"The Gendered Presentations of Athena" -- Poppy Robbins
The Gendered Presentations of Athena
by Poppy Robbins
Abstract
This dissertation examines two main works of literature that highlight Athena’s gender non-conformity. These works will demonstrate how the classical world was far more accepting of LGBTQIA+ identities, even if this acceptance was not explicit in many writings. They will also exemplify how struggles of gender identity, paired with society’s gendered expectations can affect anyone and everyone, including deities. I shall be specifically examining Hesiod’s Theogony (700 BCE) and Aeschylus’ Oresteia (458 BCE), with each work having their own dedicated chapter. This allows investigation into both Athena’s birth, and her existence moving forward as an established divinity. Contrasting previous works that explore Athena as simply possessing a dimorphic nature, I shall be exploring Athena’s relationship specifically with gender non-conformity; including how her existence as a genderqueer person began, and affected her going forward. To demonstrate this, I shall be placing Athena in contrast to the patriarchy that she is often seen as the arbiter for. The androcentric ruling class, by design creates a surveillance of womanhood and the self, resulting in gender performativity. By attempting to determine Athena’s character and gender identity apart from the patriarchy, Athena appears as one trapped by the conformist nature of the patriarchy, rather than its upholder by choice. This also allows for analysis towards Athena’s relationship with her father and how this has informed her capability to, or inability to convey her gender and gender expression.
Table of Contents:
Introduction…………………………………………………………….……..………….3
Chapter One: Gender Performativity …………………………………………..…….5
- The Birth of Athena……………………………………………………….….….9 - Twins? How Can This Relate to Athena’s Gender Expression…….10
Chapter Two: Gendering Athena in the Oresteia: A Non-Binary Reading..13 Conclusion……………………………………………………………………………...19 Bibliography…………………………………………………………………………….21
Introduction
Athena as a deity is one who has resisted concrete categorisation, ‘a goddess of war, but also a goddess of women’s work. She was the virgin goddess, but also a maternal figure’1. This is most apparent in regards to her refusal to be classified into the traditional gender binary. This has led some scholars to attempt to determine which preceded the other, ‘her feminine traits or her warrior masculinity’2. However in the case of her codified Greek characterisation, I do not believe this is necessary. By the time we come to know Athena as she is portrayed in Greek literature, her dimorphic characterisation is fully integrated into her being. At the point of Homer’s Iliad, written around 800 BCE, Athena’s characterisation had been in place for at least 100 years, as proven by her appearance in the Mycenaean Linear B script. A significant amount of my research focuses on Hesiod’s Theogony. This was written a century later than the Iliad, proving that Athena’s multifaceted personality far predates even the literature we have that acknowledges it. By attempting to separate and chronologise when certain gendered traits became part of Athena’s attributes, scholars are denying the very nature of Athena’s existence, in which she operates outside of the gender binary. Classical Civilisation has been studied for centuries, therefore many of the ideas around tying Athena to a certain gender are outdated. Instead of accepting that Athena blurs the line between the masculine and feminine with no further examination, I have chosen to write this essay. Other scholars seem to align more with my hypothesis, though they also seem to lack some of the terminology that has assisted in my characterisation of Athena. Deacy and Villing state that Athena ‘was, rather, a dynamic and volatile figure who oscillated between male and female, and resisted straightforward classification in gender terms’3. Whilst Budin believes that ‘Athena’s character is functionally androgynous; that is to say, while her sex is female, her gender is strongly masculine’4. Both analyses effectively understand the difficulty that occurs when attempting to gender Athena, with Budin seeming to be more aligned with the idea of a transgender Athena. Whereas, Deacy and Villing’s analysis can be strongly read as a gender-fluid Athena.
There is a clear argument that Athena may have been gender non-conforming, more specifically a non-binary individual. Proven through exploring not just places in ancient texts where Athena breaks gendered expectations but the social expectations that surround ideas of gender non-conformism. By examining the works of Gender Studies scholars such as Judith Butler, through the modern ideas of gender expectations, we are able to retroactively analyse Athena in a new light; exploring the struggles gender non-conforming individuals face in a world where the gender binary is implicitly and explicitly ever-present. From this, and personal experiences as a gender non-conforming individual, it is possible to deconstruct passages from ancient literature to come to the conclusion, that Athena is non-binary given how she reacts to certain situations and the circumstances around her upbringing. However, as ancient views and terminology were
1 Deacy, S. (2008) p. 6
2 Deacy, S. (2008) p. 9
3 Deacy, S; Villing, A. (2001) p. 10
4 Budin, S. (2015) p. 39
3
different to our modern understandings, this caused slight issues regarding the analysis as modern ideas of gender non-conformism compared to ancient ideas are not a perfect one to one comparison. Despite this, this topic is vital to explore. Although acceptance of the LGBTQIA+ community has become far more widespread in recent years, the past is still viewed as a heterosexual, cisgender society. By reanalysing the past, queer individuals may be able to more easily accept themselves as they would be able to understand that LGBTQIA+ people have existed for millennia.
