The Medusa story is more than two millennia old. MUSE delivers outstanding results to the scholarly community by maximizing revenues for publishers, providing value to libraries, and enabling access for scholars worldwide. However, another tradition, used by Mallarmé in Les Dieux antiques (1880), stressed a more personal rivalry: Medusa had once boasted that she was more beautiful than Athena. scholarship and its reviews of books, the NWSAJ regularly publishes HFS clients enjoy state-of-the-art warehousing, real-time access to critical business data, accounts receivable management and collection, and unparalleled customer service. Studying the female characters as both the bearers and receivers of the “petrifying, nurturing and redemptive” gaze of Medusa, the “dreadfully gorgeous victim” (2), she views them through the vision filters of such giant figures as Freud, Lacan, Laing, de Beauvoir, Cixous, Irigaray, Spivak, … When you hear the word Medusa your brain is likely to immediately conjure images of a fearsome and hideous monster no one should look at. Medusa is an instantly recognizable figure from ancient Greek art. are both theoretical and practical, thereby foregrounding the ways in Perseus with the head of Medusa 7 Ways to Work With Medusa Goddess of Protection & Power. ©2000-2021 ITHAKA. The story of a powerful woman raped, demonized, then slain by a patriarchal society? Published By: The Johns Hopkins University Press, Read Online (Free) relies on page scans, which are not currently available to screen readers. In Dungeons and Dragons editions 3 and 3.5, Medusa is an Always Female species with a humanoid body but serpent skin. Athena transformed the rape survivor into a monster with hair of snakes and a gaze that could turn men into stone. The Medusa figure has been presented by writers and scholars as the symbol of the victimized woman, a figure of both power and anger. The most famous painting of Medusa – a female character from Greek mythology who had a hair of snakes and could turn men to stone if they met her gaze directly – was painted by Caravaggio in 1596. of Contents. With a personal account, you can read up to 100 articles each month for free. If, she argued, they dared to “look at the Medusa straight on,” they would see that “she is not deadly, she’s beautiful and she’s laughing.” By documenting their experiences, Cixous wrote, women can deconstruct the sexist biases that portray the female body as a threat. Alban presents Medusa and other goddess figures as inspirational, repelling evil through the ‘evil eye’ of their powerful gaze or inspirational force; she conversely shows the obverse perspective on women who are condemned as monstrous Gorgons, trapped in enmity, rivalry and rage. Read your article online and download the PDF from your email or your account. So misused and misunderstood in literary criticism of recent decades, the male gaze is a device like the face of Medusa. In some variations of the myth, Medusa was born a monster like her sisters, described as girded with serpents, vibrating tongues, gnashing their teeth, having wings, brazen claws, and enormous teeth.In later myths (mainly in Ovid) Medusa was the only Gorgon to possess snake … What can the myth of Medusa tell us about classical myth, perceptions of female power and sexism from antiquity to today? It illuminates women’s power and vulnerability as they construct their … One of the largest publishers in the United States, the Johns Hopkins University Press combines traditional books and journals publishing units with cutting-edge service divisions that sustain diversity and independence among nonprofit, scholarly publishers, societies, and associations. Through the lens of theology, film, art, and feminist literature, my students and I map how her meaning has shifted over time and across cultures. In her 1975 manifesto The Laugh of the Medusa, the feminist theorist Hélène Cixous asserts that man created the monstrous legacy of Medusa through fear of female desire. Once on an even playing field, these female writers are in prime position to question, destabilise and ultimately change the traditional narratives that have been so instrumental in defining and silencing women. panoptic gaze, the Medusa gaze is an inspiring force available for women to claim for themselves [… in order to] remain strong against assault under the public eye, which values women as more or less attractive objects. The story of Medusa is rather late, from OVID. Medusa was a formidable foe, since