Guest post written by Athena’s Child author Hannah Lynn
Hannah Lynn is a multi award winning novelist. Born in 1984, Hannah grew up in the Cotswolds, UK. After graduating from university, she spent 15 years as a teacher of physics, first in the UK and then Thailand, Malaysia, Austria and Jordan. It was during this time, inspired by the imaginations of the young people she taught, she began writing short stories for children, and later adult fiction. Now settled back in the UK with her husband, daughter and horde of cats, she spends her days writing romantic comedies and historical fiction. Her first historical fiction novel, Athena’s Child, was also a 2020 Gold Medalist at the Independent Publishers Awards. Athena’s Child is out September 26th.
With the relatively recent (and well-deserved) success of authors such as Madeline Miller, Natalie Haynes, and Jennifer Saint, it’s easy to think that Greek mythology retellings – particularly those highlighting a female point of view—are nothing more than the current zeitgeist in literary fiction. Some may even believe that their popularity is a fad, that will come and go as quickly as the latest TikTok dance trend. However, as an author and lover of this genre, who published my first mythology retelling just over three years ago, I remain confident that this is not the case. Because mythology retellings are far from a new phenomenon and certainly not one that is set to diminish in popularity for some time, if ever. And for good reasons.
When it comes to mythology, Robert Graves is one of the leading voices from the mid-twentieth century. Graves’ interpretations and insights into Greek Mythology have sustained the interest of scholars and general readers for decades, and I speak from personal experience when I say his compendium has offered some significant perspectives when creating my own novels, and as hard as it is to believe, it has been almost 90 years since he published his first retelling, “I, Claudius”. Penned in the style of an autobiography, written by the Roman emperor Claudius, it was his most commercially successful novel, though he continued translating myths, putting his own spin on them, until much later in the century, including the Siege and Fall of Troy, published in 1962. But Graves is not alone in bringing the myths to life for a modern audience.
Seventeen years have passed since the Canongate series—the series of novellas based around ancient mythology, including not only Greek, but also, amongst others, Norse and Slavic . The most well-known of these retellings is probably “The Penelopiad” by Margaret Atwood, but the fact that Canongate publishers saw a market for such mass retellings only shows how keen the interest already was. Or how mainstream. So mainstream, that Disney took a lead, with their animated film, Hercules.
Now, any lover of Greek Mythology is likely to take umbrage with a few issues in the 1997 Hercules animated film. (Mainly the image of Hera as a doting wife and the fact that the lead was given the common Roman spelling Hercules, as opposed to Heracles.) However, what is more difficult to dispute is that it was a financial success. According to a quick online search, you can see that the film grossed $252.7 million vs the $211 million grossed by the original Little Mermaid film. The fact is Greek Mythology has been mainstream for years and not just in novels or Disney films.
If you ask a random person you meet to name an Amazon, as much as I wished otherwise, they are not going to jump in with the names Hippolyte or Penthesilea. Instead, they are likely to go straight for Diana Prince, aka Wonder Woman. And is that really a surprise, considering she first made her comic book debut in 1941? Yes, the Amazon princess of comic book creation has been in our lives for over 80 years. Add in a host of other gods, such as Thor (Norse I know), Zeus, Hercules, featuring in popular comic books from the mid-sixties up to the present day. This does not sound like something with a short lifespan. The Greek heroes and gods provide a wealth of fodder that writers and readers alike will continue to devour, for the themes that run through those stories are as relevant today as they were when they were first regaled and sung by the aoidoi millennia ago.
Take “Circe” and “The Wolf Den” for instance, two of my personal favorites from collection of modern retellings. “Circe” tells the story of the infamous witch, whereas “The Wolf Den” is set in Pompeii, with the Roman gods, centuries later. However, the themes that run through these stories are as pertinent in both those time periods as they are today. Abuse for power, and misogyny run rife in these novels as both the main characters struggle for survival and to find their place in a world they have been forced into. As pleasing as it would be to believe that we no longer have to deal with these issues, it’s simply not true.
In my own first retelling, Athena’s Child, the idea of victim blaming sits directly beside abuse of power and we know all too well how prominent this issue still is. While in Queens of Themyscira, I try to directly address this issue, that being a powerful or strong woman does not mean you cannot be a victim.
While we can argue how ‘real’ the characters within Greek mythology, Gods and mortals alike, were, their flaws and frailties that are so appealing are very true to life’. The torments that they go through, loss, desertion, heart-ache, are all ones we can empathize with today. Combine that with the fanciful, magical world of the gods, and what is not to love.
Now, as for its longevity as a genre. The Odyssey and Iliad alone offer us hundreds of named characters, and a rich tapestry of a world to use. The women, the men, the children, the gods and goddesses, each would view the same situation from an entirely different perspective, and that is what makes the world enthralling.
Personally speaking, I know that a lifetime would not be enough to tell and retell all these tales, and I know that I am not alone. I’m just grateful there are other authors like me writing these stories too!
