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Being between Scylla and Charybdis is an idiom deriving from Greek mythology, which has been associated with the proverbial advice "to choose the lesser of two evils". [1] Several other idioms such as " on the horns of a dilemma ", "between the devil and the deep blue sea", and "between a rock and a hard place" express similar meanings. [ 2 ]
In Greek mythology, Scylla [a] (/ ˈ s ɪ l ə / SIL-ə; Ancient Greek: Σκύλλα, romanized: Skýlla, pronounced) is a legendary, man-eating monster who lives on one side of a narrow channel of water, opposite her counterpart, the sea-swallowing monster Charybdis. The two sides of the strait are within an arrow's range of each other—so ...
Charybdis, along with the sea monster Scylla, appears as a challenge to epic characters such as Odysseus, Jason, and Aeneas. Scholarship locates her in the Strait of Messina. The idiom "between Scylla and Charybdis" has come to mean being forced to choose between two similarly dangerous situations.
Between Scylla and Charybdis" is an idiom derived from Homer's Odyssey. In the story, Odysseus chose to go near Scylla as the lesser of two evils. He lost six of his companions, but if he had gone near Charybdis all would be doomed. Because of such stories, having to navigate between the two hazards eventually entered idiomatic use.
They then passed between the six-headed monster Scylla and the whirlpool Charybdis. Scylla claimed six of his men. Scylla claimed six of his men. Next, they landed on the island of Thrinacia, with the crew overriding Odysseus's wishes to remain away from the island.
Odysseus and his men return to Circe's island, and she advises them on the remaining stages of the journey. They skirt the land of the Sirens, pass between the six-headed monster Scylla and the whirlpool Charybdis, where they row directly between the two. However, Scylla drags the boat towards her by grabbing the oars and eats six men.
The perilous trip of the ship of Ulysses between Scylla and Charybdis. (Photo by George Rinhart/Corbis via Getty Images) ... It doesn’t mean that you have to reject, or renounce your own ...
The rocks also appear on the journey in the Argonautica by Apollonius of Rhodes, who also locates them near Scylla and Charybdis, but beyond them rather than as an alternative route. [2] Apollonius distinguishes between two sets of dangerous rocks, the Symplegades and the Planctae.