her hideous appearance was able to render any onlooker into stone. Athena transformed the rape survivor into a monster with hair of snakes and a gaze that could turn men into stone. In this capacity, the NWSAJ serves as a leader in the Her face, whether fierce and grotesque or feminine and composed, appears in virtually all media in varying contexts. Athens Journal of Humanities and Arts July 2018 287 ancient symbol of the monstrous female that overshadowed the so-called issues. The Journals Division publishes 85 journals in the arts and humanities, technology and medicine, higher education, history, political science, and library science. Miriam Robbins Dexter’s conclusions about Medusa could equally apply to Athena: ‘[Medusa] reminds us that we must not take the female “monster” at face value; that we must not only weigh her beneficent against her maleficent attributes but also take into consideration the worldview and socio-political stance of the patriarchal cultures which create her, fashioning the demonic female as scapegoat for the benefit and comfort of the male members of their societies.’. When Poseidon raped her, Athena’s wrath focused on Medusa (not Poseidon) and she turned her into a gorgon, hideously cursed with evil looks and left to live out her life as a monster. Medusa was a formidable foe, since her hideous appearance was able to render any onlooker into stone. The Press is home to the largest journal publication program of any U.S.-based university press. The most common interpretation of Medusa suggests she is an apotropaic symbol used to protect from and ward off the negative, much like the modern evil eye. In her article Medusa and the Female Gaze (NWSA Journal, Vol.2), Susan R. Bowers says that “the patriarchal images of women from Greco-Roman mythology will continue to … Download Medusa S Gaze Book For Free in PDF, EPUB.In order to read online Medusa S Gaze textbook, you need to create a FREE account. Such a Nasty Woman: Medusaʼs Head Freudʼs seminal Das Medusenhaupt, written in 1922, objectified Medusa and situated her in the space of the male point of view entirely, as a "phallic Select a purchase The Medusa Gaze offers striking insights into the desires and frustrations of women through the narratives of the impressive contemporary novelists Angela Carter, Toni Morrison, Sylvia Plath, Margaret Atwood, A.S. Byatt, Iris Murdoch, Jeanette Winterson, Jean Rhys and Michèle Roberts. The Medusa story is more than two millennia old. Hopkins Fulfillment Services (HFS) With a head of poisonous snakes and a murderous gaze, Medusa has come to epitomise female monstrosity. With warehouses on three continents, worldwide sales representation, and a robust digital publishing program, the Books Division connects Hopkins authors to scholars, experts, and educational and research institutions around the world. Project MUSE® In some variations of the myth, Medusa was born a monster like her sisters, described as girded with serpents, vibrating tongues, gnashing their teeth, having wings, brazen claws, and enormous teeth.In later myths (mainly in Ovid) Medusa was the only Gorgon … The NWSAJ accepts articles that Medusa is one of the more unusual divine figures of ancient Greece mythology.. One of a trio of Gorgon sisters, Medusa was the only sister who was not immortal. male & female gaze: following Perseus against horror of Medusa ... Beautiful women have ruled men through the male gaze. which critical analysis can inform action both in and outside of Garbati’s Medusa nonsensically employs a male tool for bloodshed — Perseus’s sword — as a symbol of female empowerment, sending the message that women need to copy men’s tactics to wield power. JSTOR is part of ITHAKA, a not-for-profit organization helping the academic community use digital technologies to preserve the scholarly record and to advance research and teaching in sustainable ways. option. From the cover of her CD “Medusa” (1995), the artist Annie Lennox returns our gaze and presents a remake, retransformation, and retrieval of the Medusa as an image of female, erotic power – and of consumption: The question of who consumes whom ultimately remains unanswered. special issues focused on topics especially important in the field of Therefore sea water and sea salt are both … HFS provides print and digital distribution for a distinguished list of university presses and nonprofit institutions. focused on understanding women's lives. Feminists reinterpreted Medusa as a woman who used her anger to avenge