Penelopeiad

Author: (Canada) Margaret Atwood
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2005-11-01
Features: Listen to literary masters retell myths. Nobel Prize candidate, Canada's "Literary Queen," Margaret Atwood's new work, launched globally, co-created by over ten Nobel Prize winners in Literature, Booker Prize winners, and best-selling authors, hailed as "a miracle in the international publishing world." "Retelling Myths" is the first global cross-border publishing collaboration project initiated by British Canongate Publishers, involving renowned publishing houses from over 30 countries and regions, including the UK, US, China, France, Germany, Japan, South Korea, etc. European media have called it "a miracle in the international publishing world." So far, the full list of participating authors includes Nobel Prize winners in Literature, Booker Prize winners, and best-selling authors such as Kenzaburō ōe, Margaret Atwood, Chinua Achebe, José Saramago, Toni Morrison, Umberto Eco, and Chinese writer Su Tong. Chongqing Publishing House is the only participating institution in mainland China for the "Retelling Myths" project. Upon our recommendation, the renowned Chinese writer Su Tong has been invited to join the project to write "Retelling Myths – China Edition." Now, since everyone else has vanished into thin air, it's my turn to speak. In Homer's epic The Odyssey, Penelope—Odysseus's wife and the cousin of the beautiful Helen—appears as the epitome of unwavering loyalty to her husband, and her story has become a textbook for instructing women across the ages. After Helen was abducted, Odysseus immediately embarked on his journey to Troy, which lasted for twenty years. During this time, Penelope alone had to deal with all sorts of rumors and slander, manage the affairs of the kingdom of Ithaca, raise her stubborn and unruly son, and fend off the advances of over one hundred suitors. When Odysseus finally returned home after enduring countless trials,ing,, he killed all the suitors and also spared none of the twelve maidservants around his wife. Margaret Atwood cleverly adapts this ancient story, giving the narrative voice to Penelope and her twelve hanged maidservants, and asks: "What force pushed the maidservants to the gallows? What role did Penelope play in the events?" In Atwood's dazzling and skillfully crafted retelling, the story becomes filled with wisdom and compassion, both vivid and thought-provoking. This is a work interwoven with talent and passion. Atwood, with her renowned gift for storytelling and poetry, gives Penelope a new life and a sense of realism, while also solving an ancient mystery.