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Concept
Phaethon
Summary
Phaethon (ˈfeɪ.əθən; Phaéthōn, pha.é.thɔːn), also spelled Phaëthon, was the son of the Oceanid Clymene and the sun-god Helios in Greek mythology.
According to most authors, Phaethon is the son of Helios, and out of desire to have his parentage confirmed, travels to the sun-god's palace in the east. There he is recognised by his father, and asks him for the privilege to drive his chariot for a single day. Despite Helios' fervent warnings and attempts to talk him out of it, counting the numerous dangers he would face in his celestial journey and reminding Phaethon that only he can control the horses, the boy is not dissuaded and does not change his mind. He is then allowed to take the chariot's reins; his ride is disastrous, as he cannot keep a firm grip on the horses. As a result, he drives the chariot too close to the Earth, burning it, and too far from it, freezing it. In the end, after many complaints, from the stars in the sky to the Earth itself, Zeus strikes Phaethon with one of his lightning bolts, killing him instantly. His dead body falls into the river Eridanus, and his sisters the Heliades are turned to black poplar trees as they mourn him.
Phaethon's tale was commonly used to explain why uninhabitable lands on both sides of extremity (such as hot deserts and frozen wastelands) exist, and why certain peoples have darker complexions, while his sisters' amber tears accounted for the river's rich deposits of amber.
Ancient Greek Φαέθων, Phaethon, means "radiant", from the verb φαέθω, meaning "to shine." Therefore, his name could be understood as, "the shining/radiant (one)" Ultimately the word derives from φάος, phaos, the Greek word for light, from the Proto-Indo-European root *bheh2-, 'to shine.'
Details vary according to version, but most have Phaethon travel far east to meet his father, sometimes in order to get him to assure his paternity. There, he asks Helios for permission to drive his father's Sun-chariot for a single day.
Official source
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