Clytemnestra: The spellbinding retelling of Greek mythology’s greatest heroine

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In its deft portrayal of the many layers of trauma, and in its offering of a feminist take on revenge, Clytemnestra joins a recent spate of similarly minded artworks, including Emerald Fennell’s film Promising Young Woman and Michaela Coel’s television series I May Destroy You. Worst of all, in both situations, Agamemnon’s actions are not only condoned, but even enabled by men close to Clytemnestra such as her father and her friend Odysseus. Casati brings the blood-soaked world of Greek mythology fully alive in this powerful novel' WOMAN & HOME

Theseus is a hero, and he does what heroes do,” he says. “Do you know how many other girls like Helen there are?” In scenes like these, Casati redefines our understanding of the term “hero”, reminding us that the celebrated men of Greek myths were selfish, violent brutes who took whatever they wanted with no regard to the desires of others or the consequences. You are born to a king, but marry a tyrant. You stand helplessly as he sacrifices your child to placate the gods. You watch him wage war on a foreign shore and comfort yourself with violent thoughts of your own. A heroine of fierce spirit. With the fire and spark of Madeline Miller and the depths of Mary Renault' MANDA SCOTT Overall, “Clytemnestra” is unique due to its fresh, well-researched story with an intriguing heroine. The concept of revisiting a Greek myth with a feminist twist is not necessarily unique, but “Clytemnestra” still manages to break new ground by investigating the motives of a woman who has historically been marked as a villain. The novel is perfect for those interested in learning more about a misunderstood figure in Greek mythology, and Casati will be an author to watch in the years to come. Following in the steps of Madeline Miller’s Circe, Jennifer Saint’s Elektra and Natalie Haynes’ A Thousand Ships, Costanza Casati’s novel Clytemnestra sets out to retell the story of Clytemnestra, the Queen of Mycenae, known for murdering her husband, King Agamemnon, after he returned home from the Trojan War.

After all, ancient Greece is a man’s world. Yes, young Spartan women are trained to be strong. But the reason is so they can “bear healthy children”, Clytemnestra says. If their lower positioning in the social hierarchy is not apparent at first, it becomes abundantly clear when Theseus, the king of Athens, kidnaps and rapes Helen. Her siblings are furious and want revenge, but her father will hear none of it. These tragedies underpin Clytemnestra’s life, but Casati leaves plenty of space for her main character to experience freedom, strength and triumph. Acceptance or vengeance - infamy follows both. So you bide your time and wait, until you might force the gods' hands and take revenge. Until you rise. For you understood something that the others don't. If power isn't given to you, you have to take it for yourself. Haynes, Natalie (March 28, 2022). "Is Clytemnestra an Archetypically Bad Wife or a Heroically Avenging Mother?". Literary Hub . Retrieved May 12, 2023. Clytemnestra is one of the main characters in Aeschylus's Oresteia, and is central to the plot of all three parts. She murders Agamemnon in the first play, and is murdered herself in the second. Her death then leads to the trial of Orestes by a jury composed of Athena and 12 Athenians in the final play.

John Eaton composed an opera in one act entitled The Cry of Clytemnestra recounting the events leading up to and including Clytemnestra's murder of Agamemnon.

Clytaemnestra", Encyclopædia Britannica, vol. Vol. VI (ninthed.), New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1878, p.44 . Meanwhile, Cassandra saw a vision of herself and Agamemnon being murdered. Her attempts to elicit help failed (she had been cursed by Apollo that no one would believe her prophecies). She realized she was fated to die, and resolutely walked into the palace to receive her death. The American modern dancer and choreographer Martha Graham created a two-hour ballet, Clytemnestra (1958), about the queen. Growing up, the princesses of Sparta train in wrestling, spear-throwing and sword-fighting, and are relatively able to do as they please. Their mother rules alongside their father – or at least appears to. “It is hard to find a man who is really strong. Strong enough not to desire to be stronger than you,” she tells Clytemnestra.

Clytemnestra is one of several narrators of A Thousand Ships (2019) by Natalie Haynes, which retells the Trojan War from the perspective of the women involved. Clytemnestra was the daughter of Tyndareus and Leda, the King and Queen of Sparta, making her a Spartan Princess. According to the myth, Zeus appeared to Leda in the form of a swan, seducing and impregnating her. Leda produced four offspring from two eggs: Castor and Clytemnestra from one egg, and Helen and Polydeuces (Pollux) from the other. Therefore, Castor and Clytemnestra were fathered by Tyndareus, whereas Helen and Polydeuces were fathered by Zeus. Her other sisters were Philonoe, Phoebe and Timandra.A passionate picture of a fiercely patriarchal society and her heroine's refusal to be bound by its In old versions of the story, on returning from Troy, Agamemnon is murdered by Aegisthus, the lover of his wife, Clytemnestra. In some later versions Clytemnestra helps him or does the killing herself in his own home. The best-known version is that of Aeschylus: Agamemnon, having arrived at his palace with his concubine, the Trojan princess Cassandra, in tow and being greeted by his wife, entered the palace for a banquet while Cassandra remained in the chariot. Clytemnestra waited until he was in the bath, and then entangled him in a cloth net and stabbed him. Trapped in the web, Agamemnon could neither escape nor resist his murderer.

In the 1977 film adaptation Iphigenia, Clytemnestra is portrayed by the Greek actress Irene Papas. [10]

The Greeks were early masters of stories about betrayal and vengeance, about family feuds and curses, about men who conquered and women who suffered. Today, in the hands of skilled authors, these myths have become juicy fodder for novels that reimagine their maligned, misunderstood and often overlooked female characters, imbuing them with fresh agency and context. Clytemnestra appears in numerous works from ancient to modern times, sometimes as a villain and sometimes as a sympathetic antihero. [7] [8] Author and classicist Madeline Miller wrote "[a]fter Medea, Queen Clytemnestra is probably the most notorious woman in Greek mythology". [9]