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Chapter 5
Themes
and Colors
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Circe, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Power, Fear, and Self-Preservation
Women, Power, and Misogyny
Change, Initiative, and the Self
Mortality, Fragility, and Fulfillment
Family and Individuality
Summary
Analysis
Contrary to Circe’s expectation that she will be swiftly punished, no one comes for her. That evening, she hurries to the dinner feast. When she arrives, there’s a big crowd listening to Circe’s aunt Selene tell a story. Circe starts listening and realizes that Selene is detailing a horrific transformation that happened to Scylla: the nymph has become a 12-tentacled, six-headed monster who now lives in the sea. Circe is surprised to see that the other nymphs and gods maliciously rejoice in Scylla’s fate; the nymph had been a favorite in the hall for so long. As the whole hall revels in Scylla’s demise, Circe thinks back to when Prometheus was punished.
There is very little sympathy among the gods, as is apparent from their delight at Scylla’s terrible transformation. Clearly, being a “favorite” had very little to do with genuine appreciation or affection and likely had to do with her beauty, which she wielded as a tool to get what she wanted. Circe’s reminiscing of Prometheus connects her cruelty to that of Zeus; just like Zeus, Circe committed a terrible crime for personal gain. Circe’s transformation of Scylla reflects the same selfish cruelty as the rest of her family.
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When Glaucos arrives at the feast, Circe can tell that the rest of the hall can’t wait to tell him of the disaster that has befallen his love, Scylla. But Helios pulls him into another room. Circe follows and overhears them: Glaucos asks if Scylla can be turned back, and Helios informs him that no one can undo what another divinity has done. Circe finds herself hoping that Glaucos will mourn Scylla’s loss and pledge undying love for the nymph. But he shrugs off the situation and asks after another nymph.
Other beings’ suffering is amusing to the gods—they eagerly await the opportunity to destroy Glaucos’s hopes of marriage to Scylla, which once again demonstrates their cruelty. Circe wants Glaucos to mourn Scylla’s transformation because it would signify that he still retains his former tenderness and humanity. When Glaucos is unaffected and asks after another nymph, Circe realizes that the kind, mortal man she once knew is long gone, replaced by a cruel immortal.
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Circe is devasted. She knows that her future holds no happy union with Glaucos. She senses all the other nymphs and gods passing around her, and it strikes her how similar they all are. She recalls what Prometheus had told her long ago: “Not all gods need be the same.” The night of his punishment rises in her mind, and she remembers her relatives’ zeal as Prometheus was tortured. She knows that she is not like them. Prometheus’s voice speaks in her mind, asking what she will do that others won’t.
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While Helios is in conference with other gods, Circe announces that she used pharmaka to transform both Scylla and Glaucos. Helios dismisses her claim, telling her that the flowers she references were stripped of their properties long ago. When Circe doesn’t back down, Helios reminds her that if such magic existed, wouldn’t every god and goddess use it? He callously adds that Circe is far too insignificant a person to discover such power, even if it did exist.
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Circe keeps insisting on her guilt and the flowers’ power, even telling Helios that he is wrong. In a flash, Helios unleashes his white-hot rage on Circe and begins to melt her. He calls her worthless as she dissolves in agony on the floor. At last, she begs forgiveness, and he stops the heat and turns back to the other gods, blaming Perse for his children’s unruliness.
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Skin charred and bubbled like wax, Circe is unable to move from the pain. Helios and the other gods don’t pay her any attention. She finally manages to pull herself from the floor and staggers to some woods, where the shade and wetness are gentle to her damaged skin. Circe’s skin begins to heal itself at last. When night comes again, she goes to the field of yellow flowers. She plucks a few, hoping for some sign that she was right about their powers. While holding them, she feels again the humming that she had sensed before. For a moment, she considers eating the sap to see what it reveals her to be, but she is too afraid to know what her “truest form” might be.
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Circe’s uncle Achelous finds her the next morning. He informs her that her brother has come and that she must return to Helios’s halls. When she arrives, she sees Aeëtes, who is dressed in richly embroidered robes and standing beside Helios. Thrilled to see him, Circe greets him joyfully. He responds by asking what happened to her face, which is still peeling from Helios’s heat. Helios interrupts and demands that Aeëtes explain his visit. Aeëtes says that he has come because he knows of the transformations that Circe has done.
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Helios contradicts Aeëtes, telling him that Circe has no such powers. But Aeëtes insists that Helios is wrong and that he, Aeëtes, also shares these abilities. He names these skills pharmakeia, a form of magic based in pharmaka, herbs that come from both divine blood and from common plants. Pasiphaë and Perses, Aeëtes elaborates, also practice pharmakeia. Helios is dumbstruck.
