Atwood bajo el signo de Penélope y sus esclavas

Abstract

In spite of the burlesque style of “The Penelopiad”, described by Atwood as a piece of Cabaret, the questions posed by thc choir on the slaughter of thc maids and Odysseus's silence forces us to consider its moral resonance in Atwood's literary mythology, enacted as a play where the search for the buried sources of guilt are based on revenge and betrayal. A rereading of “The Penelopiad”, of the role of choral interpellation, of the tension between Penelope and her twelve serving maids and of the classical myths underlying this story may provide some insights on the genealogy of historical responsibility. This story stages a world of female behaviour inevitably subjected to forms of suspicion and control. Not only does Odysseus' return bring cruel punishment on the sacrificial victims, but Penelope herself exerts control over the maids and their suitors. while sharing Eurykleia's plots. lt is thc imperative dialectics of "críme and punishment' that fashions Penelope's mythomorphic narrative.