Despite having historically not been discussed in scholarship, or literature regarding Ancient Greece, it is known that the classical period was far more diverse in regards to subjects such as gender and sexuality. As previously mentioned this is due to the fact that Classical Civilisation has been a subject overwhelmed with the outdated, imperial views of elderly, white men. Despite the downplaying of historical queerness, examples of non-conformity can be found. In recent years, acceptance of LGBTQIA+ identities has grown, alongside the general understanding of gender and sexuality, making this research topical and current. Due to this more widespread acceptance of LGBTQIA+ identities and understandings of gender, terminology surrounding the subjects have expanded. For example, Jane Harrison describes Athena as ‘‘a sexless thing, neither man nor woman’’5in the early 1900s. Despite Harrison clearly describing a non-binary or genderqueer individual, she did not have the terminology to express this concept fully. As language has expanded, we can provide a more specific analysis of Athena in regards to her gender identity. Apropos of this, we shall be discussing genders that exist outside of the gender binary, that can use pronouns other than he/him and she/her. Throughout this essay however, Athena will be referred to with she/her pronouns, as that is how she is presented throughout ancient writings. Gender is a constantly evolving spectrum, and acceptance of alternative gender identities is a more recent development compared to sexual preference. The language is regularly changing, being updated and expanded upon. Due to this, the language used throughout this essay is the most current and correct available at this time. This is not to say that in the future there may be terminology that better suits my hypotheses.
5 Deacy, S. (2008) p. 3
4
Gender Performativity
Although the term gender performativity was coined by Judith Butler in 1990, the conception of gender performativity predates Butler by several centuries. The first time ideas around gender performativity were discussed in the media was 1972’s Ways of Seeing from BBC Four. John Berger, who created the programme, details specifically how women have been portrayed in artwork throughout time. Namely, that man has always created idealised versions of women who are simultaneously heralded and degraded. Through his analysis, Berger creates a link between gender performativity and the male gaze, highlighting that gender performativity can occur in response to the male gaze. Berger famously demonstrated how art informs how people view themselves, stating, ‘Men dream of women. Women dream of themselves being dreamt of. Men look at women. Women watch themselves being looked at’6. This creates a culture of constant surveillance of the self, a self-imposed panopticon. Those who are assigned female at birth (AFAB) are inherently taught to be aware of how they look and how they will be perceived by the world. If not surveilled by the exterior world, they are constantly watched by themselves, as these ideas become unconsciously internalised.
Butler builds on and expands these ideas of the surveillance of womanhood, in their 1990 book, Gender Trouble. Butler outlines that Gender Performativity is ‘an illusion discursively maintained for the purposes of the regulation of sexuality within the obligatory frame of reproductive heterosexuality.’7. Though Harold Garfinkel more concisely believed that gender is ‘a skilled choreography of microtransactions’8. Modern understandings of Gender Performativity more closely align with Garfinkel's definition, as Garfinkel does not limit the ideas of gender to compulsory heterosexuality. This idea of gender being a series of ‘microtransactions’9lends itself to the previously mentioned surveillance of the self, as the two are closely interlinked. Interestingly, the case of these microtransactions can be exemplified through transgender individuals. Transgender people often feel the need to try and perform in a way their biological sex determines they should act within society before coming out ‘I went down this stereotypical route of [...] buying clothes from the women's section, growing my hair out, little bit of makeup […] but it all felt so wrong’10. Then once out, as proven by early gender reassignment surgeries, trans individuals ‘were only able to obtain sex reassignment surgery if they could pass successfully through stereotyped gender performances, thus reinforcing the gender binary’11 and creating the stigmas around ‘passing’ that still exists today. This exemplifies how gender is performed to conform to stereotypical gender expectations to allow acceptance into society.
6 Berger, J. (1972)
7 Butler, J. (1990) p. 173
8 Papoulias, C. p. 231
9 Papoulias, C. p. 231
10 Raines, J. (2017)
11 Papoulias, C. p. 231
5
Butler states that ‘gender is an assignment that does not just happen once. It is ongoing. We are assigned a sex at birth and then a slew of expectations follow which continue to assign gender to us’12. This is exemplified by the idealised existence of the Perfect Woman as determined by the patriarchy. The Perfect Woman as an ideal has nothing to do with sex-based identifiers, but rather, it is an expectation created by societal norms. The idea of the Perfect Woman has existed throughout civilisation. Each iteration of her had different characteristics, exemplifying the desires of the culture at that time. In Ancient Greece, specifically Ancient Athens, the Perfect Woman ideal was submissive to their male counterparts, who acted as the perfect mother and housekeeper and excelled in ‘feminine’ tasks such as weaving. From this description, Athena appears in defiance of the key ideals of Grecian womanhood. This exemplifies her unstable position within the pantheon due to her incapability to conform to society’s gendered expectations. However, she concedes to the most consistent character trait of the Perfect Woman that has pervaded throughout time; she is submissive to the male authority. As established, the societal norms surrounding gender and gender performance are learned behaviours. Looking back at the birth myth of Athena, we can see how her attitude towards gender adapted as she progressed through Greek mythology, changing from one who warps the gender expectations of those around her, to someone trapped by those same expectations.
