The Character I'd Like to Write: The Classic Villainess Medea

Once upon a time back in college, I took a class in which we had to re-write famous stories into short stories told from the perspective of a lesser-known character. So.Much.Fun. The assignment that sticks with me is rewriting Euripides's Medea. I think I picked one of the boys to be my POV character for the class, but, man, I really wanted to tell Medea's story from her POV starting at the beginning--like the pre-Jason beginning. I contend that it's totally possible to make her a sympathetic character if given her own agency independent of the patriarchy filter.

Yes, I realize I just said that about a woman who murdered her children seemingly to spite her husband. That's after she sent a poisoned wedding dress and crown to the would-be bigamist's would-be second wife. Which is years after she hacked up her brother's body so her then-crush, Jason, could escape with the golden fleece.

Hey, there are people who cheer for Cersei Lannister too. Just sayin'...

That's probably why I tend to write strong female characters who can easily be viewed as villainous if the story is told from anyone else's perspective.