Circe Literature Guide

Author: Madeline Miller

Genre: Fantasy

Publication Date: 2018

Introduction

In The Odyssey, Homer’s ancient Greek epic poem, the hero Odysseus stops on the island of Aiaia, where the witch Circe turns his sailors into swine. The novel Circe inverts the story of Odysseus, centering Circe as the protagonist and relegating Odysseus to just one of the people she faces on her own epic journey to know herself. In this new perspective on one of the most famous tales of western civilization, Circe is a multi-dimensional character in her own right. The daughter of a powerful Titan and a beautiful nymph, she begins life without beauty or power of her own and is scorned among her divine siblings and cousins. Her gift of sorcery—pharmakeia—results in her exile to Aiaia and the beginning of her real life. Banished to a life of isolation on her island, Circe gains her own power as she masters pharmakeia and encounters gods, mortals, and monsters. Stuck between mortality and immortality, Circe’s power of transformation—once seen as a curse—proves to be Circe’s greatest strength and the source of her ultimate fulfillment.

Madeline Miller Biography

Circe Background

Circe Characters/Major Figures

Circe Summary and Analysis (Section One)

Circe Summary and Analysis (Section Two)

Circe Summary and Analysis (Section Three)

Circe Summary and Analysis (Section Four)

Circe Themes

Circe Quotes

Circe Discussion Questions