Greek Myths
  • Home
  • The Oresteia
  • Cassandra
  • House of Names
  • The Lost Books of the Odyssey
  • Circe
  • The Penelopiad
  • Reference
  • Final Project
  • Home
  • The Oresteia
  • Cassandra
  • House of Names
  • The Lost Books of the Odyssey
  • Circe
  • The Penelopiad
  • Reference
  • Final Project
House of Names Characters
Guess what? We got some regular faces returning for another look at their moral characters! Clytemnestra's and Orestes' pictures will look familiar but Electra is actually a character now so she gets a picture! Yay! We get to see the three characters react to Iphigenia's death and the slow build up of mistrust from the surviving family. Clytemnestra is painted in a more sympathetic light, she's a mom who's grieving and just wants revenge on those who killed her daughter. Orestes is just a little kid who is confused by what happened then manipulated by literally everyone to achieve their goals. And Electra is a woman who thinks what was rightfully hers was taken and will do anything to correct what she views as a slight. Some serious family counseling would have saved them a lot of grief. Toibin adds some original characters to help flesh out Orestes backstory, Leander and Mitros. It helps give Orestes some character when he has people to bounce his personality off of. And here is a nice family flowchart if you really want to know the nitty gritty family tree of this crazy family.

House of Names or Fangirling Over Clytemnestra Hour

9/29/2021

0 Comments

 
Once again, I am back to freak out over Clytemnestra. Welcome. Toibin gives Clytemnestra, Orestes, and Electra some more character and expands on the original plays of ​The Oresteia. They're a family, and he really makes you feel that family dynamic (at least until time and silence really divides them). Silence is honestly the antagonist of this novel. Clytemnestra (my queen) doesn't talk to her children and explain why she wants revenge on Agamemnon, which causes Electra to grow to hate her mother. Electra doesn't talk to Orestes and just try and ask him to help her with her revenge, but instead manipulates him into doing it. Orestes does not speak up to his kind of love interest, Leander, and tell him what he wants and instead follows him around. By the end, Orestes is being iced out by everyone for killing his own mother, so he'll live in silence for years. Rude honestly. Clytemnestra loved her children, questionably she may have love Iphigenia the most, but the madness of revenge caused her to view her remaining children as threats. Everyone sort of gets what they wanted, but it's hollow and ends up making them feel worse. Orestes comes home, but kills his mother. Electra gets power, but she has to share it with Leander. Leander himself gets to come home and get revenge but loses all of his family except for his sister. However, Toibin really gives all the character's their reasons. Even if the reader ends up hating someone they can sympathize with them and somewhat understand why they're doing what they're doing. Everyone except for Agamemnon. That man will never be written in a flattering light because everyone agrees the man sucks. 
Picture
0 Comments

    Author

    ​​My name is Savannah Habern, and I use they/them pronouns. I have been in love with Greek stories for a long time, but always wanted stories that looked at the perspectives of famous Greek tales. This website is meant to display some of these stories and to discuss my thoughts on the books and their themes.

    Archives

    September 2021

    Categories

    All

    RSS Feed

Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.