herself on the male gaze. 3.4 Medusa’s Mask vs. The division also manages membership services for more than 50 scholarly and professional associations and societies. Today Medusa, with her snake hair and stare that turns people to stone, endures as an allegorical figure of fatal beauty, or a ready image for superimposing the face … We cannot guarantee that every book is in the library. (16) Within this detailed, scholarly, yet … Request Permissions. With critically acclaimed titles in history, science, higher education, consumer health, humanities, classics, and public health, the Books Division publishes 150 new books each year and maintains a backlist in excess of 3,000 titles. Alban offers a wide perspective in her arguments regarding the Medusa gaze, offering the reader multiple insights through an array of literary texts. Simply put, the female gaze is the greatest threat to the dominating male gaze.The female gaze in DuPlessis' poem triumphs over the male gaze, and the female voice is free to express itself "in sight, my netted reach/ in voice, my knotted speech"(DuPlessis, 1980: 42) As opposed to DuPlessis' empowerment and revitalisation of the female gaze, the gaze of Stanford's Medusa loses its vitality and freshness as … They noted that in the myths there was never an instance of Medusa turning a woman to stone. publishes interdisciplinary and multicultural feminist scholarship In his. What is the Female Gaze? The portrayal of Medusa as a monster becomes the central sexist device of the myth, used to scare women off from casting a harsh gaze on their oppressors … Medusa’s beauty ensnared her in the lustful and entitled gaze of the sea god Poseidon, who raped her. No one could look Medusa … (16) Within this detailed, scholarly, yet accessible investigation of “the power Female Spectator In order to understand the relationship between the Medusa’s Head and the female spectator we need to reference Freud: “the woman is constructed differently in relation to processes of looking […] the woman has a problematic relation to the visible, to form, to structures of seeing” (Doane 1990: 47). They noted that in the myths there was never an instance of Medusa turning a woman to stone. If the saving throw fails by 5 or more, the creature is instantly petrified. See page illustration. He uses this tool to gaze upon Medusa without being turned to stone and then he beheads her with a divine sword. about rape culture began to restore Medusa’s voice. In the book called “Medusa and the Female Gaze” by the author named Susan R. Bowers, she explains the importance of how the medusa character is a representation of female empowerment when comes to characteristics of Medusa she says, “Medusa was a powerful goddess at a time when female authority was dominant and the power to be feared was feminine.” that she is actually the icon of the female gaze, that powerful expression of female subjectivity and creativity. But Medusa’s rape is glossed over, mentioned once at the beginning of the tale, if at all. Access supplemental materials and multimedia. Books Journals Go to Table Medusa is widely known as a monstrous creature with snakes in her hair whose gaze turns men to stone. In her 1975 manifesto The Laugh of the Medusa, the feminist theorist Hélène Cixous asserts that man created the monstrous legacy of Medusa through fear of female desire. One is the arrival of Christianity (which was detrimental to the myths) and the other, the simple act of forgetting. It’s easy to see why Cixous’ manifesto resonated far and wide. I strongly feel we need to continue to look beyond the distortions of patriarchal interpretations and begin to reclaim ancient Goddesses in their original autonomy and power. Medusa’s gaze subverts the male gaze. Especially the woman’s down-cast eyes point to the Medusa, whose gaze, in most images of her (thus, for instance, in the celebrated paintings by Caravaggio [1596] and Rubens [c.1618] as well as in the Flemish School painting “Medusa” [c.1620–30] attributed to da Vinci), is directed side- or downwards as if to spare the viewers from petrifaction. This paper analyses the visualisation of rape and sexual assault in legal and scholarly language. In his ‘Metamorphosis’ he refers to Medusa being ‘violated’ and Athena ‘shielding her eyes’. The differences are in whether Medusa is full of herself or if she is truly a victim of violence. The Medusa Gaze offers striking insights into the desires and frustrations of women through the narratives of the impressive