Fairytale Reader: Review: The Penelopiad by Margaret Atwood

THE PENELOPIAD BY MARGARET ATWOOD
Publisher: Canongate BooksFormat: Paperback
Series: No
Pages: 199
Date Finished: 13.11.15
Rating: 4/5
Summary: Now that all the others have run out of air, it’s my turn to do a little story-making.

In Homer’s account in The Odyssey, Penelope—wife of Odysseus and cousin of the beautiful Helen of Troy—is portrayed as the quintessential faithful wife, her story a salutary lesson through the ages. Left alone for twenty years when Odysseus goes off to fight in the Trojan War after the abduction of Helen, Penelope manages, in the face of scandalous rumors, to maintain the kingdom of Ithaca, bring up her wayward son, and keep over a hundred suitors at bay, simultaneously. When Odysseus finally comes home after enduring hardships, overcoming monsters, and sleeping with goddesses, he kills her suitors and—curiously—twelve of her maids.

In a splendid contemporary twist to the ancient story, Margaret Atwood has chosen to give the telling of it to Penelope and to her twelve hanged maids, asking: “What led to the hanging of the maids, and what was Penelope really up to?” In Atwood’s dazzling, playful retelling, the story becomes as wise and compassionate as it is haunting, and as wildly entertaining as it is disturbing. With wit and verve, drawing on the story-telling and poetic talent for which she herself is renowned, she gives Penelope new life and reality—and sets out to provide an answer to an ancient mystery.

“Now that I am dead, I know everything.”

I'm currently studying Classical Civilisations for one of my A Levels, and a huge part of our course centres around Homer's The Odyssey. If you weren't aware, The Odyssey is an epic poem that follows the journey of Odysseus as he tries to make his way to Ithaca (his home) from the Trojan wars. To put it eloquently, he kills a lot of shit and shags his way around the Mediterranean.

Personally, I don't find Odysseus a very compelling character. Even though he yearns to get home to his wife Penelope, that doesn't stop him sleeping with at least two other woman (a witch and a nymph, no less). He's also rude, abrasive, selfish, arrogant and occasionally foolish. I understand that The Odyssey was written in a different era, but that doesn't change the fact that Odysseus still pisses me off.

Maybe that's why I love The Penelopiad so much. It's a relatively simple story, retelling The Odyssey from the point of view of the woman Odysseus sought to return to: Penelope. Instead of focusing on the hero who killed monsters and men alike, it tells the story of a strong woman using her own wit to stop the advances of hundreds of suitors. It gives justice to the twelve maids that were cruelly murdered in The Odyssey for crimes that a modern day audience would barely batter an eyelid to. In short, The Penelopiad is as wonderfully feminist as it is enjoyable.

“Water does not resist. Water flows. When you plunge your hand into it, all you feel is a caress. Water is not a solid wall, it will not stop you. But water always goes where it wants to go, and nothing in the end can stand against it. Water is patient. Dripping water wears away a stone. Remember that, my child. Remember you are half water. If you can't go through an obstacle, go around it. Water does.”

It is so wonderful to read a novel devoted to Penelope. She's one of my favourite characters in The Odyssey, however Atwood creates her into a well rounded and developed heroine. She's surprisingly sarcastic and sassy (which I just loved), yet still closely resembles the Penelope we're all familiar with. Every characterisation feels true to the original and I loved it.

One of the best things about The Penelopiad is how Atwood interprets and adapts aspects of The Odyssey. Characters are given more agency, and certain situations are shown in a new light.

"Odysseus was the guest of a goddess on an enchanted isle, said some; she'd turned his men into pigs -- not a hard job in my view."

If I have to give any criticism to The Penelopiad is that I don't think it would work very well on its own. It's more like a short companion to The Odyssey that presents the poem in a feminist 21st century perspective rather than a novel on it's own. There are wonderful references to The Odyssey however that do really enhance the narrative.

I'm saving the best part about The Penelopiad till last. As much as I love The Odyssey, it bothers me a lot how the twelve maids are treated. Essentially I feel like it's unjust, wrong and downright disgusting. It makes the feminist in me want to punch someone. But not in The Penelopiad. The way Atwood handles it is just beautiful, and I am so, so glad this book exists. The fact that Melantho, one of my favourite characters in The Odyssey gets her own justification makes me so happy.