Myths Reimagined: Exploring Power, Justice, and Equity in Retold Stories
By: Allissa Patton
*May contain spoilers of Kaikeyi, Legendborn, Bloodmarked, Raybearer, and The Maid and the Crocodile
There is much to be learned about empowerment and justice from fictional stories and ancient mythologies. Currently, bookish spaces are engaged in heavy discourse as to whether or not readers can actually learn something of importance from fictional stories. For many readers, fantasy and mythology are used as entertainment - a means of escape for those who wish to enter a new and exciting reality or adventure unlike their own. While fantasy and mythology can be a way for readers to live out magical tales vicariously through a story’s characters, fantasy stories are often created to hold a mirror to our society in order to challenge ideas and exclusionary practices that cause harm to marginalized communities. Modern-day mythology-based books challenge and critique the ways in which disempowerment, injustice, and inequity are rooted within mythology stories that are central to our modern-day society.
Origins of Mythology
Historically, mythologies have served as the foundation for any given civilization, as they are the base for how a civilization chooses to operate. Mythologies help give explanation to a people’s origins and causes for natural disasters - an attempt to make sense of a seemingly chaotic world. Most importantly, however, mythologies act as the framework for how a person and community should act and behave by guiding the goals, purpose, and morals of a people by passing down cultural values. Typically, mythology stories feature some combination of chaos that needs to be balanced, a hero with some form of super-human abilities, magical elements (e.g., gods, fairies, demons,) and a lesson to be learned throughout the hero’s journey. For example, the story of Icarus and Daedalus is a warning of how a person’s hubris and need to become “god-like” can be the cause of a person’s eventual downfall (Mark, 2018).
Recently, there has been a rise in fantasy books that use mythological elements and stories to either challenge widely-known ancient stories, or to provide a framework for a modern interpretation of those stories. Mythology retellings allow authors to examine a story through a unique and new lens by looking at the story through the perspective of characters outside of the hero. Throughout history, it was common for most stories to be written by those in power who control the narrative of the story; often leaving other key players to simply become pawns to be used or overcome by the hero of the mythos.
Since mythology is used to shape a society, it then begs the question: what are the morals being passed down generation to generation? What do mythology stories tell us about the values of a people if their mythos is rooted in the subjugation and demonization of the disempowered? This question thus becomes the basis of many modern day retellings - how can authors (and readers) challenge the stories of ancient civilizations? What does the mirror reveal when held up to the stories and perspectives ignored within a mythology’s canon?
Why Do Societies Fear the Stories of the Disempowered?
Kaikeyi by Vaishnavi Patel is a prime example of how people in power have benefited from mythologies that paint the disempowered as mere obstacles to overcome. Kaikeyi is a feminist retelling of the epic, “Ramayana,” the hero’s journey of the great king Rama written by the revered poet, Valmiki. In the original epic, Kaikeyi is vilified and is depicted as a jealous woman consumed by a thirst for power who is willing to manipulate men to serve her interests. By banishing her stepson and beloved hero, Rama, from the kingdom in favor of her own son, Kaikeyi’s story has been used as a cautionary tale as to what happens when women are able to gain power within societies in which men are at the top of the hierarchy (Basu, 2016).
Patel’s retelling in Kaikeyi, however, offers a nuanced and fresh perspective of the epic tale. In this version, Kaikeyi’s actions are not driven by petty jealousy and spite, but rather by a lifetime of isolation, neglect, and ostracization due to limitations placed on her as a woman. As the sole daughter amongst a family of boys, Kaikeyi is undervalued and excluded from the inner workings of her noble family - she is meant to remain in a “woman’s place.” When Kaikeyi discovers ancient texts, she gains a power that allows her to physically see and influence her relationships with others, she gains confidence and self-reliance - traits that empower her to fight for women’s rights within the kingdom. Far from being a “villain,” Kaikeyi is driven by a desire to delay Rama’s eventual rise to power, which would potentially erase the progress she made for women’s rights.