In Theogony, Hesiod details how Zeus reacts upon hearing the prophecy that he would be destroyed by his second child to his current wife, the Titaness Metis:
‘Now Zeus, the king of all divinities,
First wed Metis, the wisest among men
And all the immortal gods, but later, when
Her time arrived to bring forth the goddess
Grey-eyed Athene, he with artfulness
And cunning words in his own belly hid
The child, as he by Earth and Heaven was bid
So that no other god should ever hold sway,
For destiny revealed that she someday
Would bear wise brood – first, her of the bright eyes,
Tritogeneia, just as strong and wise
As Father Zeus, but later she would bring
Into the world an overbearing king
Of gods and men. Before his birth, though, he
Put her into his belly so that she
Might counsel him.’13
12 Butler, J; Gleeson, J. (2021)
13 Hesiod, lines 668-677
Zeus elects, similarly to his father before him, to subsume Metis to ensure the second child is never born. However, Athena comes into existence regardless. Hesiod implies that Metis was in labour when consumed by her husband, as ‘Her time arrived to bring forth the goddess’14. Believing he has outwitted the prophecy, Hesiod outlines how Zeus goes on to have a total of six partners, resulting in the births of twenty-five children before Athena was brought forth. Even if divinities possess an accelerated gestational period compared to mortals, Athena was trapped inside her father for an extended period of time. This is proven by her being born post-pubescent and having the immediate mental fortitude to be considered Zeus’ equal. I mention this because Hesiod explains why Zeus chose to subsume Metis rather than any other form of termination. Zeus chooses to incorporate Metis into himself ‘so that she might counsel him’15. This proves that Metis, and by extension, Athena could hear her father whilst inside him as ‘Long before birth a foetus can hear’16. Therefore, Athena’s first experiences of the outside world were from a purely male, authoritative perspective, as she incidentally lived vicariously through him. In my opinion, this is vital in understanding Athena’s relationship with gender. Children are socialised based on their biological sex. This leads to gender stereotyping. Gender stereotyping is the act of attributing specific roles or characteristics to an individual solely based on their biological sex. For example, ‘differential treatment by sex starts as soon as the infant’s sex is known [...] gifts to the child are carefully selected by sex [...] infants are dressed in sex-typed clothing’17 and ‘by 7 months, infants can readily learn to respond differentially to male and female voices’18. However, as Athena was never socialised as a child, she was never privy to the indoctrination of gender she would have received if born at the proper time. Instead, as previously stated, she would have experienced the world as Zeus did. This means that Athena was effectively socialised as an authoritative, adult man. This can explain why Athena appears to be so defiant toward ‘feminine’ social norms. A 1985 study on childhood perceptions of gender, found that ‘Boys without gender labels or gender identity played with dolls at rates about equal to girls’ rates but this behaviour was almost non-existent in boys who showed some knowledge of gender labels’19. It can be argued that Athena can fall into either of these categories. Gender is a social construct20, by existing inside of Zeus, Athena would have had no concept of sex or gender identity. In this way, Zeus effectively creates a genderless, non-binary, non-child. Which can then be proven by her affinity for both masculine and feminine spheres of influence, similar to the ‘boys without gender labels’21 playing indiscriminately with toys.
Arguing the counterpoint, she could have had some concept of gender through Zeus, through the way he interacts with the world and the rituals he would perform to present his gender
14 Hesiod, lines 676-677
15 Hesiod, line 977
16 Piontelli, A. (1987)
17 Fagot, B; Leinbach, M. (1993) p. 207
18 Fagot, B; Leinbach, M. (1993) p. 208
19 Fagot, B; Leinbach, M. (1993) p. 213
20 Fisher. (2019)
21 Fagot, B; Leinbach, M. (1993) p. 213
identity22. It is unlikely that she would have viewed Zeus’ actions as a gendered performance as they were the only way she interacted with the world at that point. Nevertheless, her concept of gender would have been purely male. This becomes highlighted through her affinity for more masculine subjects such as war, alongside her fierce loyalty towards her father. This implicit favour for androcentric pursuits placed on her by the patriarchy was then reinforced as she seems to have been predominantly worshipped for her more masculinised traits. Thus begins the ‘cycle of microtransactions’23 Garfinkel outlined.
Despite now being subject to gender expectations, and being perceived as a woman, Athena seems to have been able to express her gender identity through her clothing. Many modern genderqueer and non-binary individuals feel trapped into expressing their non-conformity in a specific way. In a similar way to how transgender people had to strictly conform to gender expectations to ‘obtain sex reassignment surgery’24, members of the non-binary community can feel pressured into androgyny. The image of non-binarism has a very specific face in the media: ‘a middling-height, pale-skinned, thin individual with short hair and chiselled facial features. Androgyny at its finest’25. However, the whole notion of being non-binary is to express yourself in a way that feels true to you. This does not have to mean rejecting all gendered items in favour of androgyny. Athena encapsulates this. She rejects wearing a male chiton, or a knee-length tunic similar to Artemis’ choice of self-expression. Instead, every depiction of Athena highlights her place on the gender spectrum, as both masculine and feminine concurrently. She elects to wear a peplos. This demonstrates her skill and deific dominion as a craftswoman. She also adorns herself in a breastplate and helmet whilst typically depicted wielding her father's shield, the Aegis. Her ability to brandish the Aegis can be read as her inability to escape her father's influence. Interestingly, when Athena emerged from the head of Zeus, the gleaming of her golden armour causes Hyperion to stop ‘his passage across the sky’26. The worldwide ‘terror’27 she induced is only subdued once she removes ‘her golden armour’28, and conforms to expectations on how women should dress, becoming ‘‘the girl Pallas Athena’’29. In the grand scheme of gender performativity, Athena successfully married the gender binary together. This allowed her to create her own unique expression of gender, simultaneously existing as a gendered and genderless being, whilst also being aware of how she is perceived in a gendered space.
22 Fisher. (2019)
23 Papoulias, C. p. 231
24 Papoulias, C. p. 231
25 Reynolds, M (2021)
26 Deacy, S. (2008) p. 26
27 Deacy, S. (2008) p. 28
28 Deacy, S. (2008) p. 28
29 Deacy, S. (2008) p. 28
The Birth of Athena
Athena’s lack of understanding in regards to gender expectations is highlighted from the moment of her birth. Hesiod details that when Athena emerged from Zeus’ forehead, she transmuted the gender roles of those in her immediate vicinity. She places Zeus in the role of the mother, ‘giving birth to a child in lieu of his wife’30. Hephaestus is also transformed by Athena, appearing as a midwife,31 utilising instruments, in this case, an axe, to assist in the birth of the child whilst easing Zeus’ mental and physical discomfort. Once emerged, Athena also appears as the de facto power within the Pantheon, standing tall and battle-ready above the unprepared and unsuspecting deities. This is expertly demonstrated on the Parthenon’s eastern pediment. However, the patriarchy safeguard their threatened androcentric values through reiterating ‘the close bond [Athena] established with her father by her birth’32.
