Unpacking the Origins of Medusa

Spoiler alert, she wasn’t the real villain

By Leonor Dias

Medusa by Alice Pike Barney (*1892*) Via Women’s Art

It is no surprise the most infamous monster in Greek mythology is a woman who fell from grace at the hands of a man she never hurt. Our understanding of Medusa is based on a historical tradition of villainizing women, in order to protect male aggression.

But who was she in the first place? Medusa was the trophy of Perseus, a hero who needed to prove her strength and gain glory by slaying the snake haired gorgon, however unprovoked. Medusa is often portrayed as a grotesque, yet strangely sensual woman with no reason to hate men, yet a heart set for their demise. She is a contradiction which could only be created to satisfy the male gaze of a temptress who deserves what she got. As a human her beauty was known by all. Men did not hide their desire for her, and when she was turned into a monster the glory of killing her became a similar obsession. In short, she couldn’t win!

Much like all other myths in ancient Greek mythology, Medusa’s story was not pointless. She was a warning, a cautionary tale for young women who dared be too beautiful or too naïve to think they had any right to belong to themselves.

It was a nod to the casual rape of women, unprovoked and without reason, taking place whenever a man wanted. But of course, she could not be portrayed as an innocent victim who was forcefully taken by a notorious rapist. No, Medusa had to be dehumanized, turned into the most vile monster, known only for her unjustified viciousness. She had to be all of the bad things one could imagine, because surely that would overshadow whatever events turned her into this monster.

This is a classical foundation to what we now know as ‘victim blaming’, a term coined by psychologist William Ryan. It is the act of holding the victim of a wrongful or criminal act responsible to any extent for the actions done to them. (The Canadian Resource Center for Victims of Crime)

Interestingly enough, this creation of a monstrous persona is a direct reflection of Medusa’s attacker.

Poseidon’s atrocities and vile behavior is projected onto Medusa in order to rid him of any blame or recognition of his wrong doing. By doing this, Poseidon, and all rapists alike, are allowed to continue their crimes without even the simple acknowledgement of what they have done as being wrong. This representation of Medusa is based on a decision to normalize aggression towards women. We see this time and time again as mythology—and thus the misogyny within it—is ingrained within society.

So what does this mean for our own twenty-first century interpretation of Medusa? Well, when we unravel the original story of someone so misunderstood we begin to question the validity of all other tales like it. Suddenly, the idea of female villains having little reason to explain their evilness becomes a questionable trope. Instead, people finally see it as just a sexist way of demonizing women to excuse and overshadow their suffering at the hands of male aggression and the society that fosters it.

We must no longer view Medusa the way her abusers intended us to.

As Tyler Donohue pointed to in her article on the mishandling of Medusa’s story, her very existence calls for a reimagination of her character. She begins as a survivor of sexual assault, punished for her own attack and shunned to the outskirts of society as a ridiculed monster. But she evolves into her own protector. Medusa becomes a symbol of female power, using her hurt as a form of protection against further abuse.

In recent years this transformation has been acknowledged by many different people. She has become a symbol of female resilience and the protector of women against abuse and sexual violence.

Getting the head of Medusa tattooed is often related to an experience of sexual assault or as an acknowledgment of the power of women to reclaim themselves and their bodies.

Medusa has become a patron of female resilience. She is a stepping stone towards the liberation of women from the clasps of normalized male aggression not only in stories and myth, but in the real world.