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angelofthetardis's review against another edition
3.0
From very early on, the phrase that stuck in my head was 'stream of consciousness'. The writing is interesting and thought-provoking, but it makes for breathless reading - it came across to me as if the author simply couldn't type the words out quickly enough to keep up with her thought process. One line of examination flowed seamlessly into another; while in general that's a good thing, it made it very difficult to discern the point she was making.
The language used clearly puts this book well within reach of a general audience, but at the same time this is not a book to pick up if you only have a passing knowledge of the women and the myths studied. I class myself in that category - I could place most of the women in the right 'place' in the myths, but aside from that my awareness is in fact relatively limited. As a result, once again it became very hard to keep track of exactly what the author was trying to say - it was only with the last couple of women studied that a clearer recap of their 'standard' stories was included. Otherwise, it felt very much like being thrown in at the deep end, and therefore perhaps more appropriate for those with more expertise. I though this was a shame, as if matters were drawn out a little more I think it would have made a truly fascinating read.
Because of both these elements, I found it a harder going read than expected; for a fairly short book, it was quite heavy-going. I could only digest it for about 20 minutes at a time before the weight became too much and my attention started to drift. I think this would be an incredibly useful reference book if you were studying a particular myth or work such as the Iliad, as it would counter the male gaze of the main story and allow you to consider an alternative perspective. Likewise, if you were focused on one particular female from the pantheon, you might find her chapter in here a great source of information. But otherwise it's just not got that hook to make it a 'must read'.
Moderate: Suicide, Toxic relationship, Violence, Death, Grief, Rape, War, Abandonment, Injury/Injury detail, Sexism, Adult/minor relationship, Kidnapping, Blood, Emotional abuse, Child death, Self harm, Domestic abuse, Incest, Infidelity, Murder, Misogyny, Sexual assault, and Suicide attempt
Minor: Animal cruelty, Animal death, and Pregnancy
tashtasher's review
4.0
Graphic: War, Pregnancy, Rape, Sexual assault, Violence, Blood, Death, Gore, Murder, Misogyny, Sexism, Suicide, Incest, Sexual content, Sexual violence, and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Injury/Injury detail, Abandonment, Pregnancy, Child death, Infidelity, and Pedophilia
Minor: Confinement, Slavery, Death of parent, and Alcohol
cozy_gh0st's review against another edition
5.0
Graphic: Sexual assault, War, Rape, Sexual violence, Gore, Murder, and Blood
karissabubble's review against another edition
4.5
Graphic: Murder, Grief, Abandonment, Adult/minor relationship, Violence, Blood, Misogyny, Child death, Rape, Suicide, Death, Incest, Kidnapping, and Sexism
northernlitreading's review against another edition
5.0
Minor: Incest, Pregnancy, War, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Death of parent, Misogyny, Sexism, Child death, Death, Adult/minor relationship, Blood, Murder, Rape, Sexual assault, and Cannibalism
asipofcozy's review against another edition
4.5
I have always been fascinated by Greek culture and mythology. I grew up on stories of Achilles and Hercules and thought, "this is what it means to be a hero". Yet, now, after reading Pandora's Jar I can say that I have changed my tune. It's not that I don't still respect these childhood stories that we still teach children today; it's that I now see the truths that lay behind each of them.
Haynes takes the voices of these marginalized women in greek myths and finally gives them a voice. She analyzes each artist, writer, poet, and singer and how they have hidden away these women in the background. Too afraid to sing of their pain, suffering, and loss at the expense of these heroes. She makes us question if Medusa is actually the villain due to earlier accounts of her story or if Clytemnestra was an out-of-control woman that wanted power. The greek writers and even modern-day writers never want to talk about the women's side of the story, and now we have it.
I think what disturbed me the most was how modern-day writers and retellers of these stories gloss over some serious issues that were normalized in the original greek retellings, which Haynes points out quite often in Pandora's Jar. Such as r*pe, sexual harassment, Stockholm syndrome, and suicide. Take the thousands/millions of retellings of Persephone and Hades for example.
Not one story talks about how Hades forced himself on her or forced the Pomegranate down her throat every day so she couldn't leave. Or how Zeus was a part of all this, yet it's in all of the original texts. Why was this? Was it because it wouldn't be as "romantic" of a story? If so, these modern-day writers are turning a blind eye to r*pe culture and just allowing it. Even now, with some very popular retellings out like Lore Olympus: Volume One or A Touch of Darkness, not one talks about Persephone being r*ped. That it was "romance" that kept her there.
I get that we need these retellings. I mean, I love a good retelling as the next person but are these stories, in the end, taking away the voices from the original women of the myths who are constantly used, abused, and thrown to the side as trash for the next woman that catches the fancy of the hero?
Pandora's Jar made me think analytically about women in literature, women in the modern day, the original stories of these myths, and the retellings of these myths. It led me to question the stories I was told as a child and whether I would think differently of these so-called 'heroes' if I knew how they treated women. Or how modern-day storytellers treat these women by wiping away their original voice. Haynes, in the end, creates a complex situation behind these women like Helen of Troy, Phaedra, and Pandora and if they truly are the beautiful villains we have come to see today.
Graphic: War, Rape, Domestic abuse, Gore, Blood, and Adult/minor relationship
Moderate: Abandonment, Adult/minor relationship, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Cannibalism, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Eating disorder, Gore, Incest, Infidelity, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Mental illness, Misogyny, Murder, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Slavery, Stalking, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Suicide attempt, Toxic relationship, Violence, and War
caseythereader's review against another edition
4.75
- PANDORA'S JAR is for everyone who loves Greek mythology but wishes the women weren't protrayed only as objects or monsters.
- Even if you think you know it all in terms of myth, I'll bet Haynes digs out some alternate tellings and translations you haven't seen, giving everyone from Persephone to Clytemnestra new dimensions.
- Plus, this books is funny as heck. Haynes is dryly sarcastic, giving much needed levity to these tales of tragedy and woe.
Graphic: Infidelity, Kidnapping, Misogyny, Murder, Rape, Sexual violence, Animal death, Blood, Suicide, War, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Death of parent, Violence, Alcohol, Death, Grief, and Incest
marianneiriss's review against another edition
5.0
Graphic: Death of parent, Misogyny, Child death, Death, Murder, and Kidnapping
Moderate: Pedophilia, Rape, Sexism, Emotional abuse, Incest, Adult/minor relationship, Domestic abuse, Grief, and Sexual harassment
Minor: Injury/Injury detail, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Self harm, Slavery, Pregnancy, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Torture, Xenophobia, Blood, Infidelity, Physical abuse, Suicide attempt, Violence, Cannibalism, Infertility, War, Abandonment, Ableism, and Adult/minor relationship