The Legend of Circe

668 Words2 Pages

Circe was a Greek goddess and enchantress (Circe). She was known for her lovely braids and sweet swinging voice; she also happened to be the symbol of temptation, ungovernability, and over-indulgence (Warner). In addition, she is identified with exemplary apostate among the gods and goddesses of the Greek belief system (Warner). This contradicting combination has made itself evident in many of the stories about Circe. As a matter of fact, what is Circe’s legend?
Circe enjoys perpetual youth, which is what led to the idea that her palace housed the eternally famous “Fountain of Youth” (Warner). In addition to housing this famous fountain, Circe’s palace was considered to be “the empire of the senses” (Warner). This does refer to the nickname she has accumulated, which is the “dread goddess” associated with sounds and airs, but this also refers to the appealing nature of her palace and everything inside; she most likely created this structure attractively to lure sailors passing by to come to her island in the western Mediterranean, which has been given the name Aeaea (Warner). Her island was also called Circeium (Smith 270). Hundreds of years later, a town would form near this island that would be named Circeii in her honor (Smith 252).
Circe was considered a Titan because her father Helios, god of the sun, was a Titan (Smith 764). However, she was neither an Olympian, nor a mortal (Warner). Circe is classified as a goddess, but she is evidently not a very powerful goddess because of the simple fact that she could not manage to use her magic to seduce any man, god or mortal (Analysis). The most well known story that epitomizes this fact would be her encounter with Odysseus. This particular tale begins ...

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