Introduction
First of all, I would like to say that Polyxena is probably one of the most controversial female figures in Greek mythology. The story of her life and death represents all the tragedy of women in the ancient society. She was the youngest child of Priam, the King of Troy. After the outbreak of the war, Polyxena was captured by the Greek soldiers and soon she was given to Achilles, the murderer of her brothers. Up to this point, ancient authors are unanimous narrating the story of this woman, but later they present rather different versions. Some sources suggest that she fell in love with Achilles and killed herself after his death. In the mean time, Euripide, the famous Greek playwright, claims that Polyxena revenged herself upon Achilles, by revealing his most guarded secret, his major weakness, the famous heel.
Main body
When the Trojan War was drawn to a close, the ghost of the great warrior demanded human sacrifice in his honor, and the victim had to be Polyxena, the person, who betrayed him. Here, we have arguably one of the most interesting moments: this woman did not even try to protest against it; on the contrary, she readily accepted her fate. Her major concern was to stop this bloodshed, and her death symbolizes the end of the war.
It is possible to analyze this myth from various standpoints; I would discuss it from feminist perspective. Overall, in ancient society, women were often regarded as a commodity, which can be sold and resold, every person who attempted to rebel, was severely punished (Reeder, p 45). Greek myths present them as helpless creatures, who were completely dependent on men. But there were some, who dared contradict, and Polyxena was one of them. Her selflessness eloquently proves this argument. This woman allowed herself to be sacrificed not because she was feeling guilty of Achilles downfall, but because she was eager to stop the Trojan War. Neoptolemus, Achilles’ son, kills her but she does not lament her lot. To a certain degree, this scene also illustrates the helplessness of this female character. Polyxene combines fragility, and vulnerability with courage and strength. These qualities create a very powerful image, which cannot be overlooked, especially if we are speaking about the Trojan War.
There is very interesting detail: at the very beginning, when the Greek forces were only starting for Troy, another woman, Iphigenia was offered to the Olympic gods in order to ensure their success. These two characters turned much braver than some famous warriors. In my opinion, they only emphasize the whole futility of war, which always makes innocent people suffer. Besides, the famous warriors did not have any qualms of conscience about it. The figures of Polyxena and Iphigenia eloquently prove that under some circumstances, women can be much nobler than the opposite sex (Kaltsas, p 55). They are not just lambs for the slaughter as it may seem, they are almost willing to sacrifice themselves for the sake of other people.
To conclude, Polyxena represents the paradoxical nature of women in ancient Greek mythology, this character is an example of weakness and strength, perfidy and nobility. While analyzing the Trojan cycle, it is necessary to pay extra attention to this figure, because without it our understanding of this issue will be incomplete.
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