33
Athena’s refusal to be defined by gender expectations can be read in multiple ways. The Theogony explains that Zeus acted on the prophecy portenting his downfall immediately upon receiving it. However, this appears on reflection, a foolish choice. The prophecy details that the child destined to overthrow Zeus, becoming an ‘overbearing king’34 would be his second child with Metis. Given the explicit time frame of the prophecy, I have to question why Zeus was willing to risk the lives of his wife and imminent child. This first child is predicted to be ‘just as strong and wise’35 as Zeus himself. Therefore, subsuming the pair for a child not yet conceived seems unwise. From this we can infer that Zeus’ situation was perhaps more urgent than it first appears to be. The text states that the son will be born ‘later’36than Athena, but there is no indication of a timeline. Furthermore, the translation uses very specific pronouns here, stating that Zeus subsumed Metis before ‘his’37 birth. This suggests, paired with Zeus’ actions, that Athena’s unnamed brother’s birth would have immediately followed her own, making the pair
30 Deacy, S. (2008) p. 31
31 Deacy, S. (2008) p. 31
32 Deacy, S (2008) p. 31
33 Reconstruction of the Parthenon’s East Pediment
34 Hesiod, line 974
35 Hesiod, line 972
36 Hesiod, line 973
37 Hesiod, line 975
twins. The idea of Athena being born concurrently with a brother is supported in an alternative translation of the Theogony, which details Athena being born alongside the Aegis, transforming the Aegis into her twin brother, ‘She made the aegis, that army-routing armor of Athena, Alongside the one who bore her, Athena dressed in warrior’s arms’38.
Twins? How can this relate to Athena’s Gender Expression
In the established version of the Theogony, of the two children expected, Athena was the only one born. By looking at cases of in utero absorption, we can theorise a genetic explanation for Athena’s gender identity. Twin chimerism occurs when two fertilised eggs ‘fuse together’39. From this fusion, a ‘new individual [is] formed’40 containing ‘two copies of genetic material from two different individuals’41. The combination of the separate genetic material does not join together to create a new, unique form of DNA as happens through conventional procreation. Instead, the two separate DNA strands remain separated within the ‘new individual’42. This fusion of Athena and her brother provides an interesting, genetic explanation as to why Athena defies gender expectations in the way she does. By absorbing her brother, Athena mirrors her father’s subsumption of her mother. However, in this case, instead of the patriarchal order being maintained through the forceful submission of women, Athena juxtaposes this. This can be interpreted in two ways. Either Athena’s absorption of her brother is an example of the matriarchal overcoming the patriarchal power, in a similar vein to her warping of gender roles when emerging from Zeus’ skull. Alternatively, and more in line with Athena’s later characterisation, this destruction of her brother could be seen as Athena destroying a threat to the established order. Throughout ancient literature, Athena is Zeus’ right hand, who ‘aligns herself with her father and the patriarchy over which he reigns’43, despite existing in defiance to many ideals of said patriarchy. Through this position, Athena is often placed in opposition to things that could improve her existence, exemplified by the lack of female voices in the androcentric judiciary system she helped create.
Athena and her brother existing as chimeric twins makes Athena in a sense an intersex individual. But more than that, by containing half of her brother's genetic make-up, she is half of the ‘overbearing king’44 prophesied to overthrow Zeus. Despite this inherited penchant for power, Athena does not make an attempt to gain said power. This is most likely because Athena, once emerged from Zeus, was socialised as a woman. She was now subject to the expectations of her perceived gender. In conjunction with this, Athena is subject to the oppression of her biological sex and the expectation that she be subservient to the male
38 Hesiod, frag. 343
39 ZME Science. (2014)
40 ZME Science. (2014)
41 ZME Science. (2014)
42 ZME Science. (2014)
43 Deacy, S. (2008) p. 30
44 Hesiod, line 974
authority. Throughout Greek literature, Athena is presented as vehemently loyal to both Zeus and the male authority. This most likely stems from the fact that Athena was described as being ‘just as strong and wise’45 as her father, paired with her existence inside him for a significant portion of her life. In Greek society, a woman could not hold an equal position of power to a man. Therefore, Athena’s inherited power through her chimeric connection to her brother is purposefully limited by her passiveness towards the androcentric power. Those who do not conform to gendered expectations often fear and face social rejection. If Athena fully expressed her gender identity and the extent of her power she could be removed or potentially destroy the society she has only just become a part of. Furthering this idea of social rejection and the surveillance of womanhood, Athena’s sought-after position as her fathers right hand is due to her masculinised warlike traits. This is in stark contrast to Ares, who Homer describes as ‘Most hateful to me art thou of all gods that hold Olympus’46. This emphasises how fraught Athena’s position within the pantheon is. Not only is she perceived as a woman, but she holds a power that those around her are wary of. If she steps out of the expectations of her perceived self she will face social rejection, and be placed into the same category of power-hungry women as Medea and Clytemnestra. However, I personally do not subscribe to twin chimerism as the reason why Athena breaks gender norms the way she does. By attributing Athena’s more masculine traits to literal male DNA that exists within her body, we completely remove any sense of agency or individuality Athena has in her interests or gender expression. This also reinforces the idea that gender is defined by things such as your chromosomes. Attaching ideas of gender identity to genetics completely denies the experiences of transgender and non-binary individuals. All of which then would deny Athena’s gender expression as a kind of genetic abnormality, rather than a truthful expression of the self.
