The monstrous offspring of Pasiphae and the white bull, the Minotaur was sentenced to by Minos to the gigantic Labyrinth near Knossos. Later, Theseus would venture through the labyrinth with the aid of Ariadne's thread. The journey would see Theseus battle the Minotaur, and ultimately slay it with the sword of Aegeus, before abandoning Ariadne on the island of Noxos.
No matter which interpretation is read, the tale of the Minotaur has a few key elements. He is the offspring of Pasiphae and a white bull. The white bull offered to Minos as a sign from Poseidon, but selfishly coveted by Minos.
For revenge, Poseidon made Minos's wife Pasiphae fall in love with the bull and birth the Minotaur. Although, as a beast that was neither human or animal, the horrific child would feast on humans, as no other food satiated his bestial hunger.
Thus, after consulting the Delphi oracle, Minos enlisted Daedalus to build a labyrinth and trap the Minotaur within. There he stayed, and old Minos decreed that Athenians would be sent into the labyrinth for the Minotaur to feast on, at regular intervals. Although, he did this because the Athenians kills Androgeus, his human son. So he basically sent the killers of his son to be eaten by his beastly step-son.
Eventually Theseus decided to kill the Minotaur as a way to stop the killing and free the Athenians. Ariadne, who helped Theseus through the labyrinth, happened to be Minos's daughter, who was all hot for Theseus. Hence, Minos's daughter was now helping an Athenian defeat Minos's beastly half-son, because Minos was feeding Athenians to him, thanks to the Athenians killing his human son.
On Theseus's victory, he ditches Ariadne and helps the Athenians lost in the labyrinth to escape. Except he forgot to tell his father Aegeus, that he had succeeded, and Aegeus committed suicide after presuming Theseus was dead.
Who in this tale is the real victim? Minos gets screwed over royally when Poseidon makes his wife fall in love with a bull, but it's only because Minos kept the bull instead of killing it. Theseus sought victory for the Athenians, who slaughtered Minos's prodigy, but they were being dicks when they did that anyway.
The real victims are Ariadne and the Minotaur himself. The latter was a product of devious machinations, which bore no description of his own. He persisted as he could and was stalwart in his unwarranted punishment of exile to the labyrinth. On the other hand, Ariadne was doomed to assist her lover, only to be dumped soon after.
Ultimately, I like to think that Ariadne's thread, leading to the Minotaur, was her final salvation. As it was intended for Theseus to find his way home, perhaps it served the slain Minotaur to find his way to Ariadne.
You might be wondering why the hell I'm reciting Greek mythology and dreaming of Ariadne finding love with the beastly Minotaur. The truth is that this story reminds me that tragedy is inherent, and despite the occasional silver lining, it's all a bit of bullshit.
Finding analogies for depression can often be helpful, as it puts a few things into perspective. We aren't mythological gods and goddesses, but the events in our lives can often feel as epicurean as the great philosophers.
The solitude of the Minotaur combined with Ariadne's dashed dreams, always strikes a chord when I'm feeling like the whole world is against me. There's no happy ending, other than the acceptance of our suffering and baring the punishment that is life.