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Pandora's Jar: Women in the Greek Myths

4.5(27)
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About the book

The Greek myths are one of the most important cultural foundation-stones of the modern world.Stories of gods and monsters are the mainstay of epic poetry and Greek tragedy, from Homer to Virgil to from Aeschylus to Sophocles and Euripides. And still, today, a wealth of novels, plays and films draw their inspiration from stories first told almost three thousand years ago. But modern tellers of Greek myth have usually been men, and have routinely shown little interest in telling women’s stories.Now, in Pandora’s Jar, Natalie Haynes – broadcaster, writer and passionate classicist – redresses this imbalance. Taking Greek creation myths as her starting point and then retelling the four great mythic the Trojan War, the Royal House of Thebes, Jason and the Argonauts, Heracles, she puts the female characters on equal footing with their menfolk. The result is a vivid and powerful account of the deeds – and misdeeds - of Hera, Aphrodite, Athene and Circe. And away from the goddesses of Mount Olympus it is Helen, Clytemnestra, Jocasta, Antigone and Medea who sing from these pages, not Paris, Agamemnon, Orestes or Jason.

Editions (4)

ISBN9781509873128
PublisherPicador
Publication Date10/01/20
Pages320

Reviews & Ratings

27 ratings

5 reviews

4.5

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  • buecher_zeugs
    buecher_zeugs

    74 Followers

    5.0

    Dieses Buch hat mir bewiesen, wie unheimlich stark wir Frauen eigentlich sind. Ja, natürlich die griechische Mythologie muss man immer unter dem Auge betrachten, dass man ja nicht weiß, ob diese Personen wirklich existiert haben. Aber Natalie schafft es, Belege zu bringen und Dinge darzustellen, dass eigentlich wir Frauen immer von Männern ins Messer gezwungen werden. Das Buch ist daher eine große Empfehlung.

    Oct 18, 2025

  • 5.0

    This book was sich a great expierence. Natalie Haynes writes funny and brings the different Interpretations and translations into context. In greek mythology and society women did not get much room. So we visit the stories of Pandora, the Amazons, Helen, Medusa, and many more remarkable women. We are hearing their stories, without the villainization of the time they were potrayed (or our present time). I really love how Natalie Haynes disects the stories, and includes representations from other Art forms. Was Medusa really just an ugly Monster? Was Medea a cold hearted witch? We can see that the stories of women got twisted again and again. And how self absorbed the celebrated heros seem once you have a closer look. I recommend this book to everyone, not only greek mythology geeks.

    Jul 20, 2025

  • decora
    decora

    9 Followers

    5.0

    Absolutely great collection of essays on the women of greek mythology who were forgotten, mistreated or misrepresented through time. Loved the narration by the author herself!

    Apr 30, 2022

3 of 5 reviews

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