This feminist retelling critiques the normalization of demonizing women who seek power, even if that power they gain is simply their own autonomy. Systems in which one group holds the power see the rise of the disempowered as dangerous and a threat to the status quo. It reveals the danger of reducing complex characters such as Kaikeyi to one-dimensional villains by ignoring events and situations that lead them to the seemingly villainous actions. Stories like Kaikeyi force readers to re-evaluate the pervasive narrative that women who confront and challenge patriarchal systems are inherently malicious.
Striving for Balance Can Result in Injustice
In both ancient mythology and modern mythology retellings, a common theme arises: societies are built upon the oppression of disempowered and marginalized groups. When a person within these groups attempts to gain power, those who have previously held the power or benefit from their proximity to power see that person as a chaotic force in a world of fabricated “balance.” The few that hold power seek to restore justice in a skewed manner that provides balance at the expense of those within marginalized groups. What, then, can these stories tell us about the true nature of justice?
We see this struggle for justice exemplified within the Legendborn series by Tracy Deonn, in which the main character, Bree Matthews, discovers that she is the descendant of both King Arthur from the Knights of the Round Table, and her Black ancestors who bound magic to her bloodline to escape the Arthur-descended slave owners. Throughout Legendborn and Bloodmarked, Bree grapples with the knowledge and trauma of her heritage, the tension between her magnanimous power, and the desire of those in power to maintain a position of control. Bree’s narrative underscores how her white ancestry is revered, while her Black ancestry is intentionally ignored or discarded.
Bree’s conflict mirrors the lived experiences faced by those within marginalized groups. Under white supremacy, Black bodies are used either as a means to an end or as a problem that needs to be solved to push the supremist ideals. In the face of Camlann where the threat of demons are ever-present, the fear of potential dismantling the status quo trumped the need to have a unified Table with a powerful Black girl at its helm. In this case, injustice prevails when the atrocities marginalized people face are ignored and dismissed, giving the oppressor the “green light” to continue subjugating said people.
The Vision of an Equitable Society
In modern fantasy stories such as Raybearer and The Maid and the Crocodile by Jordan Ifueko, we are able to see what it looks like to have an equitable society that allows citizens to have power and actively fights against injustice. In Raybearer, Tarisai’s quest to control her fate leads her down an unexpected, but welcomed, journey to dismantle entrenched power structures by challenging gender and racial inequalities, showing readers the work required to create a fair and equitable world. As Tarisai learns the true history of the Arit empire, she takes decisive action to correct its injustices to ensure that the disempowered do not remain in a state of oppression.
The story of the Arit empire continues through to The Maid and the Crocodile as we get to witness the aftermath of Tarisai’s reforms through the eyes of an orphan turned maid, Sade - a society that is in the beginning stages of meeting the needs of all its citizens, especially those most vulnerable. Even though Tarisai had a vision of a reformed society that keeps justice as a guiding principle, the distance between Tarisai and Sade is highlighted in their official meeting. Tarisai’s “outside looking in” vantage point made her blind to problems her citizens continued to face. Yet, this vision of a just, empowered, and equitable society, where leaders take the time to listen to the voices of the disempowered and actively seek ways to correct the flaws within their reforms, offers a powerful model for what a fair and balanced world could look like when leaders take the time to shorten the distance power creates.
Confronting the Status Quo
Fiction has often served as a mirror, reflecting societal issues and offering insight into the problems we often fail to acknowledge in real life. By reimagining myths and retelling ancient stories with a contemporary lens, authors can bring to light the assumptions of past generations and civilizations and set a new foundation for a more just society. As the stories of Kaikeyi, Bree, and Tarisai show us, when fairness is seen as a goal and not an obstacle, societies can begin to heal and move forward to a future in which citizens and people are nor longer facing disempowerment, injustice, and inequity.
These stories allow us to not simply look back at the past, but to use the past to inform our actions in the modern world. The myths and tales of civilizations are far from “ancient;” they are living stories that help to shape, and reshape societies that are more fair, more inclusive, and ultimately, more just.