Week 3 Story: Circe Takes a Stand

After Hermes had explained how to face the goddess, Odysseus started walking up the hill, thinking dark thoughts about what was to come. He grasped the Moly root in his hand and listed all the things Hermes had told him, so as to not forget them. "The Moly will ward off the spell, point my sword at her, have her swear an oath, and sleep with her" he muttered under his breath. "Moly, sword, oath, sex..." he continued to repeat all the way up to the goddesses' door. "Moly, sword, oath, sex...Moly, swor--" he stopped himself just in time to raise his hand and knock on the door. 

"Come in brave warrior," said a sweet female voice from the inside, as the door slowly swung open of its own accord. Odysseus took a hesitant step, clasping the Moly in one hand and his sword in the other. "You must be thirsty from your travel. Please, join me for a drink and then we shall have some supper." The goddess Circe then handed Odysseus a golden cup, and when the sweet liquid had touched his lips, she smirked triumphantly. “Off to your sty now, and lie there with your friends.” But Odysseus was still himself, and with his still-human hands, he swung his sword at her. Circe soon realized that the man had been helped by a God, someone who knew how to thwart her magic, so she fell to her knees feigning fear and regret. "Oh, mighty warrior, clearly your mind is too powerful for my gifts, you must be cunning Odysseus of Ithaca, of whom I was warned about, please forgive my actions and spare my life!"

And so Odysseus lowered his sword. He looked at the goddess feeling pity for her, living on her own away from all of humanity except for her handmaidens; he couldn't help but understand why she was so distrustful of her guests. Odysseus extended his hand, "come, goddess, swear to me that I will not be harmed and let us seal this truce by laying together as man and woman in bed." Circe smirked at the ground, already having foreseen the man's words, so as she took Odysseus' hands she cleverly pulled the Moly out of his grasp, leaving him defenseless against her charms. "Foolish boy, did you truly think I, a goddess, would let you order me around and lay with you in bed?" she laughed. "I am indebted to you for sparing my life, but offend me again in my own house and it shall be your end. Now go," she said waving her hand dismissively, "next time I shall not be so kind." Odysseus decided not to take the goddesses' word lightly, and recognizing her warning, he took a bow and left just as he had arrived. 

To this day Circe remains on her island, surrounded by women and beautiful fierce animals. Every now and then, men stumble upon the remote island and visit her palace, hoping to find shelter and food. Those that survive say that she is a merciless being that turns men into swine for her own personal enjoyment, but that is far from the truth. Circe is simply a woman protecting herself and her handmaidens from the evil of men. 

Circe by Wright Barker

Story source: Homer's Odyssey, translated into English by Tony Kline. (2004).

Author's Note: in the original story Hermes tells Odysseus that the Moly will prevent him from being affected by Circe's spells and that when she points at him with her wand he should try to kill her. She would then offer to have relations with him, and that he should not refuse her, but he first needed to have her swear an oath not to harm him. Everything happens as Hermes says and Odysseus ends up spending a year with Circe on her island, but he constantly cries because he misses his companions, so Circe turns them back into humans. I changed the story around because I hated that Circe still sleeps with Odysseus even after he tries to kill her. Circe is such a beautiful and empowered goddess that can enchant lions and tigers, so it did not make sense to me that she would suddenly become submissive. This is why I had her fake her fear and trick Odysseus so that he would leave her island. I also included that the reason she turns men into pigs is that she wants to protect her handmaidens from the evil of men; this is because in Greek mythology women are very often demonized and turned into monsters because of the actions of men (Scylla, Io, Medusa, etc), so I decided to turn Circe into a bit of a feminist icon that wants to live in a utopic female society.