If we take as fact that Athena was a twin, I personally would subscribe to the idea that Athena and her brother are parasitic twins. A parasitic twin is ‘a specific type of conjoined twins’47 which occurs when ‘one twin ceases development during gestation and becomes vestigial to the fully formed dominant twin’48. My theory suggests that the ‘son who would usurp Zeus’ kingship’49 was a parasitic twin. This is supported textually by the alternative version of the Theogony previously looked at. Athena being born with the Aegis can be argued as being an example of pygopagus tetrapus parasitic twins. Unlike chimeric twins, parasitic twins do not become one person sharing the DNA of two. Rather, the parasitic twin effectively becomes a growth attached to the dominant, autositic twin. If this is the case, I conclude that the Aegis-twin is attached to Athena by her forearm. This is supported by textual and visual evidence. Athena is regularly described as aegis-bearing, and her predominant identifier in sculpture is of her wielding the Aegis. Furthermore, the parasitic twin theory better supports the overcoming of androcentrism than the chimeric twin theory. Instead of taking the patriarchy inside herself, making it a part of herself, the patriarchy is literally represented as a parasite that Athena has
45 Hesiod, line 972
46 Homer, 5.890
47 DeRuiter, C (2011)
48 DeRuiter, C (2011)
49 Brown, N (1952) p. 131
become burdened with, but that she is able to use to her advantage, using said parasite to overpower gender expectations in her capabilities as a war deity.
Overall, Athena’s relationship with gender expectations and the performance surrounding them is an interesting one. As we have explored, her response to the pressuring stimuli of society can be interpreted in a multitude of ways depending on which version of her early life you subscribe
to. Either Athena was introduced to a lack of gendered expectations and gained her non-conformist ideals through her time spent inside Zeus. She refused to buckle, once emerged, to the standard societal norms. She ignored the ‘terror’50 her non-conformist appearance and interests caused, choosing instead to exist as her authentic self as much as she could. Or alternatively, the possibility that Athena gained her dimorphic nature through a genetic abnormality. Regardless, Athena overcomes and refuses to conform to the standards society sets for her.
50 Deacy, S (2008) p. 28
Gendering Athena in the Oresteia: A Non-Binary Reading
The Oresteia is a trilogy of plays that details the ‘conflict between the sexes’51. Through this ‘conflict’52the plays are able to encapsulate how Ancient Greece, as a heavily gendered society, treated people who did not conform to the gendered expectations set by the ruling class. This is most explicitly seen in the character of Clytemnestra. She is described as ‘a woman with the mind and counsel of a man’53. Her nature contrasting with her assigned gender was viewed as deceptive by the Ancient Greeks. As such, Clytemnestra was viewed as a dangerous ‘anomaly’54. Once Clytemnestra explicitly defied societal expectations of women through the retributive murder of her husband, she was viewed as a threat to the patriarchal power, who must be removed. In a sense, once Clytemnestra was the ruler of Mycenae, she became a more successful version of Athena. As previously discussed, Athena exists simultaneously as ‘Tritogenia’55 and her brother the ‘overbearing king’56 due to their nature as parasitic twins. However, through the subjugation of the patriarchy, Athena is incapable of overthrowing her father. On a small scale, Clytemnestra succeeds where Athena fails, placing herself in power through the murder of Agamemnon. Fortunately for the male authority, Clytemnestra’s conquest only expanded across Mycenae. More than this, the murder of a father must be avenged. This brings us to the events of the Eumenides, wherein Orestes is facing punishment for the matricide he committed in response to his father's death. Clytemnestra and Athena share multiple personality traits, existing as people who defy gender expectations. Given this similarity, the treatment and eventual murder of Clytemnestra provides important context for how Athena acts throughout lines 296-850. During this section of the play, Athena interacts with the mortals and attempts to control the Furies following the events of Orestes’ matricide trial, ‘Forget your indignation and do not set your murderous anger upon this city’57. Through these interactions, Athena exhibits neutrality towards the gender identities assigned to her. This, paired with the ways in which she struggles and attempts to maintain order presents a non-binary presentation of Athena.
Whilst requesting Athena to come to his aid, Orestes invokes her with masculine terms, stating that she is ‘like a man’58. He describes her as ‘a mighty General’59 who is known to often be ‘at war’60. As part of his request that she come to his aid61, he specifies that she should come ‘bearing no arms’62. This creates the juxtaposition of emphasising her warlike nature whilst
51 Betensky, A (2014)
52 Bentensky, A (2014)
53 Winnington-Ingram, R (1948) p. 130
54 Winnington-Ingram, R (1948) p. 130
55 Hesiod, line 1005
56 Hesiod, line 974
57 Aeschylus (458 BC) line 791
58 Papadopoulou, T. (2001) p. 305
59 Aeschylus (458 BC) line 295
60 Aeschylus (458 BC) line 294
61 Aeschylus (458 BC) line 282
62 Aeschylus (458 BC) line 282
imploring that she resolve his problem without violence. It is significant here that Orestes omits her more feminine traits from his invocation. Through his request that she come ‘bearing no arms’, Orestes creates a contrast. On the one hand, he emphasised her masculine, warlike traits. On the other, he requests her assistance without recourse to those same masculine traits he just brought attention to. Given that the Ancient Greek deity that embodied peace, Eirene, was female, it seems to make little sense as to why Orestes would only invoke the androboulos, masculinised parts of Athena’s personality. However, I believe this can be explained by the inherent misogyny that pervaded throughout Ancient Greece at the time Aeschylus created the Oresteia. Orestes is a member of the androcentric ruling class. He also feels that his act of matricide was moral following the events of his father's death, ‘Since you loved [Aegisthus] more than my father to whom you were bound with oath to love, then sleep with him in death also.’63. Therefore, Orestes likely feels no qualms about calling on Athena whilst placing her in a masculine category rather than calling on Eirene. The fact is that it is not actually peace Orestes is seeking. Rather, he is seeking justice. In this, there is a subtle gendered difference. Whilst peace is coded as female, justice, which can be enacted through a spectrum of peaceful to violent means is male coded. Furthermore, in Greece, the pantheon’s representative of justice is Zeus.
