Summary of The Penelopiad
“The Penelopiad” is a modern retelling of the ancient Greek myths surrounding Penelope, the wife of Odysseus. Narrated by Penelope herself from the underworld, it recounts her life from her youth in Sparta to the twenty years she spends waiting in the palace of Ithaca for her husband to return from the Trojan War. When Odysseus finally comes home, he kills the suitors who have sought to marry her and claim his kingdom, but also orders his son Telemachus to hang her twelve maids, who he believes had consorted with the suitors. Atwood’s Penelope is a strong and resourceful woman who struggles to survive in difficult circumstances. Her narrative is interwoven with the songs, chants and testimonies of the hanged maids, giving the novella the structure of an ancient Greek tragedy.
Reasons to read The Penelopiad
“The Penelopiad” offers a twenty-first-century female perspective on the Homeric stories of Penelope and Odysseus. Margaret Atwood challenges traditional portrayals of Penelope and Odysseus, presenting a more complex and critical view of gender, power and justice in the ancient Greek world. In particular, by giving a voice to the twelve maids, Atwood re-examines a disturbing episode of Homer’s Odyssey and questions the justice of their punishment. Atwood is a celebrated Canadian author and one of the most influential contemporary writers in English. She has won numerous literary prizes, including the Booker Prize in 2000 for “The Blind Assassin” and in 2019 for “The Testaments”. Other notable works by Atwood include “The Handmaid’s Tale” and “Alias Grace”. For similar retellings of Greek myths, see also “Medea” by Christa Wolf, “House of Names” by Colm Tóibín, “The Song of Achilles” by Madeline Miller, “The Silence of the Girls” by Pat Barker, and “The King Must Die” by Mary Renault..
Setting: Mainly ancient Ithaca (Greece)
Original title: The Penelopiad
Year of publication: 2005
Nr of pages: 216