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To demonstrate, Aeëtes takes out a small container, which contains a liquid that he smears on Circe’s face while whispering something that she doesn’t catch. Almost immediately, her face heals. Aeëtes goes on to say that this “is the least of [his] powers.” Additionally, because these powers come from the earth, they aren’t restricted by the gods’ laws. After a pause, Aeëtes acknowledges that Helios must discuss the situation with the other gods and adds that, if needed, he can perform some of his greater powers to Zeus. While Aeëtes eyes glitter “like teeth in a wolf’s mouth,” Helios’s expression betrays his fear.
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Helios confirms that he must speak with the other gods. He orders Aeëtes and Circe to stay in the hall until they reach a decision. Aeëtes assents. After Helios departs, Aeëtes asks Circe, who is both confused and hopeful, what took her so long to figure out that she is a pharmakis. Circe doesn’t respond but only repeats the word, unknown to all until now.
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The news of Circe and Aeëtes’s powers travels fast; by dinner, the other gods and nymphs avoid her. Aeëtes nonchalantly tells her that she’ll get used to being alone. But Aeëtes, it seems, is never alone; he still joins the other Titan gods, talking and drinking. After the others leave, Circe spends time with Aeëtes and asks him about his kingdom. He tells her stories of what he has been able to accomplish with his magic, but when she asks if he can teach her, he staunchly refuses, saying she has to discover it for herself. Although Circe wants to be affectionate with her brother, she holds back, finding him intimidating.
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After Aeëtes tells Circe that he has always known of his powers, she feels betrayed, but she can’t bring herself to confront him. Instead, she asks if he was afraid of Helios’s wrath. He tells her that he wasn’t, that he is smart enough not to announce his powers in a way that embarrasses Helios. He is also sure that Helios will see these powers as a tool to use against Zeus.
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Circe asks Aeëtes whether she has the same powers as he does. He tells her no, that he is the most powerful of their siblings, but that she does seem skilled with transformation. Circe dismisses his statement, declaring that it was the flowers that reveal one’s “truest form.” Aeëtes asks if she doesn’t see the coincidence that both Glaucos and Scylla became exactly what she wanted; after all, Scylla was just the same as every other pretty nymph. But Circe stays firm, saying that Scylla really was especially cruel.
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Aeëtes then says that Circe missed the opportunity to really punish Scylla. As a monster, “she always has a place.” She will be hated, but she will be famous and will answer to no one. Had she just been made ugly, she would have truly suffered. Pretty nymphs already have next to no power; an ugly one would be despised and rejected, doomed to live alone in obscurity. Meanwhile, after two days of conference, Helios leaves for Olympus. The tension in the halls is thick. Only Perse celebrates, proud of her powerful children.
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Helios returns in a blaze of light. To everyone’s relief, he announces that he and Zeus have reached an agreement. They both acknowledge that these powers are new to the world and come from the children of Helios and Perse, who looks smugger than ever. Helios says that they have decided that his children’s magic doesn’t pose a threat at the moment: Perses is far away from the gods, Pasiphaë will be checked by her husband (who is a son of Zeus), and Aeëtes will agree to be watched. Circe glances at her nodding brother, whose eyes betray his defiance.
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Helios explains that all his children discovered their magic by accident—all except Circe, who had been warned about pharmaka but experimented anyway. Circe catches sight of Tethys’s stony face. Circe will be punished for her transgression: she will be exiled to an island, starting tomorrow. Speechless with dismay, Circe looks to Aeëtes for a friendly face, but his expression is blank. Lastly, Helios announces his promise to Zeus that he will have no more children with Perse, whose gloating expression dissolves into sobs.
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The evening feast begins, and no one speaks to Circe, so she starts packing, although she’s unsure what to bring. While packing, she looks at a tapestry of a wedding that an aunt gave her, unsure of whether to bring it. Aeëtes stops by her room and reminds Circe that her punishment could be much worse: Zeus wants her to be a warning to others, but luckily, Helios has to show some control. After he makes a jibe about the folly of confessing, Circe sarcastically asks whether she should start “deny[ing] everything” like he does. He responds that she should. Her exile is her own fault, he says, because she was foolish enough to admit guilt.
As Aeëtes expresses his incredulity at her confession, Circe realizes that he won’t understand her decision because he didn’t see Prometheus being punished. She coolly thanks him for his advice and, looking again at the tapestry, decides that the family depicted looks stupid. She has always hated it and will leave it.
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