Pandora's Jar: Women in the Greek Myths

Greek myths have been retold many times, but rarely focus on the remarkable women at the heart of these ancient stories. Natalie Haynes' Pandora's Jar: Women in the Greek Myths redresses this imbalance by putting the women of the Greek myths on equal footing with the menfolk.

Format: Hardback
Length: 310 pages
Publication date: 01 October 2020
Publisher: Pan Macmillan

The Greek myths are among the most significant cultural foundations in the world, and they have been retold numerous times, but they rarely focus on the remarkable women at the center of these ancient stories. From Homer to Aeschylus, Sophocles, and Euripides, from the Trojan War to Jason and the Argonauts, epic poetry and Greek tragedy have been the mainstay. And yet, today, a wealth of novels, plays, and films draw their inspiration from stories first told almost three thousand years ago. However, modern tellers of Greek myth have typically been men, and they have shown little interest in telling women's stories. And when they do, those women are often portrayed as monstrous, vengeful, or simply evil.

But Pandora, the first woman, who, according to legend, unleashed chaos upon the world, was not a villain, and even Medea and Phaedra have more nuanced stories than generations of retellings might indicate. Now, in Pandora's Jar: Women in the Greek Myths, Natalie Haynes, a broadcaster, writer, and passionate classicist, redresses this imbalance. She takes Pandora and her jar (the box came later) as the starting point and places the women of the Greek myths on equal footing with the menfolk. After millennia of stories telling of gods and men, be they Zeus or Agamemnon, Paris or Odysseus, Oedipus or Jason, the voices that sing from these pages are those of Hera, Athena, and Artemis, and of Clytemnestra, Jocasta, Eurydice, and Penelope.

These women were not just passive figures in the myths but active agents who played crucial roles in shaping the world. They were warriors, leaders, healers, and lovers, and their stories offer a rich tapestry of human experiences and emotions. Haynes' book is a valuable addition to the field of Greek myth studies, and it will inspire readers to re-examine these ancient stories and see the women who were at the heart of them in a new light.

In conclusion, the Greek myths are a rich source of cultural heritage, and they have been retold countless times over the centuries. However, they have often overlooked the remarkable women who played significant roles in these stories. Natalie Haynes' book, Pandora's Jar: Women in the Greek Myths, is a valuable contribution to the field of Greek myth studies, and it offers a fresh perspective on these ancient tales. By placing the women of the Greek myths on equal footing with the menfolk, Haynes provides a more comprehensive and nuanced understanding of these stories, and she encourages readers to re-examine these ancient stories and see the women who were at the heart of them in a new light.

Weight: 524g
Dimension: 162 x 241 x 34 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781509873111