I would argue that Orestes’ requests for Athena’s presence rather than Zeus’, is once again due to gender bias. As we have established, justice can be wrought in a multitude of ways. At the point in the play in which Orestes invokes Athena, he is being brought to justice through the torment he has been receiving at the hands of the Furies: ‘Orestes [sits] smeared with blood. Nearby are the benches where the twelve Furies are asleep’64. The Furies are pursuing Orestes based on laws put in place by Zeus. Therefore, requesting help from the King of the Gods, would likely not alter his tortuous situation. Contrarily, although Athena is the enacter of Zeus’ justice, seen as an extension of himself, Athena is perceived as a woman. Femininity is associated with ‘nurturance, interrelatedness […] and empathy’65. This severely contrasts with masculine associations, which entail ‘autonomy […] and aggressiveness’66. Orestes may hope that through his invocation of Athena, his current punishment may change to a softer sentence or clemency as she, as a biological woman, is seen as more prone to ‘empathy’67. This demonstrates the way the average Ancient Greek man viewed and valued Athena, utilising whichever of her attributes better served their purpose. If your battles aligned with Athena, her masculinised traits were praised, as her intelligence and capacity for violence were seen as invaluable. Whereas, if you were at her mercy, her feminised traits gained greater value as they were viewed as having the potential to save your life. As discussed, Orestes hypocritically appears to place greater value on Athena’s more masculine characteristics. This is in spite of the fact that he killed his mother for possessing those same androboulos traits.
63 Aeschylus (458 BC) line 907
64 Aeschylus (458 BC) stage direction. Lines 69-70
65 Griessel, L; Kotzé, M. (2009)
66 Griessel, L; Kotzé, M. (2009)
67 Griessel, L; Kotzé, M. (2009)
Through Orestes’ hypocrisy, Aeschylus is able to reinforce feminine gender roles. Despite their similarity, Aeschylus creates a clear separation, between Clytemnestra and Athena. Clytemnestra is punished for her anomalous, androboulos nature, whilst Athena faces no repercussions. This is due to her divine status alongside her gender non-conformist nature existing in service to ‘her father and the patriarchy over which he reigns’68. Through her service and loyalty to the patriarchy, Athena’s gender non-conformity is not viewed as a threat to the established order, unlike Clytemnestra. Furthermore, throughout lines 296-850, Athena’s masculinity is regularly established with lines such as ‘you […] destroyed the Trojan’s citadel’69. This reinforces in the audience's mind that Athena’s ‘gender is strongly masculine’70throughout the text. This again leads into Aeschylus’ enforcement of gender roles. The ultimate purpose of the Eumenides is to establish a mythological reason behind the Athenian judicial system. Ancient Athenian democratic institutions were a purely male affair. However, as Aeschylus details, the judicial system was first created by a female-presenting deity:
‘You, now, call your witnesses whose oath shall make strong the hand of Justice. I, in turn shall go and pick my wisest men and bring them here, ready and sworn to give judgement with integrity and truth.’71
I believe Aeschylus consistently reminded the audience of Athena’s masculine nature to ensure that Athenian democracy remained unequivocally male. By emphasising her masculinity, Aeschylus ensures that women would not question their lack of involvement in the judiciary system despite its non-male origins.
Athena herself reinforces Orestes’ androboulos assessment of the goddess. When judgement for Orestes’ crime is being passed, the result ‘is explicitly said to be a tie’72. Concerning this tie, there are two schools of thought. Either Athena’s vote ‘produces the tie’73, the opinion of
Hermann, ‘or breaks the tie in favour of Orestes’74, the theory which Müller defends. Personally, I subscribe to the belief that that Athena’s vote ‘breaks the tie’75. She announces before casting her vote that she is ‘κάρτα δ’ είμι του πατρος’76. This means she is ‘entirely of the father’ highlighting both her non-traditional parentage and that she will vote in a way that aligns with her father's views. By doing so she breaks the tie and is able to save the life of Orestes. Zeitlin refers to the myth of Deucalion and Pyrrha in their analysis of Athena. In the myth, the stones Pyrrha cast behind her created ‘females’77, whilst Deucalion’s ‘engendered
68 Deacy, S. (2008) p. 30
69 Aeschylus (458 BC) line 448
70 Budin, S. (2015) p. 39
71 Aeschylus (458 BC) lines 486-487
72 Gagarin, M. (1975) p. 121
73 Gagarin, M. (1975) p. 121
74 Gagarin, M. (1975) p. 121
75 Gagarin, M. (1975) p. 121
76 Papadopoulou, T. (2001) p. 305
77 Zeitlin, F. (1996) p.4
men’78. Through her statement that she is ‘entirely of the father’, Athena emphasises her distaste for this precedent of sons resembling their father and daughters their mothers. Whilst doing so she reminds the audience that since she has no mother, she has no one to resemble but her father, and as such mirrors his decision in the matter of Orestes. Athena emphasises her favour for masculinity, and that her choice mirrors that of the King of the Gods. By emphasising that her choice echoes that of her father, Athena ensures that she does not incur the wrath of the crowd that voted against Orestes nor lose their respect, as the mortals would not want to speak out against the will of Zeus. Furthermore, she is able to save Orestes through passive, arguably feminine means.
