Book: Galatea
Author: Madeline Miller
Country: U.S.
Format: Print
Pages: 50
Publication: 2023
This is a short story about the Pygmalion myth, in which a sculptor falls in love with the statue of an ideal woman created by him.
I’m having a Greek Mythology phase, and Madeline Miller is very much to blame for this since it all started with her book Circe. After that, I also read The Song of Achilles and I’m now onto her last published book: Galatea.
As in her novels, Miller gives voice to people who are not favoured in the traditional Greek Mythology stories. In this case, we hear it from the perspective of Galatea, a character that’s not even named in the original tale.
“Everyone looked at me, because I was the most beautiful woman in the town. I don’t say this to boast, because there is nothing in it to boast of. It was nothing I did myself.”
Galatea
Galatea is a marble statue made by Pygmalion, a sculptor from the island of Cyprus. According to the myth, she was so pure and perfect that the sculptor fell in love with it. He starts to treat her as a real woman, kissing her, bringing her gifts and building her a bed. He then asks Aphrodite to make her flesh and blood, and she grants his wishes.
What Pygmalion wasn’t expecting, however, is that Galatea is not just the perfect form of a woman, but she’s also her own person. She has her own desires, ideas and opinions, and even though she tries to act the role of the perfect subservient wife, she can only play his game for so long.
“And then he pressed his lips onto mine. “Live”, he said. “Oh live, my life, my love, live”
Galatea
And that’s when I’m supposed to open my eyes like a dewy fawn, and see him poised over me like the sun, and make a little gasping noise of wonder and gratitude, and then he fucks me..”
Unlikely her other books, Galatea is not set in ancient Greece. The novel’s first setting is a hospital, and although the timeframe has not been specified, it’s clear that we’re in modern times. That disappointed me a little, I’m not a huge fan of modern retellings of ancient stories, it usually ends up looking forced and out of place. Luckily, Miller keeps this to a minimum.
I really enjoyed the internal monologue of Galatea, the contrast between what she presents to her husband and what she really thinks. We can see that she as much manipulating him as he’s controlling her. The end was also very interesting, I think the best fitting end this twisted story could have.
“…after, in the torchlight, he wondered at the marks on me, the red around my neck, and the purple on my arms and chest where he had gripped me. (…) “You make the rarest canvas, love””
Galatea
Overall, I think this is a worthy read, especially considering how short the book is. It’s not Miller’s most solid work, but we’ll have to wait a while until her next book. She had a 7-year gap between Circe and Achilles, and even though she announced a new book about Persephone (I’m really looking forward to that one), there isn’t much information about it. But I’ll keep you posted!
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