You’ve probably been wondering who Hippolyte is and what the significance of the name is. Why didn’t Hodgson call her main character Henry or something? The name Hippolyte dates back to greek mythology. Could the author be referencing this or is it coincidently just a name she liked? Perhaps their personalities will match up at some point.
The story goes a little like this…
Once upon a time there was a tribe of female warriors who were lead by an Amazonian Queen named Hippolyte. These were no ordinary women, you see. The men stayed home to do the housework while the women went out hunting. They would cut off their right breast in order to shoot and throw more efficiently. Which explains why they were called Amazonian women, it translates to “missing one breast.”
Hippolyte was famous for her belt (girdle) that Ares had given her. Then one day Eurystheus wanted it so he could give it to his daughter. So Hercules was sent out to retrieve the belt. He set sail and finally made it to the Amazons where he told the story to Hippolyte and she agreed to give him the belt. But nothing is that easy. Then Hera comes along to mess everything up because she doesn’t like the plan. So she dresses up as a warrior and tells all of Hippolyte’s warriors that Hercules is going to kill Hippolyte. Outraged, they charge towards Hercules and his crew to slaughter them. But before they could get to Hercules, he kills Hippolyte, takes the belt and brings it back to Eurystheus.
Here is some actual footage of Hippolyte herself.
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