The Facts on File Dictionary of Allusions - Green Valley High School

myrmidon
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persons or phenomena. <strong>The</strong> phrase comes from
Mark 5:9, in which Christ encounters a man possessed
by a host of demons, the fi rst of which
explains, “My name is Legion.” Roman legions
comprised between 4,000 and 6,000 soldiers.
Christ expelled the demons and transferred them
to a herd of swine, who promptly drowned themselves
in deep water. “And there I found what
appalled me; a zoo of lusts, a bedlam of ambitions,
a nursery of fears, a hareem of fondled hatreds.
My name was legion” (C. S. Lewis, Surprised by Joy,
1955). See also gadarene.
myrmidon (mermidon) A devoted follower or
henchman; a servant or other person who follows
orders without question or scruple. According to
Greek mythology the original Myrmidons were a
race of people from <strong>The</strong>ssaly who were created by
Zeus from ants (murmex in Greek means “ant”)
after the previous inhabitants of the country had
been wiped out by plague. <strong>The</strong> Myrmidons were
famed for their loyalty to Achilles during the Trojan
War, although they were also notorious for
their brutality. <strong>The</strong> term myrmidon is often quoted
today in relation to gangs of ruffi ans or thugs but
may on occasion also be applied to the forces of
law and order, with the police sometimes being
referred to as myrmidons of the law. “Within
eight days she was to enter an appearance, or go
through some preliminary ceremony, towards
showing why she should not surrender her diamonds
to the Lord Chancellor, or to one of those
satraps of his, the Vice- Chancellors, or to some
other terrible myrmidon” (Anthony Trollope, <strong>The</strong>
Eustace Diamonds, 1873).
my yoke is easy I can bear my burden or responsibility
with ease. <strong>The</strong> phrase appears in Matthew
11:28–30, in which Christ says to his followers,
“Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy
laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke
upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and
lowly in heart: and ye shall fi nd rest unto your
souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is
light.” “It was easy to be good. God’s yoke was
sweet and light. It was better never to have
sinned” (James Joyce, Portrait of the Artist as a
Young Man, 1914–15).