In her choice to state that she is ‘κάρτα δ’ είμι του πατρος’79 Athena firmly places herself within a male category. This gives the impression that she is striving to remove herself from the prejudices against her presumed gender. This suggests that Athena is aware that, in Ancient Greece ‘good’ female[s are] subservient to the male gender sphere’80. Her apparent preference for male coded proclivities seems to be in response to this. AFAB people often feel the need to present themselves as masculine in order to gain the respect of their male peers, ‘Women are often signaled early in their careers that traditional male traits are expected in senior administrative roles and that promotion depends on their ability to act like men’81. Therefore, Athena’s desire for respect paired with her fear of social rejection due to her gender non-conformity is what makes her ‘complicit in enabling the hegemonic masculine order’82. In this way, Athena’s need to be accepted for her non-conformity has caused her to overcorrect and neglect a formative part of her personality, her femininity. She can be seen operating in a similar way in the Iliad, when she ignores the prayers of the Trojan women83in favour of fighting in the battle alongside Diomedes, ‘I stand by your side, I shield you from harm, ready to urge you on against the Trojans’84. From this we can explicitly see that Athena is suffering, at the very least internally, from the shortcomings and prejudices assigned to her presumed gender, as she is failing to find balance.
When attempting to control the Furies, Athena elects to threaten them with references to her father. This is in contrast to how misbehaving factions would traditionally be threatened by a deity, with displays of their own power. Athena continues to allude to Zeus whilst the Furies mock and undermine her authority. The Furies frustrate Athena so much that she feels the need to reveal that she ‘alone of all the gods, know where he keeps the keys to his armoury, where his thunderbolts are’85. Instead of electing to utilise these objects of violent power, she instead employs the use of persuasion. Persuasion has typically been coded as a feminine type
78 Zeitlin, F. (1996) p.4
79 Papadopoulou, T. (2001) p. 305
80 Gabriel, K. (2016) p.51
81 Lester, J. (2008) p. 278
82 Gabriel, K. (2016) p.80
83 Homer, 6.237-311
84 Homer, 5.767-845
85 Aeschylus (458 BC) lines 822-824
of manipulation. This is in contrast to masculine coded manipulation tactics, which can involve ‘emotional manipulation’86 and explicit threats of violence. This indicates that Athena feels insecure when displaying and utilising her own power. This harkens back to Athena preferring to be viewed as Zeus’ weapon, an extension of himself, rather than her own person. This seems to be the only way Athena can attempt to exist as her authentic, non-binary self. Like non-binary people, tools have no established gender. However, tools are not subject to gender expectations the way Athena is. Every decision Athena makes has gendered implications. Having said that, many of Athena’s decisions are viewed as not purely her own. For example, although persuasion is typically coded feminine, Athena’s ability to utilise rhetoric and persuasion to diffuse the Furies is attributed to Zeus, as ‘Zeus has given her ‘good sense’87. By attributing Athena’s intellect to Zeus, they are not only placing the persuasive techniques into a male-centred sphere of influence, but they are disregarding Athena’s agency in the situation she single-handedly resolved. In Greek literature, persuasion and rhetorical techniques are employed most successfully by Odysseus in the Odyssey. As rhetorical techniques fall under the umbrella of law, they become one of Zeus’ divine dominions and are also taught to prospective politicians. Persuasion and manipulative techniques were only viewed as villainous when utilised by androboulos women like Clytemnestra and Medea. This comparison to cunning, androboulos women highlights the tenuous position Athena finds herself in. She is trapped by the nature of her biological sex. Had a male deity chosen to enact violence against the mortals or the Furies in response to their petulant behaviour, they would be presented as morally correct in doing so. If Athena also chose this course of action, she would most likely be placed wholly into the same category as Clytemnestra, rather than that of her current position, teetering precariously between dangerous femininity or subservient masculinity. As such she would be shunned by both divine and mortal societies for defying gender roles. Fortunately for Athena, ‘her mediation skills [creates] the successful reconciliation between Orestes and the vengeful Furies’88. Athena seems to be able to avoid the vilification of other androboulos women for her dimorphic personality, and in this instance her employment of persuasion, as she does it in service of the ‘hegemonic masculine order’89. Choosing to use the more acceptable persuasion versus a potentially transgressive act of wrath. Athena’s choice to act in a passive rather than an aggressive way indicates that she is acutely aware of how she is perceived by others due to her presumed gender. This links back to the surveillance of womanhood. Athena knows that, in spite of being a literal war deity, due to also being AFAB, her authority would be lost if she was seen enacting violence against anyone, but especially men.
Athena is consistently tied to the image of her father throughout Greek literature, more so than any other deity. Some scholars even go so far as to argue that the ‘ΑΘ- [that begins her name] represents the Hittite atta, meaning belonging to the father’90. As such, she is regularly compared to him and informed of their similarities. For not only is she his daughter, but she is
86 Ghani, F. (2001) p. 23
87 Papadopoulou, T. (2001) p. 305
88 Neils, J. (2001) p. 220
89 Gabriel, K. (2016) p.80
90 Neils, J. (2001) p. 220
also an extension of him through her position as his right hand. This inability to escape her father's image, alongside her coveted position means that Athena has to constantly present herself as the perfect deity and executor of Zeus’ whims. Further than that, she is simultaneously ‘treated like a beloved son in epic literature’91 and ‘very much an instrument of Zeus’ will’92. Athena even appears to prefer to be seen as her father's instrument’93, as opposed to a gendered being. Especially when these gendered ideals are being pushed onto her, rather than being a full expression of her authentic self. Her feminine attributes are left by the wayside. Given that the majority of Ancient Greek literature we have access to was written by men, Athena appears to prefer this enhancement of her masculinity. However, this only appears to be the case as it allows her to control within the ‘hegemonic masculine order’94. Greek literature centres on Athena as a war deity. This denies her equally important role in women's spaces as a craftswoman and protector. By answering male-centric requests and prayers, Athena reinforces this idea that ‘her gender is strongly masculine’95 and highlights her inability to escape her father’s overwhelming shadow.
