Ariadne

Content Warning: This section features mentions of rape.

Early in the story, Ariadne’s handmaiden tells her the story of Medusa: a beautiful maiden with glorious hair who vowed to remain chaste and rebuffed any potential suitors. One day, the god Poseidon assaulted her in Athena’s sacred temple. Athena, a “virgin” goddess, was enraged and punished Medusa for Poseidon’s actions; she took Medusa’s glorious hair and replaced it with living snakes, giving her a face so hideous it would turn onlookers to stone. Perseus would eventually kill Medusa, but before this, she wrought widespread destruction: “[She] rampaged, leaving statues wherever she went […] She took her vengeance a hundred times over” (14).

Ariadne’s understanding of Medusa’s story coincides with her growing awareness of her own precarious position as a woman in her society. Upon hearing the tale, Ariadne notes the parallels between Medusa’s story and her mother Pasiphae’s story: Both were punished for a man’s crimes. However, where Pasiphae faded away in shame, Medusa wore her rage openly and struck fear in the hearts of men. Ariadne resolves that she will take the latter approach should she suffer the same fate, making Medusa a symbol of resistance rather than passivity in the face of mistreatment.