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One of the most intriguing things about Almalexia is that, while she is called Mother Morrowind, she is not a Mother Goddess in the classical sense. She does not watch over women and children, is not beseech for fertility, does not govern agriculture.
Instead, Almalexia is "Mother" in the sense of female leader (of the household, or Houses in Morrowind's case) and guiding progenitor (in the same way that the USA has Founding Fathers).
Varieties of Faith equates her to Akatosh or Auri-el (not Dib/Mara/Kyn), and when she is cast in a parental role in the Sermons, she is shown as impregnating rather than pregnant.
While TES3 dialog does assign her the traditionally feminine traits of "Healing Mother, Lady of Mercy, source of compassion & sympathy, & protector of the poor and weak," her myths and histories are traditionally masculine: battling Dagon, leading the armies of Morrowind, etc.
This mirrors her anticipation Boethiah, who is seen as the progenitor of Dunmeri culture (see: Var of Faith). Boethiah shifts between "masculine" and "feminine" aspects in form, Ayem in function.
That's just the symbolic stuff. As a person, she's even more interesting.
That's just the symbolic stuff. As a person, she's even more interesting.
NOTE1: ESO does give her more traditional Mother Goddess stuff. The "Mother Morrowind Fertility Fetish" larceny item, for example, or getting married at the Shrine of Almalexia (albeit with a Ring of Mara).
I'm not enthused about those.
I'm not enthused about those.
NOTE 2: Both Ayem and Vivec play with conception of gender in various ways (how well, and how it holds up two decades after publication, is too long to debate here). What's Sotha Sil's deal in this regard?
(There's an obvious answer but it's entirely from secondary sources)
(There's an obvious answer but it's entirely from secondary sources)
NOTE FINAL: 280 characters in not enough and I'm hella stressed about, well, everything, so please excuse any clumsiness in language. There's a ton of fantastic writing out there about Ayem that goes beyond why she "went crazy," please seek it out.
