Participation Type
Paper
Session Title
Session 3.04 Literature
Presentation #1 Title
Serena and her Classical Predecessors
Presentation #1 Abstract or Summary
Serena, in Ron Rash’s novel Serena, combines the masculine rationality of Aeschylus’ Clytemnestra with the sorcery of Euripides’ Medea in order to portray the terrifying consequences of a skilled woman who transgresses societal norms. Ron Rash has stated that he based his novel Serena on Greek tragedy. This paper evaluates the eponymous character, Serena, and her similarities to two iconic tragic heroines (or villains), Aeschylus’ Clytemnestra and Euripides’ Medea. Serena combines Clytemnestra’s masculine rationality with Medea’s sorcery through her ruthless business practices and supernatural image. Doctor Cheney observes that she, unlike other women, does not “lack the male’s analytical skills,” and when she is pregnant Serena supposedly “bares her belly to the moon, soaking in all its power” (Rash 34, 201). Many in today’s society many accept rational or mystical women. By combining Clytemnestra and Medea’s attributes, Rash modernizes the plot and inspires the same horror. Clytemnestra and Medea’s crimes are appalling because they go against the accepted view of female behavior. While Clytemnestra’s husband, Agamemnon, is away at Troy she takes over his position of authority and kills him when he returns. Medea tears her brother limb from limb to help Jason and kills her children when Jason leaves her. The first time Serena appears, she is wearing “pants and boots instead of a dress,” and she eventually controls her husband’s company, kills her husband, has a miscarriage, and tries to kill her husband’s child (Rash 5). Serena’s personality, skills, goals, and achievements neatly combine Clytemnestra and Medea’s.
At-A-Glance Bio- Presenter #1
Lesleigh Jones received her BA in English and biblical languages from Houston Baptist University and is now a candidate for the MA in classics at UMass Boston pursuing the Greek and Latin track. She became interested in Appalachian literature through her husband, Joshua Jones, a regional poet from Virginia who is now a candidate for the MFA in poetry at UMass Boston.
Serena and her Classical Predecessors
Serena, in Ron Rash’s novel Serena, combines the masculine rationality of Aeschylus’ Clytemnestra with the sorcery of Euripides’ Medea in order to portray the terrifying consequences of a skilled woman who transgresses societal norms. Ron Rash has stated that he based his novel Serena on Greek tragedy. This paper evaluates the eponymous character, Serena, and her similarities to two iconic tragic heroines (or villains), Aeschylus’ Clytemnestra and Euripides’ Medea. Serena combines Clytemnestra’s masculine rationality with Medea’s sorcery through her ruthless business practices and supernatural image. Doctor Cheney observes that she, unlike other women, does not “lack the male’s analytical skills,” and when she is pregnant Serena supposedly “bares her belly to the moon, soaking in all its power” (Rash 34, 201). Many in today’s society many accept rational or mystical women. By combining Clytemnestra and Medea’s attributes, Rash modernizes the plot and inspires the same horror. Clytemnestra and Medea’s crimes are appalling because they go against the accepted view of female behavior. While Clytemnestra’s husband, Agamemnon, is away at Troy she takes over his position of authority and kills him when he returns. Medea tears her brother limb from limb to help Jason and kills her children when Jason leaves her. The first time Serena appears, she is wearing “pants and boots instead of a dress,” and she eventually controls her husband’s company, kills her husband, has a miscarriage, and tries to kill her husband’s child (Rash 5). Serena’s personality, skills, goals, and achievements neatly combine Clytemnestra and Medea’s.
