Warriors’ Wives: Ancient Greek Myth and Modern Experiences
compares the representations of soldiers’ wives in ancient Greek epic
poetry and tragic drama with the experiences of modern-day military
spouses. In examining the figures of Penelope, Clytemnestra, Andromache,
and Tecmessa—as represented by Homer and the fifth-century-bce
Athenian tragedians—alongside contemporary evidence for the lives of
women who are married to service personnel, it sheds fresh light on the
effects of war on those who are left behind. It traces significant
aspects of the lives of the women who are married to soldiers from the
moment of farewell, through periods of separation and the challenges
they bring, to the reunion and in some cases the traumatic aftermath of
war. In doing so, it considers the ways in which key elements of the
experience of the waiting wife are shaped, today just as much as in the
ancient world, by expectations about gender roles, and it renders
visible the stories of military spouses who have traditionally been
given less attention than their serving partners.
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