Heroines: Demigoddess, Prima Donna, Movie Star

by Norma Lorre Goodrich

The bestselling author of Medieval Myths and Ancient Myths traces the core archetypes of women in ancient history and shows how their stories have reappeared through the ages. A fascinating read, sure to restore a place in history for these women next to their better-known male counterparts.

Genres: Nonfiction, Womens Studies

320 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1993

About the author

Norma Lorre Goodrich, a prolific author, was an Arthurian scholar known for her unconventional theory that King Arthur was Scottish -not English or Welsh. She was a professor of comparative literature and writing for many years at the University of Southern California and the Claremont Colleges.

Reviews

[Jessica Morgan · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a dense read! It has a lot of information to offer and should be read more than once. Digest one chapter at a time. If you are into speed reading, this isn't a book for you.

[Hawthorn Mineart · Rating 4 out of 5]

When I picked this up I was hoping for a list of badasses and ass-kickers, and instead got coverage of all of the various archetypes of female characters. Which is okay, I guess, but depressing in that women have been portrayed as having so little agency for so long. The archetypes of female characters prior to 1997 when I read this pretty much sucked. Fortunately things are changing and the roles that in which women are cast in all types of media are vastly improved.

[Twila · Rating 5 out of 5]

Started in law school; took me 2 year to finish reading