ridley Scott’s choice of this name is no coincidence. The origins of the name draw several parallels with both Mother’s character and the overarching narrative ofRaised by Wolves; in fact, it’s safe to say that myths and legends surrounding the name “Lamia” served as inspiration for Mother and her character arc.
There will be spoilers ahead for seasons 1 and 2 ofRaised by Wolves, including the recent Season 2 finale.
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The Myth Of Lamia
In Greek mythology, Lamia was a beautiful queen and a lover of Zeus, bearing many children as a result of their affair. Unfortunately, as she is wont to do in such tales, Hera turned her jealous wrath upon her husband’s lover. She killed Lamia’s children, kidnapped them, or tricked Lamia into killing them, tormenting her such that she became disfigured and mad. Lamia became a monster, hunting down and slaughtering children since she could not have her own. In some stories, Hera cursed Lamia with insomnia, preventing her from ever closing her eyes; in other interpretations, Hera gouged her eyes out. Zeus took pity on Lamia and presented her with removable eyes that would give her relief. She was also granted shapeshifting abilities, though it is unclear whether these were related to her eyes, or werea separate gift from Zeus.
As with many classical myths, the story of Lamia morphed and changed as it spread throughout the world, giving rise to other tales of creatures or figures with the same name. She was sometimes portrayed as a seductress with insidious intent. Lamia was often described as “a snake” or “snakelike.” While this may have originally been metaphorical, it eventually gave rise to the image of a creature with the head of a woman and the body of a snake. These creatures, also called lamia, appeared invarious folkloric traditions, either preying on children or seducing men to feed on their blood.
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Parallels With Mother’s Character
Upon examining this myth,Raised by Wolvesviewers should immediately see similarities with Mother’s character. Perhaps the most immediately obvious is that of Mother’s removable eyes. Like Lamia, Mother is often seen taking out her Necromancer eyes, replacing them with eyes that render her harmless and unable to weaponize. When she utilizes her true eyes, however, she has the power to shapeshift, to turn herself into the killing machine that wreaked such havoc in the war on Earth.
Other parallels are less tangible, but are still apparent when examining the story ofRaised by Wolves. Mother lost her children, and had to watch them die one by one, save Campion. They weren’t taken from her by a vengeful goddess, but their loss still had a profound impact on her — despite being an android,Mother is capable of complex emotion. Like Lamia, the loss drove her to extreme measures; however, instead of killing other children, she kidnapped them, desperate for a second chance at building the family she was supposed to have.
But of course, just because Mother doesn’t kill the children, doesn’t mean she doesn’t kill. In the very first episode, after Campion is nearly taken away from her, Mother storms the Mithraic Ark and uses her supersonic scream to kill almost everyone onboard.In Season 2, after finding Paul in a horrific state, she does the same to the atheists in the Tarantula, and disables the computer that had put Paul in danger. Her rage against those who would take her children away from her echoes the mythical Lamia’s rage at losing her children; the motives behind their murderous rampages aren’t all that different. Just like the monster known as the lamia became something of a bogeyman for children, Mother serves a similar role thanks to her Necromancer powers: she is something to be feared, and for good reason.
The final aspect worth mentioning is, of course, the serpent Number Seven. In the final episode of Season 1, Mother finds that she is not carrying a human baby, but a snakelike being that must be fed on blood, echoing the bloodsucking aspects of lamias in certain stories. When Number Seven laterthreatens the colony in Season 2, Mother realizes that her programming recognizes Number Seven as a child. It is something that came from her, something that is a part of her. This further cements the parallel between the android named Lamia, and the snake-woman Lamia of myth.
Predictions Based On This Connection
Judging by the similarities between the myth and the television show, it’s likely that Ridley Scott was at least partially inspired by myths and folktales. Of course,Raised by Wolvesis more than a simple retelling of Lamia’s myth; those ancient stories do not involve a mysterious psychic entity, questions about the origin of humanity, religious war, or any other themes found in the show. It’s much more complex than that, but when it comes to the character of Mother, the writers clearly drew on the stories of both Queen Lamia and the snake-woman lamia monster. Knowing this, a question arises: Is it possible to predict Mother’s future actions by examining the Lamia myths?
There are a few aspects of the mythical creature that viewers have not seen from Mother. One is that of seduction, of using feminine wiles to attain her goals.Season 2 ends with Mother imprisoned by Grandmother, full of anger, fear, and desperation to save her children from Grandmother’s plans to devolve them. Knowing Mother, she will do anything to save them — perhaps she will escape her predicament, and resort to seductive tricks along the way as a means of luring her enemies to their deaths. Another theme of the mythical lamia is that of feeding on blood or flesh; however, since Mother is an android, it is unclear how hunting humans as prey might provide any benefit to her. What’s more, since the bloodsucking aspect has been alluded to with Number Seven, it’s unlikely that we’ll see it with Mother herself.
Regardless of whether new aspects of the Lamia stories come into play inRaised by Wolves, the most important is likely to remain the most constant: Mother’s desire to protect her children, andwillingness to exact gruesome violencein the name of their safety. Like the original Lamia, she has had her children taken from her — but unlike the mythical figure, she has a new family now, and will stop at nothing to keep the same fate from befalling them.
