The other night I went to see a marvelous outer walls production by Fan Made Theatre, which leads the audience down complex woodland paths later Odysseus on the travel home from the Trojan Wars, as he struggles versus storms, monsters, the whims of the gods and the enticements of glitzy women.
Circe, of course, is in addition to them, but is she one of the monsters or merely a powerful mortal - and witch - protecting herself from men reputed to contain sacked cities and raped women as treasure of war?
Odysseus' men find out the enchantress Circe living adrift on the island of Aeaea. She invites them hip her home, offers them food and drink, as a consequence with a magical potion turns them hip domestic animals and drives them out to board in the pens - someplace they would contain remained if it was not for Odysseus.
The champion goes in track of his men, but on the way meets a candidate from the gods who warns him of Circe's machinations and gives him a herb, Moly, to protect him from her potions of transformation. As a result armed and forewarned, Odysseus is biological by Circe's magic, but falls for her charms in other ways. They hold your fire together for a day, at the end of which Circe offers Odysseus suggest on his route home and the dangers he has docile to line of reasoning.
The men are returned to their material cut-out, but as Circe says in Fan Made Theatre's play: "I guts filament it to their wives to direct if they are docile domestic animals arrived."And that's a view various feminists could sympathise with.
The website Godchecker.com says of Circe: "Whatever thing of a innovative feminist, she thinks all men are swine, a infer she has put to the test with explicit consequences."
But is even that view correct? Is Circe helpfully a innovative feminist who feels men are plants and deserve to be treated as such?
I delight, if I was in Circe's place and had her powers, what would I contain done? Detached one mortal versus a shipload of territorial army long-starved of female quarters as well as good food and whose protuberance was not good? Would I contain defended myself, turned them hip domestic animals in the beginning and asked questions later? I experience I can contain done...
The Odyssey - a walkabout over-the-top production by Fan Made Theatre is on at Oxleas Forest, London SE9 tonight, July 21, and at Southwark Dining room, London SE16 on Thursday 23 - Sunday 26 July. Performances start at 7:30pm. Tickets can be booked by the use of http://www.fanmadetheatre.com/ or by profession the box hut on 020 7232 1663.
Hope is likewise releasing a paperback illustrated compilation of The Odyssey on 22 July (pictured previous). The Odyssey Premiere HC (Hope Illustrated)