contemporary novelists Angela Carter, Toni Morrison, Sylvia Plath, Margaret Atwood, A.S. Byatt, Iris Murdoch, Jeanette Winterson, Jean Rhys and Michèle Roberts. Psychoanalytic theory has decided that Medusa was "the terrible symbol of the female genital region," because the … The Medusa Gaze explores the aspects of the snaky-haired figure from Greek myth as she appears in the novels and stories of nine women writers: Angela Carter, Toni Morrison, Margaret Atwood, Sylvia Plath, A. S. Byatt, Jean Rhys, Jeanette Winterson, Michèle Roberts, and Iris Murdoch. Through the lens of theology, film, art, and feminist literature, my students and I map how her meaning has shifted over time and across cultures. Medusa is a sea spirit at her core. Medusa remains a potent icon at a time when women leaders continue to be viewed skeptically or, at worst, as inhuman. Feminists reinterpreted Medusa as a woman who used her anger to avenge herself on the male gaze. It also states that Poseidon had been lured by Medusa’s hair, so Athena turned it to snakes. Read as many books as you like (Personal use) and Join Over 150.000 Happy Readers. After centuries of silence, conversations about rape culture began to restore Medusa’s voice. She is killed by the hero Perseus, who cuts off her head.To the Greeks, Medusa is the leader of an ancient, older matriarchal religion that had to be obliterated; in modern culture, she represents vital sensuality and a power that is threatening to … The National Women's Studies Association Journal (NWSA Journal) Medusa Gaze: Female medusae gain the hardening gaze power. Since we are directly told that Medusa is originally a virgin or is an anima-based personality, I have serious doubts as to the validity of this version of the story. He was inspired by Vasari’s account of a lost painting by Leonardo da … Freud had a bloody field day. JSTOR®, the JSTOR logo, JPASS®, Artstor®, Reveal Digital™ and ITHAKA® are registered trademarks of ITHAKA. It is mentioned that Medusas can procreate with any humanoid species, the offspring normally becomes Medusas. Medusa is a greek gorgon, goddess and symbol of female empowerment. It begins with a critique of the Court of Appeal ruling in R v. Evans (Chedwyn) and its forensic examination of the details of a female rape complainant's consensual sexual activity with other men. ... Medusa has become a symbol of female empowerment. The female gaze is a feminist film theoretical term representing the gaze of the female viewer. Appropriate Offerings. This is quite interesting since the representation of the… This item is part of a JSTOR Collection. Petrifying Gaze attack as well as poison bites from the hair snakes come with the package. According to Greek mythology, the sea-god Poseidon raped the beautiful mortal, Medusa, in goddess Athena’s temple. Check out using a credit card or bank account with. From this, therefore, we can see why feminists have chosen to use myths to re-evaluate traditional perceptions of women. Medusa was a virgin priestess of Athena serving in her temple. academic settings. Caravaggio painted her. It’s meant to terrify men and turn them into stone-cold beings. All Rights Reserved. “A Gorgon from classical mythology, Medusa is widely known as a monstrous creature with snakes in her hair whose gaze turns men to stone. In ancient Greek mythology, Medusa is a Gorgon, one of three hideous sisters whose appearance turns men to stone. Traits Petrifying Gaze: When a creature that can see the medusa's eyes starts its turn within 30 ft. of the medusa, the medusa can force it to make a DC 14 Constitution saving throw if the medusa isn't incapacitated and can see the creature. What can the myth of Medusa tell us about classical myth, perceptions of female power and sexism from antiquity to today? The female gaze is conceptually similar to the male gaze; that is, when women take up the male gaze, they view other people, and themselves, from the perspective of a man. Male medusae gain the vexing gaze power. Not all things are clear with myths, especially as these things can be mutated and twisted by many factors. In Greek Mythology the gods/goddesses acted in vicious, irrational petty ways and Athena the goddess of wisdom was no exception. Women's Studies. It seems less of an ancient myth than a modern reality. For terms and use, please refer to our Terms and Conditions She is famed for her snake-like hair and her gaze, which turns those who look at her to stone. 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