As a child, I was fascinated by the Greek mythology (the children’s version of it), I used to know all the stories by heart. After reading Irving Stone’s The Greek Treasure about Heinrich Schliemann’s discovery of the actual city of Troy I wanted to be an archaeologist. Visiting Hisarlik is still on my list and I remember the dizzying feeling looking at the golden mask of Agamemnon in Athens’ museum gave me when I was 12 (although that was also partly due to the stifling heat of the place).

Madeline Miller recounts Circe’s story from Circe’s point of view, the first person narrative draws you in. She manages to give Circe a sort of distance that can be read as a trait of her godliness. I struggled to connect with her, I found her character shallow but then I asked myself whether as a mortal being one can understand or feel close to a goddess? Circe did become ‘just a woman’ when she was raped by a mere mortal, however, unlike a mortal woman she was then able to use that trauma to successfully protect herself from it ever happening again.

The story aims at the reader to sympathise with Circe as an outcast of the gods and demi-gods, as a misfit, an underdog victim to disinterest and bullying. I could not fully accept that account as I did not see Circe attempting to build relationships or be kind to others. She looked down on her mother, admired her father and shrunk from Pasiphäe and Perses. She tried to appropriate Aeëtes and Glaucos and took jealous revenge on Scylla. She did give Prometheus a drink, however, I could only read it as an act to satisfy her own curiosity and defy/test her father in order to get his attention.

I can see Circe’s story being interpreted as the story of womankind – on the margin, fighting for their place under the sun, finding their voice and confidence and coming through victorious and empowered. Personally, I started to like Circe towards the very end, once she chose to become mortal as she finally seemed warm and kind and, well, human. And perhaps that is the moral of the story.

UPDATE:

Yet again, my book club partners have shown me new perspectives, depths and insights into the story we were sharing. Yet again, they made me see the story anew, refreshed through their eyes and offered to correct my myopic views.

I specifically appreciated their felt connection with Circe, seeing her imperfect godliness as her strength and observing her become more human through motherhood. It was very enriching for me to listen to their interpretations as one of them is a mother and the other is a mother-to-be. It enabled me to experience the potential of the intertwining of womanhood with motherhood. The story clearly shows that you can fulfil your female destiny without a child but it also acknowledges how becoming a parent changes you. We also appreciated the description of struggles and challenges of motherhood as the first years after Telegonus was born were far from idyllic and so rang more true.

The message received through Circe’s example is that we can make our own world, as Trygon advised her; and we have the power to rewrite our own story.