If Athena attempted to forge her own path outside of Zeus’ influence and favour, she would have the freedom to create her own expression of her identity. This could include leaning more into one part of her masculine or feminine attributes. Or finally being able to treat both spheres of her influence more equally. In any case, Athena would lose a major sphere of her influence alongside her worship. We can ascertain from the views of the times that most likely she would lose the male majority. The androcentric power would begin treating her in a similar way they treat other goddesses, or worse, they could view Athena as an immortal Clytemnestra. Female deities were highly revered throughout Ancient Greece, however, they are rarely described with the same awesome power as the men. Furthermore, their actions receive greater criticism than that of their male counterparts. For example, Aphrodite was forced into her marriage with Hephaestus. This causes her to have a long-standing affair with Ares, siring multiple heirs. However, there are multiple myths that shame Aphrodite for her infidelity ‘come, see something laughable, and intolerable, how Aphrodite, daughter of Zeus, scorning me for my lameness, makes love with hateful Ares’96. This portrayal contrasts sharply with that of male deceitful deities, such as Zeus, who have multiple unrelenting affairs. Rather than Zeus having to face consequences for his actions, it is his wife Hera, who is presented as the villain for being upset that her husband has repeatedly broken their marital vows. This is seen most clearly in the myths of Heracles wherein ‘Heracles attacks Hera for her role in causing his sufferings’97rather than acknowledging his father’s wrongdoing. Similarly to other female-presenting deities, if Athena became more ‘feminised’, she would suffer to an even greater extent the condemnation that female deities often receive in many of their myths. Athena’s two most notable myths that are centred around her more feminine traits pertain to
91 Neils, J. (2001) p. 221
92 Neils, J. (2001) p. 219
93 Neils, J. (2001) p. 219
94 Gabriel, K. (2016) p.80
95 Budin, S. (2015) p. 39
96 Homer, 8.256-366
97 Mikalson, J. (1986) p. 93
Medusa and Arachne. Both myths present Athena as a jealous and vindictive individual, given that ‘The goddess was enraged at [Arachne’s] impiety and beat the girl with a shuttle’98. Athena is also presented as having a penchant for transmogrification, transforming Arachne into a spider and transforming Medusa’s ‘splendid hair to serpents horrible’99. In regards to this, if Athena was able to strip herself of her masculinised attributes or her father's influence, it is entirely conceivable that Athena would be viewed as the next Aphrodite, a jealous passive-aggressive goddess stripped of her militaristic authority.
Overall, Athena has difficulty maintaining the balance between her existence as her own person and the executor of Zeus’ whims. Alongside this, AFAB people often feel the need to seek male validation. This caused Athena to suppress her own, implicit identity. She has been somewhat forced to maintain a level of epicenity in order to maintain her power, Athena can be clearly read as a non-binary individual. Those around her regularly attempt to force one specific gender identity onto Athena that conforms with the gender binary. They do this selfishly, striving to further their own wants and needs. Believing they will succeed if they appeal to Athena, not just through her epithets, but through the specific invocation of the perceived gender identity they believe will assist them the most.
.
Conclusion
To conclude, from the moment Athena was meant to be born, her life, as with anyone, was defined by gender. Her own father risked her life just to ensure he was not usurped by her male sibling. Then she was not privy to the gendered expectations put on children to conform to the gender binary, instead being socialised as an authoritative man. This lack of gender in her formative years seems to have given her the confidence to outwardly defy the hegemonic patriarchy other AFAB individuals in Ancient Greece were unable to do, due to their social conditioning that ‘good’ female[s] that remains subservient to the male gender sphere’100. However, upon entering society Athena was subject to its rules. She existed as a dangerous contradiction to Greek society, as one who seemed to oscillate ‘between male and female, and resisted straightforward classification in gender terms’101. This meant, more than any other deity, she had to conform to societal pressures or be cast out. Her attempts to be accepted resulted in her effectively viewing herself as an object, as this allowed her to exist as a genderqueer person in a binary gendered world. The hegemonic patriarchy has taught AFAB people that they only have value if they conform to the Perfect Woman ideal, a status which can only be granted by men. Due to this socialisation, AFAB individuals often feel the need to seek
98 Theoi, Arakhne
99 Ovid (8 CE) 4.706
100 Gabriel, K. (2016) p.51
101 Deacy, S; Villing, A. (2001) p. 10
validation from their male peers. However, this led Athena down a path of quashing fundamental components of her personality to ensure acceptance by the male ruling class.
In spite of these pressures to conform, Athena appears to have been able to exist as her authentic non-binary self in some ways. She is able to marry together typically masculine and feminine clothing to create her own form of gender expression that cannot be pigeon-holed into the gender binary. Additionally, despite her intellect being attributed to her father, she is able to covertly utilise feminine coded persuasive techniques to quell the wrath of the Furies and the anger of the mortals, notwithstanding her clear desire to employ violence to ensure her desired outcome as seen in the Oresteia. Overall, although Athena first appears as simply a woman who has a penchant for ‘strongly masculine’102. proclivities, upon reflection there is far more under the surface. The acceptance of LGBTQIA+ identities has allowed a deeper analysis of Athena that reveals that she was actually a non-binary individual, who was able to navigate the overwhelmingly patriarchal society she was borne into and exist, as best she could, with her authentic gender identity. This understanding of her identity was only able to come to light now due to the increased diversity in both the world, and the study of Classical Civilisation.
102 Budin, S. (2015) p. 39
20
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